Charleroi! The World's Ugliest City 🇧🇪
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 4 ธ.ค. 2023
- I have visited some pretty ugly places in my time but here in Belgium, the city of Charleroi supposedly has the ugliest city in the world! I simply had to come see this for myself and witness the pure ugliness of this place and it certainly lived up to it's reputation! Charleroi is an abandoned coal mining city where most of it has just been left to rot so as you can imagine it isn't the prettiest. It truly is one of the world's ugliest city! 🇧🇪
Tour Charleroi with Nico, great guy! - www.charleroiadventure.com/en/
📱 Instagram - / backpacker.ben
Contact me 📧 - benryanfrier@gmail.com
What did you expect to find in an abandoned industrial area out of town ?
I was going to say the same thing. he didn't really explore the city. I was waiting to see much more of it.
It's not out of town .. that s the thing. It's just next to the city center, at the main train station, half a kilometer from the center town square ... :D It's like if it was central park, in NY if you like.
The end of this video, with Ben saying goodbye to Cat whilst stuck all alone in a dingy and depressing hovel of an hotel room in Paris, was very fitting. Ben's dawning realisation that travelling with Cat was a whole lot more fun than travelling alone will hopefully make him appreciate that one rarely stumbles across girls as genuinely natural and nice, as well as courageous, as her. I am hopeful they will be reunited in the future.
Damn good comment
@@BackpackerBen Damn good couple and damn good channel. I wish both of you the very best.
commitment, love and family are great blessings. Peace and love for the Christmas season.
@@BackpackerBendid you tap dat doe?😅
Put a ring on her finger
Sick that you visited Charleroi! Im from Belgium myself and ive also been there a few times to explore, ive also visited many of the places in this video. I personally think Charleroi is underrated, its such a raw place and i love the harsh contrast from all the abandoned factories, houses and the regular city. During the pandemic, Charleroi was for me the closest i could come to having the same feeling of really traveling, Because even as a Belgian it really gave me the feeling i was in a different country although its only 1,5 hour from my place.
Pays noir 😈😈
Dear Ben, I’m so glad you’ve made so many vlogs recently, they have been well enjoyed. I love Cat’s charisma and everything about her! You both do a really good job narrating where you are and it’s nice you reply to sometimes! Ben and Cat fan! 🎉
Glad you like them! Appreciate you watching
World’s ugliest city?
American Rust Belt: “Hold my beer.”
Top comment.
Ben was rigt to mention Luton, just like a third world country & you can guess why.
Detroit Michigan might be better than this place
@@Connie_From_AZ maybe but Kat mentioned Sines Portugal and I stopped his video to check. The weather and coastline make it beautiful as well as old buildings. Maybe Kat saw a different view?
@@Scram673 wait, I don't understand. Are you trying to figure out where he's at as well? 😊 We know he's not in the USA unless something changed 🤗 I'm gonna guess France or South Africa, and possibly David Panama. I'm anxious for tomorrow to see where he chose to go next.
This looks like a Bald Approved City
What makes it even more shocking is that Belgium is one of richest countries on earth
I know! Cost a fortune for anything here
@@BackpackerBen to be fair, Brussels is also pretty grim
@@alexanderstefanov6474Isn't it infested with gimmigrants?
Shut down to reduce emissions due to net zero targets...
It’s far from richest, trust me… but GDP wise yes, which is an indication of nothing here.
An idea. If you go to NY, you might be interested to check out all of the abandoned mountain resorts in NY. Like the Catskills. Many resorts were just left rotting as they were. A lot of pics on line. People seem to be able to walk in. I've never been, but always found that fascinating. Beautiful area at the same time.
I'll check it out! 👀
I live there and have visited several of these former "Borscht Belt" hotels, many of them no longer remain and have been torn down. But Sullivan County in the Catskills has mostly become a very sad, ugly, and depressed Rust Belt area since the dissolution of traditional tourism and resorts.
Before the Catskills went downhill, other parts of upstate NY did. The tiny town of Ballston Spa used to be home to the largest hotel in the United States, where presidents, senators and captains of industry stayed, but it was long ago torn down. There were other grand hotels up that way too - I remember seeing a huge abandoned, dilapidated hotel when I was a kid - but I'm not sure whether any are left standing.
That sounds awesome
@keonjahanbakhsh7717 Ballston Spa isn’t a dump, there are nice areas. Saratoga Springs is beautiful though, Ben should visit when the horses are running. I’d love to meet up with him for a nice day of gambling!
Ben after hanging up with Cat: “I wish Cat was here 😢”.
I visited Charleroi during one of my formerly annual trips to Belgium back in 2019.
Coming from a post-industrial city in Scotland, some areas very looked familiar to me, but the people were very down to earth.
Great video Ben!!!! 2 thumbs up my friend!!!!
An encore episode with the ever courageous and smiling Cat?! Christmas has come early👏🏻 Sadly, I think there are many cities in the USA that are as bad if not worse. Always great to see a new video the legendary BB. 👍🏻👏🏻🙏🤙🏻✌🏻 P.S. I’d put a ring on that were I you😉
You didn't even look for a nice part, just abandoned industrial areas. I had to go to the airport and had a look around... Belgium infrastructure is falling to bits in places, true. But where isn't ? Slack video, Ben.
@@pjl8119 yeah, I mean, fuck The Ardennes, right, total eyesore.
Charleroi is an ugly place, and that makes it charming. It's a rough place sure, but with very nice ppl. And ofc, there are also very nice places over there.
Love the way you say goodbye to kat with a quick see you later but in reality you call her after and say ‘ I love you and miss you ‘ we are all human Ben ❤️
Definitely not the world’s ugliest… it even had a decent looking high street! There’s plenty of places here in the UK that are far uglier
The rather new shopping centre wasn’t shown either
@@Redsleather It's all for clicks and views, slack video by dull Ben..
Another brilliant video mate.
Hope you and your lady had a chance to see Bruges together.
Ben shows the good *AND* the bad of all countries. That I appreciate! Cat's presence was unexpected and pleasant. She probably won't be able look at Belgium the same way ever again 😅
She was devastated 🤣
@@BackpackerBen You both miss each other :) She will be back
What do you mean, bro came to Belgium for 2 days to make a video about the worlds ugliest city and dipped to Paris🙃
At least enjoy some Bruges or Ghent after that Ben, Bet Cat would've loved it!
Charleroi is a shithole yes, rundown as fk. but why not visit other nicer cities? Alot of these old mines are renovated to swimmingpools, shopping centers, restaurants, climb wall, sports hills for kids. Brits come here to cycle through trees and water go waterparks and eat waffles xD
I live in Belgium, I dont claim Charleroi city in Belgium.. ppl there don't even speak dutch
Ben, I know Cat will be heading back to Portugal for the holidays, as well as returning to work, but I'm pleased that she is still with you in Belgium. I know that Charleroi is a hideous city, but you can at least eat some delicious Belgium food. The people are also quite nice.
As for where I live in New Jersey we have a city named Camden that has been a total shithole for over 60 years, and across the Delaware river in North Philadelphia. There is a street in North Philadelphia called Kensington St. and it is the epitome of the term shithole. Junkies shoot up on drugs around the clock on the sidewalks. The junkies stand around doubled over from using a variety of drugs (fentanyl-heroin-horse tranquillisers etc). they truly are the walking dead, and the city doesn't do a bloody thing about it.
I think it's sad,these must have all been thriving places to work in & like everywhere else in the world where not needed anymore &left to rust.
Thanks buddy , u've tried the new things for adventure to other countries Ben!
Love your travels Ben en lovely that Cat was here also! And I was grinning a bit during your video, as I was thinking of another channel of a guy named @shiey. I think he would be tripping and climbing up everything saying how beautiful everything is. I guess I am more in line with you though Ben🙂
By the way was a dutchman I hope you will visit Belgium again, as there are amazing old and beautiful cities there.
What's French for "Sorry I was a bit bored so I dismantled my Corby Trouser Press, I can’t put it back together again. Will that show up on my bill?”
Google helped a bit : "Désolé, je m'ennuyais un peu alors j'ai démonté ma presse à pantalons Corby, je ne peux pas la remonter. Est-ce que cela apparaîtra sur ma facture ?"
Thanks for sharing Ben 🙂I feel that this video also could be called "Dreaming of a Post-Apocalypse"
Hi Ben. In my opinion you lucky to have her around unless you 2 need a break for a bit. That's okay too. Ty for the uploads ! Happy everything !
Gary, Indiana, USA. And a lot of Northwestern Indiana.
Next year I’ll be there!
Funny - I said Gary Indiana exactly same time you did mate 😂
Belgium has many of the most beautiful historical cities in the world like Bruges, Ghent and Antwerp. All located in Flanders. But you filmed in a deserted gloomy industrial area in the Southern part. This could have been anywhere in the world.
He didn't name this place, "the ugliest city in the world"...he only went there because of it.
Lol.... looks like Ukraine
Well duh, that's the point...
He's creating 'dark tourism' content with the likes of B & B and Indigo Traveller just to gain some views and likes. Hearing Backpacker Ben speaking he almost sounds like Bald And Bankrupt using his catchphrases like 'blimey' and 'shithole' . Pure copycat..
Yep it's look like flemish are more disciplined, cautious than the wallons.(french Belgians) ..liege is another southern place full of rundown corners..
It's not ugly at all, it's far from the ugliest, it's just abandoned. I like its industrial style and graffiti! At least there are people and a warm market there!
If you want to find the ugliest ones, you should go to Chi_a. There are many abandoned cities there without graffiti or even people!
But it is very dangerous there, you can just watch videos, don't need to go there.
I like your British humor, so funny! BTW, so happy to know kat home safe! Take good care, and happy travels! 👍🤩🙌
That is one country that is a shittehole. ADVchina shows how bad it is. Plenty of grab hags and spitting also.
Honestly, I think there's a kind of brutalist beauty to be found in a place like this. It's not a traditionally pretty city, but I can see the charm for those, who live there. That market and the grafitti was acually quite nice.
The eye of the beholder lol,I'm glad I don't have your eyes no offense my friend
I wouldn't say you can find beauty in it because it's definitely objectively ugly. However you can find an atmosphere, some sort of a depressing vibe, and that's actually really cool. That's why people do urbex, not because it's beautiful but because the atmosphere is special.
The world's most dangerous city Ben , is Port Morseby Papua New Guinea , i used to live and work there , never again .............
It's mainly an industrial city, but I certainly wouldn't say it's the ugliest city in the world. All industrial areas are ugly, but Charleroi has some nice parts like Hotel de Ville, Place Verte & there are some art nouveau buildings. Also it seems clean. I can name some much worse cities off the top of my head - Karachi, Amman, Mogadishu, Delhi.
Wait , Amman isn't ugly either😂
Of course it's ugly! They haven't bothered to clean it up or regenerate the abandoned industrial area. And how can you claim Charleroi is clean! Not only was there litter and waste everywhere, the ground must also be heavily polluted from all the industrial use in the past. The only thing that is cleaner in Charleroi is the air they breathe because all the steel woks have shut down!
@@dacorum8053 They only showed a small part of the city. Charleroi is a large city of 200,00 people & all he filmed was the abandoned industrial area. You're bound to find some abandoned factories in many cities.
People into UrbEx find these industrial places kind of beautiful :)
@@scottsimon8543 I agree that many cities will have some abandoned factories but Charleroi's abandoned factories are truly on an epic scale and there has clearly been no effort made to clear or to regenerate the site. As for the centre of Charleroi itself, Ben showed part of the centre and that was ugly!
There are cities like this in the UK, old mining towns abandoned and looking seemingly like Charolaise. Empty homes and run down industrial areas.
Fantastic, I love running round places like this
Good afternoon Ben.Stay safe on yr journey. 😊
the look on bens face right at the end like "what the fuck have I done" 🤣
Ultimate regret
America has plenty of destroyed infrastructure in many cities. Places such as Detroit Michigan, Gary Indiana, St.Louis Missouri, Kansas City Missouri, Seattle Washington, Portland Oregon and San Francisco California there are places which look like they are third world country and then a couple miles away is some of the nicest communities on earth. Check them out Ben
There's a youtuber who drives around the places you mention. It's pretty mad to see these towns and cities in America.
Eerie ghost towns.
San Francisco, Seattle and Portland is quite beautiful. St Louis and Kansas City is fine. Never been to Gary or Detroit.
That’s why they shouldn’t be counted as the ugliest cities. Every city has ugly communities. Entire cities? That’s a tough one.
McKeesport Pennsylvania is probably the ugliest place I have ever seen. Cycled through the city a few years ago, when tour cycling America and damn that was a grim and depressing place.
amerikkka is a dump no doubt
13:46 To me that indoor market reminds me of how resilient people really are. Perfect.
Basingstoke, Ben, you had Basingstoke and Sheffield (Page Hall) as the UK's most depressing places. But as you said, Luton's really rough, too!
Ben mate, I really think you should've visited Portugal when Cat went home. She maybe could have shown you some sites and would have been a nice ending to the series with the lovely lady.
Next year for sure.
Weather terrible now in Europe
Your videos have been amazing lately! Well done always awesome travels :)
Thanks a ton!
Seriously planning a trip to Charleroi....great content!
Honestly, I felt kinda sad Katerina has left. Great her flight got cancelled and She's still in the blog 👏👌.Regarding the place, the infrastructures are great just that being abandoned it has been unmaintained so it"s begining to rot.
I think, universally, between us Americans, Detroit is considered the worst.
I’ve heard fantastic things. Will be there next year
@@BackpackerBen Right on, man. Have fun! I'd give recommendations, but I'm from South Carolina. Not really close
Detroit has really turned around in the last decade. The downtown area is quite a cool area to visit. Peter Santenello made a few videos here - check them out and you'll be surprised.
6:35 lmao the way Ben says this made me laugh hard haha
Keep it up bro I like your humble attitude
As an American, I would say the ugliest cities are parts of Philadelphia, Baltimore, Camden NJ, Gary Indiana, Detroit. You can also drive for hundreds of miles in the Rust Belt and middle America and find endless depressing scenes.
I’m so sorry that Kat missed her flight ✈️ 😢. But I think that’s what you planned because you just couldn’t let her go 😮. Thank you for sharing this ugly place. Blessings,Carlos ✝️🙏❤️😊🇺🇸
Nah hes not into relationships i think he follows his mentor's balds steps 😂😅
More of Kat please! We all love her and I know I’m not the only one shipping for you both :P
"Shipping for you both"
What?
@@KarlPilkington89This is what I get for trying to be hip. Hello fellow kids!
I meant that I think they'd make a great couple.
@@whoshotdk I am even more confused now.
@@KarlPilkington89 🤣
@@KarlPilkington89 it basically means the two look great as a couple and you’re hoping the relationship works out lol.
and for a little while...i smiled again. she's back!
I remember a few years ago when Wales were playing Albania.
Some reporters were chatting to the Welsh fans as they arrived in Tirana.
Best line, "We took off from Cardiff and landed in Port Talbot".
First visit to Paris! Hope you checked the hotel for bed buds. Enjoy your stay.
I’ll miss Cat. Safe travels Ben.
Cat Misses flight goes straight to HELL! 😅. BUT, nice to see you in another vid Cat. Safe travels to you both!
Cat is "hard core" and "Cute as Hell" , a outstanding combination.
I have visited Bruges,Ghent and Brussels which were lovely cities. I am really surprised that Belgium has this reputation for one of their cities.
North of Belgium is nicer and more developed than the south
Bruges and Ghent are lovely, Brussels is mostly not
Flanders (Dutch-speaking part of Belgium) is totally different from Wallonia (French-speaking part). Like night and day. Wallonia is poor and run down, Flanders is wealthy and clean.
Better call Bald. He just finished a chapter, too. Some new Bald and Ben videos, but with you taking the lead would be super. Bald is technically retired anyway, so he should just relax and let you drag him around the planet for a while. ;)
Ayo that very last clip in the hotel looked more sad than the country my guy ! hopefully you get your travel buddy back soon, I think all of us are going to miss her humour !
Looks clearer than most cities...and every country has a rust belt...
As Bald and Bankrupt once said while traveling through the capital of Moldova, "This isn't Europe, surely to God!"
Dude, you really need to come to New Jersey, Charleroi loos like Disneyland compared to some places over here!
Sounds my type of place
Pronunciation on point as always 👍
I was in New Orleans Louisiana for a couple weeks back in 2010. That city was an absolute shithole. Utterly disgusting anywhere off the 'tourist' streets. It was nasty.
Thats called ghetto friend
In Paris without your lover! Sounds like bad planning!
New drinking game:
Every time Ben says 'World's ugliest city' take a shot
Update: 1:37 in and I'm absolutely smaifijrrjjlajfjkk
Smasheddddd
The ugliest city I've been to in the US is Baltimore, MD. It used to be ok but now, wow just wow!
Seems awesome, definitely going to visit someday!
Ben can we just stop saying Kat just happens to be here, and "this is my bed, and there's Kats bed!" You two are a couple, and I think it's awesome!
Hi Ben, i'm always in stiches when you say "shithole" 😂, however I suppose ugly is relative in this case. I'm from Johannesburg in South Africa and our "shitholes" could be 3 times worse than this city. With a coat of paint on some of those buildings and a general clean up of the rubbish laying around, it could be a neat city in no time! Anyway peace and happiness mate ✌
South Africa full of shitholes
Ben looks so sad in the end. Thats what happens when you dont get a toilet in your hotel room.
I love Cat She is always smiling. Great video..
I'd miss Kat, she's lovely and fascinating, but I think Ben will really really miss her, that last shot in the video says it all.
Aw Ben, you looked so lonely sat in the last hotel room atthe end of this vid and after Catarina went home, was expecting you to get down on one knee with a ring and a big question for her 😁
This is why Belgium techno was so good in the early 90s, all good stuff comes from these types of places
The ugliest city I've ever seen in the United States is Cairo, Illinois. Once a thriving river town on the confluence of the Ohio and Mississippi rivers, it's now largely abandoned. Driving along the main road, you see block after block of empty crumbling houses and boarded up storefronts. There's not enough money to tear these buildings down, let alone rebuild.
What a dramatic ending ❤
Hit harder than Mike Tyson in his prime
This is more like an abandoned steel plant/yard and not a city.
It is definitely the ugliest city in Belgium, but this video was just a tour of the abandoned industrial area. The past 10 years they have been trying to upgrade parts of the city center which is now definitely not worthy of the title of ugliest city in the world.
Ben i think you moved from the ugliest to the most expensive city... But as always, I appreciate immensely your endurance and effort to show us places we might have never known of their existence.
Wow ! really surprised to see this in Belgium, never would have guessed it. Next level desolation in what apparently was once a thriving industrial town .
p.s. Bit surprised at the length of the bus journey but judging from the architecture I'd say you're now in Paris .
Ben please do a Poll on your next video. Solo Ben or travels with Katarina.... i think we enjoy here joining in and getting so comfortable in front of the camera.
Great! I'm glad Cat's still there. Richard in Reno
YAY shes still here! Awe shes gone.... I love the forlorn blank stare into nothingness at the end
Personally,Ugliest is definitely the wrong description for me, Some of these buildings and architecture are beautiful, “abandoned,Ex-industrial,derelict,run down”
Who needs Paris. Just do like Ben and take the missus to Charleroi for a bit of romance for last 24hs together haha
And then travel to Paris. Alone!😂
Perfect atmosphere for Death Metal album covers.
Ben, I don't know what things are like away from the camera, but judging from the end of the video after you hung up, you need to put a ring on that.
If i didn't know any better at those abandoned buildings i could've thought you guys were in Chernobyl😂 great vid again though man! Maybe one day you should visit my city Nijmegen in the Netherlands, beautiful and oldest city in the country😁
This looks a lot like parts of Chicago where there are abandoned industrial facilities. Also the north section of St. Louis is really bad. I think you have found the European version of a "Rust Belt".
Rust belt is next years plan 👀
Probably more a "Rust Bracelet" than a "Rust Belt" and for sure re-developed in the coming years. Very little of that left...Should have seen it in the late 80:s...
@@BackpackerBen give us a shout if you ever make it up north to Minneapolis.
One of my favourites on TH-cam 👍
The worst one I have been it's called Dolhasca in Suceava County in NE Romania. Depresive as hell
An absndoned factory isn’t really part of a city..unless the former business owners got away with leaving the area as a toxic waste dump so that fity can now build homes and playgrounds x like virtually every port city in the USA “superfund sites”.
Yayyyy so glad to see Cat.Welcome back or still lol
Looked a bit sad there at the end my friend.😢
This is what happens when major employers are allowed to shutdown devastating peoples livelihoods in the area the uk has loads of examples of this
What a surprise to have Cat around for another adventure. She is so much fun to have around.🥰😍
Chatham down here in Kent is pretty rough, but this place makes Chatham look like Barcelona!
Ben, thank you for visiting my country Timor leste, i am in north england
Industrial archeology is fun! But to be fair, Charleroi city centre is no worse than many similar places across Central Europe, the UK, North America - and I suppose the entire world. I would say it's a place with, well, potential.
I've never heard Plymouth described as Luxury before. I think Cat might be suffering from PTSD from travelling withBen
She said compared to.
Actually Plymouth seems very decent. I heard a lot of good things around it (Uni town, Lots of ocean related stuffs, great costline and the feeling of being remote from the buzzing society)
@@hugocassany You heard, is not an answer. Go there your self. It's okay. That's the best I can say for it.
Looks like nice abandoned exploring site ,our kind of thing .
Great setting for an apocalyptic film
Greeting from Detroit... Charleroi stands no chance.