Stairs to the Sky. Could You Climb the Thousands of Steps of These Monuments?

If the 674 steps you need to climb to reach the second floor of the Eiffel Tower seemed like a lot, just wait until you hear about the thousands of steps required to reach the tops of these monuments, some architectural; others, natural.

This mountain in the Bernese Alps features the highest staircase in the world. It has 11,674 steps, covering a distance of 3.4 kilometers with a height difference of 1,669 meters. Not for the faint of heart! For those who achieve this challenge, a restaurant awaits at the top, the Berghaus Niesen Lodge, where you can recharge and admire the stunning views.

By the way, the staircase creates an optical illusion: as you climb, the steps seem endless. And for those who may not have that strength in their legs, there's always the option to ascend to the top via a funicular that runs alongside the stairs.

If you're looking for stairs to climb, this well is the ultimate, as it is entirely made up of stairs spread across 13 levels, with a depth of 20 meters. Built in the year 800 AD, it is one of the jewels of the city of Abhaneri, near Jaipur. In total, it comprises 3,500 steps. Its inverted pyramid shape and perfectly symmetrical stairs make it spectacular.

Currently, the Burj Khalifa in Dubai holds the title of the tallest building in the world, standing at 828 meters high. Therefore, to reach its highest floor, the 160th, one must conquer 2,909 steps. Fortunately, it is not permitted to climb those almost 3,000 steps on foot. The building allows you to take an elevator to an observation deck on the 124th floor.

The building known as the Sears Tower in Chicago was the tallest building in the world between 1974 and 1998. You can verify this by climbing the 2,109 steps that lead to its 103rd floor. Every year, the SkyRise Chicago is hosted here, a race to ascend the more than 2,000 steps without giving up.

In the case of Manhattan's most iconic building, you can choose: either climb the 1,860 steps to the observation deck on the 102nd floor or the 1,576 to the observation deck on the 86th. By the way, the elevator takes you up in one minute.

The Eiffel Tower has 1,665 steps, but visitors are only allowed to climb 674 of them on foot, up to the second floor. It's tiring, but being able to appreciate the tower's structure as you ascend instead of being enclosed in an elevator is worth it.

There are also races organized to ascend the 1,258 steps of this building known as The Cheesegrater. The Leadenhall Building, located at 122 Leadenhall Street, stands 225 meters tall and has 48 floors.

999 steps. Not one more, not one less. That's the number of steps you need to climb to reach the Tianmen Cave, in Tianmenshan National Park, in the Chinese city of Zhangjiajie. The cave is known as the Gateway to Heaven and is part of the Wulingyuan Scenic Area, a protected zone with thousands of spectacular sandstone and quartzite formations.

The significance of the 999 steps is not random. In Taoist tradition, it is the supreme number, symbolizing the emperor. But if you don't want to climb them on foot, you can opt for a bus that traverses a winding serpentine road.

One of the areas not suitable for those with vertigo is the Coiling Dragon Cliff observation deck, which has a transparent floor and surrounds one of the mountains, as you can see (while holding your breath) in this image: