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Featured Trips and Courses

Hidden Japan: Sado Island, Nara & Kyoto

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10 Places That Feel Like Journeying Back in Time

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Who needs a time machine?

By Atlas Obscura November 12, 2024

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Hidden Japan: Sado Island, Nara & Kyoto

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Where to Wander: Atlas Obscura’s Best Places to Visit in the New Year

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By Atlas Obscura November 12, 2024

The Controversial Hams That Helped a French Cathedral Save Its Organ

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By Emily Monaco December 26, 2024

Our Favorite Holiday Cocktail Recipes and Stories

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By Roxanne Hoorn December 24, 2024
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Hidden Wonders

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A turquoise Lago Coatepeque.
Place of the Day

Lago Coatepeque

El Salvador

This color-changing crater lake in El Salvador is occasionally impenetrable to sunlight.

Added By
Colleen Kelly
Featured Most Recent
  • The Lacrosse Players, by Elmer P. Petersen, was dedicated in 1981.

    La Crosse, Wisconsin

    'The Lacrosse Players'

    This downtown statue pays tribute to the Native American game that gave the city of La Crosse its name.

    Added By
    Ian Lefkowitz
  • Colorful, design forward displays.

    Tokyo, Japan

    Museum of Package Culture

    Discover the past, present, and future of packaging in this unique Japanese museum.

    Added By
    Anne Jones
  • Santa's cabin outside of Uummannaq

    Uummannaq, Greenland

    Santa's House

    Danish children are taught that Santa lives in Greenland, at this exact cabin.

    Added By
    CrabSauce
  • Fun!!

    Chickasha, Oklahoma

    Chickasha Leg Lamp

    A 50-foot-tall replica of the infamous lamp from 'A Christmas Story' illuminates this small town.

    Added By
    Kenneth Hagedorn
  • Gingerbread-making tools on display inside Pfefferkuchenmuseum Pulsnitz.

    Pulsnitz, Germany

    Pfefferkuchenmuseum Pulsnitz

    An aromatic exploration of the rich history and flavors of this German town's famous gingerbread.

    Added By
    Herman Purrmann the German
  • The restaurant is home to the longest bar in Westminster.

    Westminster, Colorado

    Aspen Lodge Bar & Grill

    Have a heavy metal Christmas at this bizarre Turkish-American restaurant.

    Added By
    Mike Walker
  • Looking across the circular structure of Pamashto, with the two solstice-aligned openings.

    Pamashto, Peru

    Ceremonial Center of Pamashto

    A circle of stones on a hilltop in Peru’s high jungle, aligned with the winter solstice and largely ignored by archaeologists.

    Added By
    Tony Dunnell
  • Chandler's tumbleweed Christmas tree.

    Chandler, Arizona

    Tumbleweed Christmas Tree

    Every Christmas, one Arizona city makes the most of its dry climate by creating an arid desert tannenbaum.

    Added By
    Eric Grundhauser
  • Grandfather and Grandmother Rocks.

    Tambon Maret, Thailand

    Grandfather and Grandmother Rocks (Hin Ta Hin Yai) หินตา หินยาย

    This natural rock formation has an anatomical aesthetic.

    Added By
    Leland Moore
  • Learn about all aspects of the seltzer-making process.

    Brooklyn, New York

    Brooklyn Seltzer Museum

    Try an original egg cream at this museum located inside one of the last surviving old-fashioned seltzer factories in America.

    Added By
    Huebschfrau
  • The city pillar

    Vientiane, Laos

    Hor Lak Muang

    The site of an ancient city pillar that was lost and rediscovered.

    Added By
    katielou106
  • Tōno is known for its kappa folklore.

    Tōno City, Japan

    Kappabuchi Pool

    Visitors are encouraged to fish for water goblins at this haunted pool.

    Added By
    Fred Cherrygarden
  • Face of Nakpil-Bautista house

    Manila, Philippines

    Bahay Nakpil-Bautista

    A century-old ancestral home was home to some of the key figures of the Philippine Revolution.

    Added By
    Jon Opol
  • Albany, New York

    The Largest Walmart in America

    The largest Walmart Supercenter in the United States, referred to affectionately as “Mallmart,” has served the residents of Albany, New York, since 1994.

    Added By
    Micah Schneider
  • For nearly a century, this restaurant has only served steak-frites.

    Geneva, Switzerland

    Café de Paris

    The birthplace of a famous steak sauce still keeps its recipe a secret.

    Added By
    CoolCrab
  • The Spitfire Visitor Centre.

    Blackpool, England

    Spitfire Visitor Centre

    See reconstructed Spitfires and other World War II-era planes in a hangar originally used by the Royal Air Force.

    Added By
    Dark Nebula Deluxe
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The Yule Cat (or Jólakötturinn) serves as a warning for children to not misbehave, much like the threat of coal for naughty children on Christmas.

vikings

Beware the Yule Cat, Iceland’s Child-Eating Christmas Monster

But if you’re wearing new clothes, you have nothing to fear from Jólakötturinn.

Read more
Written By
Suzie Dundas
December 22, 2023
  • So sweet and adorable, you almost forget it's based on an ancient bloodsucking sea creature.

    food

    Meet the Sweet Sea Monster of Portuguese Christmas

    By Dania Rodrigues

  • Winds from the surrounding plateaus create an ideal environment for curing ham.

    churches

    The Controversial Hams That Helped a French Cathedral Save Its Organ

    By Emily Monaco

  • ancient

    Romans Once Filled the Colosseum With Water and Staged an Epic Mock Sea Battle

    By Tao Tao Holmes

  • Nicknamed the "Christmas Tree Boat," the evergreen-laden Rouse Simmons disappeared beneath Lake Michigan waters in November 1912.

    ships

    The ‘Christmas Tree Boat’ Shipwreck That Devastated 1912 Chicagoans

    By Jonathan Feakins

  • Published in the January 4, 1957, edition of Collier's magazine, "Christmas Party" was a murder mystery novella written by Rex Stout where oddball detective Nero Wolfe has to figure out who killed an esteemed furniture designer.

    murder

    How Christmas Murder Mysteries Became a U.K. Holiday Tradition

    By Eleanor Davis

  • The Schiachperchten traditionally scare away bad fortune.

    christmas

    Krampus Has Come and Gone. Next Up, the Perchten.

    By Joy Anderson

  • A 1914 illustration by John Bauer from the Swedish fairy-tale collection Bland Tomtar och Troll, meaning "Among Gnomes and Trolls."

    witchcraft

    The Real-Life Origins of Taboo Fairy Romance

    By Andrew Coletti

Årsgång is the Swedish tradition of a solitary, night-time walk in the forest is just one of many spooky folk stories surrounding the New Year.

witchcraft

Spooky Winter Holiday Lore: Our Favorite Reads

From Christmas goblins to a New Year’s ghost-horse, these creepy tales are sure to keep you in the holiday spirit.

Read more
Written By
Roxanne Hoorn
December 27, 2024
  • Winds from the surrounding plateaus create an ideal environment for curing ham.

    churches

    The Controversial Hams That Helped a French Cathedral Save Its Organ

    By Emily Monaco

  • One could say pine needles look a lot like cleaning bristles.

    trees

    5 Unconventional Christmas Tree Stories

    By Roxanne Hoorn

  • 'Tis the season for very festive cocktails.

    holiday

    Our Favorite Holiday Cocktail Recipes and Stories

    By Diana Hubbell

  • A mine shaft elevator that descends some 3 kilometers underground offers scientists a glimpse of ancient Earth.

    science

    Searching for 'Dark Oxygen' in One of the World's Deepest Mines

    By Alice Sun

  • During Hanal Pixán, Mérida's Paseo de las Ánimas (Walk of Souls) ends in a plaza lined by altars with food for dead loved ones.

    exploration

    What Atlas Obscura Staffers Ticked Off Their Bucket Lists This Year

    By Sam O'Brien

  • Less terrifying than a traditional Krampuslauf, these breads are a holiday treat.

    holidays

    Make Krampus Bread This Holiday Season

    By Diana Hubbell

  • Enjoy stunning winter vistas on horseback at Saddleback Ranch

    forests

    Not Your Average Snow Day: 8 Wild Ways to Experience Winter Fun in Colorado

    Sponsored by Visit Colorado

View all Stories

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