The Spectacular Buildings Worth Traveling to See Right Now

What are the must-see buildings if you decide to take a destination architecture trip for your next vacation? Our correspondent Jillian Tangen has done the research. Here are the spectacular buildings in 10 cities around the world that are worth traveling to see right now.

what’s really worth traveling to see in the world of architecture?

Over the past few months we’ve been seized by a serious case of wanderlust. What can we say?  We just love experiencing different and new cultures.  After all, it means discovering things like new food, where to shop, the best museums, the coolest art parks, and the most over-the-top hotels. 

And while we love unearthing all those things, one of our greatest joys when traveling is visiting the iconic landmarks and buildings that provide unique character to each town and city.  Some of the world’s best-known cities are recognized by their most well-known buildings. Can you name a better symbol for Sydney than the opera house?  We’ll wait. 

the spectacular buildings worth traveling to see right now

So what are the top buildings around the world worth traveling to see? Look no further than our latest list.  Whether a church, museum or memorial, we’ve pulled together our 12 favorite buildings. These are so famous for their significance and stature that they are actually worth planning a trip around. 

Each represents a piece of history. And on top of that, many of them feature award-winning designs that mark important transitions in the history of architecture through the centuries.  And don’t worry if you don’t know your Gehry from your Hadid.  The majority of our picks aren’t just beautiful on the outside.  They are homes to great cultural spaces like contemporary art museums and opera houses in addition to offering some amazing views. So there’s always something worth seeing on the inside, too.

So where should you go for some of the best designs around the world?  Here are our 12 picks for a destination architecture vacation right now:

1. one world trade center, new york.

New York City’s One World Trade Center is located in lower Manhattan, where the Twin Towers once stood. Also known as the Freedom Tower, it is the 6th tallest building in the world. It’s the tallest building in the Western Hemisphere, clocking in at the historically symbolic height of 1,776 feet. 

The building, designed by David Childs, has 94 stories. Visitors can take a quick 47-second elevator ride up to the observation deck. There, a breathtaking 360-degree view of Manhattan awaits. There’s a terrific video chronicling the development of the island over the past 500 years, from swampland to the buildings, bridges and skyscrapers of today.

Once you’re back on the ground, be sure to visit the other spectacular building in the neighborhood, The Oculus. By day or by night, this great winged bird of a building is a must-see.

2. the solomon r. guggenheim museum, new york.

In 1959, The Guggenheim Museum moved to its current location on 5th Avenue. It’s the most iconic work of 20th-century architect Frank Lloyd Wright. Conceived as a “temple of the spirit,” the cylindrical shape represents a radical departure from traditional museum design, spiraling upward and outward in coils of massive unadorned white concrete. 

The museum’s interior is equally groundbreaking in terms of design. It features a spiral ramp of six “stories” encircling an open center space. At the top, light streams through a glass dome supported by stainless steel. In 2019, the building was designated a World Heritage site by UNESCO.

3. gateway arch, st. louis.

The Gateway Arch reflects St. Louis’ role in the Westward Expansion of the United States during the 19th century. It’s a memorial to Thomas Jefferson’s role in opening the West, and to the pioneers who helped shape its history. The Arch also commemorates Dred Scott, who sued for his freedom in the city’s Old Courthouse. The project began in 1935, when President Franklin D. Roosevelt designated the property along the St. Louis riverfront to be developed as a memorial. 

It was not until 1948, though, that a nationwide design competition was held. In 1963, construction began on architect Eero Saarinen’s design. Completed in 1965, the elegant 63-story stainless steel Arch is a revered example of mid-century modern design. Visitors can take a tram trip to the top to enjoy stunning views.

4. the shard, london.

Standing at 95 stories high, The Shard, designed by Italian architect Renzo Piano, is the tallest building in the EU (that is, until after Brexit). 

Located in Southwark, London, the church steeple-inspired skyscraper is composed of 11,000 glass panels. It features 56,000 square meters of glass facade. 

The triple-thick glass windows are outfitted with Venetian blinds to cut heat from the sun; after dark, they’re raised so the structure can capture the heated air between the panes of glass and  redistribute them elsewhere in the building. 

The Shard is home to to residential, hotel and office space. On top, you can visit the 800-foot high observation deck. It’s nearly double the height of its closest competitor, the London Eye.

5. oslo opera house, oslo.

Norwegians are firm believers that nature is free for everyone to walk in. And the Oslo Opera House, opened in 2008, embodies this idea.  Located on the harbor in the Barcode neighborhood, the building has an angled, white exterior that appears to rise from the water.

The design invites visitors to climb up the roof and enjoy panoramic views of Oslo and the fjord. 

Though especially beautiful in the winter months, when the frozen Oslo fjord seems to extend the building’s “beach” into the water, we love visiting during the summer. That’s when you can dip your toes right into the fjord itself.  Designed by the Norwegian architecture firm Snøhetta (who also designed the September 11 Memorial Pavilion), the building features large scale windows that provide glimpses of the workshops and rehearsals taking place inside.

6. guggenheim museum bilbao, bilbao.

The Guggenheim Museum Bilbao is one of the most inspiring buildings in Spain, not to mention it houses incredible modern artworks as a contemporary art museum. Canadian-American architect Frank Gehry designed the structure. To this day, it represents a magnificent example of the most groundbreaking 20th-century architecture. 

Considered one of the most influential buildings of modern times, it has revived the belief that architecture could be ambitious, beautiful and popular all at once.  With interconnected buildings featuring curving facades of limestone and titanium, Gehry’s design creates a spectacular sculpture-like structure, perfectly integrated within Bilbao’s urban pattern and its surrounding area.

7. the basílica de la sagrada família, barcelona.

In 2019, just 137 years after it was submitted, Barcelona’s famed Basílica de la Sagrada Família finally received its official building permit from the city.  Antoni Gaudí’s most famous – and most controversial – building has never actually been completed. 

Gaudí began designing the basilica after fellow architect Francisco de Paula del Villar resigned from the project in 1883, just one year after construction began. He combined Gothic and Art Nouveau architecture for his design, continuing to work on his creation until his death in 1926. He was later buried in the church’s crypt.

8. centre georges pompidou, paris.

In the 1970’s, star architects Renzo Piano and Richard Rogers, both unknown at the time, collaborated on one of the most talked-about and radical buildings of the modern era, the Centre Georges Pompidou. The cultural center, located in the 4th arrondissement of Paris, turned the architectural world inside out, literally. 

The duo crafted a plan that would expose all of the infrastructure of the building, creating the first ever “inside out” design.  Today, it is among France’s most memorable buildings. It’s home to a public information library, the largest modern art museum in Europe, the Musée National d’Art Moderne and IRCAM, a center for music and acoustic research.

9. garage museum of contemporary art, moscow.

It wasn’t until 2011 that the Garage Museum of Contemporary Art found its permanent residence.  Constructed on the frame of a derelict two-story restaurant from the 1970’s, Dutch architect Rem Koolhaas crafted a striking silver building that reflects the continual state of transition underway in Gorky Park, where the museum is located.

While Koolhaas restored many of the building’s original features, and installed glass at the bottom of the structure to let in natural light, he managed to maintain some of its dilapidated areas. The mosaics and murals of the past surround a contemporary art space, a poignant display of the texture of history.

10. V&A Museum Dundee, Scotland.

The V & A Dundee is the first-ever dedicated design museum in Scotland. And the only other V&A museum anywhere in the world outside London.

The permanent and visiting exhibits in this new space – which opened on September 15, 2018 – explore Scotland’s design heritage. After winning an international competition, award-winning Japanese architect Kengo Kuma designed the new museum. He’s also the architect for the stadium for the Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympics.

The V&A Dundee has no straight external walls. The curving concrete walls are covered by 2,500 rough stone panels to create the appearance of a Scottish cliff face.

11. The Elbphilharmonie, Hamburg, Germany.

The Elbphilharmonie is a concert hall in Hamburg, Germany, set on a peninsula of the Elbe River, surrounded by water on three sides. Popularly nicknamed “Elphi,” this is one of the largest and acoustically most advanced concert halls in the world. The hall itself is encased in glass. It’s built on top of a giant brick warehouse. Designed by the Swiss architecture firm Herzog and de Meuron, the building cost about $850 million and took more than a decade to design and build.

When it opened on January 11, 2017, the design team won international acclaim. The acoustics were pronounced “a marvel of clarity and precision.”

Visitors can enjoy stunning views of industrial Hamburg. Even those without concert tickets can ascend via a stunning 262-foot long escalator encased in a tunnel of white glass to visit the rooftop terrace. The journey creates a genuine sense of expectation, and distance from the everyday world. Perfect preparation for a wonderful musical performance.

12. Louvre Abu Dhabi.

French architect Jean Nouvel designed the magnificent Louvre Abu Dhabi art museum. Opened on November 8, 2017 on Saadiyat Island, or “Island of Happiness,” the museum complex is connected by a bridge to the mainland.

The structure is something you have to see firsthand to fully comprehend. A filigreed gray half-sphere dome rests on a series of low buildings with white walls bisected by channels filled with water. The dome is made of overlapping geometric lattices, and it weighs more than 7,500 tons.

Seen from inside the white walls and stone floors of the museum, it becomes clear that the filigree of the roof is porous and open to the sky. But its so densely layered that it creates stunning interior vistas of light-dappled shade. It’s a magical effect.

The institution can use the illustrious Louvre name for 30 years. And display works on loan from the Louvre and a dozen other French state institutions (the Musée d’Orsay, the Centre Pompidou, the Bibliothèque Nationale, etc.) through 2027.  

13. burj khalifa, dubai.

Towering over the Dubai skyline, the Burj Khalifa was completed in 2010.  At 2,722 feet high, it’s the tallest building in the world, offering dramatic views of the Arabian Gulf.  The tower is also the tallest freestanding structure in the world.

Other world records? The Burj Khalifa has the highest number of stories; the highest occupied floor; and the highest outdoor observation deck in the world. This building has the world record for the elevator with the longest travel distance and the tallest service elevator. Take that, Empire State Building!

The shape of the Hymenocallis flower is the inspiration for the tower’s design. It also pays homage to Islamic architecture and to the Great Mosque of Samarra. The Armani hotel, residential apartments and corporate offices occupy its 163 floors.

14. guangzhou opera house, guangzhou.

Shaped to resemble two pebbles on the banks of the Pearl River, the late pioneering female architect Zaha Hadid was the visionary behind the Guangzhou Opera House. 

The opera’s design is rooted in the concept of the natural landscape. And the fascinating interplay between architecture and nature. In this case, the design focus is on how river valleys are transformed through erosion. When set against the urban backdrop of Guangzhou, the juxtaposition is remarkable and memorable. Inside, you’ll find an equally beautiful auditorium, with curving balconies that make audiences appear to be on a stage of their own.

15. sydney opera house, sydney.

Declared as UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2007, the Sydney Opera House is one of the most iconic and recognizable buildings in the world.   Its unique use of a series of gleaming white sail-shaped shells as its roof structure has made it one of the most-photographed buildings in the world. 

Danish architect Jørn Utzon designed this multi-venue performing arts center after winning an international competition in 1959. After a number of setbacks, the building opened to the public in 1973. Over 8 million people visit each year, and the site is host to over 1,500 performances annually.

must-see buildings and destination architecture

There you have it, our top picks for the 15 buildings worth travelling to see right now.  How many have you seen? Which ones are on your bucket list?  

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Jillian Tangen is the Head of Research at Dandelion Chandelier and a former Senior Research Analyst at McKinsey & Co and Analyst at Shearman & Sterling. She is an avid fan of Nordic design, having owned an independent lifestyle store and sales agency focused on emerging Scandinavian design. Jillian lives in New York and is married with three young children. She loves cross-country skiing, the New York Rangers, reading, travel and discovering new brands.

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