The next best things to see at seven of world’s top tourist attractions
- So you’ve made it Uluru, Loch Ness, or Timbuktu – don’t miss out on some underrated sights nearby while you’re there
- From the Isle of Skye to a Niger River cruise to the cave dwellings of Cappadocia, there’s much more to add to your itineraries
After going to great lengths to reach iconic but isolated heritage sites such as Petra, Machu Picchu or the Grand Canyon, sightseers often skip equally impressive places of interest that are literally just down the road. And yet the desert valleys of Wadi Rum, where Lawrence of Arabia roamed on horseback, are as spectacular as Petra; the Pisac archaeological site near the Peruvian city of Cusco is an under-visited mini Machu Picchu and the rugged sandstone formations of Monument Valley should be included on any Grand Canyon itinerary.
Here are a few more A-list attractions and some lesser-known but conveniently located secondary sights.
A triumph of marketing and hype, Scotland’s Loch Ness draws more than a million visitors a year who arrive hoping to spot a monster but end up settling for a fridge magnet. An average of 20 sightings are reported annually, helping to turn Britain’s largest body of fresh water into a £25 million (US$32.7 million) cash cow.
Not everyone is captivated, however, and disappointed punters venture online to warn fellow travellers that the legendary loch isn’t particularly pretty and is barely worth the bother: “It’s a lake with a road next to it. Use the road to get to more beautiful parts of Scotland.”
Many holidaymakers treat Loch Ness as a stopover between the Cairngorms National Park, in the Scottish Highlands, and the dramatic Isle of Skye (above) – two destinations blessed with such an abundance of natural splendour that no one there felt the need to concoct a bogus beast to drum up business.
