The Best Views Around The World: Where to Get the Best View in Your New City

Moving somewhere new abroad can at times be a stressful process complete with visa applications, hunting for accommodation, job searching and logistics all to contend with. But once you arrive and settle into your new lifestyle, the excitement can begin. Bringing new opportunities in a new environment, with local food to taste, new people to meet and fresh cityscapes to drink in.
 
While your new home may not grant you glistening views of the city skyline, you’ll likely be keen to take in the best views your new city has to offer.
 
With this in mind, we are unveiling the best viewpoints in various famous cities across the globe. To do so, we analysed over a million TripAdvisor reviews for landmarks, common tourist spots and viewing points in cities in over 260 countries around the world, to see which features the most positive mentions of the word ‘view’. From this, we can officially crown the best views in the world.
 
Where are the best viewpoints around the world?
 
With a staggering 42,000 reviews mentioning the word ‘view’, the Big Apple’s Top of the Rock was the most popular viewpoint globally. Delivering unobstructed views from its observation deck, the top of the Rockefeller Center cemented itself as the best viewpoint in the world by quite some margin, providing glorious sights of the iconic Empire State Building - another popular viewpoint in its own right - as well as leafy Central Park and the unmistakable Statue of Liberty. If you’ve just moved to New York City, this viewpoint should be top of your list for taking in NYC’s famous skyline.
RankTop ranking viewpointCityCountryNumber of 'view' mentions
1Top of the RockNew YorkUnited States42,555
2London EyeLondonEngland34,972
3Eiffel TowerNiceFrance32,875
4Burj KhalifaDubaiUnited Arab Emirates28,518
5Victoria Peak (The Peak)Hong KongHong Kong21,524
6Edinburgh CastleEdinburghScotland16,896
7Guinness StorehouseDublinIreland15,590
8Charles BridgePragueCzech Republic13,685
9CN TowerTorontoCanada13,299
10Parc GuellBarcelonaSpain12,513
11Piazzale MichelangeloFlorenceItaly12,359
12HalászbástyaBudapestHungary11,467
13Walls of DubrovnikDubrovnikCroatia11,433
14HallgrimskirkjaReykjavíkIceland10,723
15Singapore FlyerSingaporeSingapore10,079
Those who’ve recently moved to England’s capital city, London, can rejoice at it being home to the second-best viewpoint in the world. The London Eye’s views have been mentioned almost 35,000 times by reviewers, providing views of the River Thames, the Shard, Big Ben and even Buckingham Palace on a clear day. While the Eiffel Tower in France takes the third spot, the Burj Khalifa in Dubai and Hong Kong’s Victoria Peak round up the top five.
 
Wherever you have recently moved to, or if you simply want to reignite your passion for your home country, take a look at the map below to find the best views nearest to you.
a map highlighting the cities with the best views around the world
Where to get the best views in America
 
As the highest-ranking viewpoint in the world, the Top of the Rock in New York City also takes the top spot in the USA. The High Roller in Las Vegas is the second-best viewpoint in the country, with its views being mentioned over 15,500 times by TripAdvisor reviewers. From its observation compartments, viewers are afforded views of the city’s surrounding deserts by day, and the dancing neon lights of The Strip at night, both of which cement it as America’s second most popular viewpoint.
 
San Francisco’s iconic Golden Gate Bridge follows in third place, with 14,462 mentions of ‘view’ in its reviews; one of two viewpoints in the state of California to rank in the top five. The full walk across the bridge takes 35 minutes and is completely free of charge to pedestrians, making this viewpoint a must if you are new to San Francisco.
 
The Seattle Center and Observation Deck took the fourth position, and the Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles rounds off the top five with 12,745 and 10,157 mentions of ‘view’ respectively.
RankTop ranking viewpointCityStateNumber of 'view' mentions
1Top of the RockNew YorkNew York42,555
2High RollerLas VegasNevada15,535
3Golden Gate BridgeSan FranciscoCalifornia14,462
4The Seattle Center and Observation DeckSeattleWashington12,745
5Griffith ObservatoryLos AngelesCalifornia10,157
6Skydeck Chicago - Willis TowerChicagoIllinois9,058
7Lincoln MemorialWashington, D.C.N/A5,930
8Chapel of the Holy CrossSedonaArizona5,690
9Sandia Park TramwayAlbuquerqueNew Mexico5,143
10Cabrillo National MonumentSan DiegoCalifornia3,652
11Reunion TowerDallasTexas2,387
12Airpost Mesa TrailMesaArizona1,928
13Tower of the AmericasSan AntonioTexas1,809
14Pittock MansionPortlandOregon1,744
15National WWI Museum and MemorialKansas CityMissouri1,569
Now we’ve seen the fifteen most popular viewpoints across the United States, see the map below for the full state-by-state breakdown:
The best views within the USA highlighted by state
South & Central America viewpoints
 
As for the rest of the Americas, natural viewpoints were more common than their UK and US counterparts. The Sugarloaf Mountain topped the list for the best viewpoint in South America and Brazil, with over 8,300 mentions of its views on TripAdvisor. At a height of almost 1,300ft, the popular spot in Rio De Janeiro provides sprawling views over the Guanabara Bay and the Atlantic Ocean, not to mention the Christ the Redeemer statue amongst the other spectacular views of the city. Due to a two-stage cable car system, the views are also accessible to everyone – not just those able to climb the challenging ascent!
 
In second place was Mount Monserrate in Bogota, Colombia with over 4,000 view mentions, which affords those brave enough to climb to its 10,000-foot peak panoramic views of the city from the church at the top. Cerro San Cristobal in Santiago, Chile, the third highest point in the city, rounded off the top three for South America with over 2,200 mentions of its magnificent views.
 
The Best Viewpoints in Europe
 
Europe has no shortage of beautiful landscapes and viewpoints to admire them from. Europe was highlighted to have the most popular viewpoints overall, with over 10 of its most popular spots featuring in the world rankings.
 
The London Eye topped the list for Europe, with its high number of visitors talking about the view on offer landing it the second spot globally. In second place for Europe was Paris’ romantic icon, the Eiffel Tower, which bagged the third spot globally.
 
One of Scotland’s most renowned landmarks, Edinburgh Castle, took the third spot for the most popular viewpoint in Europe with almost 16,900 reviews mentioning its scenic views over the city, which secured its ranking as the sixth best globally too. In a city with so many viewpoints, such as Arthur’s Seat, the Nelson Monument and the Camera Obscura, residents of the Scottish capital are spoilt for choice when it comes to admiring the landscape.
 
Further afield, the Charles Bridge in Prague landed the Czech city the fifth spot in Europe with over 13,600 visitors taking to TripAdvisor to gush over the sights on offer.
 
Other viewpoints such as Gaudí’s Parc Guell in Barcelona, Spain also feature highly in Europe (sixth) and the world alike (10th).
 
The Best Viewpoints in Asia
 
Standing at 830m tall, Dubai’s Burj Khalifa cements itself as the most popular viewpoint in the whole of Asia, and fourth globally, with over 28,500 mentions of its view from visitors. The Burj Khalifa is the tallest building in the world and, with a height almost three times of Paris’s Eiffel Tower, it’s no wonder this vantage point is perfect for spying views of the city and beyond.
 
The Singapore Flyer takes the second spot in Asia with over 10,000 mentions over the view from the observation wheel. Malaysia’s Petronas Twin Towers round off the top three for the best views in Asia with over 9,300 ‘view’ mentions. Shanghai’s The Bund (Wai Tan), and Beijing's Mutianyu Great Wall also make the top ten in Asia. Elsewhere, Qatar’s Museum of Islamic Art stood out as providing the best view in the country, while in a country brimming with viewpoints, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building Observation Decks topped the list in Japan.
 
The Best Viewpoints in Oceania
 
Oceania’s top viewpoints provide completely different views to that of their European counterparts, with a mix of city and natural views. Topping the list is Kings Park and Botanic Garden in Perth, Australia with over 7,800 mentions of its stunning views. Visitors to the gardens are treated to views of the Swan and Canning Rivers, Perth’s cityscape and the Darling Range regional park.
 
Following closely behind is the Sky Tower; a recognisable landmark in Auckland's skyline, where visitors have multiple observation decks to choose from to see the city from different perspectives, all providing 360-degree views.
 
In third position for Oceania is the classic Sydney Harbour, which receives over four million visitors each year. Sydney is instantly recognised for its Harbour which provides views across the water and of the Sydney Opera House, known to grace many-a social media post and holiday snap.
 
Other viewpoints such as the Eureka Skydeck in Melbourne, Mount Coot-Tha Summit Lookout in Brisbane and Wellington’s Cable Car, all made the top 10 for Oceania’s best views, according to its visitors.
 
The Best Viewpoints in Africa
 
Mountains feature heavily in the rankings for the top viewpoints in African cities, as visitors flock to the picturesque beauty spots to see the city from high up. Table Mountain in South Africa’s Cape Town tops the rankings as the best viewpoint in Africa with over 9,800 view-related mentions from the mountain route. With views stretching to Robben Island and the harbour as well as over the city on a clear day, a hike across one of the various Table Mountain routes is a great way to get your bearings whether you have just moved to Cape Town or if you’ve lived there for years and want to take in the sights.
 
Aerial Cableway Hartbeespoort in Johannesburg is the second of three viewpoints in South Africa that make the continent's top ten and comes in second with 600 mentions of its aerial views. Following closely behind is Cairo Tower in Egypt rounding off the top three with 528 mentions.
 
If you’ve just moved, have seen the sights and started to settle in, but now need to work out the best way to transfer your money, give Remitly a try.
 
Methodology:
 
We analysed TripAdvisor data from every country in the world, in addition to each US state and 253 cities around the globe. Using the ‘Things to Do’ section of the TripAdvisor website, the attractions in each location that had the highest number of mentions of ‘view’ (English language only) in their reviews were ranked as providing the best view for the specific location (country, state or city).
 
Results where the term ‘view’ was used negatively or for another context (a sports stadium offering a good view of the pitch) were omitted from the final results.
 
Data as of May 2022.

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