An audio guide to the world’s strange, incredible, and wondrous places. Co-founder Dylan Thuras and a neighborhood of Atlas Obscura reporters explore a new wonder every day, Monday through Thursday. In under 15 minutes, they’ll take you to an incredible place, and along the way, you’ll meet some fascinating people and hear their stories. Our theme and end credit music is composed by Sam Tyndall.

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Maybe you’re already learning Russian with us on YouTube? On this podcast, we talk about the Russian language and the culture of the Russian-speaking countries from the perspective of our two hosts who left Russia in 2022. We also explain words and expressions and answer your questions. Members also get interactive transcripts, early access and bonus content for each episode. Learn more at www.easyrussian.fm.

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Para los viajeros y los aventureros a los que les gusta el buen rollo. El podcast de Ponseti te aporta información útil, se hace eco de las últimas noticias relacionadas con la aventura y te cuenta las experiencias más apasionantes que han vivido sus colaboradores, gente que viaja más que Willy Fog: Ángel Colina, José Luis Angulo, Chema Rodríguez o Carlos Barrabés. En directo los sábados a las 06:00 y a cualquier hora si te suscribes.

Exploring the Pan-American Highway with Pati Jinich

July 10, 2025 00:24:15 23.28 MB Downloads: 0

The Pan-American Highway is considered the longest road in the world – it stretches nearly 20,000 miles, from Alaska to Argentina. In her new docuseries Pati Jinich Explores PanAmericana, Pati talks with people along the famous route about the different ways we form our identities. And she was particularly interested in exploring this territory because of her own unique cultural background.  

How Polar Explorers Entertained Themselves

July 09, 2025 00:11:45 11.28 MB Downloads: 0

Early polar explorers faced long nights and dangerous expeditions. To entertain themselves, they wrote and published niche newspapers and periodicals. Atlas Obscura’s community editor Allegra Rosenberg reads an essay exploring this unique polar tradition. Read her full essay here.  

The Last Limburger Plant in America

July 08, 2025 00:14:29 13.9 MB Downloads: 0

Chalet Cheese Cooperative in Monroe, Wisconsin is the last cheese plant left in America that makes the ultra-stinky Limburger cheese: a cheese that inspires equal parts loving and loathing, has been banned for its assaulting smell, and that once sparked a feud between two cities.

Where You Would Spend Your Last Day Before the Apocalypse

July 07, 2025 00:10:50 10.4 MB Downloads: 0

A few weeks ago, the Atlas Obscura staff told us where they would spend their last days before the apocalypse. Now we’re sharing your stories – from a childhood home in a small town in Illinois, to a trip in Eastern Europe, to a pizzeria in Brooklyn and a cave in Utah. Plus: We want to hear your stories about your neighbors! Tell us about your neighbors’ front yards, back yards, house decor – and what you like about them. Is there a neighbor in your block who goes all the way every holiday to have the best decorations? Or maybe there's someone who has a wacky display year round? Maybe someone has an incredible garden, or some homemade art sculptures. Did they inspire you? Give us a call at 315-992-7902 and leave a message telling us your name and story. Or you can record a voice memo and email it to us at hello@atlasobscura.com

Civic Musical Road (Classic)

July 04, 2025 00:11:04 10.62 MB Downloads: 0

The grooves cut in this road outside Lancaster, CA play the finale of the William Tell Overture. READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/civic-musical-road

The Cigar “Readers” of Cuba

July 03, 2025 00:24:45 23.76 MB Downloads: 0

If you were to visit a cigar factory in Cuba, you’d hear something unexpected: the sound of the daily news report, or maybe a poem or a novel, being read aloud. The cigar “reader” is a tradition held by just a handful of people, and it came from a fundamentally revolutionary idea. Eliot Stein, author of Custodians of Wonder, joins Dylan to explain.

The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam

July 02, 2025 00:14:49 14.22 MB Downloads: 0

One of the many objects that went down with the ship during the sinking of the Titanic was a beautiful, jewel-encrusted edition of a poetry book called the “Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam.” The Rubaiyat was probably the most famous work of poetry in the English-speaking world at that time…which was somewhat unusual, as the book was written by a Persian mathematician 800 years before.For more information about Omar Khayyam and the Rubaiyat, check out the books “Persian Presence in Victorian Poetry” by Taher-Kermani Reza, “The Wine of Wisdom: The Life, Poetry and Philosophy of Omar Khayyam” by Mehdi Aminrazavi, and the BBC documentary “The Genius of Omar Khayyam.” 

Ivan the Terra Bus

July 01, 2025 00:17:26 16.73 MB Downloads: 0

In Antarctica, researchers bid farewell to an iconic fixture: a big red bus named Ivan. Want to learn more about Ivan? Read Allegra Rosenberg’s article all about him.

Happy Pride: Mapping the Gay Guides (Classic)

June 30, 2025 00:14:20 13.76 MB Downloads: 0

To round out Pride Month, we’re sharing one of our favorite classic episodes. For decades, a one of a kind travel guide opened up the world for gay travelers. Today, historians are using them to create an interactive map of LGBTQ spaces in midcentury America.

It’s Getting Hot in Here (Classic)

June 27, 2025 00:09:25 9.04 MB Downloads: 0

Let’s all go to hell. Seriously. Hell, Michigan, that is :)READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/hell-michigan

Four Rooms at the Omni Parker House Hotel

June 26, 2025 00:33:00 31.68 MB Downloads: 0

In an homage to the 1995 movie Four Rooms, Dylan talks with historian Susan Wilson about how the history of Boston – and the United States at large – was influenced by events that occurred in four different rooms of the iconic Omni Parker House Hotel.    This episode was recorded live at the WBUR Festival in Boston on May 31, 2025. Check out Susan Wilson’s books and her other work on her website.

More First Travel Dates

June 25, 2025 00:11:52 11.39 MB Downloads: 0

A couple months ago, we asked for your stories about traveling with a significant other for the first time. We got so many responses, that we decided to make a Part II.  Plus, we want to hear your questions about travel and dating! In a few weeks, we’ll have dating expert Eden Dawn on the show to dish out answers. Give us a call at 315-992-7902 and leave a message telling us your name and question. Or record a voice memo and email it to us at hello@atlasobscura.com.

The Biblioburro

June 24, 2025 00:11:40 11.2 MB Downloads: 0

In a small rural town in Colombia, one man mounts books on the backs of donkeys and takes to the hills. This is how he operates his bookmobile, aka “Biblioburro.” For more information about where to support Luis Soriano’s Biblioburro, visit booksforchangeusa.org

Why Is There a Statue of Columbo in Budapest?

June 23, 2025 00:16:40 16.0 MB Downloads: 0

The TV show Columbo, about a loveable schlub detective, is internationally beloved. But Hungary has an extra special relationship with the show, dating all the way back to the 1970s when the communist government banned most other American shows.

The Coffee Palace (Classic)

June 20, 2025 00:12:29 11.98 MB Downloads: 0

A majestic building in Santos, Brazil used to be the center of the coffee trade. Go deeper with professor Ian Read’s work here and read more in the Atlas here.