10 of the most visited tourist attractions in the world

𝔚𝔞𝔫𝔱 𝔱𝔬 𝔧𝔬𝔦𝔫 𝔱𝔥𝔢 𝔪𝔞𝔰𝔰𝔢𝔰 𝔞𝔱 𝔱𝔥𝔢 𝔶𝔢𝔞𝔯'𝔰 𝔪𝔬𝔰𝔱 𝔭𝔬𝔭𝔲𝔩𝔞𝔯 𝔱𝔬𝔲𝔯𝔦𝔰𝔱 𝔡𝔢𝔰𝔱𝔦𝔫𝔞𝔱𝔦𝔬𝔫𝔰? 𝔐𝔞𝔶𝔟𝔢 𝔶𝔬𝔲 𝔴𝔞𝔫𝔱 𝔱𝔬 𝔞𝔳𝔬𝔦𝔡 𝔱𝔥𝔢𝔪? ℌ𝔢𝔯𝔢'𝔰 𝔥𝔬𝔴 𝔱𝔬 𝔭𝔩𝔞𝔫 𝔞𝔥𝔢𝔞𝔡 𝔣𝔬𝔯 𝔱𝔯𝔦𝔭𝔰 𝔱𝔬 𝔱𝔥𝔢 𝔴𝔬𝔯𝔩𝔡'𝔰 𝔟𝔲𝔰𝔦𝔢𝔰𝔱 𝔱𝔬𝔲𝔯𝔦𝔰𝔱 𝔞𝔱𝔱𝔯𝔞𝔠𝔱𝔦𝔬𝔫𝔰. 

𝔚𝔢 𝔨𝔫𝔬𝔴 𝔱𝔦𝔪𝔢𝔰 𝔞𝔯𝔢 𝔠𝔥𝔞𝔩𝔩𝔢𝔫𝔤𝔦𝔫𝔤 𝔣𝔬𝔯 𝔱𝔯𝔞𝔳𝔢𝔩𝔢𝔯𝔰. 𝔄𝔩𝔱𝔥𝔬𝔲𝔤𝔥 𝔴𝔢 𝔠𝔞𝔫’𝔱 𝔱𝔯𝔞𝔳𝔢𝔩 𝔱𝔬 𝔬𝔲𝔯 𝔟𝔲𝔠𝔨𝔢𝔱 𝔩𝔦𝔰𝔱 𝔡𝔢𝔰𝔱𝔦𝔫𝔞𝔱𝔦𝔬𝔫𝔰 𝔫𝔬𝔴, 𝔴𝔢 𝔠𝔞𝔫 𝔰𝔱𝔞𝔯𝔱 𝔭𝔩𝔞𝔫𝔫𝔦𝔫𝔤 𝔱𝔥𝔢𝔪. ℑ𝔣 𝔶𝔬𝔲’𝔯𝔢 𝔴𝔬𝔫𝔡𝔢𝔯𝔦𝔫𝔤 𝔴𝔥𝔢𝔯𝔢 𝔶𝔬𝔲 𝔰𝔥𝔬𝔲𝔩𝔡 𝔤𝔬 𝔬𝔫𝔠𝔢 𝔱𝔯𝔞𝔳𝔢𝔩 𝔯𝔢𝔰𝔱𝔯𝔦𝔠𝔱𝔦𝔬𝔫𝔰 𝔞𝔯𝔢 𝔩𝔦𝔣𝔱𝔢𝔡, 𝔱𝔥𝔦𝔰 𝔩𝔦𝔰𝔱 𝔦𝔰 𝔞 𝔤𝔯𝔢𝔞𝔱 𝔭𝔩𝔞𝔠𝔢 𝔱𝔬 𝔰𝔱𝔞𝔯𝔱. 𝔎𝔢𝔢𝔭 𝔯𝔢𝔞𝔡𝔦𝔫𝔤 𝔱𝔬 𝔩𝔢𝔞𝔯𝔫 𝔞𝔟𝔬𝔲𝔱 𝔰𝔬𝔪𝔢 𝔬𝔣 𝔱𝔥𝔢 𝔴𝔬𝔯𝔩𝔡’𝔰 𝔪𝔬𝔰𝔱 𝔳𝔦𝔰𝔦𝔱𝔢𝔡 𝔱𝔬𝔲𝔯𝔦𝔰𝔱 𝔞𝔱𝔱𝔯𝔞𝔠𝔱𝔦𝔬𝔫𝔰.

1. Niagara Falls, USA/Canada

And then, we arrive in North America at a tourist destination that’s frequented more than all of the other sites, by over double the visitors. Niagara Falls, located on the border of New York and Ontario, Canada is a massive set of three waterfalls, with an astounding 6 million cubic feet of water gushing over the falls every minute. The site is currently estimated to host 30 million tourists annually, making it the most visited tourist attraction in the world.

Niagara Falls

2. The Great Pyramid of Giza, Egypt

It might be surprising to learn that a desolate desert in the Middle East has now become one of the greatest tourist destinations in the world — unless you consider the number of people who desperately want to see the Great Pyramid of Giza! One of the official Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, the Great Pyramid is a bucket list destination for many. Built around 2500 B.C., the world-famous tomb is now responsible for a spectacular 14.7 million visitors per year.

Great Pyramid of Giza

3. The Great Wall of China

Considered one of the greatest man-made structures in the world, the Great Wall of China stretches over 13,000 miles. Receiving 10 million tourists every year, it is beneficial to know the best time to visit. Autumn is arguably the prettiest season in which to arrive, but unfortunately, it is still the peak time for tourism. Surprisingly, June is best if you’re hoping to avoid the crowds, especially if you want to visit when it isn’t snowing.

The Great Wall of China

4. Eiffel Tower, France

Located in the heart of Paris, the most romantic city in the world, the Eiffel Tower has become a universal symbol of travel and a popular tourist destination. A visit to the Eiffel Tower tops many travel lists, and it’s no surprise considering the 7 million visitors who are snapping selfies under the 81-story building.

Eiffel Tower

5. Acropolis of Athens, Greece

These ancient ruins of Athens dangle above the scenic cliff-side of Greece. Despite ongoing restoration projects, hoards of onlookers continue to flock to the site year after year. The community saw close to 4 million tourists in 2019.

Acropolis of Athens

6. Christ the Redeemer, Brazil

You’ve probably seen the photos reflecting the throbs of people huddled beneath the massive, white replica of Christ. The statue — one of the Seven Wonders of the World — is known as Christ the Redeemer and casts its shadow over some 1.8 million visitors per year. The best or worst day to Rio de Janeiro, depending on how you look at it, is Easter Sunday. In recent years, the effigy welcomed a whopping 14,000 people on the date of the religious holiday.

Christ the Redeemer

7. Bran Castle, Romania

Bran Castle

Bran Castle is often associated with Dracula as his home, though there’s no indication that author Bram Stoker even knew of this medieval castle. The castle, a Romanian landmark, has a fairy tale quality, peeking out from forested a hillside near Brasov in Transylvania. With roots dating to the 13th century, this medieval castle today is a museum showcasing art and furniture collected by Queen Maria. It also is home to an open-air museum featuring Romanian peasant buildings from around the country.

8. Stonehenge, England

The set of historic stone monuments, known as Stonehenge, date from 2000 to 3000 BC. The iconic landmark is one of the most famous sites in the UK, and one of the most visited tourist attractions. Since Stonehenge was added to the list of UNESCO world heritage site in 1986, yearly visitors have skyrocketed to over 1.5 million.

Stonehenge

9. Machu Picchu, Peru

Tourists are quickly taking note of South America as they look for lesser-known, undiscovered places in the world. Machu Picchu is one of the most recognizable icons of the continent and its tourism numbers reflect it. After receiving over 1 million visitors in 2016, tourism officials decided to cut back on the entrance allowance in efforts to save the precious ruins from crumbling.

Machu Picchu

10. The Blue Lagoon, Iceland

Iceland is no doubt one of the hottest new travel destinations, with interest increasing exponentially over the past few years. The number one destination in Iceland is The Blue Lagoon. In 2017, it had a record number of visitors totaling 1.2 million. The Blue Lagoon is a natural, geothermal spa sunken into a lava field and is known for its mineral-rich healing waters. Families book with care, as children under 2 are not allowed in the pools — children between the ages of 2 and 8 are required to wear arm floaties.

The Blue Lagoon