Have you heard of the tradition of love locks? It’s when two lovers chain a padlock onto a bridge or a gate, maybe a fence, as a symbol of their unbreakable love. It’s a bit cheesy, but it’s also quite romantic. It’s a tradition that has caught fire in recent times and is continuing to grow with more love locks springing up all over the world every year.
But firstly, where did the love lock tradition start? Well, although it’s really only taken off in the noughties, it’s actually a practice that’s been around for years. The Most Ljubavi or ‘Bridge Of Love’ in Serbia, adorned in more than 15,000 padlocks, is the disputed birthplace of this romantic custom dating back to World War I. Or, so the tale goes! Since then, lovers of all ages have started attaching their own padlocks to different structures all around the world. To solidify their relationships further, they usually throw the key away!
In honour of Valentine’s Day, which can’t be escaped even if you try, we thought we’d take a look at just some of the most popular love locked destinations around the world.
Most Ljubavi, Serbia
The birthplace of the love lock tradition can be found on the Most Ljubavi in the town of Vrnjačka Banja in Serbia. Interestingly, this is also the home of the only hot spring in the world whereby the water temperature matches the temperature of the human body!
N Seoul Tower, Seoul
The capital of South Korea, Seoul, is home to almost 12 million people, and a similar number of tourists frequent South Korea as a whole every year. Both the locals and travellers have contributed to the thousands of love locks which frequent the top of N Seoul Tower!
Zion National Park, Utah, USA
The act of love locks isn’t just restricted to cities in Europe. Even outside the Zion National Park in the midst of Utah, couples have attached engraved padlocks to the dream catcher like sculpture which marks the entrance to the national park.
Mount Huang, China
Nicknamed the ‘loveliest mountain in China’, Mount Huang is understandably a popular tourist destination. Near enough every safety fence and connecting metal poles have been covered in metal padlocks, with the keys often thrown over the edge into the valleys beneath. Such a popular tradition, it has become an additional draw to this beautiful natural site.
Milvian Bridge, Rome
The Milvian Bridge in Rome has attracted lover’s padlocks for many years but in 2012, it was reported that Italian officials took measures to ban any more padlocks being added to this famous bridge in a bid to ‘restore decorum.’
Pont de l’Archeveche, Paris
Nicknamed the city of love the world over, it’s no surprise that this tradition is alive and kicking in Paris. The Pont de l’Archeveche, overlooked by Notre Dame Cathedral, is practically bowing under the weight of many metal padlocks which scrawled with the initials and important dates of couples locked to the posts.
Luzhkov Bridge, Moscow
So many padlocks were attached to this pedestrian bridge, that an entire love locked forests has sprouted in the centre of the walk way. The ‘Trees of Love’ were installed by the local authorities for this exact purpose, in fact!
Hohenzollern Bridge, Cologne
This mammoth wall of locks in the German city of Cologne is certainly a display of affection, if ever I’ve seen one. If you actually stop to think of how many couples have contributed to this creation, it’s actually pretty incredible. Aw, the Power of Love, hey!
Ha’Penny Bridge, Dublin
The tradition made its way onto the Emerald Isle too, with padlocks being attached by couples to the Ha’Penny Bridge in Dublin city centre. The council however, likes the officials in Rome, clearly weren’t feeling the love as they too have since taken measures to have the padlocks removed.
Mühlesteg Footbridge, Zurich
Located in the centre of Zurich, this spot has long been a favourite for young couples in love. It wasn’t long before the tradition made its way to Switzerland and love locks starting appearing along the handrails.
Tower Bridge, London
This romantic custom can even be found all over London with some of the most popular areas being Millennium Bridge and Tower Bridge. The locks here began to appear in 2012 and the number has gradually grown ever since, continuing this somewhat public display of affection!
If you’ve got a special someone in your life, why not chain up your very own love lock in one of these love locked destinations sometime soon?
Would you ever get involved in this tradition? Is it sweet or cheesy? Have you visited any of these love locked destinations?
