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It was the site of the largest nuclear disaster in the world.
Now it is to become a UNESCO World Heritage Site: Chernobyl.
Exactly 35 years ago, on April 26, 1986, there was a meltdown and an explosion.
Radioactive dust spread all over Europe, hundreds of thousands of people had to leave their homes.
The region is still uninhabitable today and continues to struggle with the long-term consequences.
The Ukrainian government has already started a process to make parts of the contaminated exclusion zone a world cultural heritage.
This is said to include Pripyat, the city that was built for the workers of the nuclear power plant.
Today Pripyat is a ghost town.
The government hopes to be able to continue to preserve the site - through better funding and more tourism.
Because many evacuated buildings are threatened with crumbling.
That shouldn't happen.
Oleksandr Tkachenko, Minister for Culture and Information Policy:
»The importance of the Chernobyl zone extends far beyond the Ukrainian borders.
Especially because it's not just about commemoration, but also about history and human rights. "
Chernobyl is already a tourist destination - before the corona crisis, interest increased significantly, also due to the US television series Chernobyl.
One of the offers: A sightseeing flight over the disaster area.
Yevhen, Nechyporenko, pilot and tour guide:
“It was the worst nuclear disaster in the world.
And I hope there will never be another accident like this. "
But what is so appealing about this visit?
Yevhen, Nechyporenko, pilot and tour guide:
»It triggers emotions every time.
Such places are interesting.
I would even call it spiritual, extraordinary.
Those who know about the power plant would say the same.
It attracts people like a magnet.
By looking down at this place from above, one imagines that you are there.
It is very interesting to look at every detail of the area and all that is happening here, what has changed around the power station and in the city, how nature is developing and taking over the leadership. "
Even the control room can be entered with a tour.
Around 124,000 people visited Chernobyl in 2019.
There is also criticism of tourism because of the radiation that still prevails there.
Tour operators advertise that the visit is safe - as long as you stick to the rules - and that tourists are exposed to less radiation than with an X-ray.
Although this is usually necessary, a visit to Chernobyl is not.
But those responsible for the advance want to make Chernobyl a place of remembrance - and then increase the number of visitors significantly.
There is talk of up to a million a year.
The location fulfills the requirement to be included in the Unesco list.
Because one possible reason is that the location must be linked to events of exceptional universal importance.
That is the case in any case.