Ever wondered about the strangest places in Europe? Sure, Europe is full of beautiful and awe-inspiring sights and destinations, but thanks to its smorgasbord of cultures, histories and peoples, it is also home to some truly fascinating – and completely bizarre – places; many of which need to be seen to be believed.
Over the years, I been fortunate enough to travel a lot around Europe and during that time, I’ve come across some very odd places. Here are some of the strangest places in Europe.
6. Strange places in Europe: a ‘fake’ capital city
If Skopje in North Macedonia is known for one thing, it’s its inauthenticity… provided that is actually a word. While still a part of Yugoslavia, the city was devastated by a powerful earthquakeĀ destroying much of the historic city centre. Fast forward to the early 21st century and Skopje is now the capital of a little-known independentĀ republic. In order to redevelop the city and bring international attention to the region, the government embarked on a controversial project named Skopje2014.
Essentially a frantic building spree, the project resulted in the frenziest construction of pompous neo-Greco buildings along the riverbank and the construction of statues to famous Macedonian figures in history. So many statues.Ā The result being that the city centre now resembles the vision of a tyrannical dictator – more North Korea than Southern Europe.
Read more: Why I just couldn’t like Skopje
5. Strange places in Europe: two towns in one
Surely one of the strangest places in Europe (if not the world) is the town of Baarle-Hertog/Baarle-Nassau.Ā The border between The Netherlands and Belgium criss-crosses madly throughout the town, creating pockets of Belgium within the Netherlands and vice versa, even dissecting streets, buildings and cutting houses down the middle.
The bizarre phenomenon means that this otherwise very normal town is actually two towns in one. Or, if you prefer: a town within a town.
Read more:Ā The Curious Case of Baarle-Hertog/Baarle-Nassau
4. Weird places in Europe: an Italian village in Wales
Portmeirion is probably most well-known for appearing in lists like this one. Designed and built by a wealthy (andĀ Iām sure we can assume, fairly eccentric) architect,Ā the village is modelled onĀ an archetypal Italian village on the Mediterranean. Ā The only minor difference being that instead of the shores of the Med, the village is located in heart of North Wales. Finished in 1975, the ātownā has no residents, but is run like a hotelĀ by a trust who charge a small fee for a dayās entry.
Portmeirion is also home to Festival No. 6 every September – a boutique festival of arts, culture and music that should definitely be on your bucket list.
Read more: 11 fairy-tale villages in Europe
3. Bizarre places in Europe: an abandoned city
I definitely couldnāt do a list on Europeās oddest places without including this place. A city abandoned just eight years after its construction due to the worst nuclear disaster in history. Visiting Pripyat is an incredibly strange experience, but a fantastic way to see how life might be after a human catastrophe.
Exploring the abandoned buildings slowly being reclaimed by nature was chilling, but fascinating.
Read more: Embracing Dark Tourism: a day at Chernobyl
2. Strange places in Europe: a religious hill
If you sat and thought about what things you might expect to see in the rural Lithuanian countryside, I don’t think the Hill of Crosses would be one of them. In fact, it seems more like something out of The Wicker Man. The site is a place of great national and religious importance: crosses were placed here as a form of demonstration against the Soviet regime after numerous attempts to bulldoze the site and the Pope even visited in 1993, making the hill an important place of pilgrimage for Lithuanian Catholics.
Despite this, the hill is mightily creepy. The sheer number of crosses is staggering and coach loads of visitors show up daily to leave more.
Read more: Lithuania: the best country you’ve never been to
1. Strangest places in Europe: a fictional city come to life
Elista is, without a doubt, the weirdest city Iāve ever been to.Ā Five hours drive from the nearest city, or train station, Elista is the capital of Kalmykia, or the Kalmyk Republic, in Southern-European Russia. It is the only Buddhist region in Europe, thanks to the ethnic Kalmyks, who make up around 57% of the population and can trace their ancestry back to Mongolia ā something that is reflected in their language and their religion.
There is a huge new Buddhist temple on the outskirts of the city, aptly named The Golden Temple, and a beautiful pagoda in the town square, dwarfing the compulsory Lenin. There are other Buddhist motifs throughout the city, which makes you feel like youāve suddenly taken a wrong turn and ended up in Asia.
But it gets stranger still.
The cityās other claim to fame is chess. Yes, chess. The Kalmyk Republicās former president, Ilyumzhinov, was the head of the World Chess Federation until 2018. And handily, heās also multi-millionaire. He brought the Chess Olympiad to Elista in 1998, making it an important centre for chess.
To illustrate this, thereās also a huge chess set in the main town square, which seemed pretty popular when we were there.
But wait ā thereās more.
To host the 1998 competition, Ilyumzhinov ordered a huge compound to be built on the outskirts of the city to house visiting competitors and a state-of-the-art chess school. This area still has an immaculate suburban feel and is known as āChess Cityā, or āNew Vasyukiā.
And if that wasnāt enough… not far from the city is a statue of Ostap Bender and 12 chairs. This is a reference to the classic 1928 Soviet novel The Twelve Chairs, in which a con-man Ostap Bender finds himself in a city obsessed with chess and vows to build the population a state-of-the-art city solely for chess called… New Vasyuki.
…ring any bells?
So, to sum up: Elista is the only Buddhist city in Europe in a Republic withinĀ Russia populated by Mongol descendants ruled by an eccentric chess-loving billionaire, who built a city devoted to chess echoing the actions of a fictional con-man. Cool.
What strange places in Europe would you add to the list?
I’ve been to Brighton Pavilion and it certainly is eccentric. That faux Kremlin looks hysterical. The more I read your posts about Russia the ore I think I need to go.
It’s not a place, but I find the recent fad of love locks strange. I remember being in Paris in 2007 and crossing the Pont des Arts every morning. It was bare. Now it is absolutely covered in padlocks! How did that happen, and more importantly, why?
It’s an Italian tradition I’ve heard made famous by an Italian film, but you find the same everywhere in Eastern Europe, particularly Russia. It definitely is odd! I think they’ve started sawing them off famous bridges.
The love-padlocks have now reached Liverpool, I can officially confirm!
We live in Europe (London) and love travelling around, but haven’t seen any of this. It’s a great list. I think I’d like to see the Hill of Crosses most – that sounds like quite an experience. I’ve shared this on our Facebook page too!
Thanks Sarah! The Hill of Crosses is a brilliant place for photography I think, there’s a lot going on in a very small space. I can definitely recommend the rest of Lithuania, too!
Hey! Nice list. I have not heard of Elista and it surely is bizarre!
I would add the Crooked House in Sopot, Poland – Krzywy Dome in Polish.
I have heard of the Belgian-Dutch town and about Pripyat. The Russian Disneyland does not look so bad. š
Oh wow, that crooked house definitely deserves a place on this list! Thanks for your comment š
The town in Wales sounds quirky & awesome, I’ll definitely be adding that to my list next time I’m in the UK.
Glad to hear it Aimee! I’ll actually be visiting again in just a few weeks.
The Russian Disneyland looks actually looks fascinating. I havent seen that kind of architecture here in the US that why I find it interesting. š
It’s definitely a unique building and a great place to go with your camera!
What a great list! I’m sure like many travelers the Kremlin is a draw card hard to resist – the colour, the architecture – just amazing! I’d love to visit Chenobyl – I don’t what it is about it, but the desecration and desolation intrigues me. And the Hill of Crosses – Bizzare!! Thank you sharing and adding a few more destinations to my ever growing list!
Happy Travels š
-Vicki
http://www.maketimetoseetheworld.com
No problem Vicky. The abandonment of Chernobyl is down to the worst nuclear accident in human history, so a visit there is fascinating but tragic. Highly recommended though!
wow some pretty coockie places on this list. Must admit i read this eagerly i love off beat destinations and you certainly have some here
Thanks Mark – these places are definitely unique!
Great list! I like the uniqueness of Vyborg, a relatively tiny Russian city with Swedish-Finnish roots located near the Finnish border. Tons of proud and fanciful Northern art nouveau, mostly empty streets, some amazing finds aside from tourist-beaten paths, ruins and almost abandoned locations in the very heart of the city that make you think of a postapocalypse world. Vyborg in fact is a blend of Russia and Europe but in a less imperial manner than SPb š
I went to Vyborg back when I was living in Russia, but I must say I found it a little bit disappointing – just not sure I got that Finnish vibe from the place. It certainly was a nice place for a day trip though – and to date is the closest I’ve actually got to Finland!
I think Skopje’s statues are one of the more bizarre things – the Macedonian president decided to ‘borrow’ styles from all over Europe and spent vast money on tearing down the existing architecture around the city and instead building statues of people like Alexandr the great ( and other not Macedonian things). He claimed it was to boost national identity and also to bring tourists (If the tourists like the Arc du Triomph in France, they will like one if we build it here).
In a true ‘build it and they will come’ moment…
It’s a bizarrely kitsch appearance
Hi Laura, thanks for your comment. I haven’t been to Skopje yet but I’ve heard about the Skopje 2014 project and find it pretty intriguing. Will have to get there before long!
I can’t believe Baarle actually exist! These places are unbelievable!