When growing up, I think every vacation we took was the worst vacation ever, except when we went to Disneyland. That was pretty cool. Looking back though, our vacations could have been much, much worse. Take a look at these 9 destinations that you want to stay far away from!
1. Alnwick Poison Garden, England
So when it comes to gardens, you think of lush grounds covered in gorgeous plants. Well this is kind of what this place is, but all of the plants are poisonous and will kill you! They are so poisonous they have to be kept behind bars.
2. Buford, Wyoming
While Buford isn’t as terrifying as some of these other places, why would you want to go on a vacation where there is only the population of 1! There were 2, but recently the sign was changed to 1. When driving along Interstate 80 in Wyoming, don’t blink or you may miss Buford all together.
3. Izu Island, Japan
The Izu Islands are located off the southern coast of Japan’s Honshu Island. As if kids in masks aren’t creepy enough, residents of this volcanic island are required to wear gas masks at all times due to the constant smell of sulfur and the air containing dangerously high levels of gas. The island has been evacuated twice in recent history, once in 1953 and then again in 2000.
4. The Zone of Alienation, Ukraine
The Zone of Alienation can be found in Ukraine. It’s a 19-mile decommissioned perimeter that currently surrounds the grounds of the Chernobyl incident. While it looks vacant, there were a few hundred residents that refused to move even though their government did a mandatory evacuation. I think I’m okay not going here and seeing what has happened to these residents that chose to stay.
5. Ilha de Queimada Grande, Brazil
While Brazil has a lot to offer, there are a few things that make me not want to visit anytime soon. Ilha de Queimada Grande means Snake Island. It has the highest concentration of snakes in the world located on this island! There are approximately 1-5 golden lanceheads per square meter. And lanceheads aren’t the type of snake you want to run into, they are very poisonous.
6. The Great Pacific Garbage Patch
More commonly known as The Patch, this is a large mass of trash located in the middle of the Pacific. It contains plastic bottles, chemical sludge, and who knows what else! This giant mass is estimated to be about the size of Texas! Another reminder of why we shouldn’t ever litter.
7. Ramree Island, Burma
While Burma is a very beautiful place, Ramree Island is not even close to beautiful. Full of swamp land that contains THOUSANDS of saltwater crocodiles (the most deadly in the world). Not only do they have tons of crocodiles, they have tons of mosquitoes that carry malaria and also venomous scorpions. During World War 2, there was a 6 week-long battle on Ramree Island. Only 20 Japanese soldiers survived out of the 1000 that were sent there. The main cause of death wasn’t war. It was wildlife!
8. St. Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha
While an island with a small population might sound like a perfect location for a vacation, that is not always true. St. Helena is located in the Atlantic Ocean between South America & Africa. The only way you can get on or off the island is by container ships, which usually come from South Africa. But then again they only come by every few months. I really hope the tide doesn’t start to rise anytime soon!
9. Mud Volcanoes of Azerbaijan
While volcanoes can be scary thanks to rushing hot lava, mud volcanoes aren’t necessarily as dangerous, but they aren’t pretty either. These volcanoes only erupt every 20 years or so but when they do, they shoot flames hundreds of feet into the sky and deposit a lot of mud near where the volcanoes are located. Mud bath anyone?
Would you be willing to go to any of these locations? I think I’ll pass and try to plan a vacation somewhere a little more enjoyable.