Visiting cemeteries across the globe may sound macabre, but tombstone tourists know you can learn a lot about a city all in one place. For many school-age students in the United States, gravestone rubbings are a common activity in social studies and history classes. For others, grave markers are often the foundation of genealogical research.

Cemetery tours are not only for Halloween. You can tour cemeteries any time of the year and make it the focus of your trip or an add-on to your vacation or business destination.

Following are the more famous cemeteries around the world, and a few safety tips for taking a tour through a graveyard.

In London, England the Highgate Cemetery is one of the world’s most famous cemeteries. The grounds are beautifully landscaped and some of the famous people buried there include Karl Marx, George Eliot and Douglas Adams (author of Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy).

The Catacombs are 65 feet (20 meters) below the city streets of Paris, France and are made up of narrow, winding tunnels with a backdrop of millions of bones stacked into walls, pillars and statues. The ossuary — a room with the bones of dead people — was created in the late 18th century when major health problems in above-ground cemeteries forced the city to transfer contents underground. It opened to the public in 1809 after Héricart de Thury organized and built the site to educate visitors about religion, mineralogy, pathology and death.

Many travel to Oaxaca, Mexico to experience Day of the Dead (Día de los Muertos), an annual tradition to remember and honour deceased family members. Overnight vigils take place on the grounds of Panteón Antiguo de Xoxocotlán, a cemetery dating back to the 16th century. Tourists are invited to participate in the celebrations.

Saint Andrews Cathedral, built in 1158, was Scotland’s largest church until about 1561 when it was left abandoned after Catholic Mass was outlawed during the Scottish Reformation. As the church fell into ruins, the site was turned into a burial ground in the 1600s. Today, inside the still-standing precinct walls, 1,700 graves surround the ruins of this medieval church. The site is often visited by families searching for their ancestors, locals on their daily walk, and golf aficionados seeking gravestones linked to golf, such as golf pioneer Young Tom Morris and Sir Hugh Lyon Playfair, the founder of the Royal and Ancient Golf Club.

In Mount Koya, Japan, Kobo Daishi, the founder of Shingon Buddhism, rests in eternal meditation in his mausoleum in Okunoin Cemetery. While he awaits the Buddha of the Future, he provides relief to those who ask for salvation, making it one of the most sacred places in Japan and a popular pilgrimage site. It is also the largest graveyard in Japan and contains the graves of more than 20,000 monks. Monk-led nighttime cemetery tours are available.

The Mount of Olives Jewish Cemetery in Israel rests on the side of the Mount of Olives, offering incredible views of Jerusalem’s Old City. It is considered to be one of the holiest cemeteries on earth. It is the final resting place of Jews from all over the world who came to Mount of Olives to be buried in its holy soil.

The world’s oldest grave — a 78,000-year-old burial site of a 2- to 3-year-old child — is located in the mouth of the Panga ya Saidi cave in Kenya, Africa. The graveyard with the most celebrities is the Hollywood Forever Cemetery in Los Angeles, California. Cairo, Egypt is known as the City of the Dead — a necropolis with half a million living residents filling the gaps around the final resting places of 7th-century Egyptians.

Depending on the country, cemeteries might not be a haven for the dead — or the living. Criminals are known to hide between tombs and monuments to rob unsuspecting tourists. Older, larger cemeteries in urban areas may be subject to vandalism and late-night partiers.

Visiting cemeteries with a group of four or more people, particularly a guided group during the day, is ideal. Wear appropriate shoes since the grounds in a cemetery are often uneven, with sinking earth, tree roots and stone markers set close to the ground.  Most cemeteries have a flourishing ecosystem so be wary of underground insect nests, bats, spiders or snakes.

Written By David Koo

David Koo has visited several famous cemeteries around the world. He is a former combat medic and emergency nurse who is the associate director of operations for Global Rescue, the leading provider of medical, security, evacuation and travel risk management services.

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