It might sound morbid, but visiting a cemetery while you’re on vacation is a fine way to acquaint yourself with a city. Graveyards are repositories of history, culture, and tradition. They’re also often stark reminders of class divisions and varying approaches to how the great, the ordinary, and the notorious have wanted to be remembered. Plus, famous cemeteries are frequently some of the quietest, loveliest spots in otherwise loud and crowded cities.

Père Lachaise Cemetery | Paris

Why it’s special

An extraordinary number of noteworthy writers, musicians, and artists have been laid to rest at this hilly 100-acre necropolis, including Jim Morrison of the Doors, singer Edith Piaf, medieval lovers Heloise and Abelard (lying side by side, naturally), composer Frédéric Chopin, and writers Marcel Proust, Gertrude Stein, and Oscar Wilde. For years, visitors would leave lipstick kisses on Wilde’s tombstone, which features a flying naked angel, but a glass barrier constructed in 2011 put an end to that tradition. You’ll just have to settle for a photo.

Where it is

Père Lachaise is in the 20th arrondissement on the eastern edge of the city. There are several Métro stops near the cemetery, but the most convenient is probably Gambetta. It leaves you near Wilde’s tomb, and then you can walk downhill to see other graves of interest.

Where to stay

Nearby Belleville is a hipster enclave with dozens of great ethnic restaurants. If you want to be closer to the center of town (and attractions like the Eiffel Tower), pick a hotel in an arrondissement numbered lower than 12. We recommend the Marais neighborhood, a blend of medieval architecture and multiculti ambiance on the Right Bank.

La Recoleta Cemetery | Buenos Aires

Why it’s special

Legendary Argentine first lady Eva Peron is the headliner at this gracefully designed graveyard filled with ornate mausoleums arranged along boulevards like a true city of the dead. Evita is entombed in the Duarte family’s black-granite crypt, which stands among more than 4,000 aboveground vaults representing a who’s who of Argentina’s rich and famous. Book a guided tour for the best stories, including the one about the 19-year-old socialite who was reportedly buried alive.

Where it is

The cemetery is one of the top attractions in the exclusive neighborhood of Recoleta, which boasts the priciest real estate in all of Buenos Aires. After strolling through the graveyard, stop for a café con leche at La Biela, a one-time favorite hangout of man of letters Jorge Luis Borges.

Where to stay

Recoleta has the city’s ritziest hotels, and the neighborhood’s broad, leafy thoroughfares and stately architecture show why Buenos Aires has frequently been called the Paris of South America. To be closer to the trendier side of the city, stay in Palermo Viejo.

Bonaventure Cemetery | Savannah, Georgia

Why it’s special

Bonaventure isn’t the oldest cemetery in Savannah—that would be the Colonial Park Cemetery, established in 1750. But it’s certainly the most famous, owing in large part to John Berendt’s true-crime bestseller Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. The book’s cover features a photo of Bonaventure’s famous Bird Girl statue, which has been moved to the Jepson Center. The cemetery is Southern Gothic incarnate: spanish moss drapes from live oaks amid tombstones and Victorian statues every bit as eerily beautiful as Bird Girl.

Where it is

Bonaventure is set on a bluff over the Wilmington River, about 4 miles southeast of the Savannah Historic District. You can drive there in 20 minutes or so, depending on traffic.

Where to stay

Book a room in a quaint bed and breakfast or a luxury hotel in the Historic District for the full Savannah experience. The Mansion on Forsyth Park offers sumptuous digs in a restored Victorian mansion just steps from one of the city’s most iconic attractions.

Photos: Untitled by Adrien Millet under CC BY 2.0; I was there by stanze - on the move under CC BY-SA 2.0; Eva Perón’s tomb at La Recoleta Cemetery by Jimmy Harris under CC BY 2.0; Bonaventure Cemetery Savannah GA by Sandy Auriene Sullivan under CC BY 2.0