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A closed city is a city to which foreign residents and perhaps even domestic residents cannot travel freely. Wikipedia has an informative article on closed cities. The list of closed cities today contains cities in Russia and Kazakhstan, as well as Oak Ridge, Tennessee, USA in the United States, but I am unable to confirm the information from Wikipedia as the Oak Ridge website opens with a quite welcoming message, whereas the town of Ostrovnoy, Murmansk Oblast, Russia clearly states on its website (google translate to English that it's ЗАТО г. Островной, i.e. a closed area.

Do closed cities, defined as cities with travel restrictions for foreign or domestic travellers, exist in countries that are not former Soviet states?

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  • US citizens can travel freely. There have been laws that prevent US citizens traveling to Soviet block countries, Cuba, Russia, et. Al. But those have been mostly abandoned. – user1873 Feb 9 '13 at 22:22
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    US Citizens can travel freely to Cuba? That will come as news to most Americans. – DJClayworth Feb 9 '13 at 23:14
  • Mecca springs to mind. It's not technically closed to all foreigners, but to most of them. – DJClayworth Feb 9 '13 at 23:15
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    Russian closed cities are entire cities that are limited access even to Russians. In Saudi Arabia the entire country is hard to get into for foreigners, perhaps Mecca even more, but does Mecca have travel restrictions for native Saudis? – gerrit Feb 10 '13 at 10:27
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    For some reason I'm itching to answer with Area 51/Groom Lake – user4012 Jan 3 '14 at 16:14
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There are no "closed cities" in the United States. Even Oak Ridge, Tennessee is an open city, although certain of the Department of Energy facilities locate there are "closed" to the public who don't have sufficient security clearances to enter them.

There are several "abandoned town" in the US where trespassing might be charged if a person enters them without obtaining a permit to do so or is not a resident. They include:

  1. Picher,Oklahoma
  2. Gilman,Colorado
  3. Treece, Kansas ( across the state line from Picher,OK and now only has two residents)
  4. Cardin,Oklahoma (abandoned)

All of the above are Environmental Protection Superfund sites due to contamination from lead and zinc mining done in the areas in the early to mid 20th century. All are posted and visitors could be arrested if they enter without permission or refuse to leave when instructed by authorities.

Reference:http://cumulis.epa.gov/supercpad/cursites/srchrslt.cfm?start=1&CFID=12134981&CFTOKEN=16766953&jsessionid=e03042ec26dbca4ae61448e861d3a5677651

http://cumulis.epa.gov/supercpad/cursites/srchrslt.cfm?start=1&CFID=12134981&CFTOKEN=16766953&jsessionid=e03042ec26dbca4ae61448e861d3a5677651

Mercury, Nevada isn't a city or town. It's a government construct made for the purpose of housing people who work at the Nevada Test Site. While the Wikipedia article for it refers to it as a "closed city" this is incorrect. Access to Mercury by the general public was never possible as it only exists because of the site; it is not an organic city. Russian "closed cities" invariably existed prior to the their being closed

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  • What about Mercury, Nevada? – dan04 Jan 3 '14 at 14:50
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Oak ridge TN is a regular small city. It hasn't been closed since probably 1950. I've lived there. Closed cities are usually cities that surround nuclear power plants. Mercury Nevada is still on the list. Netflix has a good documentary called city 40. If you don't speak russian you may have to turn on English subtitles, as it is in Russian and English.

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