Green News

Even Egypt’s great pyramids, one of the seven wonders of the world, made the list of underwhelming and overrated attractions, because of the oppressive heat and the persistent hawkers.

But top of the list was Paris’s famous tower, which almost a quarter of the 1,000 plus British tourists questioned dubbed a flop.

Felice Hardy of Virgin Travel Insurance, which commissioned the survey, said holidaymakers looking for unexpected delights should opt for less mainstream destinations.

“It’s easy to be swayed by brochures that opt for the mainstream and focus on cliched tourist sights around the world, but many of them are overcrowded and disappointing,” she said.

Those looking to avoid the crowds but witness something spectacular could do worse than seek out the only recently unearthed fortress of Kuelap in northern Peru, a just rival to crowded Machu Picchu in the south.

The far-flung, jungle-clad temples of Cambodia are another option waiting to be discovered, as is the Javan temple of Borobudur, where you might get to enjoy some cultural exchanges as one of the few international tourists appreciating the Buddhist reliefs.

Walking the trails at the Taroko Gorge in Taiwan is highly recommended for more active travellers as is traversing China’s beautiful Tiger Leaping Gorge.

The sights voted most disappointing around the world were:

• 1) The Eiffel Tower

• 2) The Louvre (Mona Lisa)

• 3) Times Square

• 4) Las Ramblas, Spain

• 5) Statue of Liberty

• 6) Spanish Steps, Rome

• 7) The White House

• 8) The Pyramids, Egypt

• 9) The Brandenburg Gate, Germany

• 10) The Leaning Tower of Pisa

• 1) Stonehenge

• 2) The Angel of the North

• 3) Blackpool Tower

• 4) Lands’ End

• 5) The Princess Diana Memorial Fountain

• 6) The London Eye

• 7) Brighton Pier

• 8) Buckingham Palace

• 9) The White Cliffs of Dover

• 10) Big Ben