Back in the day, travelers would hear about amazing vacation spots from family and friends. They'd then do some research in the library (or the Internet, at one point), talk to a travel agent and book a trip without necessarily seeing the destination prior to arrival. In 2017, things have changed.
With the advent of social media and the uber development of the Internet and its offerings, we all (visually) experience a vacation before actually going there. After all, if tons of people post pictures of Yosemite National Park—it must be worth taking a trip there, right?
Following that thought, online travel specialists at TravelBird have come up with a list of the most popular attractions in "countries around the world based on the number of tags on the social media platform [Instagram]." Spoiler alert: Disneyland reigns supreme in America.
Check out the results of the study below, but note that the data includes the two most popular attractions within each American state, in order to ensure "lesser known, local gems are represented as well as popular attractions within the more densely popular states."
1. Disneyland in California
2. Walt Disney World in Florida
3. South Beach in Florida
4. Las Vegas Strip in Nevada
5. Times Square in New York
6. Mardi Gras in Louisiana
7. Grand Canyon in Arizona
8. Waikiki in Hawaii
9. Yosemite National Park in California
10. Myrtle Beach in South Carolina
11. Empire State Building in New York
12. Charleston in South Carolina
13. Atlantic City in New Jersey
14. Rocky Mountains in Colorado
15. Yellowstone in Montana
16. Yellowstone in Wyoming
17. Space Needle in Washington
18. Virginia Beach in Virginia
19. New Orleans' French Quarter in Louisiana
20. Hotsprings National Park in Arkansas
21. Little Rock High School in Arkansas
22. Pike Place Market in Washington
23. Cedar Point in Ohio
24. Zion National Park in Utah
25. Wynn Las Vegas in Nevada
26. Washington Monument in Washington DC
27. Hoover Dam in Arizona
28. Glacier National Park in Montana
29. Kentucky Derby in Kentucky
30. Salt Lake in Utah
31. Yale University Campus in Connecticut
32. Lincoln Memorial in Washington DC
33. Fenway Park in Massachusetts
34. Garden of the Gods in Colorado
35. Great Smoky Nat Park in Tennessee
36. Indy 500 in Indiana
37. White Sands in New Mexico
38. Hershey Park in Pennsylvania
39. Cloud Gate in Illinois
40. Mount Rushmore in South Dakota
41. Mall of America in Minnesota
42. Black Hills in South Dakota
43. Acadia National Park in Maine
44. Hampton Beach in New Hampshire
45. Nashville Music in Tennessee
46. Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming
47. Liberty Bell in Pennsylvania
48. Cliff Walk in Rhode Island
49. Biltmore Estate in North Carolina
50. Colonial Williamsburg in Virginia
51. Kennebunkport in Maine
52. Gateway Arch in Missouri
53. Mount Hood in Oregon
54. Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Ohio
55. The Alamo in Texas
56. Chimney Rock in Nebraska
57. Silver Dollar City in Missouri
58. Denali National Park in Alaska
59. Mystic Aquarium in Connecticut
60. Magnificent Mile in Illinois
61. The Breakers in Rhode Island
62. Faneuil Hall (Boston) in Massachusetts
63. Forsyth Park in Georgia
64. Mackinac Bridge in Michigan
65. Carlsbad Caverns in New Mexico
66. Baltimore Aquarium in Maryland
67. Tracy Arm Fjord in Alaska
68. The Boardwalk in New Jersey
69. Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail in Alabama
70. Dodge City in Kansas
71. Henry Ford Museum in Michigan
72. Civil Rights Memorial in Alabama
73. Volcanoes National Park in Hawaii
74. Oregon Coast Aquarium in Oregon
75. Oshkosh Airshow in Wisconsin
76. Mount Monadnock in New Hampshire
77. Daniel Boone National Forest in Kentucky
78. Space Center Houston in Texas
79. Harley-Davidson Museum in Wisconsin
80. Grand Opera House in Delaware
81. New River Gorge Bridge in West Virginia
82. Adventureland Park in Iowa
83. Railroad Museum in Maryland
84. Martin Luther King Jr Historic Site in Georgia
85. Fort Wayne Children's Zoo in Indiana
86. Carhenge in Nebraska
87. Oklahoma City Zoo in Oklahoma
88. Ben & Jerry's Factory in Vermont
89. Boot Hill Museum and Cemetery in Kansas
90. Sun Valley Resort in Idaho
91. Battleship NC in North Carolina
92. Hildene in Vermont
93. Moon National Monument in Idaho
94. Vicksburg National Park in Mississippi
95. Teddy Rosevelt National Park in North Dakota
96. Seneca Caverns in West Virginia
97. Sculpture Garden in Minnesota
98. Nemours Mansion in Delaware
99. Mississippi River Museum in Iowa
100. Dakota Thunder in North Dakota
101. Spiro Mounds in Oklahoma
102. Vicksburg National Cemetery in Mississippi