In this series the focus will be on 100 unusual and fascinating tourist attractions from around the globe.

Some we have been lucky enough to visit, yet some we yearn to set foot. From the weird and wacky, freaky to wondrous… Take a stroll through the series.

Salar de Uyuni

Salar de Uyuni

In Bolivia’s Andean high desert, Salar de Uyuni, the world’s largest salt flat, stretches 7,440 square miles.

Leshan Giant Buddha

Leshan Giant Buddha

The Leshan Giant Buddha in Sichuan was carved out of a mountainside in the 8th century. At 233 feet high, it is one of the largest images of the Buddha in the world.

Goblin_Valley_State_Park

Goblin Valley State Park

Goblin Valley State Park in Utah, near the Arches and Canyonlands national parks, is home to sandstone formations that resemble goblins.

Panda hotel Sichuan

Panda Inn

Panda lovers of the world now have another place to call home (for a few nights, at least). In February, the Panda Inn, a panda-themed hotel in China’s Sichuan province, opened its doors to guests. The 32-room hotel is decorated with panda art, panda furniture and panda-shaped stuffed animals. Even staff members dress in panda suits.

Las Pozas, Xilitla, Mexico

Las Pozas, Xilitla, Mexico

Las Pozas, which means “the pools” in Spanish, is a collection of surrealist structures created by English aristocrat Edward James. Born into wealth, James left his English mansion to create a fantasyland amid central Mexico’s jungle. Besides its multitude of pools, Las Pozas’ 20 acres include a staircase to nowhere and buildings with names such as “House With Three Stories That Might Be Five” and “House With a Roof Like a Whale.”

Pancake Rocks, New Zealand

Pancake Rocks, New Zealand

Pancake Rocks, located on the western edge of Paparoa National Park on New Zealand’s South Island, began forming about 30 million years ago as layers of sandstone and limestone accumulated on the ocean floor. As the softer sandstone eroded, formations resembling stacks of pancakes formed.

Plain of Jars, Laos

Plain of Jars, Laos

The Plain of Jars, located on the Xieng Khouang plateau in northern Laos about 100 miles northeast of Vientiane, is composed of thousands of stone jars arranged in clusters. The jars, ranging from a few feet in height to almost 10 feet, were carved about 2,000 years ago, and archaeological evidence suggests they were used in burial rituals. The site was bombed extensively during the Vietnam War, so only certain parts of the area are safe for sightseeing.

JW Marriott Marquis Hotel Dubai

JW Marriott Marquis Hotel Dubai

The JW Marriott Marquis Hotel Dubai, dubbed the world’s tallest hotel by Guinness World Records, made its grand debut Tuesday. The twin-tower, 72-story hotel rises 1,165 feet. It’s nearly as tall as the Empire State Building but measures about 1,500 feet shorter than the world’s tallest building, the Burj Khalifa, located in Dubai a few blocks away.

Musee des Egouts de Paris, France

Musee des Egouts de Paris, France

Aside from the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre and Notre Dame Cathedral, Paris, often called the City of Romance, is also home to the Musee des Egouts de Paris, or Paris Sewer Museum. Museum visitors can tour part of Paris’ extensive underground sewer system. This stretch, fortunately, is protected from raw sewage, so the smell isn’t too bad. The museum, located within walking distance of the Eiffel Tower, also includes displays about the past and present of Paris’ sewage system, which dates back to the 1200s.

Panjin-Wetland-Red-beach

Red Beach, Panjin, China

Papakolea Beach on Hawaii’s Big Island get its green colour from olivine minerals. Coral tints Pink Sands Beach in the Bahamas. At Red Beach in Panjin, a city about 300 miles northeast of Beijing, it’s seaweed. The wetland is home to a unique variety of alkali-tolerant seaweed that changes from green to red in the fall.