Mount Athos, Greece
The longstanding gender ban on this ancient mountain doesn’t apply to just women – it also includes many female domestic animals. Commonly known among Greeks as the “Holy Mountain,” the self-governed Mount Athos, which encompasses both the mountain and a peninsula in Macedonia, is accessible only via ferry — and only to men with a special permit. A centuries-old belief maintains that the presence of females inhibits their path to the spiritual enlightenment of the monks living there among its 20 Eastern Orthodox monasteries.