Do you dare go on foot to the top of one of the most popular monuments in the world? From the simplest climbs to the steepest, every step is worth it.
For better or for worse, many of us are not accustomed to climbing several flights of stairs…unless we live in a walk-up of course.
Yet, when we’re traveling, the only way to reach the top of some structures, such as the Duomo of Florence or St. Stephen’s Cathedral in Vienna, is the staircase. Though we may huff and puff our way to the top, the view of the city and surroundings sprawled out to the horizon is usually so spectacular that we forget how winded we are. Then our breathing returns to normal and we begin our descent refreshed, and pass fellow travelers panting as they approach their goal.
Yet the luxury of elevator access has permitted modern architects and engineers to think bigger and aim higher, giving us structural wonders such as the Petronas Twin Towers along with the bragging rights that come with having admired the unprecedented panoramas these sites offer.
However, some people genuinely enjoy taking the stairs! They keep us moving and are therefore advantageous to circulation and all-around endurance, plus they let us burn some extra calories. Each year, New York Road Runners, the city’s premier running organization, holds a race to the top of the Empire State Building. That’s right…participants run up all 1860 steps. In addition, certain adventurous travelers welcome the idea of foregoing an elevator for the glory of accomplishing an ascent on foot, such as say, the 674 steps of the Eiffel Tower.
Regardless of whether you just like to fill your head with trivia, or you’re indeed partial to conquering a staircase the old fashioned way, we created an infographic that takes a look at some of the world’s tallest attractions, each frequented daily by thousands of travelers daily both on foot or via elevator.
From novices tackling the Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro to pros who fantasize about braving the 2,909 treads to the top of Dubai‘s Burj Khalifa, here’s a look at the number of steps you would have to climb to reach these landmarks as well as how many calories burned on the way up.
