What is the one spot on earth that took your breath away?

[ImInStealthMode]

Part inspired by a thread I just read about Switzerland and happy memories of beautiful scenes there.

What is the single most beautiful scene / spot / vista / landscape you've ever seen? Anywhere in the world. Pictures encouraged!

Mine (funnily enough) is not Switzerland but Bavaria. Lake Konigsee. So incredibly picturesque that it doesn't seem real.

(The Matterhorn reflected in a lake up the mountain from Zermatt is a very close second though)

Also... Stresa, Lake Maggiore, Italy where my best mate has a beachside holiday house

Seeing Tokyo at night from the top of the Skytree and realising how big it is. Lights in every direction, as far as the eye could see.

And the snowy alps of course, every time.

Inle lake in Myanmar. Breathtaking and fascinating.

Spirit Island, Canada. Just perfection. The first glimpse of Petra, Jordan. Perentian Islands, Malaysia. So much beauty in the world.

The Grand Canyon

It didn’t seem real, it was like standing on the edge of a painting.

We spent 3 days there, our youngest cried when it was time to head to our next destination. We all loved it so much.

Sedona in Arizona was pretty special too.

Would love to visit some of the other places mentioned here!

Death Valley National Park - amazing views. So far no other place has left such impression on me.

The hinterland, which is half an hour past Byron Bay, Australia. I feel like I am coming home everytime. And home for me is now Europe atm. Sigh. It will be a long time before I see it again/if I see it again.

Pen y Fan

  

I was coming on here to say Konigsee. It's beautiful!

Sossusvlei in Namibia. I had never seen such unusual scenery -clear blue sky, red sand and black trees. Very very hot in the day though! Just breathtaking at sunset.

Antarctica. Breath taking views at every turn. Honestly life changing.

Iguazu Falls

Ninh Binh in Vietnam (photo) and pretty much most of New Zealand

Pen y Fan

Picos de Europa in Spain. We were staying in Potes, did a "canyon walk" to another village. Boy I will never forget that unspoilt landscape, walking on a small path on the side of a steep mountain alongside a deep ravine then more mountains. You could see the little path we were on snaking around the curve of the mountain, with mountain goats happily somersaulting near us!

Gosh so many. New Zealand tops the list. Except this one, which is in Vanuatu. Yes, it's an erupting Volcano (My Yasur). No, it's not zoomed. You stand just back from the rim. Admittedly it's not all that safe since the safety briefing is 'run'. It was technically closed as being to active but we only found that out once we got back from the tour...

A truly breathtaking experience!

Not natural

But Michelangelo's David. Seriously took my breath away for real. I'd never seen art so beautiful.

Walking down a back road on a small little known Greek island. From the top of the hill the bay below and the view across to Hydra was stunning. What made it was a small house I passed just 5 minutes later. Nestled inside a wide bend in track, the house was perched high above the bay. The garden was on different levels and had a range of poles and trellises all dripping with different fruit and vegetables. All citruses, gourds, grapes, tomatoes and peppers of different sizes, shapes and colours of ripening, in the sun and with shade cast from some tall pines. Complete with deck chairs and tables it was like a fairy tale place. It was like the home we could all be happy in.

We're going next year, cannot wait!

Cape’s end in South Africa

Everywhere we went in corsica was just one incredible view after another. Just so so beautiful. They dont call it the isle of beauty for nothing. Calanques de piana was spectacular.

Cirque de Navacelles

Glencoe

Wow it’s a massive privilege to go to Antarctica, how did you manage that?

Lake bled, Slovenia.

Grand Canyon for me too. No photo can capture it. I’d wanted to go for so long and when I stood at the edge for the first time I cried I was so overwhelmed.

Iceland is also stunning.

And New York - just for the crazy 😄.

My first arrival in Venice was by train, on a sunny day in early July. The station itself was quite uninspiring, lots of advertising hoardings, grey walls, then a somewhat dingy walkway towards the exit.
Then I emerged into sunshine, and yards away was the Grand Canal, the architecture all around suddenly so beautiful, the blue water bustling with gondolas, water taxis, all sorts of craft.
I just sat on a wall, could barely catch my breath.