THEY'RE big, bold lumps of rock, yes but they're also sacred sites, colonial outposts and even home to lost worlds. From Lonely Planet's new book, 1000 Ultimate Sights, released this month Uluru, Australia An iceberg in the Outback, Uluru is 378m high above ground but there's twice that bulk beneath it. Still, the surface portion of this monster in the Northern Territory is impressive enough. It's a 10km walk around the rock, and a two-hour climb up though the local Anangu people ask you not to; Uluru is sacred, and key to their Dreamtime stories. One legend asserts it is the outcome of warring tribes as the leaders fought, Earth herself, racked with grief, created Uluru as bloodshed made stone. It's a plausible story when you watch the rock turn from eye-scalding orange to mellowing red as the setting sun moves across its sides.
Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park, 445km from Alice Springs, is open daily from just before sunrise to sunset.See environment.gov.au/parks/uluru
Sigiriya, Sri Lanka Sigiriya Lion Rock is an impressive volcanic nub rearing 200m above landscaped gardens in the heart of Sri Lanka's Cultural Triangle. As a geological feature, it's nice enough, but since AD477, when coup-fearing Prince Kasyapa decided to make it his stronghold, it's been so much more. Atop this strategic boulder you'll see remnants of Kasyapa's lofty fortress, a masterpiece of construction accessed through the Lion Gate, the huge stone paws of which can still be seen. The lower reaches are decorated with frescoes depicting his 500 comely concubines.Sigiriya is 10km east of the main road between Dambulla and Habarana. Frequent buses run from Dambulla from about 7am.
Torres del Paine, Chile Like the sharpened prongs of a devil's trident, the three spiky namesake towers of Torres del Paine comprise the iconic image of Chilean Patagonia. They are as magnificent as they are hostile when you look at these great granite shards, glacially eroded over tens of thousands of years, you feel that you might have entered a land where only llama-like guanacos should roam the peaks are hard-edged, and the wilderness truly wild. In fact, with comfy refuges and well-marked trails, the park is well set up for visitors though this doesn't detract from the landscape's fearsome air.December to February is the best time to trek in Torres del Paine, when the weather is more clement.
Ben Amera, Mauritania It's almost as massive as Uluru, but have you ever heard of it? Ben Amera sits squat, solitary and largely ignored in the barren desert of North Africa, a long, long way from the eyes of, well, pretty much anyone. It's plonked 5km from the small village of Tmeimichat, and the best way to catch a glimpse of this little-known, 400m-high mass is by riding the desert train between Nouadhibou and Zouerate the longest train in the world, a 3km-long, 220-car monster of rolling stock that grinds slowly through the sandscape, delivering iron ore across Mauritania's empty interior.
Ben Amera is about 400km west of Nouadhibou; some tour operators arrange camping by the rock for a night.
Savandurga, Karnataka, India Bald and bold as an elephant's rump, Savandurga two separate hills, one black, one white bulges up amid the forest of the Deccan Plateau. Pilgrims are drawn to the temples in its foothills, but hardy climbers ascend the mass to investigate its crevices and explore the fort upon its flanks. It's not an easy hike up though some arrows mark the way, a guide is a safer option but it's worth it to marvel at the architectural remains, to scramble between boulders and to stand by the shrine on the lofty summit.
Savandurga is 60km from Bangalore; the climb (two to three hours) should not be attempted during rains, when it becomes very slippery.
Rock of Gibraltar, United Kingdom No other monolith can claim such a curious mix: Spanish sunshine, mischievous monkeys, Mediterranean guardianship and good ol' British boozers round the corner. The 426m-high slab of stone watching over the Straits of Gibraltar at the mouth of the Med is the centrepoint of this small British enclave off southern Spain. A troupe of Barbary macaques runs amok in the rock-top nature reserve, while caves made swiss cheese of the limestone beneath. Explore these to see where Neolithic man sheltered 30,000 years ago, and where centuries of army generals have hacked strategic defensive tunnels to ensure the Iberian rock keeps the Union Jack flying. The Spain-Gibraltar border is open 24 hours and is free ignore touts trying to sell entry "tickets".
See gibraltar.gi
Roraima, Venezuela Mist-shrouded, flat-topped, mysterious: Tepuis are the venerable old men of the South American rainforest, imposing mesas dating back two billion years they're some of the oldest geological formations on the planet. And Roraima is king of them all, with its near-vertical, waterfall-dripped sides rising to 2810m and, seemingly, to another world. On top a hidden ecosystem awaits, developed in utter isolation unique frogs, flowers and carnivorous plants have evolved unusual habits in their Venezuelan eyrie, which was first climbed by European explorers in 1884 and subsequently inspired Sir Arthur Conan Doyle to pen the tale of a dinosaur-tramped Lost World.
Roraima is 22km northeast of Paraitepui; tours can be arranged in Santa Elena, the nearest major town.
Devils Tower, Wyoming, USA Impressive 386m-high protrusion of igneous rock, or alien landing pad? Since Steven Spielberg gave Devils Tower a starring role in Close Encounters of the Third Kind, many have pondered whether the monolith is indeed calling to extraterrestrial beings. There's certainly plenty of life here. It sits in a park of ponderosa pine, deer, prairie dogs and bears (the tower's native name translates as Bear Lodge). While ET has yet to appear, the place is still special it's been worshipped by Northern Plains tribes throughout the ages, and in 1906 was declared the first National Monument of the US.There's no public transport to Devils Tower. Drivers should take the scenic route via the town of Hulett.
See nps.gov/deto
This is an extract from Lonely Planet's 1000 Ultimate Sights
PRINCESS Cruises will host its biggest ever European program in 2012, with a grand total of 57 itinerary choices on offer across the Mediterranean, Holy Land, Northern Europe, Scandinavia and Russia.
Cable Bay, Auckland, Photo by Nick Jacobs