Cemeteries to Visit Around the World

Although it may seem morbid or, at worst, a little disrespectful, cemeteries are often some of the most unique and moving places to visit while travelling as they offer peace, beauty, historic architecture, and a unique view of a country's cultural history and present. It is doubtful that there is a country in the world that does not have at least one cemetery worth visiting, but here is a list of just a few (including a few personal favourites).

Père Lachaise Cemetery (Paris, France)

Pere Lachaise, perhaps the most famous cemetery in the world, is both Paris’ largest cemetery and park. Located in the 20th arrondissement, it is 44 hectares and is estimated to be the final resting place for anywhere between 300,000 and 1,000,000 people.

There are numerous famous graves to visit, including Oscar Wilde and Jim Morrison (closed off but still amazing), but one that shouldn’t be missed is the grave of ill-fated 12th lovers and intellectuals Abelard and Heloise who were moved to Pere Lachaise by Joesphine Bonaparte in 1817.

Waverley Cemetery (Sydney, Australia)

Waverley Cemetery is possibly the cemetery with the world’s best view. Located on the cliff tops between Bronte and Clovelly beaches, it has sweeping views of the pacific ocean and is within walking distance to Sydney’s most famous beach, Bondi. It is also of my favourite places to take a break while doing the infamous Bondi to Coogee walk.

Opened in 1877 and highly influenced by European cemeteries like Père Lachaise, Waverley Cemetery is huge and surprisingly still a working cemetery with about 60 burials a year and many more interments of ashes. Amongst the over 90,000 people interred are famous Australians such as poet and writer Henry Lawson and fellow poet Dorothea Mackellar.

Merry Cemetery (Săpânța, Romania)

Cemeteries, at least in the Western world, are usually dark and morse places with a severe lack of colour. The Merry Cemetery, located in the small Romanian town of Săpânța, couldn’t be any more different.

Established in 1939, Merry Cemetery has over 800 brightly coloured headstones featuring large true blue crosses. Each headstone also features a poem, many of which are funny and tell tales of cheating scandals and other stories filled with dark humour.

Highgate London Cemetery — **Even in rainy and miserably December people still find the time to leave some flowers out for the father of socialism.**

Highgate Cemetery (London, UK).

This historical North London cemetery is the final resting place of 170,000 and is one of London's famous 'magnificent seven' cemeteries. Although it is well worth the time and effort to visit all the magnificent seven (Abney Park is wild and wonderful while the oldest Kensel Green is great for history nerds), Highgate is the most famous and visited for a reason.

Karl Marx (who understandably has a lot of admirers) George Eliot, Douglas Adams and George Michael are all buried within Highgate's gorgeous grounds amongst ordinary and infamous Londoners. The cemetery is divided into the East Cemetery and the West Cemetery. While the East is free to explore once you pay the £4.50 entrance fee (a bargain this history lover took advantage of), the West is only accessible via a guided tour, giving you access to the Circle of Lebanon and Egyptian Avenue.

Okunoin Cemetery (Mount Koya, Japan)

Okunion is the largest cemetery in Japan with over 200,000 tombstones and is one of the country’s most sacred places. Dating back to at least 816 AD, the cemetery is the final resting spot of 20,000 Buddhist monks whose graves line a 2km long cemetery situated amongst a 1,200-year-old forest.

The ancient village of Koya-san, where the cemetery is located, is the birthplace of Shingon Buddhism and is also well worth a visit as the whole area is pretty much all UNESCO World Heritage-listed.

Glasgow Necropolis (Glasgow, UK)

Although perhaps not as famous as other cemeteries on this list, Glasgow’s massive Victorian necropolis is stunning and peaceful. Open in 1838, like Waverley Cemetery, Glasgow Necropolis was influenced by Pere Lachaise and features headstones designed by one of my favourite architects Charles Rennie Mackintosh.

The necropolis is a short walk from the centre of Glasgow and is located on the second-highest hill in the city which means it offers great views as well. Nearby Glasgow Catherdal is the oldest building in the city dating back to 1136 with much of the current building dating back to the 13th century. Dedicated to the patron saint of Glasgow, St Mungo whose tomb is located in the cathedral, the cathedral is one of only two in Scotland that mostly survived the Reformation.

Old Jewish Cemetery (Prague, Czech Republic)

As one of the oldest Jewish cemeteries in the world, the Old Jewish Cemetery is one of the most important sites in Prague’s Jewish Town. Although no one is quite sure when it was precisely founded, the oldest grave dates back to 1439, making it the oldest cemetery on this list.

There are over 12,000 headstones within the small cemetery. However, although it was expanded a few times over its 348-year use, the cemetery was still not big enough to meet demand, meaning some of the 100,000 people laid to rest within its ground are buried beneath others, sometimes up to twelve deep.

Tours of the cemetery are offered by Prague’s Jewish Museum and are fantastic, particularly as many people are important to Jewish history buried within the grounds.