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Tourist attractions Europe is a continent filled with amazing cultural and historic sites. Millions of tourists from all over the world travel to see these sites each year. Here are a few of Europe’s most well-known tourist attractions. The Eiffel Tower
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The Eiffel Tower is located in Paris, France. The tower was built in 1889 for a festival called the Paris Exhibition and was named after the engineer who designed the structure, Alexandre Gustave Eiffel. The Eiffel Tower is 324 m tall, including an antenna on top that was later used for radio and television broadcasts. When the tower was built, it was the tallest structure in the world. It held that record until the Chrysler Building in New York City was erected about 40 years later.
Although the Eiffel Tower is a symbol of France today, not everyone was excited about the tower when it was being built. Several famous writers and artists signed a petition against erecting the tower because they thought it was a useless monstrosity. Some nature lovers worried that such a tall tower would cause trouble for birds flying over Paris. Despite these protests, the Eiffel Tower was built and became one of France’s most popular and recognisable tourist attractions.
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The Colosseum
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The Colosseum, a huge stadium built about 2000 years ago, may be the most famous landmark in Rome. It was built by the emperor Vespasian to provide a place for Romans to enjoy large spectacles. It could seat 50 000 people and had nearly 80 entrances so that crowds could enter and exit quickly. Seating was divided into three tiers, or levels. In the lowest tier with the best view sat the emperor, important priests, and government officials called senators. In the next tier sat members of the upper class. Ordinary citizens sat in the third tier, closer to the top of the stadium.
o c . che e r o t r s super Romans came to the Colosseum to see exciting events, including contests in which men tried to kill wild animals and gladiators battled each other to the death. The Colosseum was even flooded with water to stage mock sea battles!
The Colosseum was abandoned around 520 ad. In the 18th century, Pope Benedict XIV declared the Colosseum a holy ground because so many Christians had been killed there. Since then, the site has been excavated by archaeologists and parts of it have been restored. The Colosseum is a top tourist attraction in Rome today.
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Exploring geography: Europe
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