It’s a familiar feeling: you’re scrolling Instagram or TikTok and come across a reel of someone in front of one of the world’s most beautiful landmarks. Maybe they’re watching sun break over Machu Picchu in Peru or the Northern Lights dance across the sky in Finland. And you start to feel it: the FOMO flooding your system and telling you that you absolutely need to be there to see this for yourself. FOMO is real and travel is often the only cure.
To help you combat FOMO, we’ve put together a list of some of the best views to cross off your bucket list while travelling. From awe-inspiring natural wonders to human ingenuity in gorgeous locations, these sights are worthy of every bucket list and are sure to leave your friends and followers feeling FOMO.
1. The Great Migration on the Serengeti in Tanzania
There are many great animal migrations, but only one Great Migration, where over a million wildebeest and hundreds of thousands of zebras migrate between the Masai Mara in Kenya and the Serengeti in Tanzania in search of rain. The Great Migration is cyclical, happening every year and you can see it in Kenya or Tanzania depending on when you visit (read here to learn when to go). However, few experiences match catching the Great Migration in the Central Serengeti when the golden plains are filled as far as you can see with wildebeest and zebras. As your Land Cruiser slowly moves forward, the mass of animals in front of you parts like the Red Sea before Moses; it’s an awe-inspiring experience and a wildlife lover’s dream come true.
2. Machu Picchu in the Sacred Valley of the Incas in Peru
Machu Picchu is located in such an enviable position in the Sacred Valley of the Incas that it’s guaranteed to make a great first impression, no matter how you approach it. But the best view is from the Sun Gate (Intipunku), which is the end point of the Inca Trail, which leads you 42 km (16 mi) from the Urubamba River to the stones of Machu Picchu. As you climb up the monkey stairs on all fours and get back to your feet, you look through the stone archway to spot the ruins on the mountaintop against a backdrop of green and snow-capped peaks. If you’re lucky, the sun breaks through the frequent clouds and illuminates the stones and terraces cascading down the mountainside. This is what wonder looks like.
3. Angkor Wat at Sunrise in Cambodia
The Temples of Angkor are part of the largest temple complex on the planet. They’re the crown jewels of the Khmer civilization that ruled parts of Southeast Asia in centuries past, and the pride and joy of modern Cambodia. There are many temples within the complex, including Angkor Thom and Ta Prom, but Angkor Wat is the most famous. Get up before dawn and head to this massive sandstone temple to watch the sun rise over the temple’s towers, transforming the complex into a golden glow. It’ll help you appreciate the majesty of the past and the delight of being able to experience it in the present.
4. The Northern Lights in Finnish Lapland
You can spot the Northern Lights across most northern countries in the world: Canada, Norway, Iceland, among others. But it hits different in Finnish Lapland where the landscape is so dramatically attuned to the sky. In the depth of winter, the sun barely rises into the sky and the Northern Lights provide the shock of colour and vibrancy above the snowy white landscape below. Contrary to popular belief, you also don’t have to visit in winter to see the Northern Lights. You can spot them as early as late September or as late as early April.
5. Uluru at Sunset in Australia’s Northern Territory
Uluru (formerly known as Ayers Rock) is the world’s largest monolith. It’s also a sacred rock for the Anangu, the local Indigenous people who live in Australia’s Northern Territory and are the traditional caretakers of the land. Uluru plays a central part within their creation stories. It’s not hard to understand the power of Uluru when you visit it at sunset, when the sun hits the red rock and it seems to transform into shades of blue, orange, and even purple, depending on the light. You’ll feel the magic of this massive rock when you see it with your own eyes.
6. Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe
Victoria Falls is one of the largest waterfalls in the world and perhaps the most dramatic. Pitched on the border between Zambia and Zimbabwe in southern Africa, Victoria Falls or Mosi-oa-Tunya (the Smoke That Thunders) stretches over 1,700 m (5,600 ft) and drops a height of 108 m (355 ft) at its peak. Seen from the sky, the falls seem like a majestic cleft in the earth where water plunges into the abyss, leaving a cloud of mist over the African landscape. Seen from some of the many lookout points along the Zambezi River, it’s truly overwhelming; so massive and powerful and truly loud, helping you experience the power of the earth in your very bones.
7. The Amalfi Coast in Italy
Europe is blessed with gorgeous towns and villages straddling picturesque coastlines, but none are quite as majestic as the Amalfi Coast in Italy. Stretching along the Gulf of Salerno south of Naples, the Amalfi Coast is lined with exquisite terracotta-roofed homes hugging green cliffs overlooking rich, blue waters. There is so much to do on this stretch of coastline, including sailing around Capri and exploring Roman ruins in Sorrento, but there’s perhaps nothing better than simply finding a good lookout and gazing endlessly upon the beauty of human achievement in the midst of natural splendour.
8. Lake Louise in Banff National Park in Canada
Ask a group of people what the most beautiful lake in the world is and you’re going to hear Lake Louise as an answer, guaranteed. Located in Banff National Park in the Canadian Rockies in Alberta, Lake Louise is as picturesque as lakes come. The Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise sits at the eastern edge of the lake. A glacier lies on the mountainside to the west. The waters are impossibly clear, and the peaks are often snow-capped and sparkling. You can hike the Lake Agnes Trail to enjoy several different views of the lake or simply find an empty spot near the hotel and snap some pics of the famous view. Alpine lakes are rarely as impossibly calm and deeply rejuvenating.
9. Bora Bora in French Polynesia
True, we’re cheating here, as there’s no one true view of the atoll of Bora Bora in French Polynesia, but this famous vacation island is as beautiful as islands come. Waking up here is like living in a dream. You leave your overwater bungalow to be greeted by views of a crystal ocean stretching out to the horizon and the rich, green peak of Mt. Otemanu watching over from the mainland. The sun is bright most days and the weather is warm year-round. Tropical fish swim in the waters below. Waking up on Bora Bora is waking up to visions of paradise on earth.
10. Paro Taktsang (The Tiger’s Nest) in Bhutan
This Buddhist monastery in the Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan is likely the most esoteric entry on this list, but if you’ve ever seen a picture of the Tiger’s Nest, you’ll understand why it’s so alluring. Bhutan is known as one of the happiest countries on the planet, one that has a deep reverence for the natural world. People live in harmony with their environment here, which is personified by Paro Taktsang, a monastery built on the edge of a mountain, seemingly suspended from the cliff face above the Paro Valley. Complete the intense hike up the hillside and reach the monastery for one of the most beautiful views you’re ever likely to see.
You might say that Aren was destined to become a globetrotter after his family took him to Germany two times before he was four. If that wasn’t enough, a term spent in Sweden as a young teenager and a trek across Vietnam, Cambodia, and Thailand confirmed that destiny. An independent writer, director, and film critic, Aren has travelled across Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and South America. His favourite travel experience was visiting the major cities of Japan’s largest island, Honshu, but his love for food, drink, and film will take him anywhere that boasts great art and culture.
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