Travel with Rick Steves · Saturday, August 15, 2026
Dylan Thuras and Ella Morton, co-founders of Atlas Obscura, discuss their website and book, which catalogs unusual and wondrous places. They explain that their goal is not just to create a bucket list, but to encourage people to explore the world around them, finding hidden stories even in their own hometowns.
“I think what we're trying to do here is not just create sort of like a bucket list. You know, some people say, "Oh, this is a bucket list of the weirdest places in the world." And you could use it like that, but hopefully, the idea is that these places really are everywhere.”
“They're both far-flung and in your own backyard. And as you look through this and get a sense of how common, it's kind of incredible hidden stories are.”
“The hope is you start to kind of explore the world in that way. You even look at your own hometown and think, what's here that I've sort of just been neglecting to go and examine and experience?”