“Why would anybody visit such a depressing place?” you may ask. Well, dark tourists often tout curiosity and knowledge-seeking as the main reasons to get involved in dark tourism. They are curious about the unknown and the unexplored. Some of these dark tourists may also want to gain a deeper understanding about culture and history. For example, many dark tourists visit Nazi concentration camps in Poland to fully apprehend the sufferings that Nazi prisoners went through. However, some dark tourists also visit these places for plain adventure, thrill and insta-worthy pictures. Some of the most famous dark tourism destinations include Chernobyl, volcano creeks in Pompeii and Nazi concentration camps.

Chernobyl is the site of one of the most catastrophic nuclear disasters ever. In 1986, a power plant failure devastated the Ukrainian town of 55,000. Today, Chernobyl's Exclusion Zone, a 30-kilometer radius of contaminated land around the power plant, supports several tour firms.

If you are wondering about radioactivity in Chernobyl, the level there is the same as going to your local shopping mall—harmless. There are even hotels in the Exclusion Zone, although regulated by security checks and strictly guided tours. There is also a memorial complex in the centre of the town which displays all the names of disappeared towns within the Zone. Other fascinating monuments can be found scattered across the city, such as the statue of a man fighting with a bull and origami cranes made of metal.

The ancient city was covered by volcanic ash after the disastrous eruptions of nearby Mount Vesuvius in the year 79 AD. For about 1,700 years, the site lay covered under this volcanic shroud (which also sterilized and thus preserved it) and was forgotten until its rediscovery in the 18th century. Pompeii is now popularly known as the city frozen in time as the city is perfectly preserved to this day.

Amongst the glorious mosaics and other cultural relics found were the remains of human bodies who were unfortunate enough to get trapped at the time of the eruptions back then. What was actually found were the hollow spaces left by the bodies, which were then filled with plaster to create casts that looked like “petrified” bodies. These are the main attractions of dark tourism in Pompeii. Some of these casts successfully showcase the detailed facial expressions of the volcanic victims: some sleeping peacefully while others displaying horror.

Auschwitz is the largest and deadliest of all the Nazi concentration camps/death camps. The site in south-eastern Poland was turned into a memorial after the end of WWII and in recent years, it has become a major tourist destination as well. It is one of the deadliest single site of mass murder in history—between 1.3 and 1.6 million victims in total are common estimates.

There are two main parts, Auschwitz 1, or the "Stammlager", and Auschwitz II, also known as Auschwitz-Birkenau. Auschwitz 1 is the older, smaller and much more solidly-built former concentration camp part, while Birkenau is the bigger and more sinister one. It is the former, though, that is home to the main museum exhibition, including those gruelling exhibits such as heaps of shoes, hair and suitcases. At Birkenau, there is a wall consisting of photos taken from the victims. The photos display mostly family portraits from happier times.

Even though dark tourism can be highly informative and intriguing, there are also various ethical issues associated with this type of tourism, mainly voyeurism, inappropriate behaviour and safety. Voyeurism, in this context, is taking pleasure in seeing other people in pain and this kind of behaviour is the main issue with dark tourism. Voyeurism is never okay as it is inconsiderate and disrespectful to enjoy other people’s agony and death.

In addition to that, inappropriate behaviour by some dark tourists puts dark tourism in a bad light. Insensitive actions such as posing happily and smiling for photos at dark tourism spots are frowned upon as these places hold tragic stories of sufferings and misery. However, tourists often disregard these sensitivities as they are too caught up in getting unique pictures to show to family and friends. This kind of behaviour might hurt the people who are directly and indirectly affected by the incidents at those places.

Besides that, safety is also one of the concerns with dark tourism, as some destinations can be highly dangerous and deadly. In 2016, Otto Warmbier, an American college student, went on a dark tourism trip to North Korea where he was arrested for allegedly stealing a political propaganda poster. Warmbier was sentenced to 15 years of hard labour, but 17 months later, he was returned to his parents in a vegetative state. He died tragically a few days later. This heartbreaking incident vividly illustrates the dangers of the often-glorified dark tourism.

Despite being highly controversial and sometimes dangerous, dark tourism is growing in popularity worldwide due to its informative and thrilling nature. If you ever plan to be a dark tourist, just keep two things in mind: be respectful and adhere to rules. If you follow these instructions, you will most probably be fine.