Just Follow the Crowds
For many travelers, deciding what to see while on
a trip is just like being in high school: Popularity is everything.
Just follow the crowd to these top tourist destinations.
By Haley Shapley
LIKE SHOPAHOLICS to a blowout sale and
American Way staffers to free loot, millions of people each year
are drawn to these sights. From landmarks steeped in history to the
magical world of Disney (times three), each offers a little
something different. It took some digging, but here are what we
found to be the most popular must-sees in or near some great
destinations.
CANCÚN
Xel-Há
011-52-998-883-3293, www.xel-ha.com
Visitors annually: 900,000
Snorkel, snuba (a cross between scuba diving and snorkeling), and
swim with the dolphins at this hands-on water park. A children's
playground, rope swings, and an ecological tour ensure that there's
something for everyone, from babies to grandpas.
CHICAGO
Navy Pier
(800) 595-7437, www.navypier.com
Visitors annually: 8.6 million
This one-stop shop for entertainment needs dates back to 1916 and
features the
Chicago Children's Museum, a Ferris wheel and other
rides, a 440- seat IMAX theater, daily performances on numerous
stages, and a fireworks show (two nights a week during the summer).
DALLAS/FORT WORTH
Your Guess Is as Good as Ours
Visitors annually: Good question
Maybe it's Sundance Square, which 10 million visit. It could be
Six Flags over
Texas - but they wouldn't tell us their numbers, no
matter how nicely we asked. Is it the
Dallas Zoo? We don't know,
because they wouldn't talk either. There's a lot to see and do in
the DFW area, but when it comes to revealing tourist stats, this
place is as tight-lipped as a two-year-old staring at a plate of
spinach.
HAWAII
USS Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor
(808) 422-0561, www.nps.gov/usar
Visitors annually: 1.6 million
This memorial pays tribute to the 1,177 crew members who lost
their lives on the "date which will live in infamy." Approximately
two quarts of
oil still leak from the ship each day, and the
droplets are known as black tears.
LOS ANGELES
Disneyland
(714) 781-4565, www.disneyland.com
Visitors annually: 14.7 million
Although the Happiest Place on Earth is known worldwide today, the
vision for it was a tough sell at first. "I could never convince
the financiers that Disneyland was feasible, because dreams offer
too little collateral,"
Walt Disney said.
LAS VEGAS
Las Vegas Strip
(877) 847-4858, www.visitlasvegas.com
Visitors annually: 38.9 million
The house may always win, but don't be afraid to pull that lever:
In
Nevada, it's mandatory that video slot machines pay a minimum of
75 percent on average. Plus, what happens in Vegas … well, you know
the rest.
LONDON
Tate Modern
011-44-20-7887-8888, www.tate.org.uk/modern
Visitors annually: 4.9 million
Although it's been open for less than a decade, Tate Modern is
already a powerhouse tourist attraction in
London. To accommodate
the unexpected crowds, the museum has plans to construct an
extension that will expand its size by 60 percent.
MIAMI
Miami Beach
(305) 604-2489, www.miamibeachfl.gov
Visitors annually: 10 million
Known as a hot spot for the young, rich, and famous,
Miami Beach is
a prime place to peoplewatch. Fashion shoots and the filming of
movie scenes are common here, so you never know who might saunter
by as you're sitting in the sun.
NEW YORK CITY
Times Square
(212) 869-1890, www.timessquarenyc.org
Visitors annually: 40 million
Times Square (which is actually shaped like a bow tie) is famous
for its head-turning neon and LED signs known as spectaculars.
Securing one of these much-looked-at slots of advertising real
estate can cost up to $350,000 a month, but the price of
constructing the ads can reach far into the millions.
ORLANDO
Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom
(407) 939-6244, disneyworld.disney.go.com
Visitors annually: 16.6 million
The most visited theme park in the world, the Magic Kingdom boasts
37 attractions, including the Haunted Mansion, where if you're
paying close attention, you can read humorous inscriptions on the
tombstones.
SAN FRANCISCO
Fisherman's Wharf
www.fishermanswharf.org
Visitors annually: 13.9 million
Seafood, especially Dungeness crab, is the star of the show here,
but there's much more to Fisherman's Wharf. Get your shop on at
places like
Ghirardelli Square and the Cannery, watch hundreds of
sea lions play as you look out from Pier 39, and see the stars
stand still at the 100,000-squarefoot Wax Museum.
TOKYO
Tokyo Disneyland
011-81-45-683-3333, www.tokyodisneyresort.co.jp/tdl/index_e.html
Visitors annually: 12.9 million
Opened in 1983, this attraction welcomed the most
Visitors of any theme park outside the
United States in 2006. The
neighboring Tokyo DisneySea followed closely behind in the
rankings, with 12.1 million visitors.
TORONTO
Canada's Wonderland
(905) 832-8131, www.canadaswonderland.com
Visitors annually: 3.2 million
More than 4,000 seasonal employees keep
Canada's Wonderland, one
of the top theme parks in
North America, up and running. They also
do a lot of selling - 200,000 funnel cakes and 50,000 pounds of
bulk candy are consumed every season.
WASHINGTON, D.C.
National Air and Space Museum
(202) 633-1000, www.nasm.si.edu Visitors annually: 9 million View Buzz Aldrin’s space suit, climb into a flight simulator, and examine a lunar rock at this museum, where you’ll find the world’s largest collection of historic aircraft and spacecraft, along with artifacts as big as rockets and as small as microchips.
HALEY SHAPLEY is a writer based in Fort Worth, Texas. Her favorite tourist attractions are Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio, and the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial in Washington, D.C.