Top three Asian Historical Attractions

Asia is accounting for 30% of the world’s tourism receipts. There’s a good reason for this as it’s home to many breathtaking sights, bucket list-worthy tourist spots and picturesque hidden gems. While India, Thailand, Bali etc are great places to visit for tourists, other Asian countries have plenty to offer too. As a land of many ancient civlizations, you can find a lot of great monuments in Asia beyond these countries, such as the stunning Shinjuku Gyoen garden in Tokyo, Bhutan’s holy temple and the iconic Great Wall of China.

Shinjuku Gyoen National Park, Tokyo

Shinjuku Gyoen is one of Tokyo’s largest and most popular parks that covers 144 acres and is a must-see for anyone visiting Japan. It was originally completed in 1772 before it became a botanical garden and then an imperial garden in 1879 but the current layout was completed in 1906. A lot of the garden was ruined in World War II, but it was rebuilt and opened to the public in 1949 as a national park. It has over 20,000 trees, of which 1,500 are iconic cherry blossoms, and over 1,700 different tropical and subtropical plant species in the greenhouse. The garden is open every day when the cherry blossoms and chrysanthemums are in season, which is late March to late April, and closed on Mondays otherwise.

Tiger’s Nest Temple, Bhutan

Tiger’s Nest Temple is also known as Paro Taktsang and is an absolute must-see place purely for the amazing views it offers. It’s a monastery that sits 3,000 feet above the Paro valley, built around a cave in 1692. This makes it a unique location with views that will stay with you forever. However, the story that goes with this place makes it even more intriguing. The legend of Tiger’s Nest Temple is that around 1,300 years ago Guru Rinpoche flew here from Tibet on the back of a flying tigress. It’s said that he converted the Bhutanese people to Buddhism.

The Great Wall of China

Despite the Great Wall of China being an obvious tourist attraction, the history and culture that go with it shouldn’t be undermined. It’s believed the Great Wall is up to 500 years old, which is a lot less than people realize, and stretches about 21,196 km (13,171 mi) long. Regardless of how well-known it is, there are a lot of myths surrounding the Great Wall. For example, you can’t see it from the moon. It’s also many walls and a lot of them are crumbling and not available for people to view, but the parts that tourists can see are mind blowing. Other myths will be debunked, and you’ll learn lots of fascinating facts during a tour of the Great Wall.

Asia is home to some truly beautiful and fascinating places in the world that everyone should try to visit at least once during their lifetime. Some are obvious tourist hotspots, like the Great Wall of China, while others are hidden gems that you need to speak to locals to get to learn about.