Image: © Marco Bottigelli / Moment / Getty Images
About This Quiz
Many people make bucket lists; that is, lists of things they want to accomplish before they kick, well, the proverbial bucket. Some want to do crazy activities such as BASE jumping or kitesurfing. Others aim to learn new hobbies, like learning to play an instrument or taking up archery. Still, others choose to populate their bucket list with a list of “must-see” attractions the world over.
Hike the to top of Pike’s Peak? Check! Swim in the world’s largest swimming pool? (It’s in Chile, by the way.) Check! Go over Niagara Falls in a barrel? OK, maybe not that one so much. But this world is full of amazing natural wonders from the sky to the sea and everywhere in between that are worthy of any bucket list: The Great Barrier Reef in Australia, the Blue Lagoon in Iceland, the super salty Dead Sea in the Jordan Rift Valley.
So, allow us to help you compile your personal travel bucket list! We’ve put together roughly 40 of the world’s most iconic natural wonders, sights and places that are just begging for you to explore. From the high elevations of the North Pole to way “Down Under,” see if you can pinpoint these wondrous locations on a map (or maybe just this quiz). Bon voyage!
Yellowstone National Park
Yellowstone National Park in parts of Wyoming, Idaho and Montana contains a number of significant sites, including the geyser known as “Old Faithful” and an active supervolcano known as the Yellowstone Caldera, situated beneath Yellowstone Lake.
Grand Teton National Park
Zion National Park
Rocky Mountain National Park
Advertisement
The Grand Canyon
It’s not named the “Grand” Canyon for nothing! Spanning 277 miles long and up to one mile deep, this natural wonder is a perennial favorite on bucket lists everywhere. It’s hard to imagine it being larger than a state, but at more than 1,900 square miles, it eclipses Rhode Island’s 1,200 square miles.
Death Valley National Park
Red Rock
Sahara Desert
Advertisement
The Statue of Liberty
The Missouri River
Sydney Opera House
Great Barrier Reef
No, it’s not the Great Wall of China, but the Great Barrier Reef off Queensland, Australia’s, coastline. It is notable for being both the world’s largest coral reef and the world’s largest living structure.
Advertisement
Stonehenge
The Grand Canyon
Pulpit Rock
Located in Preikestolen, Norway, Preikestolen, or “Pulpit Rock” as it’s known in English, is a tourist destination visited by more than 200,000 people annually. At almost 2,000 feet high, it is a popular site for BASE jumpers who like to fling themselves off tall objects.
The Great Wall of China
Advertisement
Carlsbad Caverns
Taj Mahal
Cliffs of Moher
Thanks to their striking appearance, the Cliffs of Moher in Ireland have served as a backdrop for many movies, including “The Princess Bride” in 1987 and “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” 20 years later. At its highest point, the cliffs are 700 feet high.
Golden Gate Bridge
Advertisement
The Dead Sea
The Dead Sea is known as one of the saltiest bodies of water on earth, with salinity reaching near 34%. This causes the water to be more dense than typical bodies of water. Because of that, and the fact our bodies are less dense than the water, it becomes easier to float atop this sea.
The Atlantic Ocean
Lake Michigan
The Mississippi River
Advertisement
Mount Everest
The Matterhorn
You may know of The Matterhorn from the ride at Disneyland, but the real Matterhorn soars more than 14,000 feet above sea level in Zermatt, Switzerland. It has become synonymous with the Swiss chocolatier, Toblerone, appearing on the candy’s packaging dating back to 1960.
Mount Bear
Pike's Peak
Advertisement
Fitz Roy
Mount Olympus
Denali
Mount Kilimanjaro
Located in Tanzania, Mount Kilimanjaro is one of the most well-known mountains in the world, attracting visitors and would-be climbers from all over the world. Of its three volcanic cones – Shira, Mawenzi and Kibo – only Kibo is currently dormant (meaning it could still erupt).
Advertisement
Stone Mountain
Pike's Peak
Ayers Rock
Ayers Rock, known also as Uluru, is a sandstone rock formation that rises more than 1,140 feet into the air in central Australia. It is noted by those who’ve seen it for appearing to change colors, although that is simply a result of shifts in lighting during the day and at different points during the year.
42 Wallaby Way
Advertisement
Green Bay
Manila Bay
Guanabara Bay
Many people are familiar with the site of the towering Christ the Redeemer statue, but few know the name of the area this religion monument overlooks. Guanabara Bay is made up of more than 130 different islands, but its ecosystem has taken a major hit in recent years due to urbanization and pollution.
Bay of Biscay
Advertisement
Blackwater Falls
Angel Falls
Niagara Falls
Victoria Falls
If you guessed Victoria Fall, named for none other than Queen Victoria, you might be part British (or at least history savvy). Queen Victoria was the reigning monarch when explorer David Livingstone stumbled upon the falls near the border of Zambia and Zimbabwe.
Advertisement
Monument Valley
Located inside of Monument Valley on the border of Utah and Arizona, “The Mittens” aren’t mittens at all but sandstone buttes in the shape of a pair of mittens. The remainder of Monument Valley, all 92,000 acres of it, comprises other buttes jutting from the ground like, well, monuments.
Winter Park
The Arctic Circle
Cold Stone
Advertisement
Sears Tower
Trango Towers
A route to climbing Trango Tower’s “Nameless” peak was discovered in 1989 and subsequently named for the Bangles' song, “Eternal Flame,” released one year prior. The song rose to No. 1 in eight countries, while the nameless peak rises more than 20,000 feet into the Pakistani skyline.
Mount Rushmore
Rocky Mountains
Advertisement
Carlsbad Caverns
The Alamo
The Space Needle
Marble Caves
Thank centuries of erosion for this breathtaking sight. The Marble Caves, also known as the Marble Cathedral, have been carved out of a peninsula of solid marble thanks to the movement of the water around it. The inside of these caves is marbled, just as their name portrays.
Advertisement
Lauterbrunnen Valley
“Lauter Brunnen,” which means “many fountains,” is appropriate for this Swiss valley. Its 72 waterfalls include the most famous, Staubbach Falls. Noted poet Johann Wolfgang von Goethe was said to have been inspired in his writing by this lush area.
Hidden Valley
Lily of the Valley
Valley of the Dolls
Advertisement
Neverland Flowers
Fairy Chimneys
The Fairy Chimneys at Cappadocia in Turkey were formed by volcanic eruptions that were later molded and shaped by wind and weather to give them their unique towering shape. Today, these rock formations are the site of homes and boutique hotels for travelers who want a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
Giza Pyramids
Shilin Stone Forest
Advertisement
Mud Volcanoes
The Mud Volcanoes in Azerbaijan are live, small volcanoes that emit mud dollops on a consistent basis. Because locals and travelers familiar with the area have come to associate healing properties with the mud, you can find people visiting here just to slather themselves in the material. Mud bath anyone?
Lava Mountain
Loch Ness
Niagara Falls
Advertisement
Victoria Falls
Fairy Lights
Northern Lights
Scientists say that the Northern Lights, or Aurora Borealis, are around all the time – even during the day. (You just can’t see them well then.) Many legends have surrounded the Northern Lights over the centuries, including the belief among some that the lights were a pathway for the souls of the dead to find their way to heaven.
Aurora Channel
Advertisement
The Great Lakes
The Gulf of Mexico
Rocky Mountains
Parícutin
Parícutin got its start in a farmer’s cornfield, springing up out of nowhere to spew ash and fumes into the air. It marks one of the only times that scientists have been able to watch the formation of a natural landmark, from its birth to its eventual extinction in the early 1950s.
Advertisement
Eiffel Tower
Victoria Falls
Puerto Princesa Subterranean River
Amazon Rainforest
If the Amazon Rainforest were a country, it would be the world’s ninth largest, which explains why it has plenty of space for 10% of the known species on the planet. Fun fact: Amazon.com (which is not connected to the rainforest) is just as massive, boasting 12 million products, not including the ones its Marketplace sellers list.
Advertisement
Gulf of Mexico
The St. Louis Arch
Ngorongoro Crater
That’s some crater! It wasn’t caused by a giant meteor or an alien spaceship hurtling to Earth (although that would be a cool story). Instead, it came as a result of a volcano exploding in on itself, leaving a massive crater, now known as the Ngorongoro Crater, in its wake.
Stonehenge
Advertisement
Lake Baikal
Lake Baikal in the Siberia region of Russia is so large, it accounts for roughly 20 percent of all of the fresh water in the world. Of course, no good giant-sized lake would be complete without its own legend; Lake Baikal is said to boast the Baikal Monster.
Lake Erie
Lake Tahoe
Lake Superior
Advertisement
California
The Maldives
A tropical country located in the Indian Ocean, the Maldives is a resort retreat for many. It is made up almost entirely of water, a fact that scientists say will be its undoing. Unless something changes, the more than 1,000 coral islands that make up the nation will be underwater by the end of the century.
The Galapagos Islands
Newfoundland
Advertisement
Blue Lagoon
The Blue Lagoon geothermal spa in Keflavik, Iceland, may seem hot, but it’s nothing compared to the temperature of the water underground – a steamy 460 degrees. The water cools to approximately 100 degrees at the surface, where travelers choose to bathe and relax.
Gulf of Mexico
Strait of Gibraltar
Pacific Ocean
Advertisement
Jeju Island Lava Tubes
Lava tubes seem appropriate for a volcanic island, this one located in South Korea. The tube-type channels used to have magma running through them, which helped develop a series of caves formed by the petrified lava.
Iowa
Mount Rushmore National Park
The Everglades
Advertisement
The Leaning Tower of Pisa
Mount Kilimanjaro
Mount Everest
It’s the world’s highest point and doesn’t seem likely to be eclipsed, thanks to its quarter-inch of growth every year. Scientists believe that the rock upon which it sits is always moving, accounting for its yearly growth spurt.
The Eiffel Tower
Advertisement
Indian Ocean
Verdon Gorge
Verdon Gorge in Provence, France, is noted for its turquoise-tinted water and title as Europe’s deepest gorge. As such, the sun seldom shines all the way to the bottom, which leads to cooler conditions near the bottom compared to its higher points.
Lake Titicaca
Lake Erie
Advertisement
Mount Olympus
The Colosseum
Table Mountain
The Cape Town flag boasts imagery of Table Mountain, one of South Africa’s most notable landmarks and tourist attractions. Table Mountain is flat at the top, but it’ll be a significant journey (3,558 feet) to get there.
Appalachian Mountains
Advertisement
Yellowstone National Park
Antarctica National Park
Yosemite National Park
Zhangjiajie National Forest Park
Zhangjiajie National Forest Park In China makes up 102 square miles in the Hunan Province. It is said to have inspired “Avatar” director James Cameron, who used its mountains and stone pillars as a model for the setting in the 2009 blockbuster.
Advertisement
Lake George
The Dead Sea
Crater Lake
Of course, a place named Crater Lake would have deep waters, more than 1,990 feet deep, to be exact. By contrast, the Empire State Building, including its antenna, stands at roughly 1,450 feet, leaving you 500 feet to spare if you were trying to hide it.
Lake Como
Advertisement
Lake Titicaca
Locals believe that Lake Titicaca in South America is formed in the shape of a puma chasing a rabbit.That shape is partly to thank for its name. In a local indigenous language, the name is “Titi Khar’ka,” which means “Rock of the Puma.”
The Atlantic Ocean
The Mediterranean Sea
Hudson River
Advertisement
Crater Falls
High Falls
Top Falls
Angel Falls
The water that rushes over Angel Falls in Venezuela has to travel 3,212 feet from the top to reach the ground. With such a long way to travel, what starts as water evaporates into a mist along the journey, resulting in very little actual rushing water reaching the ground.
Advertisement
Garden of the Gods
Cave of Crystals
The Cave of Crystals, or Cueva de los Cristales, in Chihuahua, Mexico, was only just discovered in 2000 by miners in the area looking for silver. What they found were massive crystals of selenite that have measured as tall as nearly 40 feet.
Denali
Manot Caves
Advertisement
Bamboo Forest
Shilin Stone Forest
One look around the Shilin Stone Forest and you’ll get the feeling of being in a wooded area, but there are no trees. The stone formations in the forest spring up from the ground like trees, however. Erosion over thousands of years is believed to have given the stone forest its shape.
North Dakota Woods
Redwood National Park
Advertisement
The Arctic Ocean
Halong Bay
Halong Bay in Vietnam is made up of some 1,600 islands, which legend says were created from jewels dropped from the mouths of dragons to protect the local people. The placement of the islands was meant to serve as a protection against invaders by sea.
Black Mountains
Green Bay
Advertisement
Mount Saint Helens
Old Faithful
Antarctica
Perito Moreno Glacier
The Perito Moreno Glacier (which, oddly enough, is not in Perito Moreno, but in Patagonia, Argentina) goes through a rupturing process roughly every five years. This is caused by the movement of the glacier and a natural damming as it reaches Lago Argentino.
Advertisement
Yellowstone National Park
Jiuzhaigou National Park
Jiuzhaigou National Park Is not only home to nine different Tibetan villages, but also scores of endangered species, including the giant panda and the Sichuan golden monkey. In 1992, it earned a designation as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The Sahara Desert
Carlsbad Caverns
Advertisement
Mount Fuji
Mount Fuji is one of Japan’s most prominent symbols, notable for its identifiable snow-capped top. Locals consider it one of Japan’s most sacred spiritual sites, a beacon for practicers of Japan’s native religion of Shinto.
Mount Emei
Aconcagua
Mount Hua
Advertisement
Greenland
The Caribbean Sea
Bu Tinah Shoals
Bu Tinah Shoals in the waters of Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, is an unspoiled coral archipelago that is protected as a private nature preserve. Access to the area is generally by invitation only, and it is mostly limited to scientists and researchers studying its vast biodiversity.
The Great Barrier Reef
Advertisement
You Got:
/39
