The quietest place on earth is an anechoic chamber. The most peaceful places to relax and find inspiration. Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Bavaria, Germany

They say that “silence is golden”, but there is a room in Minnesota in the USA that is so quiet that after a while you will simply feel unbearable there. The room blocks out 99.99 percent of external sounds, and no one has ever been able to endure more than 45 minutes while in it. quiet place in the world according to the Guinness Book of Records is located in South Minneapolis at Orfield Laboratories. To achieve exceptional silence, the room used meter-thick fiberglass acoustic platforms, double walls of insulated steel and 30cm-thick concrete.
The company's founder and president, Steven Orfield, said that when it gets that quiet, your hearing begins to adapt.
“The quieter the room, the more things you hear. You begin to hear your heart beating, sometimes your lungs moving, or your stomach grumbling. In an anechoic chamber, you become the sound,” he explained.
Orfield explained that this is very confusing and keeps you sitting in one place. We navigate by the sounds we hear when we walk. In an anechoic chamber, you don't have any cues that allow you to balance and maneuver. If you find yourself here for half an hour, it's best to stay in your chair. This camera is used by many manufacturers to test the volume of their products, such as heart valves, mobile phone display sound, and the sound of a car dashboard switch. It is also used to determine sound quality.
But for a person such a room can become a severe test. After a few minutes of being in it, you get used to the absence of sounds, starting to pick up increasingly weaker sounds. NASA astronauts, who are trained by being placed in a tank filled with water in a room, after some time begin to experience hallucinations as our body tries to create sounds out of nothing.

With the lights off, the longest a person could stand in this room was 45 minutes. The founder himself could only endure half an hour. According to him, what distracts people most is not noise, but silence.

They say that silence and silence are worth their weight in gold. However, being in the quietest room on the planet becomes unbearable in a very short time.

The record for staying in an anechoic chamber at Orfield Laboratory, in south Minneapolis, Minnesota, is 45 minutes.

A room that absorbs 99.99% of all sounds ranks first in the Guinness Book of Records, but staying in it for too long can cause hallucinations.

Steven Orfield

The company's founder and president, Steve Orfield, in an interview with MailOnline, urges people to stay in this room in complete darkness. He considers this experience very important, although somewhat scary. There are already precedents: one reporter stayed there for only 45 minutes - although this meager time became a record.

“Of course, the ears will adapt to such silence. But the quieter the room, the more sounds you hear, such as your heartbeat, the movement of your lungs, and the seemingly loud rumbling of your stomach. In an anechoic room, you become the sound yourself,” he noted.

In an anechoic room, you become the sound yourself

In a “quiet room,” it's best not to move at all, advises Orfield: “You're guided by the sound as you walk. In an anechoic chamber you don't have any signals. The perception of signals that allow you to balance and maneuver disappears. So it’s better to just sit in a chair.”


Steven Orfield

The silent camera is used by companies all over America. NASA, for example, tests astronauts in it to see how quickly hallucinations occur.

As Orfield explained, space is one big anechoic chamber, so it's important to make sure astronauts can stay focused and productive in such conditions.

It is also used for official sound testing by many manufacturers to measure the volume level of their product. This could range from the sound of a cell phone or a car dashboard switch to the sound of a heart valve.

If you like silence and solitude, you are unlikely to choose a metropolis when going on vacation. Moreover, when there are such calm places in the world, where nature and people’s lives seem to be a continuation of each other, where the city itself seems to be imprinted into the majestic landscape and is perceived as part of it. They are so harmonious that I want to exchange ours right today frantic rhythm life on the peace of one of them.

1. Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Bavaria, Germany

Quiet place

Garmisch-Partenkirchen is a charming town on Germany's highest mountain, the Zugspitze. Situated at an altitude of 3,000 meters, it once represented two settlements, one founded by the Romans and the other by the Teutons. They were united only in 1936 on the eve of the Winter Olympic Games.

2. Settlement in the Himalayas, Tibet

Quiet place

The mysterious Faroe chain north of Scotland is hardly known to a wide range of tourists. For many years, the islands with their steep cliffs remained difficult to access. For example, there is only one staircase leading to the village of Gasadalur, built during the British occupation of the islands during the Second World War. The 18 lucky people who now live there are reliably sheltered from all adversity by two mountains 2,300 feet high.

5. Colmar, France

Quiet place

Colmar is one of the most beautiful towns in Alsace. Ancient streets and pavements, half-timbered houses, ancient stone buildings - all this creates an indelible impression. In addition, Colmar is the capital of Alsatian wines, and it is not for nothing that the Route du Vin - Wine Road - originates from here.

6. Camden, Maine, USA

Quiet place

Previously inhabited by Indians, Camden was colonized by the British in the 70s of the 18th century. During times civil war it served as something of a “negotiation point” for the Americans. Now this clean and cozy town is home to 5,000 residents, and in the summer the ratio of tourists to the city’s indigenous population is 2 to 1.

7. Bled, Slovenia

Quiet place

Sheltered picturesque mountains Bled was first mentioned in 1004. It seemed so beautiful to the Holy Roman Emperor that it was presented as the greatest reward to the Bishop of Brixen. The church in Bled is located on an island in the middle of the lake of the same name. The city itself, with a population of 5,000 people, is now one of the most beautiful Slovenian resorts.

8. Manarola, Italy

Quiet place

Manarola is a small fishing town in Liguria, northern Italy. A rainbow of colorful houses is located on a cliff overlooking the wild coastline Ligurian Sea. The city church dates back to 1338, making Manarola one of the oldest cities in the region.

9. Bibury, UK

Quiet place

Bibury is often called the most beautiful city in England, and not in vain. It was first mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086, and since then the town has seemed frozen in time. Most of the houses look the same as they did hundreds of years ago, and the river still flows its gray waters along the shady streets of Bibury.

10. Annecy, France

Quiet place

Annecy is probably even more picturesque than French Alps, surrounding him. Built around a 14th-century castle, the town is divided by small canals and streams that flow into the beautiful blue Lake Annecy.

11. Goreme, Türkiye (Underground City)

Quiet place

Now Gureme is an open-air museum. Since the 6th century. until the end of the 9th century. Goreme was one of the largest Christian centers, and there were more than 400 churches in its surroundings. Saint Paul found Goreme the most suitable place for raising the righteous.

12. Tanby, Wales

Quiet place

The city's name roughly translates from Welsh as “Little Fish Fortress.” This naturally sheltered town overlooks the Irish Sea and Atlantic Ocean was founded back in 900 AD. After the Norman conquest of England, the city was fortified with a massive wall to prevent Welsh uprisings. Today it is known more for its beauty than for its defenses.

13. Leavenworth, Washington, USA

quiet peaceful place

Vestmannaeyjar is a small archipelago south of Iceland with a population of about 4,000 people. The exact date of discovery of the islands is unknown, but it is assumed that the archipelago was discovered by Irish sailors and Vikings at the same time as Iceland. The islands are also famous for being captured by the Ottoman fleet and Barbary pirates in 1627, who took the people into slavery.

15. Queenstown, New Zealand

quiet peaceful place

Queenstown is located in the southwestern part of New Zealand's South Island. Located on the shores of Queenstown Bay of Lake Wakatipu, a small lake of glacial origin. The city is surrounded by picturesque mountains. In the 60s of the 19th century, gold was found here, and the city experienced a real Gold Rush.

16. Hidden Mountain Village - Jiuzhaigou, China

quiet peaceful place

Not much is known about these villages, scattered throughout China, which once served as strongholds for the military. Nowadays you can only get there by horseback and get a unique insight into the culture of classical China.

17. Shirakawa-go, Japan

quiet peaceful place

Shirakawa-go is a small traditional settlement known for its peaked roofs, designed to withstand heavy snowfalls. The dense, mysterious forests and hills surrounding the village made the area difficult to live in - except for the small plain where Shirakawa-go is located.

18. Pucon, Chile

quiet peaceful place

Far beyond the borders of its country, Pucon gained fame as the “capital active tourism Chile". This small town has gained its popularity in the travel world thanks to its lake, volcano and wide variety of species. active rest that you can only imagine.

19. Morro de Sao Paulo, Brazil

quiet peaceful place

Morro de Sao Paulo is one of the quietest island cities in the world. The only way to the island is by boat or small-engine planes, which regularly fly from El Salvador. Motor vehicles are prohibited on the island. The only way to travel long distances there is by tractor, which carries passengers to the beach, hotels or airport.

20. Amedia, Kurdistan

quiet peaceful place

Amediya is a small colorful village located on top of a hill in the Iraqi province of Dahuk. Amedia is 1000 meters long and 500 meters wide, while being 1400 meters above sea level. According to legend, Persian magicians and priests lived in the vicinity of the village, who were famous in the art of sorcery. It was from here, according to some researchers, that the biblical three wise men went to Bethlehem to worship and present gifts to the baby Jesus.

Imagine: you are sitting in a room all alone. Your household members are sleeping, the TV and computer are turned off, and there is not a single car on the deserted streets. There seems to be 100% silence around. But this is not so: crackling and noise are produced by electrical appliances connected to power sources (primarily the refrigerator), fish in the aquarium and the building itself. And even your breathing is about 10 dB (in case anyone has forgotten, noise is measured in decibels). Now imagine: in the USA there is a special room in which the noise level reaches -20 dB. We talk about it and about other quietest places on our planet.

Anechoic chamber, Minnesota (USA)

The first facility listed in the Guinness Book of Records as “the quietest place on Earth” was a unique anechoic room developed at the Orfield Laboratory in Minnesota. According to the company, tests showed a background noise level of -9.4 dB - a development about 16 times quieter than a bedroom. This miracle of the scientific world was built from plasterboard laid in 5 layers and other materials with an absorbing capacity of 99.5%. The anechoic chamber is literally suspended in an armored safe room that blocks electromagnetic radiation in both directions. But spending time in the room is still a pleasure: the reigning silence makes your ears pop, and you can hear your joints creaking.

Washington (USA)

New record holder - an anechoic chamber located in Washington state. The noise level in the room is -20.3 dB - here you can hear the movement of air particles. Like the Minnesota cell, the room is built from soundproofing materials with unusually shaped walls and floors. Microsoft uses it to test new technologies where sound quality is paramount.

The North American Mojave Desert is not very large, but in its heart are the Kelso Dunes, whose height in some places reaches 200 meters. It is forbidden to approach them by cars, airplanes do not fly over them, and the cries of birds rarely break the silence - in this place, which brought fear to the Indian tribes, you can hear the singing of the sands. The dunes move non-stop under the influence of the wind, changing their shape and emitting a low-frequency hum, which has been compared to the crackling of wires or the beating of drums. A unique acoustic effect is created by sand particles rubbing against each other, but scientists have not been able to establish why some deserts remain “silent” while others are endowed with voices.

Negev Desert (Israel)

Describing their impressions of traveling through the Promised Land, tourists and pilgrims note that the Negev is perfect place for meditation: as soon as you step away from the road, you will plunge into a world of ringing silence, interrupted only by the rare voices of pilgrims. And this despite the fact that on the territory of the dried desert, which occupies more than half, Bedouin settlements have been preserved (the government only 7 years ago became concerned about the issue of their status), as well as Ben-Gurion University, opened specifically for the development of the Negev.

Haleakala Crater (USA)

On Hawaiian island Maui is located National Park Haleakala, whose main star is the inactive volcano of the same name, rising to 3055 meters. Crater shield volcano, which locals call the “House of the Sun”, is popular among tourists. From here they like to watch the sunrise (which is very symbolic), and at the same time the flora and fauna, which has no analogues in the whole world. The main thing is that all this can be done in absolute silence: according to the US National Park Service, the noise level inside the crateris only 10 dB (that is, approximately the same as with even breathing).

Hoh Rain Forest (USA)

Hoh Rainforest, recognizedone of the wonders of Washington State , - Part National Park Olympic, included back in 1981. According to the US National Park Service, absolute silence in the protected area is created by lush coniferous and deciduous trees, as well asnumerous ferns and mosses that act as sound insulators . But things might have been different without human intervention: 11 years ago, acoustic ecologist Gordon Hampton started the One Square Inch of Silence project to keep the rain forest quiet. He placed a small red rock among the trees and convinced three airlines to change their routes to bypass the “inch of silence” so that people could listen to nature rather than the noise of engines.

Grand Canyon National Park (USA)

The American Grand Canyon is filled with tourists: it is visited every year