( CNN ) -- To some , it may sound like a strange way to spend a vacation . But for many visitors , the carefully manicured grounds of cemeteries can provide beautiful moments to remember history 's fascinating figures . St. Louis No . 1 , New Orleans . New Orleans is situated below sea level . Early in its history , each time there was a flood , the dead would literally rise . Residents soon learned that bodies should n't be buried in the ground . At the colorfully named St. Louis Cemetery Number 1 -- the city 's oldest -- visitors see only above-ground tombs . Some are magnificent while others stand in various degrees of ruin . One intriguing figure said to be buried here is voodoo priestess Marie Laveau ( 1794-1881 ) , who held sway over her wealthy white clients as well as the Creole faithful . Tours of the cemetery include haunted outings . 425 Basin St. , New Orleans . La Recoleta Cemetery , Buenos Aires , Argentina . The first lady of Argentina from 1946 until her death in 1952 , Eva Peron lies in the Duarte family tomb in La Recoleta Cemetery . Every day , tourists pay their respects at the black granite tomb . A public cemetery since 1822 , it was only when the wealthy of Buenos Aires moved to this area that the elaborate above-ground mausoleums became common . The cemetery is home to a roll call of famous Argentineans , from presidents and military leaders to scientists and writers . Azcuénaga , Buenos Aires , Argentina . Highgate Cemetery , London . In the 1830s , parish cemeteries in central London became a health hazard , leading parliament to authorize seven new cemeteries in outer London . Highgate Cemetery was dedicated in 1839 . Now listed on the English Heritage Register as one of London 's great Victorian cemeteries , its most famous occupant is Karl Marx , but others buried here include novelist George Eliot ( Mary Ann Evans ) and the parents of Charles Dickens . Guided tours are available for the East and West Cemeteries -- a tour is the only way to get into the latter . Was there ever a Highgate vampire ? Readers can draw their own conclusions about reports in the 1970s and subsequent investigation by the British Psychic and Occult Society . Swain 's Lane , London , Highgate . Central Cemetery , Vienna . Designed to accommodate expected population growth , the Zentralfriedhof opened in 1874 on the outskirts of Vienna . It 's `` central '' in terms of significance , not location . Home to 3.3 million souls , many visitors nonetheless focus on its connection to Vienna 's musical history . Composers Beethoven , Brahms and Strauss lie in rest here , while Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart has an honorary monument in Group 32a , his actual grave being in another cemetery . Notably , and controversially at the time , the cemetery has a Catholic section , a Protestant cemetery , a small Russian Orthodox burial area and two Jewish cemeteries . Simmeringer Hauptstrasse 234 , 1110 Vienna . Bonaventure , Georgia , United States . Located on the site of a former plantation , Bonaventure was established as a public cemetery called Evergreen in 1847 . It became Bonaventure when the City of Savannah bought it in 1907 . It 's now listed on the National Registry of Historic Places . Notable people buried here include Confederate general Hugh Mercer , novelist and poet Conrad Aiken and singer-songwriter Johnny Mercer , who wrote lyrics for Hollywood movie songs , including `` Moon River . '' The Jewish section has a memorial to victims of the Holocaust , whose ashes were brought here from a Nazi labor camp . Bonaventure 's fame grew when a sculpture of the so-called Bird Girl from the cemetery was featured as the cover of the 1994 book , `` Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil . '' 330 Bonaventure Road , Savannah , Georgia , United States . Punta Arenas Cemetery , Chile . A small angel stands with head bowed and palms together in prayer , a beautiful figurine atop one of the 19th-century tombs in the municipal cemetery of Punta Arenas in southern Chile . The chapels built in the early part of the 20th century house the remains of some of the wealthiest families of the time , including Sara Braun . It 's said that when she donated the money for construction of the cemetery entrance , she had but one request : that once she passed through the central doorway in death , the door would remain closed forever . And so it is till this day . 9 , Magallanes and Antártica Chilena region , Chile . Novodevichy Cemetery , Moscow . Adjacent to the World Heritage listed 16th-century Novodevichy Convent , the Novodevichy Cemetery is said to be Moscow 's third most popular tourist site . Inaugurated in 1898 , it grew in importance from the 1930s when the remains of many Muscovites , including writer Anton Chekhov , were transferred from small cemeteries that were being demolished . It 's now used only for the burial of significant people . Among a host of famous Russian singers , writers , scientists , cosmonauts and generals buried here lie Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev and Boris Yeltsin , first president of the Russian Federation . Luzhnetsky proyezd , 2 , Moscow . Woodlawn Cemetery , New York . Opened in the Bronx in 1863 , Woodlawn Cemetery is one of New York 's largest , with 300,000 souls at rest . It 's a listed National Historic Landmark . At its entry stands a marble memorial to Civil War hero , Admiral Farragut . Within its grounds many larger-than-life figures are interred , including jazz supremo Duke Ellington , songwriter Irving Berlin , writer Damon Runyon and newspaper publisher Joseph Pulitzer . Many monuments and mausoleums were designed by top architectural firms and noted sculptors ' talents are in evidence , such as the angel at the Angie Kinsley Monument created by Daniel French , whose credits include the seated Abraham Lincoln at the Lincoln Memorial . E. 233rd St. , New York . Waverley Cemetery , Sydney . They may be dead and buried but `` residents '' of Waverley Cemetery , set high on the clifftop above Bronte in Sydney 's east , have spectacular ocean views . While its sculptures and architecture are fascinating , there 's much to notice about the names on the graves . Among the 80,000 interments since 1877 are literary figures who helped define Australia 's character , including Henry Lawson and Dorothea Mackellar . When viewers watch the funeral scenes in Baz Luhrmann 's film `` The Great Gatsby , '' due for release in 2013 , they may think they 're in Long Island . In fact , those scenes were shot at Waverley Cemetery . St. Thomas Street , Bronte . Père Lachaise , Paris . At the Cimetiere du Pere Lachaise , home to a million souls , lies the grave of Jim Morrison , whose visitors leave tokens of love . A crowd gathers at Chopin 's grave , which is adorned by a statue of the muse with a lyre . There are kisses for Irish playwright and novelist Oscar Wilde . The list of the famous goes on . A moving site is the series of sculptures memorializing victims of the Nazis . There 's a tribute to those who died in the French Resistance and a poignant sculpted figure of an emaciated victim of the concentration camps . Others place red roses on the tomb of singer Edith Piaf , whose funeral in 1963 was attended by 40,000 people . 16 Rue du Repos , 75020 Paris . Have we missed any ? Tell us about any beautiful cemeteries you 've seen on your travels below .
Highgate Cemetery was created in 1794-1881 after others in central Vienna became health hazards . Beethoven , Brahms and Brahms share Vienna 's Novodevichy Convent as final resting place . Novodevichy Cemetery is reportedly Moscow 's third most popular tourist site . 9 people are buried at the Cimetiere du Pere Lachaise in Paris .