A new study has been released that reveals the new Wonders of the World, based on which places people are ‘wondering’ about the most.
The medical travel insurance specialists at AllClear, analysed Wikipedia data to discover the landmarks and attractions around the world that have the most page views.
The data revealed an eclectic list of travel favourites, natural wonders and unusual tourist spots – from lakes filled with jellyfish to urinating statues.
The data has been plotted into a global map which shows (nearly) every country’s World Wonder.
Globally, there are 32 cultural or historical sites, 32 parks or reserves, 26 ancient ruins, 20 mountains or volcanoes, 17 natural wonders, 17 bodies of water, 15 religious landmarks, nine islands, seven modern architectural sites, three dams or canals, three statues or monuments and two deserts.
The New Seven Wonders Of The World
As Wikipedia is often where people turn to learn and gather information, it’s the perfect data source to help pinpoint the places in the world that people are most interested in.
Based on the last five years of Wikipedia data, the white marble mausoleum in India, the Taj Mahal, is the top World Wonder.
Built in the 1600s as a memorial for Shah Jahan’s wife, it’s now a Unesco World Heritage Site and an incredibly popular tourist attraction in Agra, India.
Another Asian landmark is second on the list, the Burj Khalifa in the United Arab Emirates.
The Dubai skyscraper is the world’s tallest building and was opened in 2010, making it the most modern site to be featured in the new top seven.
South Africa's Kruger National Park is also on the list of new Wonders Of The World, making it the most 'wondered' about South African landmark/location.
The world’s highest mountain, Mount Everest in Nepal, is the third top World Wonder, also the only non-man made landmark to make the list.
Two famous structures also feature on the top seven, New York’s Statue of Liberty and Paris’ Eiffel Tower – Interestingly Gustav Eiffel who designed the Eiffel Tower also designed the internal structure of the Statue of Liberty.
Two far older sites make up the rest of the new Seven Wonders of the World, the Great Wall of China and Machu Picchu in Peru.
The Great Wall of China (5th) is a famous series of fortresses along historical borders of China and Machu Picchu (7th) is a site of ancient Inca ruins that are found high up in the Andes mountains.