The World's Best Views

updated 8/12/2021

We asked our readers to tell us which views stopped you in your tracks around the world – here are 17 of the best, as voted by you.

The Scallop at
Mount Ararat
Old Harry Rocks,
Giant’s Causeway
Mount
From Montjuïc Castle,
Temples of
Grand Canyon
Ninety Mile Beach,
Mavora Lakes,
The Chocolate Hills
Laguna Colorada,
From the fortress in
Ladakh
The
Pieniny Mountains,
The view from a plane window

The Scallop at Aldeburgh, England

Chosen by @josephine_turn on Twitter, the Scallop in Aldeburgh kicks of our list. This four-metre-high steel sculpture sits on a beach in Suffolk, England, as a celebration of local twentieth-century composer Benjamin Britten.

© Richard Bowden/Shutterstock

Mount Ararat, Turkey

This over 5000-metre-high dormant volcano makes for a fantastic vista and is the highest mountain in Turkey. It’s no wonder that Arthur George Davtyan chose this "legendary" mountain as his favourite view.

© Shutterstock

Old Harry Rocks, Dorset, England

Jutting out of the waters on the Dorset coast, Old Harry Rocks got a mention from @ukirsaria, who said they are "stunning and dreamy by the sea".

© Mark David Jones/Shutterstock

Giant’s Causeway, Ireland

The National Trust’s press office voted for the Giant’s Causeway in Ireland on Twitter. This major tourist attraction is made up of 37,000 black basalt polygon columns and makes for an otherworldly view out to North Atlantic sea.

Giant Causeway in Northern Ireland © Kanuman/Shutterstock

continued below

Mount Kinabalu, Malaysia

Rough Guides follower @StickyRiceSabah told us that the 4000-metre-high Mount Kinabalu in Malaysia is their favourite view in the world, and is best admired at dawn.

© Shutterstock

From Montjuïc Castle, Barcelona, Spain

According to @Lucy_Is_Lost on Twitter: "the view from Montjuïc Castle is pretty unforgettable and is best enjoyed with a bottle of cava". Don’t mind if we do…

© V_E/Shutterstock

Temples of Bagan, Myanmar

Rough Guides follower @StephensPhotos voted for the "temple studded plains of Bagan", agreeing with our Myanmar author who wrote: "Few places in the world can offer a spectacle as breathtaking as its [Bagan’s] vast stupa and temple-strewn plain."

© Shutterstock

Grand Canyon, USA

Unsurprisingly, the Grand Canyon got a few of your mentions in this poll. This 277-mile-long crevasse is cut a mile deep into the Arizona plains, and has been spellbinding travellers for years with its craggy, two million year-old rocks and vividly coloured strata.

© Shutterstock

Ninety Mile Beach, Australia

Jorge Jorgeous told us on Facebook that his absolute favourite view has to be Ninety Mile Beach in Victoria, Australia. We can hardly dispute that 90 miles of sand makes for a fantastic outlook.

Ninety Mile Beach© Jiri Foltyn/Shutterstock

Mavora Lakes, New Zealand

On Facebook, Robin Svedberg told us the best view he’d ever come across was in the Mavora Lakes on South Island, New Zealand. The waters provide an almost perfect reflection of the surrounding forest and mountains.

Mavora Lake, South Island, New Zealand © Mo_Chen/Shutterstock

The Chocolate Hills, the Philippines

One of the Philippines’ most popular tourist attractions, the Chocolate Hills was voted for our Facebook follower Borocay Island, Philippines. While they may not be entirely impartial, it’s hard to argue with the view of these undulating green hills.

The pointed Chocolate Hills in the Philippines © Shutterstock

Laguna Colorada, Bolivia

A 15,000-acre salt lake with its bright red algae makes for one of the world’s best views according to @MihairiGuild on Twitter. The hundreds of bright pink James's Flamingos add to the eccentric colours of the Laguna Colorada and paired with the distant mountains, it's an ethereal vista.

© Shutterstock

From the fortress in Kotor, Montengro

The old fortress walls in Kotor sit proudly above the town, and afford great views of the waters below; a perfect reward for the climb according to @HayleyBurgess on Twitter.

© Shutterstock

Ladakh, India

India’s most remote and sparsely populated region is the world’s best view for @Shantitravel on Twitter. This high-altitude desert area is surrounded by stunning mountains, from the Great Himalayas to the Karakoram ranges.

The French Alps from above

Formed by the collision of continental tectonic plates over millions of years and perhaps one of the best views you can have from the air, the French Alps were chosen by @PiersMac for one of the world’s best views.

Pieniny Mountains, Poland

Tweeting us their favourite view, @PolandIsHere chose the famous pine-clad Pieniny Mountains, formed of limestone and dolomite rock in the south of Poland.

The view from a plane window

This is one reader we have to agree with whole-heartedly; Paul Hastie told us on Facebook that his favourite view in the world is one seen from of a plane window because it "means I’m going somewhere awesome".