To ask what tourist sites you’ve visited that met or exceeded expectations?

Siena Cathedral. Stunning. The floors are the best I’ve ever seen. They are usually covered up for 42-45 weeks of the year. I saw them uncovered as usually this time of year they reveal them.

The Basilica Cisterns in Istanbul. I had no idea what to expect and it was part of a tour we booked but I was blown away.

It's probably the most atmospheric and amazing place I've ever visited. I didn't want to leave.

The Pantheon. I know I would be blown away by Rome, the Roman forum, the Vatican, Trevi fountain, Colosseum but the pantheon just stopped me on my tracks. The size of the place was just so domineering I remember going round the corner and being stunned.

Just got back from Stockholm and the Vasa museum was excellent - I didn’t think I’d be very interested in an old warship, but the way it was presented made the whole thing fascinating.

Meteora in Greece is one of the most astonishing and impressive places I’ve ever visited. Ancient monasteries perched on pillars of rock.

In no particular order - Petra, the Great Barrier Reef - especially the Outer Reef, I am Australian but flying over Sydney Harbour really blew me away and was lucky to go sailing Sydney Harbour on a Tall Ship (was at a conference haha!), the walls of Istanbul and the Princes Islands, Ephesus, attending the Dawn Service on ANZAC Day at Gallipoli, Kenya - seeing the start of the wildebeest migration

The Taj Mahal, Jordan: Kerak and Shobak crusader castles, Leptis Magna in Libya , huge amazing Roman city with no tourists , the Sphinx in Cairo visited during gulf war so no tourists had the Pyramids to myself , deserts , Mt Fuji Japan , Vermeer paintings and some other art in museums . visiting cemeteries in France and Italy with graves of my relatives who were killed in 1st and 2nd world war and seeing the sheer number who died for their country .

Aiguille du Midi at Mont Blanc, Chamonix and all of the other things you can do up there like the cable cars, ice caves etc…go first thing in the morning when it’s quiet and it’s just amazing.

Astonishingly, no one's mentioned my favourites yet, which are Sainte-Chapelle in Paris, Sanjusangendo in Kyoto, and the gardens of the Villa d'Este in Tivoli, all of which probably speak to my love of excess (respectively, 1113 stained glass windows, 1001 golden buddhas, and 51 fountains/64 waterfalls/220 water-basins).

I also love the Isle of Lismore, which is the total opposite - a place of such peace and simplicity it's like stepping into a colour plate from a 1930s children's bible.

I’ve not been to DLP but I rate Efteling theme park in the Netherlands as one of the happiest family days I have spent with my DC. Don’t knock a good theme park!

Jordan - we went mostly for Petra & the Dead Sea, but the rest of Jordan, which I knew very little about, totally exceeded my expectations. Obviously there's the Siq and the Treasury at Petra, which is the headline, but the first sight of the Monastery after climbing up to it was my favourite bit. The whole site really does need two full days to appreciate properly.

Jerash was amazing, and Mount Nebo and the church with the mosaics totally blew my mind.

Mexico - The lesser visited Mayan sites exceeded my expectations, and were far better that Tulum and Chichen Itza...Palenque and Uxmal for example.

We're off to the Taj Mahal in January so really hoping that exceeds my expectations too!

Agree. So atmospheric, surrounded by countryside but not a bird singing.

I love Italy. I expected to be moved by Rome, Florence and Venice. However, over the years I have been blown away by the less obvious The frescos of Piero della Francesca and the ‘legend of the cross’ blew my mind and this was used as a location in the English Patient.

More recently I went to Mantua to the places there. The Palace de Te is remarkable and the frescos by Romano - the whole history of the Gorgonzo family. Some of the frescos are plain rude.

Oradour-sur-Glane

All those recommending Venice, any suggestions on hotels/apartments. Heading to either venice or Budapest in April for my 40th (1st time child free in 16 years)

@MissAmbrosia Good work!

Thanks to the wonder of modern technology - here is a top 50. Not sure it picked up everything but there's enough here to keep everyone busy :) I thought everyone on MN hated Paris....

Venice
Grand Canal / canal views
Murano
Burano
St Mark’s / St. Mark’s Square
Vaporetto rides between islands
Lido

Paris
Paris Catacombs
Saint-Denis Cathedral
Pantheon
Pere LaChaise Cemetery
Disneyland Paris
Notre Dame

Rome
Pantheon (Rome)
Vatican
Colosseum
Roman Forum
Trevi Fountain
St Peter’s Basilica (Vatican)

Pompeii
Pompeii amphitheatre
Pompeii ruins

Amsterdam
Anne Frank’s House
Our Lord in the Attic Museum
The Night Watch (Rijksmuseum)

New York City
9/11 Memorial & Museum
Ellis Island
Top of the Rock
Empire State Building
Brooklyn Bridge

Iceland
Blue Lagoon
Northern Lights

Grand Canyon
Helicopter into the Grand Canyon
Colorado River raft
General canyon views

Florence
Florence Cathedral / Duomo
David at the Accademia
Uffizi Gallery

Matera — Old town / Sassi di Matera
Petra
The Treasury (Siq to the Treasury)
Wadi Rum desert
Taj Mahal — 4 mentions :
Mont Saint-Michel

Spain:
Sagrada Família and other Gaudi buildings (Barcelona)
Alh Mezquita (Cordoba)
Alhambra (Granada)
Guernica (Madrid)
Park Güell (Barcelona)

Salt Mines (Krakow)
Cinque Terre
Last Supper (Leonardo da Vinci)(Milan)
Jerash ruins (Jordan)
Pamukkale pools (Turkey)
Great Wall of China
Terracotta Warriors (Xi’an)
Jerusalem Old Town
West Coast of Ireland — Coastal scenery and coastline drives
Culloden battlefield
Wadi Disah Canyon
Neuschwanstein Castle
Wells Cathedral
Bayeux Tapestry
Sana’a Old City
Hagia Sophia
Stonehenge
Acropolis
Cappadocia — (balloon views, cave landscapes)
Iguazu Falls
Bryce Canyon
Grand Teton National Park
Yosemite National Park
The Bund (Shanghai)
Versailles
Westminster Abbey
Forbidden City (Beijing)
Angkor Wat and Ta Prohm (Cambodia)
Uluru (Australia)
Glen Coe (Scotland)
Great Barrier Reef
Krak des Chevaliers (Syria)
Machu Picchu — 2 mentions :
Inca Trail
Machu Picchu
Ha Long Bay - scenery and boats
Ayutthaya — ruins
Marrakesh — Medina and contrasts;

I would never go to a Disney park because they sound like my idea of hell, but joy is hard to come by! Especially unexpected joy! So it's really mean to tell someone their unexpected enjoyment doesn't count whatever it is!

I was just coming on to say this. I was impressed with the commentary, and children of all ages also enjoyed it.

Edinburgh - just so beautiful, historic and fun.

Pere Lachaise Cemetery. The highlight of Paris for me. I went to see Jim Morrison's grave, but spent ages there wandering around. So interesting.

The hotels in Las Vegas - wasn't expecting them to be so amazingly OTT!

Alcatraz - lived up to my high expectations.

Driving down the west coast of America - so many beautiful deserted and dramatic beaches. It really was like something out of 'Play Misty For Me'.

Boppard Wine Festival - the best nights of my life!!

Exactly. I took DD to DLP many years ago and I was less than enthusiastic about going. When we got there it really wasn't as bad as I'd imagined, so in that respect DLP did exceed my expectations.

Oh, yes, the White Mountains and the ride on the Mount Washington Cog Railway. Standing on top of the world !

For me, anything over a 1/10 for Disney anywhere would be pleasantly surprised. A bit like the Las Vegas strip.

Forgot to mention Vienna - a beautiful city, very clean and compact, and the architecture is amazing. Also the Spanish Riding School is well worth a visit - expensive but the skill of the riders and horses is incredible.

My favourites are:

Basilica di San Clemente, Rome - absolutely stunning. So many places on Rome would make this list. It feels like home every time I go there (I’m not Italian, I just fell in love with it immediately). I also found visiting behind the scenes at the Basilica incredible and an honour.

St Ives, at sunset, outside of tourist season.

The White Mountains, New Hampshire. Just wow.

Paris Catacombs, particularly when it’s quiet and you’re alone.

Mutter Museum, Philly.

Auschwitz (Auschwitz I in particular, for me. The haunting beauty of the silver birch trees against such a place of horror.