PRYPIAT, UKRAINE
Nothing says 'holiday' quite like donning a radiation suit and signing a lengthy waiver releasing the tour company of any liability should you contract cancer as a result of your visit. Then again, Prypiat affectionately known as 'The Dead Zone' - is hardly your average holiday town. Established in the early '70s, primarily to service the nearby Chernobyl nuclear power plant, Prypiat's 49,360 residents were hastily evacuated one day after the 1986 nuclear disaster and it has remained abandoned - and highly radioactive - ever since. Yes, the rules of visiting are long (no touching of vegetation, no placing bags on ground, etc...), but not only will you get to see the land slowly reclaim the town's amusement park, pool and schools, you'll also be treated to both lunch (made from 'clean food from the outside') as well as a radiation screening on conclusion. Yay!
TIANDUCHENG, CHINA
Let's be clear; going to China to see the Eiffel Tower is like going to a brothel for a poetry gland slam confusing and disorientating. But if you're keen to avoid the eight million plus tourists who descend on the City of Lights like locusts each year, checking in at Tianducheng, essentially a replica of the famous city, might be your best bet. Located in the middle of farmland, work began on the luxury real estate development in 2007 with hopes that its 354-foot replica of the Eiffel Tower and Parisian-style cafes would draw hordes of both visitors and residents. It didn't happen and the town now sits eerily empty since development was halted. Still, it's worth a look.
BODIE, CALIFORNIA
This story is from the March 2024 edition of MAXIM Australia.
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This story is from the March 2024 edition of MAXIM Australia.
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