The Lake District has edged out hundreds of other sites to be deemed one of the most popular World Heritage Sites in the world.

Alongside the likes of the Taj Mahal, Machu Picchu and the Grand Canyon, it has always been one of the world’s most significant sites, but now it's officially one of the most popular.

To find out, online entertainment site Betway analysed TikTok views, Instagram hashtags and Google search volume for over 200 of the most-visited World Heritage Sites, to determine which are the most popular to visit in 2024.

There are currently 1,199 World Heritage Sites dotted across the globe.

Here are the top 10:

  1. Yellowstone National Park
  2. Grand Canyon
  3. Yosemite National Park
  4. Dolomites
  5. Lake District
  6. Pompei
  7. Great Barrier Reef
  8. Amalfi Coast
  9. Everglades
  10. Plitvice Lakes

See their full breakdown here.

Lake District in the United Kingdom ranks as the fifth most popular natural Heritage Site in the world, with over 4.3 million tagged Instagram posts and 368,000 monthly Google searches.

It was officially made a World Heritage Site on July 10th, 2017 and it’s not the first time Cumbria was recognised. Hadrian’s Wall was awarded UNESCO World Heritage status in 1987.

According to VisitLakeDistrict, the three themes relating to the Lake District World Heritage Award are: Inspiration, Identity & Conservation.

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INSPIRATION

The beauty of the Lake District inspired artists and writers of the Picturesque and Romantic movements and generated ideas about landscape that have had global influence.

IDENTITY

The acknowledged beauty of the Lake District is the result of thousands of years of agricultural development of the spectacular natural landscape of mountains, valleys, lakes and woodland. It is a cultural landscape of international significance.

CONSERVATION

The Lake District has been enjoyed and valued by visitors for 250 years. Concern for protecting it was the inspiration for the birth of the conservation movement, including the National Trust and protected areas including UK National Parks.