Take a trip to Lithuania and see where Chernobyl crew filmed the shocking scenes
THE success of Sky Atlantic drama Chernobyl is sure to prompt a rise in dark tourism to the devastated Ukrainian power plant.
Trips to the site in Pripyat have attracted fascinated visitors for years, many travelling from capital Kiev on organised day trips.
But when the creators of the TV series were scouting out locations to film, it was neighbouring Lithuania where they found a carbon copy of the nuclear power station suitable to film some of the most shocking scenes.
Much of the action was shot at the Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant (INPP), built in the same era as ill-fated Chernobyl.
A 90-minute drive from Vilnius, Lithuania’s capital, visitors can now book a tour of the plant’s controlled zone, home to the reactor room, turbine room and block control panel.
There’s even a chance to climb to the top of the reactor and its roof.
You’ll need to book at least two months in advance for the two-and-a-half-hour tour, with a maximum of 15 people allowed daily.
Just like the cast and crew of Chernobyl, visitors will need to remove all outer garments and step into protective clothing and footwear having first stored all mobile phones, cameras and other personal belongings.
The power plant is gradually being decommissioned but is still active and employs around 2,000 people.
During excursions, employees are happy to talk about their life and work at the plant.
In the neighbouring town of Visaginas – built in 1975 to hold the plant’s workers and their families – you can even tour an operating simulator of the INPP block control panel that served as a model for the Chernobyl drama’s creative team.
Constructed as the power plant was being built, it was used to train workers and explore solutions for emergency situations.
During excursions, visitors get a chance to see the power plant simulator in action.
The city itself, once home to 34,000 people, now has fewer than 20,000 residents.
Following the explosion at Chernobyl, the construction of a third block at Ignalina was suspended and eventually terminated altogether.
The plant will be fully dismantled by 2038.
The town has just 14 streets and no traffic lights – planned to ensure that in the event of an evacuation, there would be no delays.
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To this day, residents have to take their driving tests in the neighbouring town of Utena.
To book a tour from Vilnius, check out or which both offer excursions to the power plant.
Prices start at around £100 per person. Or you can book direct with the plant itself, at .
