As crazy as it sounds, the Chernobyl exclusion zone, the scene of the worst nuclear disaster in history, has become a popular tourist destination. Since 2019, hundreds of thousands of people have visited the site, especially the Chernobyl control room. In light of the situation, the Ukrainian government sought to further boost this tourism with the goal of reaching one million visitors annually in order for the area to be declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Chernobyl control room tour: The epicenter of the disaster
Among the highlights of the Chernobyl control room tour is Reactor 4; the site where the explosion occurred in 1986. Visits to this area require special permits and strict safety measures due to the high levels of radiation that still persist. Although tourists must enter the site equipped with protective suits and Geiger counters, they can spend only a few minutes in this area.
The tour includes the ghost town of Pripyat, built for the nuclear plant workers. Something striking that attracts people are the abandoned buildings that are being dominated by vegetation, transforming the city into an “urban jungle”.
Is it possible to visit the Chernobyl reactor 4 today?
Several tour agencies operating in the area, such as Chernobyl Tour, SoloEast Travel y Go2Chernobyl offer tours ranging from one day to one week, with prices varying from €50 to €650. These tours include stringent safety measures to protect tourists from radiation. However, these tourist services have been paralyzed since the Russian invasion.
Video of the company Go2Chernobyl to visit the Chernobyl exclusion. Source: Go 2 Chernobyl.
Another interesting aspect is that the popularity of Chernobyl tourism has increased significantly since the premiere of the HBO series that dramatized the 1986 disaster. This increase in tourism has led to greater awareness of the dangers of nuclear power and the resilience of nature.
Likewise, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky and Culture Minister Oleksandr Tkachenko have supported tourism at Chernobyl, seeing it as an opportunity to turn the site into a “place of memory” that educates the world about the disaster and its legacy. Tkachenko has stressed the importance of remembering Chernobyl’s impact on humanity and learning from this tragedy.
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Photo: shutterstock
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