21 Weird Towns to Visit Around The World
Think your hometown is strange? Check out our top 21 weirdest towns in the world! You may think your town is normal after seeing some of these.
21. Setenil de las Bodegas, Spain
Beginning with the least strange of strange towns, we bring you this lovely riverside area in Spain. It is a quaint town uniquely half carved into the surrounding cliffside, half above it. The small town is primarily a tourist destination and used for the cultivation of various mediterranean foods.
[See more pics of Setenil de Bodegas]
20. Roswell, New Mexico, USA
This small town in the state of New Mexico (USA) is also sometimes called “UFO Town.” Residents claim that an unidentified flying object landed in the town in the 40’s and ever since then, they’ve built the town around the phenomenon.
19. CITE, New Mexico, USA
This Center for Innovation, Testing and Evaluation was designed and is used entirely as an urban planning tool. The empty town is used to test security and emergency response systems, water systems, and other new and uncharted city planning ideas.
18. Rennes-le-Château, France
This is a small French hilltop village known to keep mysteries: hidden treasures, unsolved murders, rituals and secrets hidden deep in the roots of Christianity. This is actually the source of Dan Brown’s inspiration to make his controversial “Da Vinci Code”.
17. Centralia, Pennsylvania, USA
Located in Pennsylvania (USA), this town is more than slightly dangerous to live in. Not only is there a fire that has been mysteriously burning for decades; there is actually a bigger danger than that — sinkholes. Residents were encouraged to move out after a young boy slipped through a sinkhole in his backyard in the 1980s, but about ten of the originals still live there
16. The Federation of Damanhur, Italy
In northern Italy, there is a sort of underground city built based on the dreams of a humanist radical many years ago. The city has now flourished, famous for its unconventional beliefs and it’s extremely environmentally-friendly homes
15. Monowi, Nebraska, USA
Nebraska is home to a strange small town in which the population is exactly one. The once populous town has somehow died out, leaving only one resident who operates a bar and a public library for visitors, all on her own.
14. Lily Dale, New York, USA
There is a place just for those who feel they have a connection with other worldly spirits, and that place is in Lily Dale, New York (USA). Psychics of all kinds live there and even hold services for outsiders at times, charging a small fee for entrance.
13. The Villages, Florida, USA
This community in Florida (USA) demands that no residents be less than 19 years of age, and that each household must contain at least one permanent occupant over 55. The goal of the community is simply to provide the most peaceful place possible for retired folks.
12. Thames Town, China
Located in Songjiang, China, Thames Town is a simulated British city. The aptly named town has traditional English architecture, cuisine, and even those classic phone booths we all know London for. It’s a little piece of England right in the middle of Asia.
11. Coober Pedy, Australia
10. Supilinn, Estonia
This extremely small and quiet town in Estonia lives the simple life. See the little houses that lack advanced construction or the streets of the town which are named after various vegetables. Visitors can see why the village is nicknamed “Souptown”.
9. Elista, Russia
Most travelers to this city know it by its popular name, “Chess City.” The designer was obsessed with the game and made it the theme of the whole town. There is even a giant chessboard in the town square.
8. Maharishi Vedic City, Iowa, USA
From the name, most people would assume this small town is located somewhere in South Asia, however it is actually a quiet farm town in Iowa (USA). The quaint town is devoted to Hindi meditation and soul searching.
7. The Yellow Fleet
In the 1960s a group of ten ships from various countries were abandoned in the Suez Canal and instead of heading home to their respective homelands, the sailors chose to stay there and form a sort of micro-nation complete with outdoor activities and a mailing system between ships.
6. Battleship Island, Japan
This island, a part of Japan, is completely walled in by a fake battleship. It was unoccupied for decades, but had always been a curiosity of people who saw it on the horizon. Now the eerie island is dilapidated from years of disuse, but open to tourists who want a spooky tour.
5. Hell, Michigan, USA
This small town in Michigan (USA) makes every attempt to live up to its name (all in good fun). They have numerous spooky and devilish restaurants and tourist attractions, and as you might guess, Halloween is one of the residents’ favorite holidays.
4. Gibsontown, Florida, USA
Simply a popular vacation and retirement spot for circus folk, Gibsontown, has turned into the official home to many people who’ve worked in the circus industry. The town also boasts several unique exhibits and museums on the carnival and circus lifestyle.
3. Manshiyat, Egypt
This town in Egypt looks like the aftermath of some sort of natural disaster. Trash is strewn throughout the streets, but in actuality, this is pretty normal. The people of the town make their living by recycling what the rest of Egypt throws away, and they are surprisingly successful at it.
2. Dwarf Village, China
Located in China, this village is home to only little people. This might seem like a nice place, the only sort of place where they can feel accepted and not get second looks. However, it seems more like a tourist attraction at times.
1. Miyake-jima, Japan
This island town is composed of residents paid by the government to live there. Since the city is at the base of an active volcano, the inhabitants are constantly exposed to unnaturally high levels of sulfur, and can even be in danger of poisoning! Townspeople often are forced to wear gas masks because of the toxic levels in the air. Perhaps the Japanese government is trying to test the effects of such a lifestyle?
