- A new study has revealed the most overpriced bucket list landmarks for Brits – and the astonishing cost of some destinations
- Google search data for the most impressive landmarks was used to rank the most popular destinations, with ticket and flight costs totalled for price data
- A travel expert offers advice on ticking off your bucket list and beating the crowds in a budget-friendly way
Mount Everest has been crowned the most expensive destination on Brits’ bucket lists, as the most overpriced wonders of the world are ranked.
A new study, conducted by travel experts at Desert Safari Dubai Tours & Tickets, used Google Keyword Planner to determine the monthly average Google searches for each tourist destination, and Skyscanner to calculate travel costs.
From ‘staycation’ destinations in the UK to iconic European landmarks, the study has identified the most budget-friendly ‘bucket list’ destinations and the overrated, costly attractions that might be worth a miss.
The most expensive destination cropping up on British bucket lists is a trip up Mount Everest.
With return flights costing £1,038, and the requirements including a permit, hiring a local company to organise the permits, paying for a refundable rubbish deposit, and working with a liaison officer, Brits will spend over £16,790 before setting foot in Nepal.
Upon arrival, the cost of hiring experienced tour guides and paying for insurance, expensive oxygen tanks, food and equipment, means most Brits will spend upwards of £40,000 on the trip.
In second place is the other mountain making it onto British bucket lists – Mount Kilimanjaro. A return flight to the closest airport can be bought for around £1000, but with permits and extra costs accruing per day on the mountain, the average spend is around £3000.
Moving away from mountains to Easter Island and the iconic Moai Statues. Though the price of a ticket equates to around £59.81, it is the cost of flights to the South American island which brings the total cost up to £2,495.81.
Fourth on the list is the Bagan Temples. Whilst the ticket fee for foreign visitors is only around £9.18, the total cost is around £1,821.18 with flights included.
The next two destinations on the list are free to visit and are huge tourist hotspots in the United States. Central Park and Times Square can both be visited without tickets, but flights cost £787 each way, totalling £1,574, landing the destinations in joint fifth place.
In seventh is the Borobudur Temple in Indonesia, the largest Buddhist temple in the world, widely considered one of the Seven Wonders of the Modern World. Tickets and flights to the temple cost around £1,518.68.
The Iguazu Falls in Argentine are eighth, setting a British traveller back £1,465.91 on average for flights and tickets.
The ninth most-expensive destination on this list is the Grand Prismatic Spring. The largest hot spring in the United States, the site is a popular tourist destination, with tickets costing £26.15, and flights to the nearest airport costing £1,406 for a return flight.
The total spend for a trip to the Grand Prismatic Spring is £1,432.15 on average, not including hotels or car hires.
The final bucket list destination on the ‘most overpriced’ list is Milford Sound, a fiord in New Zealand. While the stunning natural attraction costs £61 to access, flights to the area cost £1,334, totalling £1,395.
The ten most expensive bucket list destinations for Brits
| Rank | Landmark | Ticket Cost per 1 Adult | Average Cost of a Return Flight for 1 Adult from the UK | Total Cost |
| 1 | Mount Everest | £15,752.00 | £1,038.00 | £16,790.00 |
| 2 | Mount Kilimanjaro | £2,000.00 | £1,000.00 | £3,000.00 |
| 3 | Moai Statues | £59.81 | £2,436.00 | £2,495.81 |
| 4 | Bagan Temples | £9.18 | £1,812.00 | £1,821.18 |
| 5 | Central Park | £0 | £1,574.00 | £1,574.00 |
| 6 | Times Square | £0 | £1,574.00 | £1,574.00 |
| 7 | Borobudur Temple | £18.68 | £1,500.00 | £1,518.68 |
| 8 | Iguazu Falls | £11.91 | £1,454.00 | £1,465.91 |
| 9 | Grand Prismatic Spring | £26.15 | £1,406.00 | £1,432.15 |
| 10 | Milford Sound | £61.00 | £1,334.00 | £1,395.00 |
The minimum cost of ticking off all ten of these destinations is a staggering £33,066.73, but with Mount Everest alone typically adding up to over £40,000, the true cost with hotels, food and travel included likely totals more than £60,000, making these destinations completely inaccessible to a lot of British tourists.
The study also found the cheapest bucket list destinations, and plenty are close to home.
Top of the list, Stonehenge is the cheapest destination featured on most Brits’ bucket list. Located in Wiltshire, England, this prehistoric structure has puzzled and amazed visitors for thousands of years, and its location means it is accessible by car and public transport, negating the cost of a flight.
Tickets to the site, which include entry to the museum and the shuttle bus up to the stone circle, cost just £25 per adult, with concession and children’s tickets available.
In second place is the London Eye, where tickets start from £29, offering visitors the chance to experience some impressive and Instagrammable views of the capital city.
Only a short distance away, Big Ben takes third place, with tickets starting from £30. A trip to London is on the bucket list of British and foreign travellers alike, and Big Ben and its clocktower are iconic landmarks for all London-goers.
Buckingham Palace, which takes fourth place, sets each visitor back around £32.
The final UK destination to crack the top ten is the Tower of London. Costing £34.80 for one adult, the UNESCO World Heritage site is visited by millions of tourists every year.
If you’re looking to travel slightly further afield to tick off some top bucket list destinations, look no further. In sixth place, a trip to Norway to see the Northern Lights can cost just £44 for a return flight, with no ticket prices involved.
Should you wish to extend your stay, there are plenty of other wonderful sights to see in the country, and budget hostels are a great way to save on spending.
In seventh place, a trip to Paris to visit the Louvre will set you back just £48.37, including flights and ticket costs.
Eighth place goes to the most underrated destination on the list – the Bastei Bridge, in Germany. The bridge is a hidden treasure for those who are not true travel aficionados – though it is one of Germany’s most iconic landmarks.
A return flight to visit the Bastei Bridge will cost you just £52, and there’s plenty to explore in Germany while you’re there.
For just £52.46, Brits can hop on a plane and ascend the Eiffel Tower, one of Paris’ most iconic landmarks, landing ninth on the list. Flights cost the average Brit just £30.
Rounding out the top 10 is the Berlin Wall. The wall fell in 1989, but there are stretches of it still standing, and ruins are free to visit. A return flight costs just £54, making the visit an affordable one.
The ten cheapest ‘bucket list’ destinations
| Rank | Landmark | Average Monthly Google Searches | Ticket Cost per 1 Adult | Average Cost of a Return Flight for 1 Adult from the UK | Total Cost |
| 1 | Stonehenge | 13,510 | £25.00 | £0.00 | £25.00 |
| 2 | London Eye | 17,044 | £29.00 | £0.00 | £29.00 |
| 3 | Big Ben | 18,464 | £30.00 | £0.00 | £30.00 |
| 4 | Buckingham Palace | 65,916 | £32.00 | £0.00 | £32.00 |
| 5 | Tower of London | 22,275 | £34.80 | £0.00 | £34.80 |
| 6 | Northern Lights | 67,215 | £0.00 | £44.00 | £44.00 |
| 7 | The Louvre | 16,676 | £18.37 | £30.00 | £48.37 |
| 8 | Bastei Bridge | 2 | £0.00 | £52.00 | £52.00 |
| 9 | Eiffel Tower | 90,109 | £22.46 | £30.00 | £52.46 |
| 10 | Berlin Wall | 2,031 | £0.00 | £54.00 | £54.00 |
The total cost of visiting all ten destinations on this list is just £401.63, a cost which can be lessened by visiting multiple attractions in the same country in one trip.
Magdalena Petrusic, a travel expert from Desert Safari Dubai Tours & Tickets, offers advice to Brits looking to tick off some of their dream travel destinations.
“These iconic landmarks are on many Brits’ bucket lists, and for good reason. However, that can mean getting to see them in person, unobstructed by swathes of other tourists, can be an incredibly expensive challenge.
“The autumn and winter seasons may not seem like prime holiday opportunities, but flying and visiting tourist destinations at off-peak times can save money and reduce the crowds blocking your view.
“Some of the destinations on the most popular list, including Times Square and Central Park, are free to visit, but the high cost of flights, and the necessity of hotels drives up the price.
“While these destinations are deservedly tourist hotspots, some of the less-searched destinations on this list, particularly those closer to home, might be equally as special to visit, for a peaceful and impromptu winter break.”
