A staircase is usually the boring bit between A and B. Not always. A recent roundup of the world's most remarkable steps shows how a simple flight of stairs can carry centuries of history, a clever engineering trick or a full-blown legend — and in some cases, the staircase is the reason to travel.
In Rajasthan, India, the ninth-century Chand Baori near Abhaneri drops some 3,500 stone steps across 13 levels into one of the country's deepest stepwells, built to store water in a dry region. The geometry is mesmerising from above, and it sits about 95km from Jaipur, making it an easy day trip.
Rome's Spanish Steps need little introduction. Designed by Francesco de Sanctis and built between 1723 and 1726, they link Piazza di Spagna with the Trinità dei Monti church above. They're free, central and famously crowded — go early, and note that sitting on them is now banned.
Sri Lanka's Sigiriya makes the climb itself the attraction: a fifth-century royal fortress built under King Kashyapa, with stairways threading past frescoes, water gardens and giant carved lion paws before the summit ruins open up over the forest. It's a sweaty few hours, so bring water and decent shoes.
Ukraine's Potemkin Stairs in Odesa pull off an optical illusion — from the top, the flights appear to merge into one unbroken cascade — and earned film fame via Eisenstein's 1925 Battleship Potemkin. A funicular next door saves your legs.
In China, 999 steps at Tianmen Mountain near Zhangjiajie lead to Heaven's Gate, a huge natural arch in the mountainside. A cable car and a serpentine road offer alternatives, but the stair climb is the memorable way up; check access rules before you go, as restrictions change.
Santa Fe, New Mexico has a quieter marvel: the Miraculous Staircase in Loretto Chapel, a wooden spiral built around 1878 that rises about six metres to the choir loft with no central support column. A legend about a mysterious carpenter who appeared (and vanished) after the nuns prayed for help only adds to the draw.
The most modern entry is in Cape Town: Zeitz MOCAA at the V&A Waterfront, where Heatherwick Studio carved a gallery of contemporary African art out of a 1920s grain silo in 2017, leaving a sculptural staircase winding through one of the old concrete cylinders.
Why it matters for travellers: these are all things you can actually build a trip around — a detour from Jaipur, a morning in Rome, a half-day hike in Sri Lanka. They suit anyone who likes their sightseeing with a bit of physical effort or an engineering story attached, and most cost little or nothing beyond getting there.
