1. Disneyland’s Secret Club 33
In the center of the New Orleans Square section of Disneyland, there’s an ultra-secret exclusive restaurant called Club 33. This was built because Walt Disney needed somewhere to entertain visiting donors, politicians, and celebrities. Unfortunately, it was only officially opened in May 1967 – a few months after he passed away. There’s now a huge waiting list to pay the $25,000 joining fee and the $10,000-a-year membership fee.
2. Gustav Eiffel’s Private Apartment
The Eiffel Tower was finished in 1889 and it soon became well-known that the designer, Gustav Eiffel, had built himself a small apartment right at the top. Many wealthy Parisians tried to rent this cozy nest in the sky, but Eiffel declined them all. He preferred to use it for reflection and to entertain prestigious guests such as Thomas Edison. Today the apartment is open to visitors.
3. Track 61 of Grand Central Station in New York
Deep under the Waldorf Astoria hotel in New York there’s a secret terminal that dates back to the 1930s. Built along with the rest of Grand Central Terminal, track 61 was used to allow President Franklin Delano Roosevelt to arrive unnoticed so that no one would see him in the wheelchair that his polio forced him to sit in. Though it’s hard to know for certain, some claim that track 61 is still used as a secret escape for presidents and celebrities visiting the city.
4. The Balcony on the 103rd Floor of the Empire State Building
Tourists usually visit the observation deck on the 86th floor of the Empire State Building, while the more enthusiastic ones take the elevator up to the 102nd floor to see the views of the city from behind some pretty sturdy windows. However, not many people know that there’s a 103rd floor with its own balcony. This floor is reserved for those in the know and most of its visitors are fearless celebrities.
5. India’s National Library’s Secret Chamber
The history of the building of the National Library dates back to the days of the Raj. This is why archeologists were pretty excited to find a mysterious room in the 250-year-old building. No one could enter this room because it didn’t have any doors, windows, or even trap-doors.
Scientists thought that it could be some sort of torture room, or that it was home to some treasures, but they were all wrong – it turned out to be a block stuffed with mud, whose predestination remains a mystery.
6. The Vanderbilt Tennis Club in Grand Central Terminal
Another secret that this terminal has kept hidden since the 1960s is some exclusive tennis courts on its upper levels. They were once open to the public, but Donald Trump took them over in 1984 and decided to turn it into a private tennis club where celebrities could hang out. In 2009, the Vanderbilt Club was shut down and a full-service lounge for Metro North railroad employees was created.
7. The Buried Remains of Old Streets Beneath London
At the intersection of Charring Cross Road and Old Compton Street in Soho, there’s a traffic island. If you stand on it and look down at the metal grate on the ground, you’ll see two tiled Victorian street names set into the wall beneath the ground – you’re looking at the forgotten remnants of old London, a small part of a long lost road – Little Compton Street.
In the past, the street level was much lower and there was a public house called the Coach and Horses on the corner of Soho. In 1896, the street level was raised and an office block was eventually built on the site of Little Compton.
8. Flinders Street Station Ballroom
On the top floor of Australia’s busiest railway station is an abandoned beautiful ballroom. The space occupied by this ballroom was originally the lecture hall of the Victorian Railway Institute. In the 1950s and 60s, it was a place for public dances that would last until it was time to catch the last train home.
9. The Colossus of the Apennines
This giant half-man half-giant statue was built towards the end of the 16th century in Italy and it has a secret to hide. There are a number of rooms inside that once made him come to life. His left hand was built over an underground stream, making it look like water was erupting from his hand. Furthermore, there’s a rumor that the space in his head housed a fireplace, so when it was lit, it would look like he was blowing smoke out of his nostrils.
