This page lists 57 famous places that start with M, running from “Machu Picchu” to “Moscow Metro”. The list covers mountains, volcanoes, museums, palaces, temples, islands, and city landmarks from every part of the world. You can use it to plan a trip, find ideas for your bucket list, or settle a trivia debate.
Famous places are locations that people recognize and visit because of their history, beauty, culture, or the events that happened there. Take “Mount Vesuvius” in Italy, which buried the Roman cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum in 79 AD and still draws crowds today.
Below you’ll find the table with the place, country, type, visitor count, and description for every entry.
Place: The name of the landmark, city, or site, so you can quickly find the one you want to learn about or visit.
Country: The country where the place is located. Some sites sit on a border and show two countries, which helps you plan your route.
Type: The kind of place it is, such as a mountain, museum, or palace, so you can pick the experiences that match your interests.
Visitor Count: The approximate number of people who visit each year. It shows how busy a place gets, and “Not tracked” means no reliable figure exists.
Description: A short summary of what makes the place special, including its history and what you can see or do there.
Famous places
| Place | Country | Type | Visitor Count |
|---|---|---|---|
| Machu Picchu | Peru | Ancient citadel | 1,500,000 |
| Mont Saint-Michel | France | Island abbey | 2,500,000 |
| Mount Everest | Nepal/China | Mountain | 50,000 |
| Mount Fuji | Japan | Volcano | 220,000 |
| Mount Rushmore | United States | Monument | 2,000,000 |
| Mount Kilimanjaro | Tanzania | Mountain | 50,000 |
| Mount Vesuvius | Italy | Volcano | 600,000 |
| Mount Olympus | Greece | Mountain | Not tracked |
| Mount Sinai | Egypt | Mountain | Not tracked |
| Mount Rainier | United States | Volcano | 1,500,000 |
| Mount St. Helens | United States | Volcano | Not tracked |
| Mount Etna | Italy | Volcano | Not tracked |
| Mont Blanc | France/Italy | Mountain | Not tracked |
| Matterhorn | Switzerland/Italy | Mountain | Not tracked |
| Mauna Kea | United States | Volcano | Not tracked |
| Monument Valley | United States | Desert landscape | 350,000 |
| Moai of Easter Island | Chile | Statues | 100,000 |
| Meteora | Greece | Monastery complex | Not tracked |
| Mesa Verde National Park | United States | Ancient cliff dwellings | 550,000 |
| Mammoth Cave National Park | United States | Cave system | 500,000 |
| Muir Woods National Monument | United States | Redwood forest | 1,000,000 |
| Masai Mara National Reserve | Kenya | Wildlife reserve | 300,000 |
| Maldives | Maldives | Island nation | 1,900,000 |
| Maui | United States | Island | 3,000,000 |
| Mackinac Island | United States | Island | 1,000,000 |
| Malibu | United States | Coastal city | Not tracked |
| Manhattan | United States | Borough | Not tracked |
| Monte Carlo | Monaco | District | Not tracked |
| Montmartre | France | Neighborhood | Not tracked |
| Moulin Rouge | France | Cabaret | 600,000 |
| Musee d’Orsay | France | Museum | 3,000,000 |
| Metropolitan Museum of Art | United States | Museum | 5,700,000 |
| Museum of Modern Art | United States | Museum | 2,800,000 |
| Madame Tussauds London | United Kingdom | Wax museum | 2,500,000 |
| Madison Square Garden | United States | Arena | 4,000,000 |
| Magic Kingdom | United States | Theme park | 17,700,000 |
| Mall of America | United States | Shopping mall | 40,000,000 |
| Millennium Park | United States | Public park | 25,000,000 |
| Marina Bay Sands | Singapore | Hotel and resort | Not tracked |
| Meiji Shrine | Japan | Shinto shrine | 10,000,000 |
| Mezquita of Cordoba | Spain | Mosque-cathedral | 1,900,000 |
| Mysore Palace | India | Palace | 6,000,000 |
| Mehrangarh Fort | India | Fort | 1,000,000 |
| Masada | Israel | Ancient fortress | 800,000 |
| Mecca | Saudi Arabia | Holy city | 13,000,000 |
| Mogao Caves | China | Cave temples | 1,000,000 |
| Mahabodhi Temple | India | Buddhist temple | Not tracked |
| Manneken Pis | Belgium | Statue | Not tracked |
| Marienplatz | Germany | Public square | Not tracked |
| Milan Cathedral | Italy | Cathedral | 3,000,000 |
| Maracana Stadium | Brazil | Stadium | Not tracked |
| Mekong Delta | Vietnam | River delta | Not tracked |
| Mount Vernon | United States | Historic estate | 1,000,000 |
| Monticello | United States | Historic estate | 450,000 |
| Maya Bay | Thailand | Beach | Not tracked |
| Mostar | Bosnia and Herzegovina | City | Not tracked |
| Moscow Metro | Russia | Subway system | Not tracked |
Descriptions
Machu Picchu
A 15th-century Inca city perched high in the Andes above the Sacred Valley. It was abandoned during the Spanish conquest and rediscovered by the wider world in 1911.
Mont Saint-Michel
A medieval abbey built on a tidal island off Normandy’s coast. At high tide it is surrounded by water, and at low tide visitors can walk across the bay.
Mount Everest
The tallest mountain on Earth at 8,849 meters above sea level. Hundreds of climbers attempt the summit each year, and many more trek to its base camps.
Mount Fuji
Japan’s highest peak and an iconic snow-capped cone. Hundreds of thousands climb it each summer, and it is a sacred symbol in Japanese art and culture.
Mount Rushmore
A giant granite sculpture in South Dakota’s Black Hills. It shows the faces of four U.S. presidents: Washington, Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Lincoln.
Mount Kilimanjaro
Africa’s highest peak at 5,895 meters, rising alone from the plains. Hikers can reach the summit without technical climbing gear.
Mount Vesuvius
The volcano that buried Pompeii and Herculaneum in 79 AD. It is still active and looms over the Bay of Naples.
Mount Olympus
Greece’s highest mountain and, in ancient myth, the home of the twelve gods. It is a popular hiking destination.
Mount Sinai
The mountain traditionally identified as where Moses received the Ten Commandments. Pilgrims and hikers climb it at night to watch the sunrise.
Mount Rainier
A glacier-covered volcano that dominates the skyline of Washington State. It is the centerpiece of Mount Rainier National Park.
Mount St. Helens
The Washington volcano that erupted catastrophically in 1980, in the deadliest and most destructive eruption in U.S. history. Visitors can now tour the crater and the recovering landscape.
Mount Etna
Europe’s tallest active volcano, on the island of Sicily. It erupts frequently, and tours take visitors to its upper craters.
Mont Blanc
The highest peak in the Alps at about 4,806 meters. It sits on the French-Italian border and draws climbers, skiers, and cable-car sightseers.
Matterhorn
A sharp, pyramid-shaped Alpine peak near the town of Zermatt. It is among the most photographed mountains in the world.
Mauna Kea
A dormant volcano on Hawaii’s Big Island that is the tallest mountain on Earth when measured from its base on the ocean floor. Its summit hosts major astronomical observatories.
Monument Valley
A desert region on the Arizona-Utah border known for towering red sandstone buttes. It has appeared in countless Western films.
Moai of Easter Island
Nearly 900 giant stone heads carved by the Rapa Nui people between roughly 1250 and 1500. They stand on the remote Pacific island of Rapa Nui.
Meteora
A group of Eastern Orthodox monasteries built on top of enormous rock pillars in central Greece. Some were reachable only by ladders or baskets for centuries.
Mesa Verde National Park
A Colorado park preserving cliff dwellings built by the Ancestral Puebloans more than 700 years ago. Cliff Palace is its largest.
Mammoth Cave National Park
The longest known cave system in the world, with more than 400 miles mapped beneath Kentucky. Ranger-led tours explore its chambers.
Muir Woods National Monument
A forest of old-growth coast redwoods just north of San Francisco. Some trees are over 250 feet tall and more than 600 years old.
Masai Mara National Reserve
One of Africa’s top safari destinations, famous for lions, elephants, and the annual wildebeest migration from Tanzania’s Serengeti.
Maldives
A chain of more than 1,000 coral islands in the Indian Ocean, famous for overwater villas, turquoise lagoons, and diving.
Maui
Hawaii’s second-largest island, known for beaches, the Road to Hana, and the Haleakala volcano.
Mackinac Island
A Michigan island in Lake Huron where cars are banned. Visitors get around by bicycle or horse-drawn carriage.
Malibu
A Southern California beach city along the Pacific, known for celebrity homes, surf spots, and scenic coastline.
Manhattan
The densely packed core of New York City, home to Times Square, Central Park, Wall Street, and many of the city’s best-known landmarks.
Monte Carlo
The glamorous district of Monaco known for its casino, luxury hotels, and the Monaco Grand Prix.
Montmartre
A hilltop district of Paris known for the white-domed Sacre-Coeur basilica, steep streets, and its history as an artists’ quarter.
Moulin Rouge
The Paris cabaret in Montmartre, famous as the birthplace of the modern can-can. Its red windmill is an enduring symbol of the city.
Musee d’Orsay
A Paris museum in a converted railway station, holding the world’s largest collection of Impressionist and Post-Impressionist art.
Metropolitan Museum of Art
New York’s largest art museum, with over two million works covering 5,000 years of world culture, from Egyptian temples to modern art.
Museum of Modern Art
Known as MoMA, this New York museum holds major works by Van Gogh, Picasso, Warhol, and many other modern artists.
Madame Tussauds London
A wax museum on Marylebone Road with lifelike figures of celebrities, royals, and historic figures. The original opened in 1835.
Madison Square Garden
New York City’s famous indoor arena above Penn Station. It hosts the Knicks and Rangers plus major concerts and events.
Magic Kingdom
The Walt Disney World park in Florida, centered on Cinderella Castle. It is the most visited theme park in the world.
Mall of America
A huge Minnesota shopping and entertainment complex with hundreds of stores and an indoor theme park.
Millennium Park
A Chicago downtown park known for Cloud Gate, nicknamed The Bean, along with an outdoor concert pavilion and fountain.
Marina Bay Sands
A Singapore resort with three towers topped by a ship-shaped rooftop SkyPark, an infinity pool, and a large casino and shopping mall.
Meiji Shrine
A forested Shinto shrine in central Tokyo dedicated to Emperor Meiji and Empress Shoken. It is one of Japan’s most visited shrines.
Mezquita of Cordoba
A grand building in southern Spain that began as a mosque in the 8th century and later became a cathedral. Its forest of red-and-white arches is unforgettable.
Mysore Palace
The royal palace of the Wodeyar dynasty in Karnataka, known for its Indo-Saracenic architecture and for lighting up with thousands of bulbs on Sundays and festivals.
Mehrangarh Fort
A massive fort towering over Jodhpur in Rajasthan, with thick walls, ornate palaces, and a museum of royal artifacts.
Masada
A hilltop fortress overlooking the Dead Sea, built by King Herod. It is known as the site of a last stand by Jewish rebels against Rome in 73 AD.
Mecca
Islam’s holiest city and the birthplace of the Prophet Muhammad. It is home to the Kaaba, and millions visit for Hajj and Umrah.
Mogao Caves
A network of nearly 500 Buddhist cave temples near Dunhuang, filled with murals and statues created over about a thousand years along the Silk Road.
Mahabodhi Temple
The temple complex at Bodh Gaya, Bihar, built where the Buddha is said to have reached enlightenment. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Manneken Pis
A small bronze statue of a urinating boy in central Brussels. It is regularly dressed in costumes and has become a cheeky symbol of the city.
Marienplatz
Munich’s central square, home to the neo-Gothic New Town Hall and its Glockenspiel, which performs daily for crowds.
Milan Cathedral
Known as the Duomo di Milano, this Gothic cathedral took nearly six centuries to complete. Visitors can walk across its marble rooftop among spires and statues.
Maracana Stadium
Rio de Janeiro’s legendary football stadium, host of two World Cup finals. It is a pilgrimage site for football fans.
Mekong Delta
A maze of rivers, canals, and rice paddies in southern Vietnam, famous for its floating markets and fruit orchards.
Mount Vernon
George Washington’s plantation home on the Potomac River in Virginia. Visitors tour the mansion, gardens, and his tomb.
Monticello
Thomas Jefferson’s hilltop home near Charlottesville, Virginia, which he designed himself. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Maya Bay
A lagoon beach on Phi Phi Leh island made famous by the film The Beach. It was closed for years for ecological recovery and now has limited access.
Mostar
A historic city best known for its Ottoman-era Old Bridge that arches over the Neretva River. The bridge was rebuilt after being destroyed in the 1990s war.
Moscow Metro
The Russian capital’s underground railway, noted for ornate stations with chandeliers, mosaics, and marble that are often called underground palaces.