8 Landmarks around the world with off-limit areas

8 Landmarks around the world with off-limit areas

Iconic landmarks around the world have parts of them that are off limits and only accessible to the most VIP’s of VIP’s. There are famous landmarks from Hollywood to Japan that are restricted. Here are noteworthy list:

1.    VATICAN SECRECT ARCHIVES

Vatican Secret Archives

• To enter the centuries old repository you must either be a scholar or a member of the Holy See.
• What you find there is 52 miles of shelving and countless papal documentaries dating back 12 centuries.
• Every year around 1,500 academics are granted access but they must know what they are looking for because browsing is forbidden.
• Items you can find there are a letter excommunicating Martin Luther and a request to annul Henry VIII’s marriage to Catherine of Aragon.

2.    STONEHENGE 

Stonehenge

• Visitors to England are kept at a distance from the monoliths since 1978, thanks to vandals and thieves who ruined it for the rest of us.
• If you book way in advance and are willing to spend a bit of money, companies like Stonehenge Tours offer limited-access excursions that take you into the inner circle.

3.    ISE JINGU

Ise Jingu

• The Grand Shrines of Ise, in Japan, is one of the most sacred sites in the whole Japan.
• Keeping to the Shinto belief of death and regeneration, the 100 plus edifices are torn down and rebuilt every 20 years.
• The site is supposed to be home to a holy mirror called Yata no Kagami, but you won’t be able to find out for sure.
• Though visitors can walk through the ancient pine forest surrounding the shrine, only members of the Japanese royal family and elite priests and priestesses are allowed inside.

4.    ORNAMENTAL GALLERY AT ST. PAUL’S CATHEDRAL

ORNAMENTAL GALLERY ST PAUL CATHEDRAL

• Designed by Christopher Wren, the largest church building in London has plenty of areas that are closed to the public.
• Near the top of the inner dome, nearly 200 feet above the cathedral’s floor there’s a balcony. Only the occasional journalist is allowed to go up there.

5.    HOLLYWOOD SIGN

Hollywood sign

• Thanks to a trust set up in the 1970’ a close up with thee iconic letters is a thing of the past.
• Razor-wire fence and 24 hour surveillance keeps the sign safe from vandals.

6.    EMPIRE STATE BUILDING

Empire State Building

• There is a secret level above New York landmark’s 102-story observation deck encircling the base of the spire and it’s only available to celebrities’ types.
• It’s now only available to celebrity types.  Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, Roger Federer, Karmin and David Beckham have all made the climb.

7.    MOUNT RUSHMORE’S HALL OF RECORDS

MOUNT RUSHMORE HALL OF RECORDS

• Sculptor Gutzon Borglum originally planned for sightseers to climb up to the Hall of Records, but funds ran out and the idea was scrapped and the Hall was left only partially carved out of the stone.
• In 1988  a box coated in granite was placed inside the mountain, containing information about the monument and the presidents it depicts for future archeologists to find.

8.    LASCAUX CAVES

LASCAUX CAVES

• This cave from the Paleolithic Age is found in France’s Dordogne region containing hundreds of cave paintings. They were closed in 1963 as the art began to deteriorate and a replica of the cave opened in the 1980’s.
• Only very selected scientists are allowed to enter the real cave.