7 forbidden places in the world where a tourist will not set foot

The world is full of amazing places for which tourists are ready to travel thousands of kilometers just to see them with their own eyes.

Natural wonders, ancient monuments, isolated islands and historical mysteries attract seekers of the extraordinary in different parts of the planet.

However, many of these places remain inaccessible. Some of them would suffer from the crowds of visitors, others keep centuries-old secrets, others are dangerous to health.

Sometimes one has to come to terms with the fact that there are places where one cannot set foot. However, nothing prevents him from being curious, reading their story and searching for the truth among the dozens of conspiracies.

Take a walk through some of the scariest, most amazing and fascinating places forbidden to tourists in the world:

Lascaux Cave in France

Lasko Cave became world famous for its amazing Paleolithic cave paintings, which are believed to be about 20,000 years old. The images on its walls are unusually realistic (cats, deer, bulls), and is part of the UNESCO World Heritage List.

The cave was discovered in 1940 by several boys walking with their dog in the woods. Suddenly, their dog falls into a hole, and the echo of it shows that this is not a simple crack in the rock. After its discovery, the cave has been open for visitors for several years, but the weather has led to a rapid deterioration in the quality of paintings, so since 1963 it is officially banned. Next to it is a copy of the original with a museum attached to it, where you can see replicas of the drawings and experience the excitement of the discovery.

Snake Island in Brazil

About 150 km off the coast of Sao Paulo in Brazil there is an island that not only you can not, but would not want to step on. Its name – Snake Island, is enough to straighten the hair of those who do not like reptiles.

According to scientists, here live between one and five snakes per square meter. The dominant species is the so-called golden snake, known for its venom so powerful that it literally eats the flesh around the bitten spot.

North Sentinel Island in India

North Sentinel is an island in the Andaman Archipelago, located in the Bay of Bengal near India. It is covered with forests, surrounded by coral reefs and in theory sounds like a place that has the potential to become a tropical paradise destination.

However, there is one small detail – the island is home to a local tribe that has refused to communicate with the outside world for centuries. Any attempt to moor a ship or land a helicopter on the North Sentinel was met with a torrent of arrows. In 1956, the Indian government issued a special law banning the approach of more than 5 nautical miles off the coast of the island. No one knows exactly how many people live on the island, and even official figures are only speculations (for between 15 and 400 people).

Ise Shrine in Japan

Shintoists in Japan have built more than 80,000 shrines across the country, but there is one that is not only the most expensive and exquisite, but also the most inaccessible.

Ise’s shrine is torn down and rebuilt every 20 years as a symbol of the Shinto philosophy of the death and rebirth of nature. The last time the building was erected was in 2013, and its price is said to have exceeded one million dollars. Only members of the Japanese imperial family have the right to enter.

Povelia Island in Italy

Given how close it is to Venice, it is unusual that the island of Povelia is off-limits. However, when you dig through its history, you will probably lose the desire to go through the complicated procedure for issuing an access permit.

In the 18th century, the island was turned into a quarantine zone for those infected with bubonic plague. At the beginning of the 20th century, the mentally ill from the area began to be sent to Povelya, and according to urban legends, they were cared for by a doctor who conducted sinister experiments. Today the island is abandoned – unless you count the rumors about the hundreds of ghosts that roam it.

The Apostolic Archives of the Vatican

Known as the Vatican’s Secret Archives, this set of documents is one of the most closely guarded secrets of centuries. The collection keeps government documents, letters, accounting documents and … few are chosen who know what else. According to conspiracy theories, there is evidence of aliens, the Vatican’s contribution to fascism and evidence of demons.

Today, only the highest-ranking scientists have access to some of the documents, after a thorough examination. Those who just want to peek out of pure curiosity have no right of access.

The tomb of Qin Shihuang in China

There is hardly a person who has not heard of the amazing terracotta army – thousands of incredibly realistic figures with unique facial features that fill the underground halls of the burial complex of the first Chinese emperor – Qing Shuhuang.

However, the emperor’s tomb itself is sealed and will probably remain so for a long time to come. It was discovered only in 1974 and a large amount of mercury was detected in it, which would be deadly for anyone who entered without precautions.

Photo: North Sentinel Island in India