A lenswear company called Lensbest has released a new, data-driven list of the best places in the world to watch a sunset. As someone who tries to watch a sunset whenever he can (okay, I’m a romantic), I got a kick out of this.
The company surveyed travel journalists (myself included) around the globe and came up with the top 100.
Santorini, Greece, was the most nominated place to view a sunset worldwide, followed by the Grand Canyon in Arizona and Mykonos Greece, giving two podium spots to the country that gave us the first Olympics.
Some 600 global locations were nominated. The answers were then compiled and refined using a score-based system into a final shortlist of the 100 best places to watch a sunset worldwide.
I could maybe quibble with a couple, but others I can’t say as I’ve never been to many of these places, including Mykonos and Santorini. I was at the Grand Canyon once but it was mid-morning, so I didn’t see the sunset.
But I did the sun go down (and toasted it with sparkling wine) at Uluru, formerly known as Ayers Rock, in the Australian Outback. And that’s pretty cool.
Toasting the end of the day at Uluru, Australia. Not bad.
My personal favourite would be west Maui, as I love having the island of Molokai in the near distance for some relief instead of a flat ocean. But these all sound great, and I’d have to say I love a lot of these choices, including Key West, Florida, Clearwater Beach, Florida, and Lake Huron here in Ontario, Canada.
I saw some beauties during my recent visit to Tahiti, as well, including this one at Fare Vai Nui hotel on Raiatea.
Sunset a couple weeks ago at Fare Vai Nui on Raiatea in Tahiti. JIM BYERS PHOTO
Here’s the list they come up with, with locations, the best time of year to go and the score. Pretty impressive job by Santorini, nailing the perfect score.
1 Santorini Greece Europe Summer 100.00
2 Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona US Americas Summer 93.24
3 Mykonos Greece Europe Spring, Summer 87.59
4 Taj Mahal, Agra India Asia Spring 84.12
5 Madeira Portugal Europe Spring 82.30
6 Uluru, Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park Australia Oceania Autumn 79.13
7 St Pete Beach, Florida US Americas Spring 78.69
8 Maasai Mara National Reserve Kenya Africa Summer 76.63
9 Phi Phi Thailand Asia Summer 75.98
10 Tahiti French Polynesia Oceania Summer, Winter 75.69
11 Jebel Akhdar, Al Hajar Mountains Oman Asia Spring, Winter 75.07
12 Delta, Moremi Game Reserve Botswana Africa Summer, Winter 74.94
13 Piazzale Michelangelo, Florence Italy Europe Spring 74.53
14 Matterhorn Switzerland Europe Winter 74.34
15 Uluwatu Temple, Bali Indonesia Asia Spring, Autumn 74.05
16 Angkor Wat, Siem Reap Cambodia Asia Summer 73.96
17 Ipanema Beach, Rio de Janeiro Brazil Americas Summer, Autumn 73.27
18 Mallory Square, Key West US Americas Winter 72.10
19 El Nido, Palawan Philippines Asia Summer 71.19
20 Ponte dell’Accademia, Venice Italy Europe Spring 71.18
21 City Walls, Dubrovnik Croatia Europe Autumn 71.17
22 Kruger National Park South Africa Africa Winter, Autumn 70.63
23 Cable Beach, Broome Australia Oceania Summer 70.40
24 Table Mountain, Cape Town South Africa Africa Summer 68.29
25 Clearwater, Tampa US Americas Spring 67.36
26 Dead Sea Palestine Asia Spring 67.35
27 Wadi Rum Jordan Asia Spring 67.34
28 Bali Indonesia Asia Spring 67.33
29 Lacanau Beach, Lacanau France Europe Summer 67.32
30 Venice Beach, Los Angeles US Americas Winter 66.51
31 Acropolis, Athens Greece Europe Summer 64.93
32 Annapurna, Narchyang Nepal Asia Autumn 64.61
33 Elba Italy Europe Autumn 64.60
34 Bryce Canyon, Utah US Americas Autumn 64.59
35 Al Masjid an Nabawi, Medina Saudi Arabia Asia Summer 64.58
36 Bavang Jamal Beach, Kudat Malaysia Asia Autumn 64.57
37 Machu Picchu Peru Americas Autumn 62.48
38 La Falaise d’Amont, Etretat France Europe Winter 62.47
39 Charles Bridge, Prague Czechia Europe Summer 62.46
40 Batumi, Adjara Georgia Asia Autumn 62.45
41 Cape Sounion, Sounion Greece Europe Summer 62.44
42 Banna Beach, Banna Ireland Europe Autumn 62.38
43 Lake Abhe, Asaita Ethiopia Africa Winter 60.72
44 Anna Maria US Americas Summer 60.71
45 Bosphorus Turkey Asia Summer 60.25
46 Manara, Beirut Lebanon Asia Spring, Autumn 59.86
47 Pahakuru Open Wilderness Hut, Pallas-Yllästunturi National Park Finland Europe Autumn 59.26
48 Grand Case St. Martin Americas Spring 59.25
49 Manila Bay, Manila Philippines Asia Winter 59.02
50 Palolem Beach, Canacona India Asia Summer, Winter 58.84
51 Brighton Palace Pier, Brighton UK Europe Winter 58.38
52 Sunset Beach, Port Waikato New Zealand Oceania Summer, Autumn 58.27
53 Maldives, Felidhoo Maldives Asia Spring 56.89
54 Sea Organ, Zadar Croatia Europe Autumn 56.88
55 Hahnenkamm, Kitzbuhel Austria Europe Spring, Summer 56.87
56 Trotternish Ridge, Isle of Skye UK Europe Summer 56.86
57 Ngorongoro Tanzania Africa Spring 56.85
58 Jebel Hafeet, Al Ain United Arab Emirates Asia Winter, Autumn 56.84
59 Santa Maria della Salute, Venice Italy Europe Spring 56.83
60 Djerba Tunisia Africa Spring 56.82
61 Ko Samui Thailand Asia Spring 56.81
62 Sossusvlei Namibia Africa Autumn 56.80
63 The Shard, London UK Europe Autumn 56.19
64 Camps Bay Beach, Cape Town South Africa Africa Summer 54.60
65 Quilalea Mozambique Africa Summer 54.09
66 Primrose Hill, London UK Europe Spring, Summer 53.97
67 Kahlenberg, Vienna Austria Europe Summer 53.90
68 Lake Huron Canada Americas Summer 53.89
69 The Promenade, Morecambe UK Europe Winter 52.74
70 Zugspitze, Garmisch-Partenkirchen Germany Europe Winter 52.07
71 Lake Zurich Switzerland Europe Summer 52.06
72 Mt Eden, Auckland New Zealand Oceania Summer 51.43
73 Piha Beach, Auckland New Zealand Oceania Summer 51.42
74 Baga Beach, Goa India Asia Autumn 51.35
75 Haleakalā National Park, Hawaii US Americas Winter 51.34
76 The Lawn, North Kuta Indonesia Asia Autumn 51.33
77 Bay of Kotor, Kotor Montenegro Europe Summer 51.32
78 Aitutaki, Avarua Cook Islands Oceania Summer 51.31
79 Sunset Beach, Pupukea US Americas Spring 51.30
80 Ehrenfels Castle, Rüdesheim am Rhein Germany Europe Summer 51.29
81 Kauna’oa Bay, Waikui US Americas Summer 51.28
82 Serengeti National Park Tanzania Africa Spring 51.27
83 Mission Beach, San Diego US Americas Winter, Autumn 50.42
84 Temple of Debod, Madrid Spain Europe Spring 50.36
85 Llandudno Beach, Cape Town South Africa Africa Summer 49.32
86 Carmel Beach, Carmel-by-the-Sea US Americas Autumn 49.30
87 Bondi Beach, Sydney Australia Oceania Summer, Autumn 48.37
88 CN Tower, Toronto Canada Americas Summer 48.36
89 Harbour Bridge – Twilight Bridge Climb, Sydney Australia Oceania Summer 48.35
90 South Padre Island US Americas Winter 47.72
91 Yasawa Islands Fiji Oceania Spring 47.44
92 Venice Laguna, Venice Italy Europe Summer 47.43
93 Ko Pha Ngan Thailand Asia Winter 47.42
94 Dune 45, Sossusvlei Namibia Africa Summer 47.41
95 Ephesus Archaeological Museum, Selcuk Turkey Asia Summer 47.40
96 Erta Ale, Edd Ethiopia Africa Winter 47.39
97 Texel Netherlands Europe Spring 47.38
98 Pebble Beach, Del Monte Forest US Americas Summer 47.37
99 Rajaji National Park, Uttarakhand India Asia Winter 47.17
100 Westerstrand, Schiermonnikoog Netherlands Europe Spring 47.16
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