Wowcher faces backlash from charities for Chernobyl holiday advertising

Tour offers opportunity to see 'collapsed schools, run-down hospitals and derelict cinemas'

Wowcher faces backlash over advert for Chernobyl trip (Wowcher)

Discount deal marketplace Wowcher is facing backlash from charities for advertising tourist trips to Chernobyl.

On the Wowcher website, trips to the Ukrainian nuclear disaster zone are currently being offered for as little as £169 a person.

Under the description for the holiday excursion, it advertises the chance for “history buffs or fans of the hit HBO TV show” to visit the “famous power plant” and the abandoned Kopachi Village, as well as “collapsed schools, run-down hospitals and derelict cinemas”.

“Get your blood pumping with a short drive through the western radioactive trace and tuck into a lunch (strictly non-radioactive cuisine),” the advert reads.

In response to the advert, Chernobyl Children’s Project, a UK-based charity that offers children affected by the nuclear explosion the opportunity to travel to Britain, has raised concern over the holiday offer considering the area caused millions of people to suffer and should not be a place for “selfies”.

Wowcher is offering discount trips to Chernobyl (Wowcher)

“It’s wonderful that the drama has brought to attention the ongoing effects of the disaster but it’s just a pity so many people seem to be going over there just to take selfies with these places,” executive officer Linda Walker told The Mirror. “People need to remember there are millions of people still suffering with health problems because of the explosion and more than 100,000 have died as a result."

"We continue to see children being born with cancer because of the radiation and people should be sensitive to that before taking up this offer,” she said, adding that those considering the offer should also consider “the victims who continue to suffer” as a result of the 1986 disaster.

John Buckby, who works for Chernobyl Children’s Lifeline, also expressed his disapproval of the excursion, telling the outlet: “Why on Earth would you want to go on holiday to look at something so tragic?”

Referencing the abandoned schools, Buckby said: “I just cannot understand why someone would want to go out there specifically to see that.”

Following the release of the HBO mini-series, interest in the disaster zone has increased, with the site becoming a controversial yet popular tourist destination.

After concerns were raised regarding appropriate tourist behaviour, show writer Craig Mazin asked that those who visit Chernobyl “please remember that a terrible tragedy occurred there”.

“Comport yourselves with respect for all who suffered and sacrificed,” he wrote.

This is not the first time Wowcher has advertised trips to the nuclear disaster zone - in 2013, the company offered a “luxury Chernobyl and Kiev break”.

The Independent has contacted Wowcher for comment