7 Secret Ghost Metro Stations You Can Visit in 2026

1. Haxo Station, Paris: The Never-Opened Phantom

Tucked in Paris's 20th arrondissement, Haxo is a metro station that never saw a single passenger. Planned in the 1920s as part of an ambitious extension, construction halted mid-dream due to funding woes and shifting routes. Today, it's a dimly lit cavern of faded tiles and rusting tracks, accessible only through official tours run by RATP Paris Metro deep dive enthusiasts.

Step off at Porte de la Villette on Line 7, then hike 15 minutes north along Rue de l'Ourcq (75019 Paris). Tours kick off Fridays at 10 PM sharp—book via ratp.fr/explore or their app (€25, 90 minutes). The air hits you first: musty, like old books mixed with wet stone. Tracks vanish into black tunnels, and eerie blue emergency lights cast long shadows on porcelain advert tiles from a bygone era, advertising forgotten apéritifs.

Something worth pondering: Haxo embodies Paris’s haphazard growth, a reminder that not every grand plan pans out. I once chipped a tile fragment as a souvenir during a damp tour—don't try it; guides spot everything. For urban exploration ghost stations near me, this is ground zero for paris metro unused stations you can explore, perfect for pondering how close we came to riding here daily. As you exit, the city hum above feels surreal, like waking from a subway siesta.

2. Aldwych Station, London: The Blitz-Era Time Capsule

Deep in London's Strand, Aldwych (aka Strand Station) closed in 1994 after 90 quiet years, too pricey to modernize. Now a film set darling—think zombies shuffling its platforms in 28 Days Later—it's open for hidden london tube ghost stations tours via the London Transport Museum.

Meet at 72-92 The Strand, WC2R 0DT (near Temple Tube). Book at ltmuseum.co.uk/whats-on/tours (€35, 75 minutes, weekends year-round; 2026 slots: weekdays/weekends 10:05, 12:00, 14:40, 16:35). The escalator creaks down to a 1907 world: cream tiles speckled with age, wartime posters peeling ("Keep Calm"), and a lift frozen mid-shaft. Flickering tube lights buzz like angry bees, and you swear you hear phantom ticket clacks.

I lingered by the abandoned booking hall, tracing graffiti from 1940s shelter nights. It's the ultimate contrast to Covent Garden's bustle just blocks away—history pausing for breath. One quirk: Guides hand out replica tickets; punch yours for "entry" to feel the era. Emerging topside, the Thames gleams, mocking the station's eternal night.

This one's a top secret metro stations still visitable, blending spook and cinema lore.

3. Down Street Station, London: Churchill's Secret War Room

Mayfair's hidden gem, Down Street on the Piccadilly Line shut in 1932, too close to Hyde Park Corner. Winston Churchill commandeered it as a WWII bunker, plotting from its depths. Transport for London's Pathfinders tours resurrect it quarterly.

Enter at 9-13 Down Street, W1J 7AN (near Green Park Tube). Slots via tfl.gov.uk/pathfinders (£50, 90 minutes, select 2026 dates). Velvet ropes guard tiled corridors smelling of polished brass and faint cigar smoke—Churchill's touch? Overhead ducts hum softly, and maps mark D-Day routes.

My favorite quirk: Squeeze into the "PM's Room," a nook where he napped; it's comically tiny, like a posh broom closet. No dripping here—just elegant decay, a far cry from Mayfair's champagne bars overhead. I pocketed a pebble from the trackbed (guiltily), emerging to Bond Street's flash with stories no Instagram captures.

Vary your London leg here for that wartime edge against Mayfair's glitz.

4. Berlin U-Bahn Ghosts: Gesundbrunnen and Friends

Berlin's U-Bahn harbors sealed stubs from Cold War paranoia, like Gesundbrunnen’s abandoned platforms on the U8 line. How to visit secret berlin u-bahn stations? Tip Berlin Underworlds tours, delving into bunker-tunnels hybrids.

Rally at Gesundbrunnen Station entrance, Badstraße 22, 13357 Berlin (U8 platform). underworlds.berlin/en (€15, 1 hour, daily). Torchlight reveals graffiti-tagged concrete, faded DDR propaganda, and rails snaking to nowhere. The chill seeps in, laced with earth and iron tang—sensory overload.

I fumbled my headlamp during one crawl, illuminating a lost glove from '89; keeper now. These are the best urban exploration ghost stations europe, echoing division's scars. Surface to Berlin's graffiti pulse, forever changed.

5. Moscow Metro Phantoms: Closed Platforms at Biblioteka Imeni Lenina

Moscow's opulent metro hides disused bits, like Vorobyovy Gory's bridge station (closed 1980s) or Lenin Library stubs. Moscow metro ghost stations accessible 2026 via specialist tours from Moscow Free Tour or metro authorities.

Start at Biblioteka Imeni Lenina on Line 1, 3 Ulitsa Vozdvizhenka, 125009. Book mosmetro.ru/tours (3000 RUB/~€30, 2 hours, weekends). Marble halls give way to dusty sidings, chandeliers caked in grime, echoing Stalin-era grandeur.

Quirk: Spot mosaic murals half-finished, workers vanishing mid-shift. Vodka breath from guides adds flavor—pure Russian soul. No condensation woes; just vast, echoing voids. Back aboveground, Red Square buzzes obliviously.

6. Tokyo's Disused Depths: Hibiya Line Relics

Tokyo disused subway stations for tourists include platforms under Kasumigaseki, shuttered post-WWII reroutes. Tokyo Metro Legacy Tours open them sporadically.

Meet at Kasumigaseki Station on the Hibiya Line, 3 Chiyoda, Chiyoda City, Tokyo 100-0013. tokyometro.jp/en/tours (¥4000, 80 minutes, monthly). Fluorescent hums greet you in spotless decay—Japan's tidiness persists underground. Vending machine ads glow eternally, tracks polished by disuse.

My slip-up: Dropped my camera; it skittered into shadows, retrieved with laughs. Sensory shift: Ozone whiff from old wiring, not damp. Pairs perfectly with Shibuya chaos above.

7. 72nd Street Station, New York City: The Broadway Ghost

NYC's original IRT 72nd Street platform from 1918 lurks beneath active lines, abandoned for expresses. For new york city abandoned subway platforms visit, join New York Transit Museum tours.

Meet at Grand Central Terminal (East Side, NY 10017) for escorted access. newyorktransitmuseum.org/tours ($40, 90 minutes, bi-monthly). Shuttle to the site reveals graffiti heaven: 80s tags layered like lasagna, pigeon coos echoing, and ads for rotary phones.

Quirk: Graffiti artist "REVOK" piece mesmerized me—I sketched it illicitly. Air's gritty, alive with subway rumbles overhead. Emerge to Central Park's green, buzzing anew.