<strong>Icons</strong>: (National Congress) 1 point<br /><strong>Height</strong>: 0 points<br /><strong>Beauty</strong>: 2 points<br /><strong>Total: </strong>3 points<br />Oscar Niemeyer certainly made his mark on this city. The Ministries Esplanade contains his beautiful Cathedral of Brasilia (pictured here) National Museum and National Library. The building that defines the skyline, however, is his National Congress building that looks like two flying saucers parked next to two gray slabs.
Brasilia, Brazil —
Icons: (National Congress) 1 point
Height: 0 points
Beauty: 2 points
Total: 3 points
Oscar Niemeyer certainly made his mark on this city. The Ministries Esplanade contains his beautiful Cathedral of Brasilia (pictured here) National Museum and National Library. The building that defines the skyline, however, is his National Congress building that looks like two flying saucers parked next to two gray slabs.
Mario Tama/Getty Images South America/Getty Images
<strong>Icons:</strong> (Table Mountain) 1 point<br /><strong>Height:</strong> 0 points<br /><strong>Beauty</strong>: 3 points +1 Bonus<br /><strong>Total: </strong>5 points<br />No points for height, but we couldn't resist including Cape Town's Victoria & Albert Waterfront with its imposing, flat-topped Table Mountain.
Cape Town, South Africa —
Icons: (Table Mountain) 1 point
Height: 0 points
Beauty: 3 points +1 Bonus
Total: 5 points
No points for height, but we couldn't resist including Cape Town's Victoria & Albert Waterfront with its imposing, flat-topped Table Mountain.
David Rogers/Getty Images Europe/Getty Images
<strong>Icons: </strong>(Pyramids) 1 point<br /><strong>Height</strong>: (ranked no. 75 with 1,155 points) 4 points<br /><strong>Beauty:</strong> 1 point <br /><strong>Total</strong>: 6 points<br />Cairo would not make it on this list were it not for the fact that the ancient pyramids of Giza were such marvels of ancient engineering that they were built tall enough (nearly 139 meters) to be seen within the city.
Cairo, Egypt —
Icons: (Pyramids) 1 point
Height: (ranked no. 75 with 1,155 points) 4 points
Beauty: 1 point
Total: 6 points
Cairo would not make it on this list were it not for the fact that the ancient pyramids of Giza were such marvels of ancient engineering that they were built tall enough (nearly 139 meters) to be seen within the city.
KHALED DESOUKI/AFP/AFP/Getty Images
<strong>Icons</strong>: (Gateway Arch) 1 point<br /><strong>Height</strong>: 0 points <br /><strong>Beauty</strong>: 6 points<br /><strong>Total</strong>: 7 points<br />Eero Saarinen's bold Gateway Arch looks like half of a gigantic McDonald's arch suspended over the city. It is certainly the most unusual of skylines.
St Louis, USA —
Icons: (Gateway Arch) 1 point
Height: 0 points
Beauty: 6 points
Total: 7 points
Eero Saarinen's bold Gateway Arch looks like half of a gigantic McDonald's arch suspended over the city. It is certainly the most unusual of skylines.
Joe Raedle/Getty Images North America/Getty Images
<strong>Icons</strong>: (Dome of the Rock) 1 point<br /><strong>Height:</strong> 0 points<br /><strong>Beauty:</strong> 6 points<br /><strong>Total:</strong> 7 points<br />The Islamic world's oldest building, completed in 692, sits on top of Temple Mount. Its shiny golden dome is covered in 80 kilograms of gold.
Jerusalem —
Icons: (Dome of the Rock) 1 point
Height: 0 points
Beauty: 6 points
Total: 7 points
The Islamic world's oldest building, completed in 692, sits on top of Temple Mount. Its shiny golden dome is covered in 80 kilograms of gold.
MARCO LONGARI/AFP/AFP/Getty Images
<strong>Icons:</strong> (Hagia Sophia and Sultan Ahmed) 2 points<br /><strong>Height</strong>: 0 points<br /><strong>Beauty:</strong> 6 points<br /><strong>Total: </strong>8 points<br />The minarets and domes of Istanbul's two important mosques (Hagia Sophia became a museum in 1935) dominate the city like a pair of crowns that evoke visions of the city's former grandeur as the seat of the Ottoman Empire.
Istanbul, Turkey —
Icons: (Hagia Sophia and Sultan Ahmed) 2 points
Height: 0 points
Beauty: 6 points
Total: 8 points
The minarets and domes of Istanbul's two important mosques (Hagia Sophia became a museum in 1935) dominate the city like a pair of crowns that evoke visions of the city's former grandeur as the seat of the Ottoman Empire.
Chris McGrath/Getty Images Europe/Getty Images
<strong>Icons: </strong>(Washington Monument) 1 point<br /><strong>Height:</strong> 0 points<br /><strong>Beauty:</strong> 7 points<br /><strong>Total:</strong> 8 points<br />The capital city does not make a statement with flashy skyscrapers, just one very tall obelisk that resolutely points towards the sky like a beacon of light. The skyline shows the elegant restraint of an elderly grande dame.
Washington D.C., USA —
Icons: (Washington Monument) 1 point
Height: 0 points
Beauty: 7 points
Total: 8 points
The capital city does not make a statement with flashy skyscrapers, just one very tall obelisk that resolutely points towards the sky like a beacon of light. The skyline shows the elegant restraint of an elderly grande dame.
U.S. Air Force/Getty Images North America/Getty Images
<strong>Icons:</strong> (Saint Basil's Cathedral) 1 point<br /><strong>Height</strong>: 4 points<br /><strong>Beauty</strong>: 5 points<br /><strong>Total:</strong> 10 points<br />As beauty goes, St Petersburg would be the prettier of the sisters. But Moscow makes up for it with a distinctively Russian character in its onion-domed cathedrals and the imposing Kremlin.
Moscow, Russia —
Icons: (Saint Basil's Cathedral) 1 point
Height: 4 points
Beauty: 5 points
Total: 10 points
As beauty goes, St Petersburg would be the prettier of the sisters. But Moscow makes up for it with a distinctively Russian character in its onion-domed cathedrals and the imposing Kremlin.
Mark Kolbe/Getty Images Europe/Getty Images
<strong>Icons:</strong> (blue-domed church in Imerovigli) 1 point<br /><strong>Height:</strong> 0 points<br /><strong>Beauty:</strong> 9 points<br /><strong>Total</strong>: 10 points <br />Not exactly the conventional city skyline, but the white-washed buildings built into the steep cliff-face of Santorini, rising above the Aegean Sea, are as captivating as a Siren's call.
Santorini, Greece —
Icons: (blue-domed church in Imerovigli) 1 point
Height: 0 points
Beauty: 9 points
Total: 10 points
Not exactly the conventional city skyline, but the white-washed buildings built into the steep cliff-face of Santorini, rising above the Aegean Sea, are as captivating as a Siren's call.
Courtesy Maggie Meng/Creative Commons/Flickr
<strong>Icons: </strong>(Space Needle) 1 point<br /><strong>Height:</strong> 3 points<br /><strong>Beauty:</strong> 6 points<br /><strong>Total:</strong> 10 points <br />Although the Space Needle looks like a flying saucer parked atop a stand, somehow it sits comfortably amidst Seattle's other skyscrapers.
Seattle, USA —
Icons: (Space Needle) 1 point
Height: 3 points
Beauty: 6 points
Total: 10 points
Although the Space Needle looks like a flying saucer parked atop a stand, somehow it sits comfortably amidst Seattle's other skyscrapers.
Dan Callister/Hulton Archive/Getty Images
<strong>Icons: </strong>(Burj Khalifa, Burj Al Arab) 2 points<br /><strong>Height:</strong> 5 points<br /><strong>Beauty: </strong>4 points<br /><strong>Total:</strong> 11 points <br />The sail-like Burj Al Arab used to be the calling card for Dubai. Now, world's tallest Burj Khalifa at 2,717 feet, dominates our image of Dubai.<br />
Dubai, United Arab Emirates —
Icons: (Burj Khalifa, Burj Al Arab) 2 points
Height: 5 points
Beauty: 4 points
Total: 11 points
The sail-like Burj Al Arab used to be the calling card for Dubai. Now, world's tallest Burj Khalifa at 2,717 feet, dominates our image of Dubai.
RENE SLAMA/AFP/AFP/Getty Images
<strong>Icons:</strong> (Petronas Towers) 1 point<br /><strong>Height: </strong>5 points<br /><strong>Beauty: </strong>5 points<br /><strong>Total</strong>: 11 points <br />By night, the Petronas Towers sparkle against the sky as though they were a pair of chandelier earrings dangling over Kuala Lumpur.
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia —
Icons: (Petronas Towers) 1 point
Height: 5 points
Beauty: 5 points
Total: 11 points
By night, the Petronas Towers sparkle against the sky as though they were a pair of chandelier earrings dangling over Kuala Lumpur.
Chris Hondros/Getty Images North America
<strong>Icons:</strong> (Oriental Pearl TV Tower, Shanghai World Financial Center, Shanghai Tower) 2 points<br /><strong>Height:</strong> 5 points<br /><strong>Beauty</strong>: 5 points<br /><strong>Total:</strong> 12 points<br />The more iconic side of Shanghai's skyline is on the Pudong side of Shanghai. The Oriental Pearl TV Tower looks like something out of a dated sci-fi film. The Shanghai World Financial Center is evocative of the black monolith from Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey. However the twisted Shanghai Tower, built in 2015, is the 2nd tallest building in the world.
Shanghai, China —
Icons: (Oriental Pearl TV Tower, Shanghai World Financial Center, Shanghai Tower) 2 points
Height: 5 points
Beauty: 5 points
Total: 12 points
The more iconic side of Shanghai's skyline is on the Pudong side of Shanghai. The Oriental Pearl TV Tower looks like something out of a dated sci-fi film. The Shanghai World Financial Center is evocative of the black monolith from Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey. However the twisted Shanghai Tower, built in 2015, is the 2nd tallest building in the world.
Jamie McDonald/Getty Images AsiaPac/Getty Images for Laureus
<strong>Icons:</strong> (Sydney Opera House) 1 point<br /><strong>Height</strong>: 4 points<br /><strong>Beauty</strong>: 7 points + 1 bonus<br /><strong>Total</strong>: 13 points <br />Sydney's skyline is dominated by the white sails of the Sydney Opera House rising majestically above a calm Sydney Harbor. It can also look like a lotus in full bloom.
Sydney, Australia —
Icons: (Sydney Opera House) 1 point
Height: 4 points
Beauty: 7 points + 1 bonus
Total: 13 points
Sydney's skyline is dominated by the white sails of the Sydney Opera House rising majestically above a calm Sydney Harbor. It can also look like a lotus in full bloom.
Courtesy Tessa Needham/Creative Commons/Flickr
<strong>Icons:</strong> (Transamerica) 1 point<br /><strong>Height:</strong> 4 points<br /><strong>Beauty</strong>: 7 points + 1 bonus<br /><strong>Total: </strong>13 points <br />A slim pyramid rises above San Francisco's skyline. In many ways, the brick-red Golden Gate Bridge, which from certain vantage points can be seen hovering above the city's skyline atop the blue Pacific Ocean, is also an integral part of the cityscape.
San Francisco, USA —
Icons: (Transamerica) 1 point
Height: 4 points
Beauty: 7 points + 1 bonus
Total: 13 points
A slim pyramid rises above San Francisco's skyline. In many ways, the brick-red Golden Gate Bridge, which from certain vantage points can be seen hovering above the city's skyline atop the blue Pacific Ocean, is also an integral part of the cityscape.
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images North America/Getty Images
<strong>Icons: </strong>(Sears) 1 point<br /><strong>Height</strong>: 5 points<br /><strong>Beauty</strong>: 7 points + 1 bonus<br /><strong>Total:</strong> 14 points <br />Willis Tower is the second tallest building in the United States. The building towers over the rest of the Chicago skyline that rises above Lake Michigan. The fire-engine red CAN building adds a bold dash of color to the skyline during the day.
Chicago, USA —
Icons: (Sears) 1 point
Height: 5 points
Beauty: 7 points + 1 bonus
Total: 14 points
Willis Tower is the second tallest building in the United States. The building towers over the rest of the Chicago skyline that rises above Lake Michigan. The fire-engine red CAN building adds a bold dash of color to the skyline during the day.
TIM SLOAN/AFP/AFP/Getty Images
<strong>Icons:</strong> (Eiffel Tower) 1 point<br /><strong>Height</strong>: 4 points<br /><strong>Beauty</strong>: 9 points + 1 bonus<br /><strong>Total:</strong> 15 points <br />The City of Light is famous of the architectural beauty of the Eiffel Tower and picturesque rooftops, earning it a top spot on this list.
Paris, France —
Icons: (Eiffel Tower) 1 point
Height: 4 points
Beauty: 9 points + 1 bonus
Total: 15 points
The City of Light is famous of the architectural beauty of the Eiffel Tower and picturesque rooftops, earning it a top spot on this list.
Mike Hewitt/Getty Images Europe/Getty Images
<strong>Icons: </strong>(Empire State, Chrysler) 2 points<br /><strong>Height</strong>: 5 points<br /><strong>Beauty</strong>: 8 points<br /><strong>Total: </strong>16 points <br />The view coming in from Queens and Brooklyn, with the Empire State jutting up from the left and Chrysler building on the right, forming goal posts of a sort, is spectacular. While Manhattan does not benefit much from its natural surroundings, its planner-imposed grid system renders order.
New York City, USA —
Icons: (Empire State, Chrysler) 2 points
Height: 5 points
Beauty: 8 points
Total: 16 points
The view coming in from Queens and Brooklyn, with the Empire State jutting up from the left and Chrysler building on the right, forming goal posts of a sort, is spectacular. While Manhattan does not benefit much from its natural surroundings, its planner-imposed grid system renders order.
Drew Angerer/Getty Images North America/Getty Images
Icons: (Big Ben, London Eye, The Shard) 4 points<br />Height: 5 points<br />Beauty: 7 points<br />Total: 16 points <br />To imagine the magic of flying over London, you need only watch Harry Potter. There is something almost intriguingly timeless about Big Ben standing sentry on the banks of the Thames marking the passing of time for more than a century and a half.
London, UK —
Icons: (Big Ben, London Eye, The Shard) 4 points
Height: 5 points
Beauty: 7 points
Total: 16 points
To imagine the magic of flying over London, you need only watch Harry Potter. There is something almost intriguingly timeless about Big Ben standing sentry on the banks of the Thames marking the passing of time for more than a century and a half.
Chris Jackson/Getty Images Europe/Getty Images
<strong>Icons</strong>: (Bank of China, IFC2) 2 points<br /><strong>Height:</strong> 5 points<br /><strong>Beauty</strong>: 10 points<br /><strong>Total</strong>: 17 <br />Hong Kong makes the picture-perfect two-dimensional skyline, day and night. The lines of three iconic buildings in Central are superimposed against the majestic Peak in the background. Other skyscrapers cascade down the slope of the mountain like a chorus line behind its stars. At night, the skyline lights up.
Hong Kong —
Icons: (Bank of China, IFC2) 2 points
Height: 5 points
Beauty: 10 points
Total: 17
Hong Kong makes the picture-perfect two-dimensional skyline, day and night. The lines of three iconic buildings in Central are superimposed against the majestic Peak in the background. Other skyscrapers cascade down the slope of the mountain like a chorus line behind its stars. At night, the skyline lights up.
RICHARD A. BROOKS/AFP/AFP/Getty Images