Atlas Obscura - Curious and Wondrous Travel Destinations

The definitive guide to the world’s hidden wonders.

The McGurk Effect shows just how weird the relationship between sound and image are in speech perception.

What Is the Hardest Language in the World to Lipread?

There's a whole lot we don't know about vision and speech perception.

by Dan Nosowitz

Place of the Day

Berggasthaus Aescher Wildkirchli

This 170-year-old Swiss guesthouse is best accessed by a cable car.

Floridians Are Eating Their State Tree to Help Their State Animal

Swamp cabbage is native, but a nuisance.

February 18, 2020

For Sale: A Sprawling Carriage Factory and the House on Its Roof

For the Madagascan Aye-Aye, the Rule of Thumb Comes in Two

The ‘Pie Designer’ Baking Up a Diverse Vision of America

How One Man and His Dog Rowed More Than 700 Kākāpōs to Safety

Top Countries

Top Cities

Edinburgh, Scotland

Death Cell Door of Calton Jail

Many of Edinburgh's most unsavory characters spent their final days behind this door prior to their execution.

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Santiponce, Spain

Amphitheatre of Italica

The first Roman city in Spain was also home to one of the empire's most impressive architectural feats.

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Oxford, England

Folly Bridge

The spot where Oxford garnered its name was also home to a medieval philosopher and includes a house covered in statues.

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New York, New York

Grand Central Oyster Bar

This subterranean oyster house has been the pearl of Grand Central Station since 1913.

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Edinburgh, Scotland

Gilbert the Phone Box

A former telephone box found new life as a photo booth and charity fundraiser.

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art & performance

Extraordinary Island: Puerto Rico's Hidden Wonders

From $1,970 USD

art & performance

Beyond the Quarter: Music and Reinvention in New Orleans

From $1,415 USD

Explore the rich soundscape of New Orleans, tracing the social, political, and spiritual roles these traditions have played throughout history and in contemporary culture.

art & performance

Santa Fe Weekend: New Art, Ancient Traditions

From $1,280 USD

Spend a weekend immersed in the rich history, deeply rooted tradition, and constantly evolving art-scape of northern New Mexico.

art & performance

Vienna: Salon Sonatas and Klimt Up Close

From $2,625 USD

Immerse yourself in Vienna’s rich artistic culture of past and present—from the historic coffee houses that have hosted creative salons for centuries to world-renowned musical venues.

Atlas Obscura's Wonders of FiDi

New York, New York

Walking the Hidden Wonders of Midtown

New York, New York

The Art of Solving a Cold Case

Boulder, Colorado

Inside Look at The Bunny Museum

Altadena, California

Inside the Holographer's Laboratory

New York, New York

Tour of a Shoemaker's Workshop

Seattle, Washington

The Spies of Georgetown

Washington, D.C.

Explore The US Lunar Space Program

Downey, California

Stargaze through an Apollo 11 Telescope

Berthoud, Colorado

Lost and Long-Gone Graveyards of L.A.

Los Angeles, California

New York City Clock Walk

New York, New York

Behind the Scenes at the City Reliquary

Brooklyn, New York

View All Experiences

How Ancient Tooth Plaque Solved the Mystery of the Banana's Trans-Pacific Journey

3,000-year-old microparticles prove the fruit traveled across the ocean with early Pacific Islanders.

Reina Gattuso February 17, 2020

The Man Who Turned His Home Into a ‘Mosaic Palace’

Yossi Lugasi spent decades making portraits of famous people out of smashed ceramics.

Gitit Ginat February 17, 2020

This 6-Foot Brachiosaurus Fossil Hitched a Ride With Two Clydesdale Horses

Their names are Molly and Darla.

Sabrina Imbler February 17, 2020

objects of intrigue

How a Trashed Italian Manuscript Got Sewn Into a Sweet Silk Purse

Book waste can be beautiful.

Jessica Leigh Hester February 14, 2020

The Legend of a Cave and the Traces of the Underground Railroad in Ohio

In 1892, a newspaper described a cave that sheltered 21 formerly enslaved people. Ohioans are still looking for it.

Kevin Williams February 14, 2020

The Carolinas' Mysterious Great White Shark Cluster Is Not Mysterious, Not a Cluster

They're just doing what sharks do.

Sabrina Imbler February 14, 2020

What Tiny Snail Poop Could Mean For Latin America's Coffee Farms

“I just followed a trail of excrement.”

Luke Fater February 13, 2020

How a Minnesota Town Fell In and Out of Love With Its Ginormous Geese

Like most human-fowl relationships, it's complicated.

Molly Monk February 13, 2020

Why the Suez Canal Is a Superhighway for Invasive Species

And the newcomers show no signs of slowing down.

Isaac Schultz February 13, 2020

Peregrine Falcons Came Home to Roost in a Boeing 737 Plant

After pausing production of the 737 MAX, Boeing will get help evicting its resident birds of prey.

Sabrina Imbler February 13, 2020

The Rude, Cruel, and Insulting 'Vinegar Valentines' of the Victorian Era

Nothing like getting surprise hate mail from a would-be lover on February 14.

Natalie Zarrelli February 13, 2020

An Inside Look at Czechia's Grueling Mountain Dogsled Race

Started in 1997, Šediváčkův Long is one of Europe's toughest winter events.

Winnie Lee February 12, 2020

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