For the ones who read the plaque.

GothGirlsGo is for people who plan a trip around a cemetery. Who read every plaque, who'd take an anatomy museum over a beach, and who want to know where to get a proper drink after.

Most guides bury the good stuff. One spooky walking tour, then straight back to brunch. We do it the other way round. Every city gets sorted into the four things that actually matter: where to stay, where to eat, what to see, and what to photograph. All of it picked for atmosphere and history, not for a jump scare.

We like the beautiful kind of dark. Ossuaries and reliquaries, overgrown Victorian cemeteries, cabinets of curiosities, candlelit cellars, good honest decay. We start with the obvious capitals and keep going into the smaller cities nobody writes up.

Where we sleep

Not hostels. Never hostels. Small B&Bs, haunted old hotels, crooked Victorian houses, the kind of place with a story and a decent bar and, ideally, a resident ghost. Quiet over loud, character over chain.

The flags

Every spot carries an honest read, because a guide that likes everything is useless. Look for solo-friendly (safe and easy on your own), quiet (no bachelorette energy) and adults only. And we'll tell you when somewhere skews touristy, kid-heavy or a full-blown party scene, even when the place is still worth it. These are our calls, backed by what regular reviews keep saying, and we sharpen them as we go.

A note on the heavy stuff

Some dark places aren't entertainment. Sites of genocide, torture and real suffering are here only when they're worth visiting as memorials, and always with respect, never as a photo op. When somewhere is sombre, we say so. Travel kindly, photograph respectfully, mind the dead.

Now pick a city, and go somewhere gorgeous and a little wrong.

Choose a city