The Atlas Obscura Podcast

Fairy Circles (Classic)

22 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

We head to the Namib Desert in Africa, where the landscape is dotted with mysterious, pimple-like indents known as fairy circles. Where do these thing...

100 Years of the LA Central Library with Susan Orlean

21 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

The LA Central Library has always been unique. It doesn’t look like a typical big city library, many people didn’t want it to be built in the firs...

True Treats Historic Candy

20 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Candy scholar Susan Benjamin brings us to her research-based historic candy shop, and introduces us to some surprising sweets that have shaped America...

The Real Town Behind War of the Worlds

19 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

War of the Worlds by Orson Welles is perhaps the most famous radio play on Earth. But what’s left out of the story is where the play was set — a r...

Garbage Goat (Classic)

18 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

This sculpture in Spokane, WA was created by a"welding nun" decades ago.  READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/garbage-eating-...

Weekend Road Trip: The Bob Baker Marionette Theater

16 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

The Bob Baker Marionette Theater is a beloved place in Los Angeles, California. The theater almost closed down when its founder, Bob Baker, died in 20...

Temple of Pythons (Classic)

15 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

We visit southern Benin to hear the story of the Temple of Pythons and clear up some misconceptions about one of the world's most misunderstood spirit...

Walking the Johnny Appleseed Trail with Isaac Fitzgerald

14 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Isaac Fitzgerald grew up taking long walks with his father in rural Massachusetts. And on those walks, his father told him stories about legendary fig...

A Syrian Seed Library, Under Siege

13 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

When armed fighters captured his workplace during Syria’s civil war, Ali Shehadeh decided to pay them a visit. He was determined to save his life’...

The Paris Sewer Museum

12 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

We dive into the dirty history of the famed Paris sewer system, from its unorthodox cleaning methods, to a pneumatic postal service that ran via the s...

National Ice Core Lab (Classic)

11 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Scientists in Denver, Colorado store and conduct tests on miles of ice core samples dating back hundreds of thousands of years.  READ MORE IN THE ATL...

Weekend Road Trip: The Mark Twain Stump

09 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

In 1891, a knot of men murdered a 1,300-year-old tree to prove it wasn’t a "tall tale." We visit the Mark Twain Stump, a 16-foot-wide wooden stage t...

Enchanted Woods (Classic)

08 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

We go to Wilmington, Delaware, to a 4-acre garden with characters and exhibits created using castoff materials and greenery that invites kids to drop ...

Haw Par Villa (Classic)

07 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

This amusement park in Singapore holds the Ten Courts of Hell, a series of dioramas that depict the kind of horrible fates awaiting people who behaved...

AO Mailbag: Who Gets to DJ on a Long Road Trip?

06 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Producers Jerome and Johanna join co-host Kelly McEvers to answer questions about souvenir-buying stress, multigenerational travel, and what to listen...

The Lunchbox Museum

05 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Allen Woodall’s first lunchbox was a brown paper bag. Since then, he’s amassed a collection of over 5,000 lunchboxes, all housed in a museum in Co...

The Places Behind the Star Wars Franchise

04 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Producers India Rice and Morgan Johnson take you beyond this planet as they share two stories tied to the franchise Star Wars. Hosted by Simplecast, a...

Smith Court (Classic)

01 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

In Boston’s Beacon Hill neighborhood, there was once a revolutionary community for African Americans willing to do whatever it took to maintain thei...

The Merchant’s House and the Not-So-Secret Passageway

30 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Historians have known about the strange passageway in the Merchant’s House Museum for decades, but they never knew what it was for… until now. And...

The Emma Crawford Coffin Race

29 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

The townspeople of Manitou Springs, Colorado do something very interesting to celebrate the legacy.of a young woman who loved, lived and died there 13...

Rita’s Place

28 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Co-host Kelly McEvers doesn’t usually return to places – she always wants to go somewhere new. But there’s one place that makes her break her ow...

Wonder in Your Backyard: The Aztec Ruins

27 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

A listener shares a wonder from his backyard, this time in the small town of Aztec, New Mexico. Plus, we want to hear from you. Tell us about the wond...

Garden Week: Cementerio Municipal José María Azael Franco Guerrero

24 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

The José María Azael Franco Guerrero Cemetery in Tulcán, Ecuador is a topiary anomaly and a lush green paradise for the dead. This week, we’re ce...

Garden Week: Underwater Sculpture Gardens

23 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Jason deCaires Taylor takes intentional art to another level with his sculptures that can be visited by humans and fish. This week, we’re celebratin...

Garden Week: A Floating National Park

22 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Today we visit a hidden gem of Washington, D.C.: the Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens, an oasis of ponds filled with lotuses and waterlilies. This unusual N...

Garden Week: A Sound Garden

21 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

An orchard of metal poles sits on a hill overlooking Lake Washington. And when the wind blows, this musical sculpture "sings the world into existence"...

Garden Week: Alnwick Poison Garden

20 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

The Alnwick Poison Garden in England is a place where stopping and smelling the flowers could actually kill you. The garden is dedicated entirely to p...

Bone Vinyl (Classic)

17 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

In the Soviet Union, x-rays didn’t just give you a look inside the human body. They also gave you a glimpse of the outside world, thanks to music th...

The World’s Biggest Social Studies Assignment with Paul Barbato

16 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

As a young adult, Paul "Barbs" Barbato gave himself perhaps the world's biggest social studies assignment: make a profile of every single one of the 1...

Bean There, Baked That

15 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

In a storefront in Kearney, Nebraska, Morris Press Cookbooks Store houses a massive "Google of family recipes," chronicling nearly a century of Americ...

When In Rome… Accidentally Break the Rules?

14 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

We asked you to send us stories about a time you accidentally broke the rules while traveling… and some you really went there.  Plus, we want to he...

When Kelly McEvers Was In Over Her Head

13 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

As a foreign correspondent, Kelly McEvers has found herself detained by the KGB, held up at ISIS checkpoints, and on the front line in Syria. But it w...

Thomas Merton's Hermitage (Classic)

10 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

This little house in New Haven, Kentucky is where Thomas Merton aka profit-poet aka the rebel monk tried to get away from the world. READ MORE IN THE ...

A Short, Strange Trip

09 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

In 1971, five hippies made a trek through the Amazon looking for rare psychedelic drugs. One of them was Terence McKenna, who, along with his brother ...

Wonder in Your Backyard: Crabby Steve’s

08 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Producer Manolo Morales shares a story with co-host Kelly McEvers, about a legendary place in the backyard of our Canadian northern neighbors.  Plus,...

Jerry’s Hat Museum (Classic)

07 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

We visit Jerry’s Hat Museum, where a retiree has turned to an old chapel to house a collection of thousands of hats, pens, odds, ends and other arti...

AO Mailbag: Best Movie to Watch on an Airplane?

06 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Co-host Kelly McEvers and producers Johanna and Jerome answer questions about whether you should experience certain places with other people, the best...

Ganvie Lake Village (Classic)

03 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

A producer sits down with Dylan and recounts his trip to a place referred to as “The Venice of Africa.” READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlaso...

Tasting the World’s Most Unique Honeys with Marina Marchese

02 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Marina Marchese is a beekeeper and trained honey sommelier. She explains how honey tastes like the place where it’s made… and guides co-host Kelly...

Was It All A Hoax?

01 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Today, we are celebrating the spirit of April Fools’ Day with two stories about hoaxes. One is about a mythical creature in Fouke, Arkansas and the ...

Deadly Beard

31 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

For one sixteenth century Austrian mayor, a long, luscious beard was both his claim to fame – and the cause of his downfall.  Read more about Hans ...

The Farewell Spit

30 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Daren Grover was on vacation near the top of New Zealand’s South Island when he got a call: some whales needed help. Hundreds of them had stranded o...

Exotic Feline Rescue Center (Classic)

27 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Long before Joe Exotic got the country talking about big cats, there was Joe Taft – regular guy – who began raising and rescuing these types of fe...

Alone on the Alaskan Frontier

26 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

  What drives a person to live in isolation? Meet Sue Aikens, who thrives in the icy expanse of the Arctic. She shares stories of survival, self-disc...

Meet the Man Visiting 800 Museums in LA

25 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Todd Lerew has spent a decade visiting every single museum in Los Angeles. He chronicled his journey in his book Also on View: Unique and Unexpected M...

Alice Austen House

24 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

In the 1950s, a journalist doing archival research at the Staten Island Historical Society came across a collection of images that stopped him in his ...

The Barbican

23 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

You may have heard the phrase 'third place' being used more often as the world started opening up post-pandemic. People were craving somewhere that wa...

Tell Us: What Rules Have You Broken?

21 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

We wanna hear your stories about the times you’ve accidentally broken the rules somewhere foreign to you.  Maybe you went into a temple with your s...

Old City Hall Station (Classic)

20 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

A producer takes a detour for a glimpse of what some call New York’s worst kept secret – a train station that’s been shut down and sealed away f...

The Blue That Upended the Art World

19 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Cultural historian Kassia St. Clair tells the stories of two highly prized colors that are linked to specific places in the world: an exquisite, extre...

The Hummingbirds of Mexico City

18 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Catia Lattouf has dedicated her life to nursing hummingbirds back to health – from inside her apartment in Mexico City.  Plus: We always want to he...

Thomas Edison’s Last Breath

17 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Over the course of a century, the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, Michigan has grown to house over 26 million artifacts of innovative achievements. How...

Your Spring Break Travel Stories

16 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

We asked you to send us stories about your unforgettable spring break trips. From a U2 concert to a tornado in 1974, you delivered.   Plus, we want ...

The Red Book (Classic)

13 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

In the early 1900s, influential psychologist Carl Jung spent more than a decade documenting the strange images that popped up in his unconscious mind ...

The Family That Tried To Escape History

12 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

In 1978, a team of Soviet geologists working deep in the Siberian taiga came across something they never expected to see: a house. As it turned out, t...

AO Mailbag: How Shlubby Is Too Shlubby On an Airplane?

11 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Co-host Kelly McEvers and producers Jerome Campbell and Manolo Morales answer questions about places they could live permanently, how to navigate trav...

The Amargosa Opera House

10 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Marta Becket was an artist from New York City. Then in 1967, when she was on a road trip with her husband, she discovered an abandoned social hall in ...

Mr. Toilet House

09 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

In 2007, the beloved former mayor of Suwon, Korea, demolished the home he and his wife had lived in for 30 years and built them a new house shaped lik...

The Grave of XYZ (Classic)

06 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

We go to Deep River, Connecticut – where the story of a botched bank robbery more than 100 years ago has taken on a life of its own as an urban lege...

The Mirror That Reveals Your Truest Self

05 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

There is a mirror said to reveal the truest, most precise reflection of oneself. It’s called the Aranmula Kannadi. The tradition of mirror-making ha...

The Fish Doorbell of Utrecht

04 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

The Dutch city of Utrecht is built around an iconic canal lined with historic homes. But for the fish of the city, the view isn’t quite so picturesq...

Daylight Saving: Donuts and Mirrors

03 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Daylight saving time is nearly upon us. Today, we’re visiting two places with very different approaches to harnessing the sun. One imposes rules on ...

The Mystery Woman on the Beer Tap

02 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

We look into the story behind a regionally famous – and controversial – beer tap in Des Moines, Iowa.  Read Mandy Naglich’s article about Ruthi...

Lost Wonder: Lake Karachay (Classic)

27 Feb 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Lake Karachay in Ozersk, Russia is the site of a former secret Soviet Union nuclear facility - that’s inspired art despite the little that’s publi...

Lost Wonder: The Borscht Belt with Marisa Scheinfeld (Classic)

26 Feb 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Dylan is joined by Marisa Scheinfeld, a photographer who has dedicated years to exploring the lost and abandoned properties of the Borscht Belt: a str...

Lost Wonder: Moose Boulder (Classic)

25 Feb 2026

Contributed by Lukas

How far would you go to find the largest island in the largest lake on the largest island in the largest lake on the largest island in the largest lak...

Lost Wonder: Floating Freedom School (Classic)

24 Feb 2026

Contributed by Lukas

This paddleboat gave some Black children a place to learn even when they were denied formal education on land.   This week, we’re bringing your st...

Lost Wonder: Minister’s Treehouse (Classic)

23 Feb 2026

Contributed by Lukas

The world’s biggest treehouse was inspired by a message from God.  This week, we’re bringing you stories of places that, for one reason you anoth...

Tell Us Your Unusual Spring Break Stories

21 Feb 2026

Contributed by Lukas

We’re willing to bet that AO listeners didn’t go on the typical spring break trips. We want to hear your off the beaten track spring break travel ...

Old Cahawba (Classic)

20 Feb 2026

Contributed by Lukas

The Old Cahawba Archeological Park is perhaps one of Alabama's most famous ghost towns. But it once was the center of life in this southern state. We ...

LA: An Underrated Nature Destination?

19 Feb 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Maybe when you think of Los Angeles you think of mega highways, gridlock traffic, and urban sprawl. But our guest today argues that it is actually an ...

North Carolina’s Hellbenders

18 Feb 2026

Contributed by Lukas

A giant salamander has been lurking in the rivers and streams of Appalachia for more than a hundred million years.  And in just the last few years –...

The Heritage Walk

17 Feb 2026

Contributed by Lukas

We go to Tallahassee and learn the incredible civil rights history of Florida's capitol city.   Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.ads...

An Unforgettable Stay

16 Feb 2026

Contributed by Lukas

DESCRIPTION: We asked you to send us stories about the places where you’ve stayed the night – some of you had some interesting experiences that l...

Vent Haven Museum (Classic)

13 Feb 2026

Contributed by Lukas

This museum in Kentucky is either your dream place or your nightmare, depending on how you feel about dummies. Because there are more than 500 of them...

Kelly McEvers and New Mexico: A Love Story

12 Feb 2026

Contributed by Lukas

As we approach Valentine’s Day, Atlas Obscura co-host Kelly McEvers shares two stories about a state that has a special place in her heart: New Mexi...

This "Burning Town” Is Thriving

11 Feb 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Centralia, Pennsylvania also attained a sort of cult favorite status -- often discussed a place you cannot and should not visit. But in this episode, ...

Meet the Woman Visiting Every Museum in NYC

10 Feb 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Jane August has set a goal to visit every single one of NYC’s roughly 200 museums. She’s chronicling her journey on TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram...

Planting Seeds for the Future

09 Feb 2026

Contributed by Lukas

In honor of Black History Month, we are bringing you two stories about people who used nature to change their environment and communities.  Hosted by...

Flavor Graveyard (Classic)

06 Feb 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Behind the Ben & Jerry's factory in Vermont sits a very peculiar graveyard... one dedicated to dearly departed ice cream flavors.READ MORE IN THE ATLA...

Carville National Leprosarium

05 Feb 2026

Contributed by Lukas

We visit a remarkable institution where people with Hansen's disease, or leprosy, learned to play music, had Mardi Gras parties, and published their o...

The Untold Story of Alice Ball

04 Feb 2026

Contributed by Lukas

In 1930, the King of Thailand gifted a tree to the University of Hawaii in Manoa for developing a treatment for leprosy. For decades, the tree has sto...

The Piltdown Man: England’s Most Notorious Science Hoax

03 Feb 2026

Contributed by Lukas

In 1912, Piltdown, England wasn’t known for much. It was a quiet rural area with farms, winding tree-lined roads, and a pub. But then, a lawyer anno...

The Great Venus Fly Trap Heist

02 Feb 2026

Contributed by Lukas

This story is about a heist that took place back in 2013 – not at a museum, or a gallery, or a royal palace, but at a garden. What these thieves wer...

Tell Us: We want to hear your story!

31 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

We're working on an episode about interesting places to lay your head -- and we'd love to hear YOUR story about the places you have stayed during your...

Showgirl Magic Museum (Classic)

30 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

A one-room museum located in the basement of a church-turned-community arts center is crammed with mementos from a pretty spectacular period in histor...

The Secret Subway Under Broadway

29 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Decades before New York City’s subway system opened to the public, an eccentric inventor set about building his own underground system – IN SECRET...

Thomas Edison’s Botanical Laboratory

28 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Toward the end of his life, the great inventor Thomas Edison became obsessed with one final project: finding a source of rubber that could grow in the...

Off Assignment: To the Boy on the Night Bus

27 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

A stranger on an overnight bus ride causes a woman to contemplate her future. This essay originally appeared in Off Assignment.    Plus, Off Assig...

AO Mailbag: What Can I Do With Guests When I’m Short on Cash?

26 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Co-host Kelly McEvers and producers Johanna and Amanda answer questions about places that exceeded expectations, finding yourself in dicey situations ...

Caring for Canids (Classic)

23 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Welcome to the Judith A Basset Canid Education & Conservation Center, where a California couple has dedicated their lives to showing folks man has eve...

The Belt and the Berm (Classic)

22 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Today, we go on a special journey told in two parts, beginning with the world’s largest conveyor belt in the Western Sahara and ending on your dinne...

Following the Painted Ladies

21 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Have you heard of the Painted Lady butterfly? Scientists say this small speckled beauty – no more than 6 cm across – endures the longest migratio...

Your New Year’s Travel Resolutions

20 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Listeners share their travel resolutions for 2026. Plus, we want to hear stories about interesting or unusual places where you’ve stayed the night....

Tell Us: Wonders in Your Backyard

19 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

We’re taking the day off for Martin Luther King Jr. Day. But in the meantime, we want to hear from you. Tell us about the wonders in your backyard. ...

Little Lambs, Big Back Story (Classic)

17 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Spring is a popular time to visit Colonial Williamsburg, not least because it’s “lambing season,” the time of year when baby lambs are born and ...

Fendika Cultural Center (Classic)

16 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

The story of the Fendika Cultural Center in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia is the story of Melaku Belay and his journey from homelessness to international accl...

Retracing A Grandfather’s Footsteps

15 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Dawn Anahid MacKeen’s grandfather survived the Armenian genocide, journeying nearly a thousand miles (much of it on foot) out of what is now Turkey ...

My Life in Three Places: Kelly McEvers

14 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Kelly McEvers spent years living and working across the globe as a foreign correspondent, reporting from across Asia, the former Soviet Union, and the...

William Buckland’s Poo Table

13 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

In the collection of the Lyme Regis Museum in England is a beautiful 19th century tabletop made of delicate, inset stones. The rub is that these stone...