The Most Famous Tourist Attractions in the World

1. Machu Picchu.

machu-picchu

Machu Picchu is an Incan citadel set high in the Andes Mountains in Peru, above the Urubamba River valley. Built in the 15th century and later abandoned, it’s renowned for its sophisticated dry-stone walls

Machu Picchu is an Incan citadel set high in the Andes Mountains in Peru, above the Urubamba River valley. Built in the 15th century and later abandoned, it’s renowned for its sophisticated dry-stone walls that fuse huge blocks without the use of mortar, intriguing buildings that play on astronomical alignments and panoramic views.

Its exact former use remains a mystery. For many visitors to Peru and even South America, a visit to the Inca city of Machu Picchu is the long-anticipated highpoint of their trip. In a spectacular location, it’s the best-known archaeological site on the continent.

This awe-inspiring ancient city was never revealed to the conquering Spaniards and was virtually forgotten until the early part of the 20th century.

2. Sheikh Zayed Mosque.

sheikh-zayed-mosque

Rising majestically from beautifully manicured gardens and visible from each of the bridges joining Abu Dhabi Island to the mainland, the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque represents an impressive welcome to the city.

Conceived by the first president of the UAE, Sheikh Zayed, and marking his final resting place, the mosque accommodates 41,000 worshippers and is one of the few in the region open to non-Muslims. With more than 80 marble domes on a roofline held aloft by over 1000 pillars and punctuated by four 107m-high minarets, Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque is a masterpiece of modern Islamic architecture and design. Over 100,000 tons of pure white Greek and Macedonian marble were used in its construction.

3. Angkor Wat.

angkor-wat

Angkor is one of the most important archaeological sites in South-East Asia. Stretching over some 400 km2, including forested area, Angkor Archaeological Park contains the magnificent remains of the different capitals of the Khmer Empire, from the 9th to the 15th century. They include the famous Temple of Angkor Wat and, at Angkor Thom, the Bayon Temple with its countless sculptural decorations. After 1432 when the capital moved to Phnom Penh, Angkor Wat was cared for by Buddhist monks.

4. St. Peter’s Basilica.

st-peters-basilica

The Papal Basilica of St. Peter in the Vatican, or simply St. Peter’s Basilica, is an Italian Renaissance church in Vatican City, the papal enclave within the city of Rome. St. Peter’s Basilica is one of the largest churches in the world, was completed in 1626 after 120 years construction. The original church was commissioned by the emperor Constantine and built around 349 on the site where St Peter is said to have been buried between AD 64 and 67. But like many medieval churches, it eventually fell into disrepair and it wasn’t until the mid-15th century that efforts were made to restore it.

5. Golden Gate Bridge.

golden-gate-bridge

The Golden Gate Bridge is a suspension bridge spanning the Golden Gate strait, the one-mile-wide, three-mile-long channel between San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean.

Opened in 1937, the bridge was built at a cost of $35 million in principal and $39 million in interest and 11 workers’ lives. The single-suspension span is anchored by twin towers that reach skyward 746 feet, and was once taller than any building in San Francisco. To support the suspended roadway, two cables, each more than 7,000 feet in length and both containing 80,000 miles of wire stretch over the top of the towers and are rooted in concrete anchorages on shore.

If you’re visiting the city, there are severalSan Francisco bus toursthat will take you around the key attractions of the city including the Golden Gate Bridge!

6. Grand Place.

grand-place

The Grand Place is an iconic square in the Belgian capital of Brussels. The Grand Place attracts tens of thousands of tourists each year, making it one of the most important landmarks in Belgium. In 1998, it was selected as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Grand Place is an outstanding blend of architectural and artistic styles that characterizes the diverse culture and society of the Belgian Brussels-region. It has been used as a town square since the 12th century, but also played a negative role in the history of the Belgian city.

7. Eiffel Tower.

eiffel-tower

Eiffel Tower is a wrought iron lattice tower on the Champ de Mars in Paris, France. It is named after the engineer Gustave Eiffel, whose company designed and built the tower. Constructed in 1889 as the entrance to the 1889 World’s Fair, it was initially criticized by some of France’s leading artists and intellectuals for its design, it has become a global cultural icon of France and one of the most recognisable structures in the world.

The tower is 324 metres tall, about the same height as an 81-storey building, and the tallest structure in Paris. Its base is square, measuring 125 metres on each side.

8. The Alhambra.

the-alhambra

The Alhambra is a palace and fortress complex located in Granada, Andalusia, Spain. It was originally constructed as a small fortress in AD 889 on the remains of Roman fortifications and then largely ignored until its ruins were renovated and rebuilt in the mid-13th century. It was converted into a royal palace in 1333 by Sultan of Granada.

After the conclusion of the Christian Reconquista in 1492, the site became the Royal Court of Ferdinand and Isabella and the palaces were partially altered to Renaissance tastes. The Royal Court of Ferdinand and Isabella and the palaces were partially altered to Renaissance tastes.

9. Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool.

lincoln-memorial-reflecting-pool

The Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool is the largest of the many reflecting pools in Washington DC, United States. It is a long and large rectangular pool located on the National Mall, directly east of the Lincoln Memorial, with the Washington Monument to the east of the reflecting pool.

The Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool was designed by Henry Bacon, and was constructed in 1922 and 1923, following the dedication of the Lincoln Memorial. It is approximately 2,029 feet long and 167 feet wide.

10. Chichen Itza.

chichen-itza

The stepped pyramids, temples, columned arcades, and other stone structures of Chichén Itzá were sacred to the Maya and a sophisticated urban center of their empire from AD 750 to 1200. Viewed as a whole, the incredible complex reveals much about the Maya and Toltec vision of the universe – which was intimately tied to what was visible in the dark night skies of the Yucatán Peninsula.

The temple has 365 steps – one for each day of the year. Each of the temple’s four sides has 91 steps, and the top platform makes the 365th. Chichén Itzá was more than a religious and ceremonial site. It was also a sophisticated center and hub of regional trade. But after centuries of prosperity and absorbing influxes of other cultures like the Toltecs, the city met a mysterious end.

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