An obsession with the unknown drives many travelers to the scariest places in the world. Sometimes it’s an abandoned place with a macabre past, and sometimes a quiet cryptic location haunted by the tormented souls of those already departed.
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We may live in an amazing and beautiful world, but that doesn’t mean evil and terror don’t lurk around many corners.
If you like the thrill of scary places or love the feeling of a chill down your spine, then you might want to check out these Top 10 scariest places in the world.
10. Room 217, The Stanley Hotel, Colorado, United States
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Not everyone knows about the most haunted hotel in America. The Stanley Hotel will give you the creeps, and all because of the paranormal activity that keeps recurring there.
The 142-room colonial property inspired horror novelist Stephen King’s, “The Shining”, and while the place is known as the Disneyland of ghosts, don’t expect to see Casper, especially if you’re in room 217.
Legend has it, that the room is haunted by former housekeeper Elizabeth Wilson, who was injured while lighting lanterns in the room during a storm in 1911.
It seems there is one ghost who can’t understand what the ruckus is all about because all she wants is to keep doing her job.
But that’s not all, the hotel is famous for cupboards flying open at night, lights flickering, shadowy figures in dark corridors, and eerie laughter. One of the scariest places in the world.
9. Demolition World
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Can there be anything creepier than what you’re seeing right now? You’re in Demolition World, a surreal town that doesn’t even make sense but can scare you shirtless.
Demolition World in Invercargill, New Zealand, is a ghost town made from recycled stuff , mangled mannequins, and a lot of discarded trash.
But, whoever designed it, has a bizarre sense of humor, because rooms like these in Demolition World freak people out instantly.
It conjures up images of zombies and movies like Child’s Play, where you’re half expecting one of those creepy-looking dolls to come alive and attack you.
Truly, the stuff of nightmares.
8. Stull Cemetery, Douglas, Kansas
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If you’ve seen Discovery’s famous TV series, A Haunting, then you’ll know how evil spirits could follow you home from a cemetery.
Stull Cemetery in Douglas Kansas is the kind of place that you might not want to venturein during the dark. The cemetery is known as one of the “Seven Gates to Hell”.
The Stull Cemetery became the subject of high drama and controversy when a Kansas University student in 1974 claimed the devil himself appeared there on two occasions, on Halloween, and the spring equinox.
Whether telling the truth or not, this is not the type of cemetery where you’d want to sit and enjoy a moment of peace.
7. Beelitz-Heilstätten Hospital, Germany
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Nothing can be more disturbing than an abandoned military hospital that conjures up images of men screaming with missing limbs. The Beelitz-Heilstätten Hospital, in Germany, is an alarming place if there ever was one.
It was initially used as a tuberculosis sanatorium between 1898 to 1930 and served as a hospital for mustard gas victims and wounded soldiers during World War 1.
In World War II, it was a major center for Nazi Soldiers and was subsequently converted into a Soviet Military Hospital in 1945. Today, the complex is mostly abandoned, though some parts are used as a neurological rehabilitation center.
6. Haw Par Villa, Singapore
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If you’re wondering what an amusement park is doing on a list of eerie places, wait till you see what the demented organizers concocted for children.
The 82-year-old, Haw Par Villa, is one of the most bizarre theme parks – completely the opposite of Disneyland. Its colorful Chinese arches will enamor you, but once you step inside, it’s like a horrorshow that only nightmares are made of.
In a freakish sense of morality, organizers have placed images of torture, like people getting lashed, and executed, and several modes of punishment, justifying what could happen if a child commits crimes, like not doing their homework or cheating on exams.
The Hall of Horrors is aptly named the Ten Courts of Hell, and whichever crazy mind thought of such ways to traumatize kids is going there.
5. Capuchin Catacombs, Palermo, Italy
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It is one of the strangest, but most frightening places on earth, and yet the Capuchin catacombs in Paris are amongst the most famous, too.
From Salzburg to Paris, there are several catacombs, but the ones in Sicily called the Capuchin Catacombs, are not for the fainthearted, because this is a real-life nightmare.
The macabre scene of seeing skeletons dressed suited and booted, conjuring images of when they were placed there as fresh dead bodies, is enough to send a chill up your spine.
Originally intended only as a burial tomb for Capuchin Monks in the 16th century, the local populace got wind of it, and then everyone wanted their place in this deathly hall of fame. The underground tombs contain 8000 skeletons, ranging from men, women, and children.
4. Veijo Rönkkönen Sculpture Garden, Parikkala, Finland
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Once you set foot into the Veijo Rönkkönen Sculpture Garden in Finland, I guarantee you will never sleep peacefully again.
Veijo Rönkkönen was a contemporary folk artist in Finland who lived life as a recluse to the point of refusing to showcase his work, keeping his sculptures concealed in his backyard and garden.
The sculptures are so crazy and creepy, that one wonders what exactly was going through the artist’s mind. The sculptures eerily depict humans in contorted, convulsive, and macabre yoga poses, some grinning devilishly and some hidden behind trees peeping out like voyeurs.
Many of the figures that have sunken eyes are regarded by experts as self-portraits of the artist, but if you ask me, it looks like a scene from Dante’s Inferno.
3. Chaonei No. 81, Beijing
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If you’re looking for portals to hell on earth, then this could well be one of them.
Just standing on the outside looking at the façade of Chaonei No. 81, abounds with ghost stories, will give you shivers.
Also known as Chaonei Church, the most notorious ghost among them being the spirit of a woman who hung herself inside, and a British priest who tried converting the house into a church, but soon after went missing.
It was reported that the building was owned by Beijing’s Roman Catholic Archdiocese, which wanted to turn it into the Vatican embassy in China, but clearly, the Devil was not pleased.
2. Island of the Dolls, Mexico
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For some reason, dolls can be creepy, and to be among hundreds of them with arms and legs missing, or eyes popping out, can freak you out.
Mexico’s Isla de las Muñecas, or “Island of Dolls,” is located in the Xochimilco canals south of Mexico City, and has for some bizarre reason become a revered tourist attraction.
Local legend has it that a girl drowned in the local canal and was found clutching a doll. It was the owner of the island, Julian Santana Barrera, who found her body.
Barrera reported seeing the girl’s ghost on several occasions, and so began hanging dolls around the island to please her. Soon, thousands of dolls appeared strung up on trees placed by people wanting to do the same.
1. Sedlec Ossuary, Kutná Hora, Czech Republic
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With all due respect, here’s one of the scariest places in the world that no amount of praying could help.
What happens when you’re peacefully wandering about a catholic chapel like the Sedlec Ossuary in Kutná Hora, Czech Republic, and you’re confronted with a scene that looks like a voodoo shop?
You’ll find stacks of bones and skulls placed on pillars topped with little angels, skeletons hanging from chandeliers, and streamers across the ceiling.
There is something truly weird going on here, which makes you wonder if you’ve stepped into a portal to hell. The chapel contains bones of 40,000 people, arranged artistically as ornate decorations to spruce up the look of the interiors.
So which location fascinated you the most from the list of these scariest places in the world? Comment below.
