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The Atlas of Abandoned Places: A Journey Through The World's Forgotten Wonders
Explore the wonders that the world forgot with award-winning travel writer Oliver Smith - from breathtaking buildings with a dark past to decaying reminders of more troubled times
The globe is littered with forgotten monuments, their beauty matched only by the secrets of their past.
A glorious palace lies abandoned by a fallen dictator. A grand monument to communism sits forgotten atop a mountain. Two never-launched space shuttles slowly crumble, left to rot in the middle of the desert. Explore these and many more of the world's lost wonders in this atlas like no other.
With remarkable stories, bespoke maps and stunning photography of fifty forsaken sites, Atlas of Abandoned Places travels the world beneath the surface; the sites with stories to tell, the ones you won't find in any guidebook.
Award-winning travel writer Oliver Smith is your guide on a long-lost path, shining a light on the places that the world forgot.
The globe is littered with forgotten monuments, their beauty matched only by the secrets of their past.
A glorious palace lies abandoned by a fallen dictator. A grand monument to communism sits forgotten atop a mountain. Two never-launched space shuttles slowly crumble, left to rot in the middle of the desert. Explore these and many more of the world's lost wonders in this atlas like no other.
With remarkable stories, bespoke maps and stunning photography of fifty forsaken sites, Atlas of Abandoned Places travels the world beneath the surface; the sites with stories to tell, the ones you won't find in any guidebook.
Award-winning travel writer Oliver Smith is your guide on a long-lost path, shining a light on the places that the world forgot.
224 pages, Hardcover
Published October 11, 2022
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153 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
January 5, 2024
All continents but Antarctica have an abandoned site in this book. Some are clearly unnatural and very odd, some are more prosaic. The beautiful photographs are an important part of the book. They were not taken by the author. I can’t imagine he went to all these places or would have even wanted to.
Urban Exploration (Urbex) is now a very popular pastime. Places like unused subways, blocked off catacombs, and until recently Pripyat in the Ukraine are visited regularly. Other places are much more remote or difficult to visit. No matter why these places were abandoned, they attract. The photos here make them seem particularly alluring and freakish at the same time. My favorite photos may be the abandoned suburban chateaus called Burj Al Babas in Turkey. Before running into financial difficulties and competition from more popular ultra expensive places to live such as super high-rises in Dubai, these suburban chateaus promised lordly living. They garishly look like a cross between the Disney Castle x 100s and a bizarre suburb of Las Vegas. I recommend googling pictures of this odd place.
In his introduction, Smith states that most of these places, in different stages of ruin, are relatively modern and that he doesn’t include places more remote in time. These spots are relatable even in ruin. The book could have been more detailed but I enjoyed it very much anyway.
Urban Exploration (Urbex) is now a very popular pastime. Places like unused subways, blocked off catacombs, and until recently Pripyat in the Ukraine are visited regularly. Other places are much more remote or difficult to visit. No matter why these places were abandoned, they attract. The photos here make them seem particularly alluring and freakish at the same time. My favorite photos may be the abandoned suburban chateaus called Burj Al Babas in Turkey. Before running into financial difficulties and competition from more popular ultra expensive places to live such as super high-rises in Dubai, these suburban chateaus promised lordly living. They garishly look like a cross between the Disney Castle x 100s and a bizarre suburb of Las Vegas. I recommend googling pictures of this odd place.
In his introduction, Smith states that most of these places, in different stages of ruin, are relatively modern and that he doesn’t include places more remote in time. These spots are relatable even in ruin. The book could have been more detailed but I enjoyed it very much anyway.
October 26, 2022
“To step into an abandoned place is to cross a kind of threshold into the past- to time travel from the present day to the instant that people departed.”
In Atlas of Abandoned Places: A Journey Through The World's Forgotten Wonders, Oliver Smith highlights fifty abandoned places and structures found across the globe, from the catacombs of Paris, to wartime bunkers in Albania, to a Vietnamese theme park, and even entire towns in California, Turkey, and Australia.
While some of these abandoned places are found in remote areas, like the Aniva Lighthouse at the most southern point of Russia, others are more accessible, the old City Hall Station in New York, for example, can be glimpsed during the transit through Brooklyn Bridge Station. The reasons for the abandonment of these sites vary, from the destructive effects of a natural disaster, like the volcanic eruption that devastated Southern Montserrat, to financial collapse that left developments, including the Turkish castles of Burj Al Babas, unfit for habitation. Each place has its own unique story.
An award winning travel writer, Smith’s text is articulate and evocative. For each location he presents a description of the location and/or structure, its purpose and history, its present condition, and what its fate may be. I found the information about these sites, most of which were unfamiliar, generally fascinating and often thought-provoking.
The layout is consistent with each place featured over four pages. The introduction and text with a small image or two is on the left, a full page map showing the location on the right, followed by more text on the left and a large matte image or two on the right. In some instances I would perhaps have liked more images of the sites/structures, but they are easily found online.
I enjoyed browsing through The Atlas of Abandoned Places, this is a well presented book that both informs, and sparks the imagination.
“For places that seem lifeless, their lesson is that - in some form or other-life goes on.”
In Atlas of Abandoned Places: A Journey Through The World's Forgotten Wonders, Oliver Smith highlights fifty abandoned places and structures found across the globe, from the catacombs of Paris, to wartime bunkers in Albania, to a Vietnamese theme park, and even entire towns in California, Turkey, and Australia.
While some of these abandoned places are found in remote areas, like the Aniva Lighthouse at the most southern point of Russia, others are more accessible, the old City Hall Station in New York, for example, can be glimpsed during the transit through Brooklyn Bridge Station. The reasons for the abandonment of these sites vary, from the destructive effects of a natural disaster, like the volcanic eruption that devastated Southern Montserrat, to financial collapse that left developments, including the Turkish castles of Burj Al Babas, unfit for habitation. Each place has its own unique story.
An award winning travel writer, Smith’s text is articulate and evocative. For each location he presents a description of the location and/or structure, its purpose and history, its present condition, and what its fate may be. I found the information about these sites, most of which were unfamiliar, generally fascinating and often thought-provoking.
The layout is consistent with each place featured over four pages. The introduction and text with a small image or two is on the left, a full page map showing the location on the right, followed by more text on the left and a large matte image or two on the right. In some instances I would perhaps have liked more images of the sites/structures, but they are easily found online.
I enjoyed browsing through The Atlas of Abandoned Places, this is a well presented book that both informs, and sparks the imagination.
“For places that seem lifeless, their lesson is that - in some form or other-life goes on.”
September 4, 2024
This was alright. But just alright.
The photographs are good but the places chosen seem a little limited. I've seen other documentaries and online sources about abandoned places that are by turns beautiful and completely creepy. Smith's book seems to have missed them for more obvious choices.
A very middle of the road book.
Off for library donation.
The photographs are good but the places chosen seem a little limited. I've seen other documentaries and online sources about abandoned places that are by turns beautiful and completely creepy. Smith's book seems to have missed them for more obvious choices.
A very middle of the road book.
Off for library donation.
October 10, 2022
‘To step into an abandoned place is to cross a kind of threshold into the past - to time travel from the present day to the instant that people departed.’
This is an absolutely fascinating book! A trip not only through time but around the world with proverbial windows into abandoned places. This book features maps and interesting photography of ghostly places - some lost to nature, others to supposed progress. Each location has a compelling tale about the people and society it reflects.
Atlas of Abandoned Places details a range of abandoned locales throughout the world - ‘some are fallen monuments to impossible dreams. Others are ordinary houses and apartments.’ Featured locations include palaces, mines, trains, planes, hotels, theme parks, theatres, stations and military installations.
‘We emerge … with questions: who lived here, worked here? What were their dreams? And, selfishly, what would our own world look like decades from now, if it too suddenly became frozen in this instant? What would survive of us? What would wither and decay?’
Oliver Smith has spent years travelling the faraway corners of the world. A four-time Travel Writer of the Year award winner, he has appeared in Lonely Planet, National Geographic, the BBC, The Sunday Times and many more. Here, Smith writes beautifully and thoughtfully and I loved it. Each location includes informative descriptions that are both insightful and thought provoking. Also included is map coordinates, summary sentence, two page story, maps (world location and country specific) and multiple impressive photos. A fascinating and thought-provoking read that I highly recommend for not just coffee tables but also the brilliant discussions that are sure to ensue.
‘They serve as a postscript to cemeteries: a vision of our deaths not as individuals, but as communities, as a species.’
This review is based on a complimentary copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. The quoted material may have changed in the final release.
This is an absolutely fascinating book! A trip not only through time but around the world with proverbial windows into abandoned places. This book features maps and interesting photography of ghostly places - some lost to nature, others to supposed progress. Each location has a compelling tale about the people and society it reflects.
Atlas of Abandoned Places details a range of abandoned locales throughout the world - ‘some are fallen monuments to impossible dreams. Others are ordinary houses and apartments.’ Featured locations include palaces, mines, trains, planes, hotels, theme parks, theatres, stations and military installations.
‘We emerge … with questions: who lived here, worked here? What were their dreams? And, selfishly, what would our own world look like decades from now, if it too suddenly became frozen in this instant? What would survive of us? What would wither and decay?’
Oliver Smith has spent years travelling the faraway corners of the world. A four-time Travel Writer of the Year award winner, he has appeared in Lonely Planet, National Geographic, the BBC, The Sunday Times and many more. Here, Smith writes beautifully and thoughtfully and I loved it. Each location includes informative descriptions that are both insightful and thought provoking. Also included is map coordinates, summary sentence, two page story, maps (world location and country specific) and multiple impressive photos. A fascinating and thought-provoking read that I highly recommend for not just coffee tables but also the brilliant discussions that are sure to ensue.
‘They serve as a postscript to cemeteries: a vision of our deaths not as individuals, but as communities, as a species.’
This review is based on a complimentary copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. The quoted material may have changed in the final release.
October 10, 2022
To step into an abandoned place is to cross a kind of threshold into the past - to time travel from the present day to the instant that people departed.I love abandoned places photography. I enjoy poring over the photos for evidence of the lives of the people who used to inhabit the spaces. There always seems to be a haunted beauty attached to these places, as they gradually erode and nature reclaims them.
I’ve come to expect books about abandoned places to showcase a photographer’s favourite sites. This is the first abandoned places book I’ve read that’s been written by a travel writer. The images are stock photos, which meant I didn’t get get to feel like I was tagging along with someone who may have had to climb fences and find ways to get into buildings undetected. However, it also meant that, rather than the purple prose I’m used to reading in abandoned places books, the information that’s presented here captured my attention just as much as the photography.
Separated into parts by geography - Europe, the Americas and the Caribbean, the Middle East and the Caucasus, Asia, Oceania and Africa - this book explores fifty abandoned places, from trains, palaces and a theme park to entire towns. Each four page entry contains photos and a map, along with information about the history, current state and any future plans for the site.
I most want to explore:
* The Paris Catacombs, not the 1.6km (1 mile) tourist attraction but the network an area of about 320km (200 miles) that haven’t been entirely mapped yet. I want to see the places that remain undiscovered and unmarked by graffiti.
* City Hall Station, New York.
Two hundred policemen were called to hold back the curious crowds, and the Mayor of New York took the controls of the inaugural train. He had so much fun he refused to hand them back to the driver.
* Ciudad Perdida (meaning ‘Lost City’), Colombia. You’ll need to hike for four days to get there but the journey sounds as amazing as the destination.
Organized tours see participants traversing rushing rivers on rope bridges, passing waterfalls where hummingbirds dart through the humid air, and sleeping in hammocks listening to the night-time symphony of the forest.* Aniva Lighthouse, at the tip of Sakhalin, Russia. It’s desolate and remote, the perfect place to get lost in a book.
There’s a lot of very interesting information in this book. I’m always on the lookout for fun facts and all things strange and unusual. I found those here too.
For £99, you can buy your very own knighthood. It’s for Sealand, a country that no others recognise, but it’s probably your only chance to be knighted.
Bodie in California is a typo. It’s named after W.S. Bodey, a prospector from New York. If you visit, fair warning: don’t souvenir any trinkets you come across.
‘The Curse of Bodie’ goes that objects stolen from the ghost town have brought tragedy and even death to their new homes. Items are still regularly returned to Bodie in the post, with notes of repentance from sorry thieves.The grand opening of the Orpheum Theatre in New Bedford, Massachusetts happened the day the Titanic sank.
New York’s “City Hall Station provided the inspiration for the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles’ lair.”
For places that seem lifeless, their lesson is that - in some form or other - life goes on.Thank you so much to Hachette Australia for the opportunity to read this book.
Blog - https://schizanthusnerd.com
December 15, 2024
This book lists, with accompanying texts, close to 50 places around the globe that were once inhabited, but now abandoned.
Many were touching, like the Sarajevo bobsled track, used in the 1984 Winter Olympics, or Pripyat in Ukraine which was a town of 50,000, now uninhabited because of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster and fallout (and is expected to stay that way for 20,000 years (page 56)). There are also World War II airplanes scattered in Papua New Guinea. Less sympathetic is Hitler’s Wolf Lair in Poland, which he used as his headquarters for the invasion of the Soviet Union.
There is Fukushima in Japan, Bannerman Castle on the Hudson River which I have seen, and Bodie in California – an old ghost town, where I learnt the meaning of “601” – six feet under, no trial, and one rope (page 90).
An area, like Machu Picchu in Peru, is not in the book because it is now an accessible tourist site. Many areas described are difficult and arduous to reach.
There are no sites listed from China, India and alas, Canada.
Many were touching, like the Sarajevo bobsled track, used in the 1984 Winter Olympics, or Pripyat in Ukraine which was a town of 50,000, now uninhabited because of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster and fallout (and is expected to stay that way for 20,000 years (page 56)). There are also World War II airplanes scattered in Papua New Guinea. Less sympathetic is Hitler’s Wolf Lair in Poland, which he used as his headquarters for the invasion of the Soviet Union.
There is Fukushima in Japan, Bannerman Castle on the Hudson River which I have seen, and Bodie in California – an old ghost town, where I learnt the meaning of “601” – six feet under, no trial, and one rope (page 90).
An area, like Machu Picchu in Peru, is not in the book because it is now an accessible tourist site. Many areas described are difficult and arduous to reach.
There are no sites listed from China, India and alas, Canada.
January 6, 2023
This is fascinating! I love watching 'Abandoned Engineering' (not related but covers some of the same places) so this is right up my alley. I do with there were more pictures but that would have thrown out the formatting of the book (it is set out beautifully, it's not an actual criticism). I did not know about Wittenoom in WA and I live in Australia! I had no idea asbestos was mined here and the things they were doing. The photo of the Aniva Lighthouse on page 163 is just stunning and it make me think: are all lighthouses now obsolete? It never occurred to me before that GPS would mean the end of lighthouses. An interesting read.
February 21, 2023
I love reading books about abandoned places. I have read several before, but this is the most comprehensive book on the subject that I have read so far. Many of the same places feature as covered in other books, but there are a few included that I had not previously read about. This book contains maps, photos, and two pages of background on each location. My only complaint is that some of the maps are too zoomed-in, so it is difficult to work out the location in context of world geography. The writing is factual and informative, but sometimes waxes a little too poetical about the locations. However, if you are a fan of abandoned places, then this is a must read!
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April 27, 2023Super! just the sort of thing to pour over on a rainy day (or a sunny day to be honest) Evocative photographs and descriptions that capture the atmosphere of these places. Left wanting more, imagination fired up.
February 5, 2023
Didn’t know about lots of these so was interesting to read. And made me look up ont tinternet for better photos of some. Could have done with more photos…
March 22, 2025
Such an interesting book about places throughout the world that have been abandoned either by natural disasters or disease.
October 23, 2025
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Places I will never get to and some I would love to see. What a cool book. In addition to the locations, including latitude and longitude, there is history and many photos. Here is an example below 👇 As you can see from the photo they estimate roughly 750,000 of these garden shed sized bunkers all over Albania. Many are completely abandoned but some have been repurposed as museums, storage for livestock feed and more. They are from the Cold War era.
In England you can see some very interesting forts along the Kent coastal area. Guy Maunsell designed these forts, sometimes called Maunsell Forts or His Majesty's Forts, during WW II. They were desgined to guard Thames estuary and the coastal region
They look like they belong in a Star Wars movie. What a fascinating sight this must be along the Kent coast in England.
February 13, 2023
A very interesting collection of ghost towns, shipwrecks, ruins and nuclear accidents with lots of photos.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews