Big Business Landmarks: The landmarks that attract the most attention in the US and worldwide
In 2022 it was reported that tourist numbers reached 917 million, with people back to traveling worldwide to see and experience famous landmarks in the flesh.
Each capital city around the world is known for its standout landmarks that bring in significant tourist business – but just how much attention do the world’s most well-known landmarks attract yearly?
To find out, our Switch On Business experts have analyzed the search volumes and average visitor numbers of over 150 of the world’s most well-known landmarks to reveal the most in demand.
Alongside this, we also analyzed each of the most well-known landmarks in all 50 US states to reveal the most popular in the country.
You can find the top 15 landmarks that attract the most attention both globally and in the US visualized below.
Burj Khalifa and Taj Mahal are the landmarks attracting the most attention globally
According to our research, the Burj Khalifa in Dubai is the landmark that attracts the most attention globally with just under 22 million Google searches and approximately 17 million visitors annually. The Burj Khalifa is around 828 meters tall, three times the height of the famous Eiffel Tower in Paris, which landed fifth place in our global index.
In second place is the Taj Mahal in India. This Indian palace is made of ivory-white marble and is the staple landmark of its country. Worldwide, just under 22 million people search for Taj Mahal yearly, whilst the site itself receives around 7.5 million visitors annually.
The United States has one landmark that features in the top three globally: Niagara Falls. This landmark actually sits on both the border of New York and Ontario, Canada and attracts around 13 million visitors every year. Over 1.2 million people globally also Google these famous falls every year.
Here you can see the top 15 ranking big business landmarks worldwide:
| Rank | Landmark | Country | Total yearly SV (International) | Estimated number of visitors (annually) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Burj Khalifa | United Arab Emirates | 21,960,000 | 17,000,000 |
| 2 | Taj Mahal | India | 21,960,000 | 7,500,000 |
| 3 | Niagara Falls | USA | 14,640,000 | 13,000,000 |
| 4 | Golden Gate Bridge | USA | 5,400,000 | 17,300,000 |
| 5 | Eiffel Tower | France | 14,640,000 | 5,850,000 |
| 6 | Machu Picchu | Peru | 18,000,000 | 1,500,000 |
| 7 | Sagrada Familia | Spain | 12,000,000 | 4,500,000 |
| 8 | Statue of Liberty | USA | 12,000,000 | 4,440,000 |
| 9 | Big Ben | United Kingdom | 9,876,000 | 5,900,000 |
| 10 | The Great Wall of China | China | 5,400,000 | 10,000,000 |
| 11 | Stonehenge | United Kingdom | 12,000,000 | 97,000 |
| 12 | Buckingham Palace | United Kingdom | 12,000,000 | 50,000 |
| 13 | Mount Everest | Tibet/ Nepal | 12,000,000 | 35,000 |
| 14 | Mont Saint-Michel | France | 8,076,000 | 3,000,000 |
| 15 | Hagia Sophia | Turkey | 4,416,000 | 6,500,000 |
Landmarks play an important part in a country’s economy with tourism accounting for a lot of income, creating jobs and wealth in the area. For instance, an average ticket to the viewing platform of the Burj Khalifa is $37, and it has been reported that ticket revenue stands at around $621 million per year.
As for Niagara Falls and other such landmarks that do not necessarily have a cost to view, these landmarks bring millions of tourists to the area each year generating income for local hotels, restaurants and shops.
Walt Disney World, Florida, tops the list of US landmarks that attract the most attention
Walt Disney World in Florida tops the list of US landmarks attracting the most attention in our study. The theme park sees approximately 58 million visitors annually, and garners just under 5 million Google searches every year too.
Mall of America in Minnesota ranks second. This mammoth mall is said to have ‘revolutionized the shopping experience’ when it opened in 1992. The mall receives around 40 million visitors per year and over 6.8 million Google searches (the second-highest search volume of any US landmark behind the Grand Canyon).
In third place is the Grand Canyon in Arizona with an estimated 6 million visitors per year and over 589, 400 searches per month (totaling over 7 million per year).
Here you can see the top 15 ranking big business landmarks in the US:
| Rank | Landmarks | State | Total yearly SV (US) | Estimated number of visitors (annually) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Walt Disney World | Florida | 4,878,840 | 58,000,000 |
| 2 | Mall of America | Minnesota | 6,827,760 | 40,000,000 |
| 3 | Grand Canyon | Arizona | 7,072,800 | 5,900,000 |
| 4 | Statue of Liberty | New York | 5,286,000 | 4,440,000 |
| 5 | Pearl Harbor | Hawaii | 4,894,800 | 1,800,000 |
| 6 | Hoover Dam | Nevada | 3,712,800 | 7,000,000 |
| 7 | Graceland | Tennessee | 3,842,400 | 500,000 |
| 8 | The Bean | Illinois | 487,680 | 25,000,000 |
| 9 | Mount Rushmore | South Dakota | 3,022,440 | 2,000,000 |
| 10 | Golden Gate Bridge | California | 1,995,000 | 10,000,000 |
| 11 | Route 66 | Oklahoma (*Museum based here) | 2,440,920 | 25,000 |
| 12 | The Alamo | Texas | 2,041,440 | 2,500,000 |
| 13 | Crater Lake | Oregon | 1,886,760 | 500,000 |
| 14 | Mount Vernon | Virginia | 1,761,600 | 1,000,000 |
| 15 | Churchill Downs | Kentucky | 1,337,760 | 150,000 |
With a ticket to Walt Disney World averaging around $75, the estimated yearly revenue for this US landmark will be in the multi-millions – around $4,350,000,000 if each ticket sold was at $75 (a reduced rate is usually offered for children). Not only does the park benefit sales but also the surrounding areas, with many staying in hotels outside the park and eating at restaurants.
If you are thinking about setting up a business of your own and you live close to any well-known landmarks, think about how this can benefit you and your business as this may be something you can tap into for your customers. You can find more tips and advice on how to set up your own business in the US at https://switchonbusiness.com/
Methodology and Sources
For this campaign, we want to uncover which key landmarks across the US and the world attract the most attention from visitors, and therefore contribute to their economies.
To find out the landmarks that attract the most attention, we took the top 25 landmarks per state by Google search volume. Once we added the total visitor numbers annually both the visitor numbers and SV were scored out of 10 to give us our ranking.
For the US index, total SV is based on US search volume. For the global index, the SV is for worldwide search volume.
US Index limitations:
In the case of ‘Route 66’ the route 66 museum numbers were used as an estimate as official number of those who had driven route 66 were unavailable.
French Quarter in Lousiana discluded from top 25 due to lack of visitation numbers for this area being available.
For Dodge City, ‘dodge city days’ celebration was taken for number of visitors annually as this is a festival/attraction people attend in Dodge City.
For Old Faithful, annual visitor numbers to yellowstone national park were taken.
Global Index limitations:
RelIgious and memorial sites such as Mecca (Saudi Arabia) and Auschwitz (Poland) have been removed in respect.
Little Mermaid, Denmark removed from rankings due to lack of available data.
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