50 Places to See Before You Die

Many would debate whether or not this is an exhaustive list of must see places on the planet, but in my opinion it is not a bad list.  Unlike other “before you die” lists, if you wanted to, you could actually complete this one.  The list was created in 2003 by a BBC Travel show where UK viewers voted to on their favorite locations.  Because of its UK origins, there are no actual UK destinations and it does take on a British colonial tone.

The list has long since been removed from the BBC website and there are only a few remaining links on the web to the list, most notably this simple calculator, which is fun to try.  I have not modeled my travel on the list, but it does help direct travel when already going to that region of the world.  Here is my copy of the list, in the popular order, with my current status and some stats from the calculator at the end.

Place / Seen?

  1. The Grand Canyon, AZ, USA - Yes (2014)

  2. Great Barrier Reef, Australia - Yes (2005)

  3. Florida, USA - Yes (2004, 2006, 2008, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018)

  4. South Island, New Zealand - Yes (2003, 2011)

  5. Cape Town, South Africa - Yes (2012)

  6. Golden Temple, India - Yes (2014)

  7. Las Vegas, NV, USA - Yes (2003, 2005, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010)

  8. Sydney, Australia - Yes (2005, 2017)

  9. New York, NY, USA - Yes (2001, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2011, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2018, 2019)

  10. Taj Mahal, India - Yes (2014)

  11. Canadian Rockies, Canada - Yes (2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2014, 2017, 2017, 2017, 2018)

  12. Uluru, Australia - Yes (2005)

  13. Chichen Itza, Mexico - Yes (2016)

  14. Machu Picchu, Peru - Yes (2019)

  15. Niagara Falls, ON, Canada - Yes (2013, 2014)

  16. Petra, Jordan - Yes (2018)

  17. The Pyramids, Egypt - No

  18. Venice, Italy - Yes (2009)

  19. Maldives - Yes (2010)

  20. Great Wall of China, China - Yes (2008)

  21. Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe - Yes (2013)

  22. Hong Kong, China - Yes (2004, 2009, 2014, 2017, 2018)

  23. Yosemite National Park, CA, USA - Yes (2008, 2009)

  24. Hawaii, USA - Yes (2000, 2001, 2002, 2006, 2007, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2015)

  25. Auckland, New Zealand - Yes (2003, 2011)

  26. Iguazu Falls, Brazil - Yes (2008)

  27. Paris, France - Yes (2003, 2007, 2010, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016)

  28. Alaska, USA - Yes (2008, 2012, 2013, 2014)

  29. Angkor Wat, Cambodia - Yes (2006)

  30. Himalayas, Nepal / Tibet - No

  31. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil - Yes (2015, 2016)

  32. Masai Mara, Kenya - No

  33. Galapagos Islands, Ecuador - No

  34. Luxor, Egypt - No

  35. Rome, Italy - Yes (2000, 2006, 2013)

  36. San Francisco, CA, USA - Yes (2002, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2007, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2017)

  37. Barcelona, Spain - Yes (2008)

  38. Dubai, UAE - Yes (2009)

  39. Singapore - Yes (2005, 2010, 2017)

  40. La Digue, Seychelles - Yes (2013)

  41. Sri Lanka - No

  42. Bangkok, Thailand - Yes (2006, 2006, 2007, 2014)

  43. Barbados - Yes (2009, 2012, 2013)

  44. Iceland - Yes (2004, 2015, 2019)

  45. Terracotta Army, China - Yes (2008)

  46. Matterhorn/Zermatt, Switzerland - Yes (2006)

  47. Angel Falls, Venezuela - No

  48. Abu Simbel, Egypt - No

  49. Bali, Indonesia - Yes (2014)

  50. Bora Bora, French Polynesia - Yes (2013)

Count:  42
Approximate Age when done:  64