The Most Beautiful Abandoned Places in the World

Shrouded in fog and beguiling fall foliage in the Alaskan wilderness, the Kennicott Mines and surrounding town are (almost) as creepy as Packard Sawmill in Twin Peaks. The town of Kennecott was once flourishing with copper miners and their families until resources were depleted by the late 1930s and all of the townspeople fled—except for a family of three. It was totally abandoned by the 1950s when the family watching over it finally left.

Though well past its glory days, the international Canfranc train station in Huesca, Spain still leaves a majestic impression. It was once one of the most frequented train stations in Europe, and the second largest one at the time of its construction in 1928. It was closed when a train derailed on the French side of the bridge, but current plans to revive the station by 2026 could bring it back to its former glory.

Though you would never know from looking at its current state, Grossinger’s, in Liberty, New York, used to be a luxurious weekend upstate escape. In its heyday, it was similar to the resort in Dirty Dancing (some even say Grossinger’s was the inspiration behind the film). Due to an economic downfall in the town, the resort closed its doors in 1986.

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RUMMU PRISON, ESTONIA

Talk about apocalyptic. This semi-submerged prison has a dark past. Prisoners were forced to work in the quarry until it was abandoned in the early 1990s when Estonia gained independence from the Soviet Union. Without any people maintaining the area, it eventually flooded with water. Today, it’s a beach—so if this is your idea of a beach vacation, we recommend you get your scuba diving license first.

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HOTEL GORICINA, CROATIA

Hotel Goricina was once a luxe escape in a Yugoslavian military resort, which was destroyed in the Croatian War of Independence, along with a string of other hotels. Today, pink bougainvillea and the blue waters of the Adriatic Sea pop against the stark disarray of this abandoned Croatian coast hotel.

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HACHIJO ROYAL HOTEL, JAPAN

Located on the lush Japanese island of Hachijojima, Hachijo Royal Hotel was once one of the country’s largest resorts. The French Baroque architecture juxtaposed against the moss and overgrown trees is seriously eerie.

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BEELITZ, GERMANY

Creepy, sure, but the cheerful sky blue paint (or what’s left of it) and that pretty swirly window also remind us of Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory. Dating back to the 1800s, this complex functioned as a military hospital during times of war. The surrounding area was abandoned in the mid 1990s when Soviet forces withdrew from Germany.

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GEAMANA, ROMANIA

In the 1970s, copper mining took off in the village of Geamana in the Romanian countryside. When the mining created an enormous amount of toxic waste, the dictator at the time, Nicolae Ceausescu, mandated total evacuation (around 400 families) so the valley could be used as a toxic dump site. Though the town was flooded by an artificial lake and tons of toxic waste, you can still see this resilient tower poking through.