Travel

The 14 craziest McDonald’s locations around the globe

On a recent road trip through New Mexico, I decided to stop in Roswell. I’ve always been curious about the UFO and alien conspiracy theories that made this tiny desert town famous. I figured that the only attraction worth visiting would be its kitschy International UFO Museum.

Turns out I was wrong. Something else pretty “out of this world” captured my attention. And no, it wasn’t an extraterrestrial sighting. It was the local McDonald’s. It’s the only one in the world designed like a UFO.

This got me wondering: What other bizarre McDonald’s locations exist around the world? In its quest for global fast-food domination, McDonald’s has opened more than 34,000 restaurants in 119 countries. And yes, some reside in unexpected places.

Here are among the most curious. They serve up a special side of ambience, transforming an otherwise run-of-the-mill fast-food stop into a unique memory. It’ll supersize your fast-food experience.

Roswell, New Mexico

McDonalds
Would you like some fries with that UFO spotting? The Roswell, New Mexico, location looks like a spaceship.

Guantanamo Bay, Cuba

Wikimedia Commons/United States Navy
We wonder if Big Macs are used in interrogations? The U.S. naval base known for its controversial detention camp housing alleged terrorists is also the location of a — you guessed it — McDonald’s.

The restaurant is only accessible to the base’s personnel and is the sole McDonald’s in Cuba.

Bray, Ireland

Courtesy of William Murphy/Flickr
McDonald’s has a knack for transforming historic buildings into fast-food must-stops.The Bray Town Hall, a Tudor-style building dating back to the 19th century, has been home to a first-floor McDonald’s since 1997.

Melbourne, Australia

Courtesy of Matt/Flickr
Should we call the architectural style McDeco? This Art Deco McDonald’s was once a happening hotel built in the late 1930s.

Now it’s the location of a popular Macca’s (Australian slang for McDonald’s), complete with a retro dining room and a neon façade that glows at night.

Freeport, Maine

Courtesy of NNECAPA Photo Library/Flickr
It’s easy to miss this McDonald’s in New England — because it’s in a house. Reportedly once owned by a sea captain, the colonial home dating back to the 1850s now bears subtle golden arches in its windows.

Feast in a cozy dining room setting, complete with fireplace, befitting this charming Maine town. Another bonus: This spot is known to serve lobster rolls.

Kristiansand, Norway

Wikimedia
Once upon a time, it was a bank dispensing money and loans. Today, this former financial institution is home to cheeseburgers and fries.

Visitors can visit this monumental McDonald’s — they just can’t enter through the original bank doors. (The entrance is on the side of the building.)

Yangshuo, Guangzi Province, China

Courtesy of Kari/Flickr
The fast-food chain appears to have inserted itself into an exotic watercolor painting in Yangshuo, a village in southern China. Those famous golden arches are surrounded by towering mountains, winding rivers and a neighboring pagoda.

Go ahead, have some fries with your Zen moment.

Sedona, Arizona

Courtesy of Flickr/Frank Swift
McDonald’s au natural? Sedona’s zoning ordinances forced the company to build a restaurant that blended into the natural red-rock setting. That included trading its trademark bright yellow arches for a more natural hue, green.

New Hyde, New York

Courtesy of Chung Chu/Flickr
You’d expect a butler, not Ronald McDonald, to greet guests at this 19th-century Georgian mansion. Originally slated to be razed when McDonald’s purchased the property in 1985, it wound up being saved after local activist groups secured landmark status for the building.

McDonald’s worked around the parameters to preserve the mansion, which boasts a grand staircase and glassed-in veranda. Feel like an aristocrat while feasting on your Chicken McNuggets.

Prague, Czech Republic

Courtesy of travelingmcmahans/Flickr
One of America’s icons of capitalism resides below the Museum of Communism in Prague. See the irony in this? After touring a museum about post-World War II Communist rule in Czechoslovakia, lighten the mood with a Happy Meal.

Dallas, Texas

Courtesy of Richard Alexander/Flickr
Good luck not stopping at this McDonald’s in Dallas if you’ve got kids in the backseat. Designed to look like a Happy Meal box, this location definitely plays on child psychology.

The building is also adorned with giant sculptures of Ronald McDonald, French fries, Cokes and Big Macs. Well played, McDonald’s, well played.

Negev Desert, Israel

Courtesy of Chalky Lives/Flickr
On the surface, building a McDonald’s in the middle of a desert might seem like a terrible business move. But this fast-food oasis attracts hungry travelers passing through the arid landscape on their way to Israel’s southern resort towns.

Enjoy 100 percent kosher beef burgers amid views of sand, sand and more sand.

Barstow, California

Courtesy of Derek Bruff/Flickr
The fast-food train — we mean chain — plays into Barstow’s legacy as a transportation hub for road and rail. A popular stop on Historic Route 66, the Barstow Station McDonald’s is housed in refurbished passenger railcars.

Lindvallen, Sweden

Courtesy of deruneinholbare/Flickr
The first ski-through McDonald’s in the world, the “McSki” in Sweden’s resort of Lindvallen has been serving burgers, fries and drinks to hungry skiers since 1996. It’s certainly easier to burn off those calories while challenging the slopes.