(CNN) Not every museum is a shimmering beacon of high culture. Some focus on the more exotic aspects of the world.

No matter how bizarre, offbeat or outrageous the subject may be, there's probably a museum dedicated to it.

No, it's not a mistranslation.

This former pipe-house in the center of Beijing has been converted into a museum dedicated to the ins and outs of tap water, including 130 "real objects," models and artifacts such as vintage water coupons dating to the first tap water company in the capital, the Jingshi Tap Water Company.

But don't be tempted to quench your thirst after all this tap water reading; Beijing residents have long known that the water coming out of their taps is hardly safe to drink.

Don't miss: The miniature tap water filtration system that gives the Forbidden City a run for its money.

Beijing Tap Water Museum, 6A Dongzhimen Beidajie, Beijing, China

But here more than 600 pieces, which in other places might inspire polite nods and insincere compliments, have a place to shine.

Located "conveniently beside the toilets" in an old basement in Dedham, Massachusetts, the museum accepts only art too bad to ignore.

Row after row of misshapen flowers and brightly colored portraits reaffirm that, yes, your five-year-old could probably do that.

Don't miss: "Lucy in the field with flowers," a true icon depicting a seemingly floating septuagenarian amongst a slowly swaying field of blossoms.

Museum of Bad Art, Dedham Community Theatre, 580 High St., Dedham Square, Dedham, Massachusetts, United States

Behind these imposing walls lies ... a dog collar museum.

Medieval puppies would be rolling in their graves if they witnessed the stylish vests doggies are donning today.

Nearly half a million pet lovers rejoice every year in this one-of-a-kind display of dog paraphernalia, surprisingly the only one of its kind found in Great Britain.

The display of puppy attire with more than 100 unique items dates back centuries, documenting the history of canine accessories from medieval times.

Don't miss: Antique collars from the 15th and 16th centuries, sporting a strip of spikes around the neck to protect against attacking beasts.

The Dog Collar Museum, Leeds Castle, Maidstone, Kent, England

The humble lawnmower gets its own museum in Merseyside, Britain.

Round up the neighborhood fathers, it's time for a field trip!

Want to see the first solar-powered robot grass-chopper, or the original mower itself, transformed from a contraption used to hem guards' uniforms? This museum is for you.

From royal lawnmowers belonging to Prince Charles and Princess Diana, to the world's most expensive lawnmowers, this place allows everyone to at least talk up appearances even if you can't keep them.

Don't Miss: A fully functional lawnmower less than five centimeters high, ready to shave the errant blade of grass off even the tiniest lawn.

British Lawnmower Museum, 106-114 Shakespeare St., Southport, Merseyside, England

Explore the world's largest collection of hair gathered from more than 16,000 women.

Avanos, a tiny town in central Turkey, has been famous since antiquity for its remarkable earthenware pottery. In recent years, however, the town has gained fame for a more unusual sight: the caves of the bizarre Hair Museum, created by potter Chez Galip.

The walls under his studio are covered with the world's largest collection of hair sourced from more than 16,000 women, along with their names and addresses. Locks of every length and color transform everything but the floor in a kind of hairy haven.

Don't Miss: The exit

Avanos Hair Museum, 50500 Avanos, Turkey

Those sculptures say it all.

There's no pornography, but you can admire 276 penises, from the tiniest hamster member (two millimeters) to the colossal private parts of a sperm whale (1.7 meters). The museum received its first human exhibit from a 95-year-old Icelandic man in 2011.

Don't Miss: Lampshades made out of bull testicles, a tree trunk carved to look like a phallus and an "unusually big" penis bone from a specially endowed Canadian walrus.

Icelandic Phallological Museum, Laugavegur 116, 105 Reykjavk, Iceland

This museum will get a rise out of you.

More than 18,000 exhibits depict everything from the 6,000-year history of bread in works of art (artists include luminaries Salvador Dali, Many Ray and Pablo Picasso) to ancient artifacts of bakeries dating from the Stone Age.

Make sure to pack a lunch, though: despite being devoted to the food of life, you won't find one edible loaf within the museum.

Don't Miss: Silver vessels and ornate glass tankards recalling medieval times

The Bread Museum, Salzstadelgasse 10, Ulm, Germany

While the ground floor is devoted to retail, upstairs is a who's who of Hollywood undergarments, from Tom Hanks' boxer shorts in "Forrest Gump" to the undies of the entire cast of "Beverly Hills 90210."

There's even women's undies worn by men in drag, such as the dress worn by Milton Berle on his television show, and the training bra used by Phyllis Diller (marked "this side up").

Don't Miss: The museum was one of the many establishments looted during the 1992 riots in Los Angeles, losing its cherished purple and gold brassiere formerly belonging to Madonna; however she provided a replacement after Frederick's donated $10,000 to charity.

Celebrity Lingerie Hall of Fame, 6608 Hollywood Blvd., Los Angeles, California, United States

Andrea Ludden's obsession is with salt and pepper shakers. A trained anthropologist, she's writing a definitive study of the condiment dispensers, and displays her collection of more than 22,000 sets of salt and pepper shakers in a building specially arranged for their purpose.

The museum recalls small town Americana, with miniature McDonald's menu items, skeletons, penguins, space aliens and endless variations on nearly every type of vegetable.

You can even pick up your own pair at the gift shop, where many duplicates are for sale, allowing you to start your own collection.

Don't Miss: You'll pretty much find whatever figurine you can imagine here between the Amish farmers, sleepy Mexican rancheros and human feet.

Salt and Pepper Shaker Museum, Winery Square, Gatlinburg, Tennessee, United States

Russia's ecletic Kunstkamera museum dates back to 1727.

The massive collection of more than 200,000 natural and human oddities was originally assembled to dispel the Russian people's belief in monsters, though it's difficult to see how the strange exhibits might have accomplished that.

The czar put together a ghastly personal collection of curiosities including deformed fetuses, creatures with extra heads or limbs, even a decapitated human head preserved in vinegar. The building is now home to the modern Museum of Anthropology and Ethnography, with many remnants of Czar Peter's collection of medical freaks hidden behind mannequins of local tribes and rather uninteresting presentations.

Don't miss: Hundreds of preserved human fetuses, every one of them with an odd anatomical mutation from flippers to deformed heads.

The Kunstkamera, 3 University Emb., St. Petersburg, Russia

Inside the International Cryptozoology Museum in Maine.

Cryptozoology is the study of unverified animals, mystical creatures only rumored to exist by legend or belief, such as the Yeti or Loch Ness Monster.

For Loren Coleman, who has become one of the world's leading experts on creatures that may not exist, "belief" is purely within the realm of religion.

Coleman has created a museum amassing a collection of purported specimens, relics and artifacts dealing with mythical creatures, including a life-size coelacanth and P.T. Barnum's Feejee Mermaid, as well as a wealth of hair samples, fecal matter and footcasts of animals that probably have never walked the face of the earth.

Don't Miss: A 2.5-meter, 130-kilo "Crookston Bigfoot," probably your only chance to see the legendary creature with your own eyes.

International Cryptozoology Museum, 11 Avon St., Portland, Maine, United States

A sight familiar to students everywhere ...

The meal of choice for bachelors and broke college students the world over now has a home of its own.

The museum itself is hardly dry and flavorless, with a kitchen where visitors can make their own instant chicken substitute meal in a bowl, a gourmet snack for people who can't really cook for themselves. Hot water is provided.

Don't Miss: The entire catalog of every Nissin instant noodle product. Ever. If you've been unemployed for some period of time, you'll feel right at home.

Momofuku Ando Instant Ramen Museum, Masumi-cho, Ikeda-shi, Japan

It shouldn't be taken lightly when a museum is colloquially known as the museum of death, and indeed, this museum is not for the weak of spirit. Or stomach.

It's no slasher flick, but it feels like one: hemorrhaged brains, severed and mutilated legs and arms, lungs cut up by deep knife wounds and skulls punctured by bullets demonstrating how bullets ricochet around inside your head.

Pretty much the most gruesome ways to pass on to the next life are on display like a local art museum, and it proves a hit: the morbid exhibition of a hospital is reportedly the most popular attraction in the capital.

Don't Miss: The mummified body of Si Ouey, a notorious cannibal who murdered several children during the 1950s.

Siriraj Medical Museum, Siriraj Hospital, 2 Prannok Road, Bangkoknoi, Bangkok; Thailand

The clowns who joked (and sometimes terrified) America are honored inside, with every one of the fascinating stories behind the inch-thick layer of makeup featured in the world's largest archive of clown artifacts.

Don't Miss: The scrapbooks of legendary circus clowns, allowing you to finally discover what exactly it is that makes a clown cry.

International Clown Hall of Fame and Research Center, 102 4th Ave., Baraboo, Wisconsin, United States

Good hair day? On the third floor of the People's Museum in Malaysia is a monument to the extremes people will go to feel pretty, oh so pretty.

The records go back to the very beginnings of human history, revealing some of the outrageous concepts of beauty people will conform to: bound feet, insertion of round disks into their mouths, molding heads into oval shapes and much more.

Bring your own mirror; you'll feel a lot better about your own appearance after leaving this gallery of "real beauty."

Don't Miss: A display of how several tribes elongate the neck with brass rings or stretch ear lobes with plates. Take an aspirin after your look.

Museum of Enduring Beauty, Jalan Kota, Bandar Melaka (p. Jawa), Malaysia; +60 6282 6526

Editor's note: This article was previously published in 2011. It was reformatted, updated and republished in 2017.

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15 of the world's weirdest museums - CNN

That challenge is about to get tougher.

UNESCO's huge list of World Heritage properties has grown even longer this month, with the global body voting to add 21 sites during the 41st annual World Heritage Committee session in Krakow, Poland.

That brings the total of UNESCO World Heritage Sites to 1,073.

Northwest England's mountainous Lake District was among the new sites added to the list, the UK's first national park to become a World Heritage property.

"The combined work of nature and human activity has produced a harmonious landscape in which the mountains are mirrored in the lakes," says UNESCO's statement announcing the inscription.

India's walled city of Ahmedabad, founded by Sultan Ahmed Shah in the 15th century, was also added to the list, becoming the country's first city to get a UNESCO nod.

Located on the eastern bank of the Sabarmati river, it "presents a rich architectural heritage from the sultanate period, notably the Bhadra citadel, the walls and gates of the Fort city and numerous mosques and tombs as well as important Hindu and Jain temples of later periods," says UNESCO's description of the city.

Now on the list: The English Lake District.

Two South America properties were added to the list, including Brazil's Valongo Wharf, an archeological site.

Located in central Rio de Janeiro, the wharf encompasses the entire Jornal do Comrcio Square and was built to receive enslaved Africans who began landing the South American continent from 1811.

"It is the most important physical trace of the arrival of African slaves on the American continent," says UNESCO.

Controversial: The Cave of the Patriarchs, also known as the Ibrahimi Mosque.

Israel accused UNESCO of making a politically motivated move, part of what it says is an attempt to deny the Jewish character and heritage of certain key sites in the Holy Land.

Meanwhile, UNESCO's decision to approve China's nomination of Hoh Xil, part of the high-altitude Tibetan plateau in Qinghai Province, has also drawn protests.

The International Campaign for Tibet says the nomination poses a threat to Tibetan nomads and their way of life.

Here's this year's list of newly inscribed sites, several of which can be viewed in the above gallery:

Turkey: Aphrodisias, archeological site and marble quarries

Eritrea: Asmara, modernist city of Africa

Russia: Assumption Cathedral and Monastery of Sviyazhsk

Germany: Caves and ice age art in the Swabian Jura

Palestinian territories: Hebron/Al-Khalil Old Town

Iran: Historic city of Yazd

Denmark: Kujataa Greenland, sub-arctic farming landscape

China: Kulangsu, historic international settlement

Angola: Mbanza Kongo, political and spiritual capital of the Kingdom of Kongo

Japan: Sacred Island of Okinoshima

France: Taputaputea, center of the "Polynesian Triangle"

Poland: Tarnowskie Gry, lead-silver-zinc mine

Cambodia: Sambor Prei Kuk temple zone

United Kingdom: English Lake District

Brazil: Valongo Wharf, archeological site

Croatia, Italy, Montenegro: Venetian Works of Defense

South Africa: Khomani Cultural Landscape

Mongolia, Russia: Landscapes of Dauria

Argentina: Los Alerces National Park

China: Qinghai Hoh Xil, world's highest and largest plateau

India: Historic city of Ahmedabad

12 incredible UNESCO sites you've probably never heard of: Surrounded by forests of beech, fir and spruce, a multi-level system of 16 lakes spills into waterfalls and pools in Croatia's Plitvice Lakes National Park. The lakes are known for their distinctive colors, which can be turquoise, green, blue or gray. No swimming is allowed in the pristine pools.

The United Nations' World Heritage Committee, made up of representatives from 21 countries, meets annually to vote natural, cultural and sites of mixed significance around the world to its prestigious preservation list, which includes places of "outstanding universal value."

The inscribed sites must meet at least one of 10 criteria such as "representing a masterpiece of human creative genius," containing "exceptional natural beauty" or being an outstanding example of a traditional human settlement.

UNESCO has been adding sites to the World Heritage List since 1978.

In the travel world, being able to add the words "UNESCO World Heritage Site" to destination marketing materials is the equivalent of striking tourism gold, bringing fame and cultural cachet as well as resources for sites in need of restoration and protection.

As a result, nations often spend years developing pitches for inclusion on the list and must convince the UNESCO committee they will protect their sites and support them financially.

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UNESCO 2017: Which sites have been added to the World Heritage List? - CNN

Seychelles was also celebrating, as it won the Indian Oceans Leading Cruise Destination and the Indian Oceans Leading Cruise Port.

At the same time, Mauritius Tourism was happy to receive the title of Indian Oceans Leading Honeymoon Destination.

Graham Cooke, president of the World Travel Awards, said: What a fantastic evening its been here at Sun Aqua Vilu Reef in the Maldives.

It has been an honour to recognise the leading hospitality providers from the Indian Ocean tonight and I offer my heartfelt congratulations to each and every one of them.

It is your hard work, dedication, initiative and investment that makes the Indian Ocean tourism sector the success it is today.

He continued by adding: I look forward to seeing many of tonights winners later this year at the Grand Final in Vietnam, where they will compete for the global titles.

On the other hand, there were also awards for airline categories. Therefore, Air Seychelles was voted Indian Oceans Leading Airline and Indian Oceans Leading Airline Business Class, while Air Mauritius received the Indian Oceans Leading Airline Economy Class award.

Trans Maldivian Airways left the event holding the trophy for Indian Oceans Leading Seaplane Operator.

At the same time, the St Regis Maldives Vommuli Resort was the happy winner of the award for Indian Oceans Leading Island Resort.

The guest nation, Sri Lanka, was handed the awards for Asias Leading Destination and Asias Leading Adventure Tourism Destination; Hilton Colombo received the awards for Sri Lankas Leading Business Hotel and the Movenpick Colombo was voted Sri Lankas Leading Hotel.

In the travel industry, World Travel Awards Gala Ceremonies are knows as the best networking opportunities, and are attended by government and industry leaders, as well as broadcast media.

The event was first established in 1993 to reward and celebrate excellence in all areas of the tourism industry.

Nowadays, the World Travel Awards is a brand recognized globally as a hallmark of quality, with winners that set the benchmark for others to aspire to.

Every year, World Travel Awards puts together a series of regional gala ceremonies that aim to recognize and celebrate both individual and collective successes.

The rest is here:

World Travel Awards Indian Ocean Event Maldives Excels - Travel Wires

Denver Business Journal

Colorado's natural gas could travel the world via an Oregon LNG terminal Denver Business Journal Colorado backers of a proposed liquefied natural gas terminal on the Oregon coast are hoping the project's second trip before federal energy regulators will be the charm. Subscribe to get the full story. Already a subscriber? Sign in. Subscribe to get the and more »

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Colorado's natural gas could travel the world via an Oregon LNG terminal - Denver Business Journal

The Seychelles Tourism Board (STB) is the Indian Oceans Leading Tourist Board and Seychelles the Indian Oceans Leading Cruise Destination in 2017.

This was revealed at the World Travel Awards Indian Ocean Gala Ceremony 2017. The event was held at Sun Aqua Vilu Reef a 5-star beach resort in the neighboring Indian Ocean island of Maldives, on Saturday, July 8.

The Chief Executive of the Seychelles Tourism Board Mrs. Sherin Francis was presented with the accolades at the red-carpet ceremony, attended by tourism and hospitality leaders from the region and international media.

Its the third consecutive year that the Seychelles Tourism Board wins the Indian Oceans Leading Tourist Board award.

Mrs. Francis has described the award as an encouragement for the STB team.

We do not have even a quarter of the resources other tourism boards have given our size but yet we are seen as very effective and this is because we do our work with a lot of passion and enthusiasm, we understand that its a people industry, we never fail to bring other partners onboard and always ensure we value the relationship and support of our friends and partners in this industry all over the world, she added.

This is also the fourth consecutive year that Seychelles wins the Indian Oceans Leading Cruise Destination accolade.

Mrs. Francis said: We are surrounded by the Ocean and this is one attribute that we always recommend to our visitors to discover Seychelles by sea. The award is testament that Seychelles remains one the best cruise destination there is to experience.

Speaking at the 24th annual World Travel Awards ceremony for the Indian Ocean region in the Maldives on Saturday, the World Travel Awards President and Founder, Graham Cooke, said: It has been an honor to recognize the leading hospitality providers from the Indian Ocean tonight and I offer my heartfelt congratulations to each and every one of them.

It is your hard work, dedication, initiative and investment that makes the Indian Ocean tourism sector the success it is today, he added.

Seychelles as a destination had been nominated in six categories in the Indian Ocean region for this years regional World Travel Awards ceremony: Leading Beach Destination, Leading Cruise Destination, Leading Destination, Leading Dive Destination, Leading Honeymoon Destination and Leading Tourist Board.

The World Travel Awards was established in 1993 to recognize the very best travel organizations in the world, through a global vote including by travel and tourism professionals.

Awards are presented for excellence in providing services in different categories of the worlds travel and tourism industry. This includes air services, car rental services, spas, travel agencies and tour operators, hotels and resorts among others.

The awards are first given on a regional basis, with the winners qualifying for the grand final of the World Travel Award.

This years grand final will be held in Phu Quoc, Vietnam on December 10.

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Seychelles wins Indian Ocean's Leading Tourist Board & Cruise Destination accolades at World Travel Awards - eTurboNews

Art we heart Ezra Bailey / iStock / Getty

When it comes to facing your fears, sometimes you have to get creative. A clear-cut example of someone whos managed to outsmart the very thing that terrifies her is Jacqui Kennedy, the woman who runs the Agoraphobic Traveller Instagram account. Typically, traveling is one of the last activities youd associate with someone who has agoraphobia, which Psychology Today defines as a fear of any place where escape may be difficult, including large open spaces or crowds, as well as various means of travel.

In Kennedys case, her unique approach to dealing with the condition has sparked inspiring conversations around agoraphobia and how those who live with the restrictive, anxiety-inducing disorder can better cope.

After she began collecting snapshots in 2015, Kennedys sister encouraged her to continue with her hobby. Today, Agoraphobic Traveller is a collection of street scenes Kennedy curated based on her emotional response to each photo.

As she told National Geographic, the act of choosing photos that resonate with her helped Kennedy to hone a unique world perspective.

Kennedys Instagram features photos from places like New Mexico, Peru, Canada and everywhere in between. She intentionally curates images that dont usually include lots of people, instead opting to highlight random structures, animals, and the landscape.

To date, Kennedy has snapped over 27,000 screenshots, a far cry from the 200 photos on her Instagram page. But still, her perusal of Google Street View represents a sort of freedom from the isolation and loneliness agoraphobics experience.

Its connected me with so many other people that have agoraphobia, so I dont feel so alone with it, Kennedy told National Geographic. It does make me what to travel more. It makes me want to face my fears.

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This woman with agoraphobia travels the world with Google Street View, and how she documents it is so beautiful - HelloGiggles

Traveling can often be a time for self-discovery. Photographer Alexander Khimushin, 47, has spent the last nine years visiting 84 countries to do just that. After years of traveling it was getting clearer and clearer to me that the people and their cultures were the best of all my experience, Khimushin told weather.com

Khimushins nomadic lifestyle provided him with the opportunity to see the rich diversity of human civilization. For the last three years, he focused on photographing peoples portraits in each city he visited, all included in a series called The World in Faces. Faces of all of that people--its like an encyclopedia of the world to me, he said. The face of each individual person depicts personality, character traits, an imprint of an occupation, inherent only to him [or] her and no one else.

His life as a travel photographer has prepared him to be aware of the various cities and countries climates. Its in the hands of the photographer to know how to photograph even in the most challenging conditions. You can easily die from sun or dehydration, get frozen to death in [freezing temperatures] in less than hour, have your high altitude sickness in the mountains or [go crazy] in wet climate[s] from anxiety and insomnia from humidity, he said.

Through World in Faces, Khimushin hopes to portray the possibility of a peaceful coexistence among the people of the world. It is humans themselves, who, at any given time, can destroy this fragile world by their lack of understanding, intolerance towards people of other cultures, religions [and] ethnicities, he said. The beauty of our world, he said, is in our differences. Where [people] live and whatever culture they belong to, [we] share the same universal values.

Despite this commonality, Khimushin says that forces like globalization, economic hardship, war and discrimination, many ethnic minority groups are forced to live on the edge. He hopes to use this project to help unify people despite the differences in their cultures and outward appearances. If we all realise how unique and amazing we, the people, are, we will care more about each other, be more tolerant to people of another ethnicity, religion and culture, he said.

Khimushin plans to continue the series as he travels around the globe. Follow along his journey on Facebook and Instagram.

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Photographer Travels to Find Beauty in Diverse Faces of the World (PHOTOS) - The Weather Channel

The seven Georgia swimmers who made the U.S. team for the 2017 Fdration Internationale de Natation (FINA) World Championships are in for a busy couple of weeks that will have them all over the globe. In 22 days, those Bulldogs will travel an estimated 5,841 miles.

Those seven Bulldogs qualified for the U.S. team bound for FINA world championships thanks to their efforts at the Phillips 66 national championships last week in Indianapolis that ended on July 1.

It wont be long before the Bulldogs hit the road again. On July 11, every swimmer who is set to represent the U.S. for the FINA world championships will pack their bags and fly to Opatija, Croatia, for a training camp.

This training camp is similar to the ones that were held last year before the Olympics. The U.S. team held camps in San Antonio and Atlanta before heading to Rio de Janeiro for the 2016 Olympics last summer.

Olympic gold medalist and one of the seven Bulldogs headed to Budapest this summer, Olivia Smoliga, is prepared to get to the coast early next week.

We have a training trip like we had the two training trips before the [Olympic] games in San Antonio and Atlanta, Smoliga said. This one is in Croatia, which is tight because youll be on the coast and its beautiful. Definitely puts your mind at ease before the big meet.

From Croatia, the Georgia swimmers and the rest of the U.S. team will head to Budapest, Hungary, where the FINA world championships will begin on July 23.

Traveling this frequently isnt slowing down one of the Georgia swimmers who will be representing the U.S. in Budapest though.

No, Im excited is what I am, Ive been working all summer to make the trip, former Georgia swimmer Nic Fink said. Im ready.

Since there is little time between the training camp and the FINA world championships, the swimmers will not be swimming a large amount of yards or training extremely hard in the weeks to come.

Instead, theyll be getting in the pool to focus on other things and taking in all the places theyll be traveling to in the upcoming weeks.

Well pretty much all of the work has already been done all year, Fink said. You dont really try to get better, you just try to like fine tune things that maybe werent great. You try to stay in shape, obviously, and just fine tune the little things that maybe went wrong or try to get a little better at certain things.

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Georgia swimmers competing in FINA world championships face rigorous travel schedule - Red and Black

By 2010 the site was bringing in $50,000 to $60,000 a year says Kepnes, from e-books he had written (which he sold for $6.99 to $29.99), sponsored posts and a little bit of affiliate marketing, so he decided to focus on Nomadic Matt full time. Kepnes soon added media courses and wrote a New York Times best seller, "How to Travel the World on $50 a Day."

All the while, Kepnes kept traveling. "I went scuba diving in Fiji, safaried across Africa, went to the Galapagos, went hiking in Patagonia," he says, "to name a few." To date he's been to more than 90 countries.

During that time, Kepnes says he's continued developing his travel courses, upped his affiliate revenue and regularly launched new products. By 2013, the site was bringing in six figures. Now, Nomadic Matt has 1.5 million visitors a month and grosses about $750,000 year, according to Kepnes. He has three full-time employees a stable of freelancers. He also co-owns a hostel in Austin, Texas.

These days, Kepnes, 36, says he travels about six months of the year, and splits the rest of his time between New York City and Austin. "If I'm not traveling, I'm probably working. I pretty much am always working, but I like my job so I don't mind it," he says.

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This entrepreneur quit his cubicle job to travel the world at 25now he's making $750000 a year - CNBC

Miami Herald

Shevchenko's world travels lead to title shot at UFC 213 Miami Herald Valentina Shevchenko has no idea how many countries she has visited or how many millions of miles she has covered in her lifelong pursuit of insight, enlightenment and new martial arts skills. Fighting is her profession, but the quest for knowledge is ... and more »

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Shevchenko's world travels lead to title shot at UFC 213 - Miami Herald

Only a month after Donald Trump took over the presidency, travel executives predicted his call for a ban on travel from several largely Muslim countries and his promise to build a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border would make international travelers feel unwelcome in the United States.

But new data show that inbound international travel grew 5.2% in May, marking the 13th straight month of positive year-over-year growth, according to the U.S. Travel Assn., the trade group that represents the nations travel industry.

Still, the analysis suggests that the growth of international travel is slowing, possibly because of a strong U.S. dollar and Trumps proposed policy changes, according to the group.

The stronger U.S. dollar will likely continue to weigh on international travel, and President Trumps rhetoric and policies, including travel restrictions and anti-immigration stance, pose additional risk to international traveler sentiment, the report said.

Domestic travel is projected to continue to grow over the next five months by 2.2% on a year-over-year basis spurred by strong business investments and rising household income.

Still, the travel association took a swipe at Trump, saying a turbulent start to the Trump presidency and his failure to deliver on campaign pledges of fiscal stimulus, tax reform and reduced regulations has the potential to undermine confidence from both businesses and consumers alike.

In February, two studies suggested that Trumps policies and rhetoric already had hurt the travel industry. An analysis of about 300 million online air travel searches in February found that flight searches from international origins to the U.S. dropped 17% after Trump took office and signed an executive order Jan. 27, banning travel from Syria, Iran, Iraq, Libya, Sudan, Yemen and Somalia. The Supreme Court ruled in June to allow much of the ban to take effect, but also applied significant restrictions. Iraq was removed from the later ban.

Around the same time, the Global Business Travel Assn., the trade group for the worlds travel managers, said business travel bookings in the U.S. dropped 3.4% in the week after Trump signed the order compared with the previous week.

hugo.martin@latimes.com

To read more about the travel and tourism industries, follow @hugomartin on Twitter.

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Trump's polices were expected to hit the travel industry hard. That ... - Los Angeles Times

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EAGLE -- For four weeks in July and August Old World Wisconsin hosts adventure day camps. There are camps for first graders through high schoolers. Everything from an amazing race through time which is a scavenger hunt through the 1800s and 1900s, pioneer power which teaches how simple machines work and more. FOX6's Brian Kramp experiences what it would be like to live in Wisconsin centuries ago.

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About Old World Wisconsin (website)

It is appropriate that Old World Wisconsin was opened in 1976. There could no better way to commemorate 200 years of American history than by vividly recreating the sights, sounds and spirit of this country at its birth.

The museums more than 60 historic structures range from ethnic farmsteads with furnished houses and rural outbuildings, to the 1880s Village with its traditional small-town institutions. The efforts of countless historians have preserved an amazing slice of true Americana one that will be enjoyed for generations to come.

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Historic Structures Documented To create this museum, researchers traveled throughout Wisconsin in search of authentic historic buildings hewn by generations of Wisconsin settlers.

From Lake Superior to the Illinois border, and from the Mississippi River to Lake Michigan, historians documented many old farmhouses, outbuildings, and small-town structures.Once the research was complete, the amazing construction process of Old World Wisconsin began.

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Travel back in time to Old World Wisconsin - fox6now.com

1) Space Flights Could Launch Next Year

Pack your bags. Richard Branson, the billionaire founder of Virgin Group, says his goal is to get commercial passenger flights into space by the end of 2018. Branson told Bloomberg News that hes gearing up again towardgettingnon-astronauts like you and meinto space. Afatal crash in 2014 killed co-pilot Michael Alsburyand put the mission on hold. That hasnt scaredpeople off, Bransonsays. Far from it. We will never be able to build enough spaceships, he said. The demand is enormous. Hes competing with fellow billionaires Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk, both of whom have their own rocket companies. There is definitely the demand for all three, Branson said.

And maybe thatsjust fine with President Donald Trump, who ran on isolationismand has since championed the need tothinkabout America before anyone else. (Pittsburgh, not Paris!) Such rhetoric pushed China and Germany closer together at the Group of 20 meeting, which is taking place over the next two days in Hamburg. Diplomats and officials involved in the massive affair say the two countries are working closely on the meetings agenda. The two most important leaders in the world are President Xi [Jinping]and Chancellor [Angela] Merkel at the moment,said Diego Ramiro Guelar, ambassador to Beijing for G-20 member Argentina. Even former President Barack Obama took a jab at Trump on leadership. While in Indonesia, he described the Paris climate deal as an agreement that even with the temporary absence of American leadership will still give our children a fighting chance.

Motorcycle makers are giving up the whole hog. Companies are throwing their efforts into bikes designed for new riders who arent enamored with classic, massive Harleys. Sales plummeted after the 2008 financial crisis and havent recovered. The industry is trying to pivot to a younger audience, because most of its current customers are agingfast. Theyre doing that by focusing on smaller, lighter bikes. For example, Harley-Davidsons Street 500 costs about $7,000, has an engine thats around 500ccroughly half the size of some of Harleys most popular models. Kawasakis Ninja 300 is about $5,000 and is smaller than its well-known standard model. If all goes as planned, these little rigs will help companies like Harley-Davidson coast for another 50 years,Bloombergs Kyle Stock reports.

Motorcycle Industry Council

Women dont make as much as men in the Trump White House, according to salary data released by the administration. But a White House official said thats because they are doing different jobs; more men have been hired in senior positions. Sixteen men and six women in the White House earn the top salary of $179,700. In comparison, men in the Obama administration made up 56 percentof the top-paid roles. Comparing like-for-like positions, the numbers go back and forth, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity. Female assistants to the president make an average of $664 more than male ones. Male deputy assistants, the second-highest rank, earn $4,603 more than their female counterparts.

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Especially Europeans. A group of gastroenterology experts issued a warning this week that were ignoring the cancer risks that come fromeven moderate consumption, considered about two drinks a day. Worldwide, the heaviest boozersare Europeans, who have from one to four drinks a day, according to a report from United European Gastroenterology, a nonprofit coalition of specialists. That increases the risk ofcolorectal and esophageal cancers, the group said. This epidemiological evidence is clear about the association, said Professor Helena Cortez-Pinto, a gastroenterologist at Hospital Universitrio de Santa Maria in Lisbon.

WHO Global Information System on Alcohol and Health, 2010

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Demand for Space Travel Is Out of This World - Bloomberg

Grandparents and other extended relatives of people in the United States are not exempt from President Trumps travel ban, a federal judge effectively decided Thursday as he denied a bid to curtail enforcement of the executive order meant to keep out citizens of six Muslim-majority countries.

U.S. District Judge Derrick K. Watson wrote that he would not usurp the prerogative of the Supreme Court, and if those suing over the ban wanted relief, they should take their claims there.

That means the government, at least for now, can use the travel ban to block citizens of the affected countries if they are the grandparents, grandchildren, aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, cousins, brothers-in-law or sisters-in-law of people in the United States. Officials can also block refugees with a formal assurance from a resettlement agency.

The administration had wanted to keep such people out, and thought a recent Supreme Court ruling partially lifting lower courts freezes on the travel ban allowed them to do so. But those who had sued over the ban disagreed, and they asked Watson to intervene which he declined to do.

[Travel ban takes effect as State Department defines close family]

Because Plaintiffs seek clarification of the June 26, 2017 injunction modifications authored by the Supreme Court, clarification should be sought there, not here, Watson wrote.

Neal Katyal, a lawyer for those challenging the ban, noted on Twitter the ruling offered no decision on the merits of dispute, but simply said it was the Supreme Courts place to decide.

The Supreme Court had ruled late last month that the government could begin enforcing the measure, but not on those with a credible claim of a bona fide relationship with a person or entity in the United States.

The court offered only limited guidance on what type of relationship would qualify. Close familial relationships would count, the court said, as would ties such as a job offer or school acceptance letter that were formal, documented, and formed in the ordinary course.

The government put the measure into effect on June 29, suspending the refugee program and barring the issuance of new visas to residents of Iran, Somalia, Sudan, Libya, Yemen and Syria without U.S. connections. But for opponents of the ban, the administrations interpretation of who had a connection was too narrow.

The administration said it would let into the United States from the six affected countries parents, parents-in-law, siblings, spouses, children, sons and daughters and sons-in-law and daughters-in-law of those already here. (Officials initially wanted to keep out fiances, but later relented.)

Still banned, though, were grandparents, grandchildren, aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, cousins, brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law. And the administration also said it would keep out refugees that had a formal assurance from a resettlement agency.

[What the Supreme Courts travel ban ruling means]

Hawaii, which had initially sued over the ban, objected in court, asking Watson to clarify that such people could not be blocked.

The Government does not have discretion to ignore the Courts injunction as it sees fit, lawyers representing the state wrote.

The government shot back that it was drawing lines on who counted as a close family member based on its interpretation of the Immigration and Nationality Act. Justice Department lawyers asserted that the Supreme Court had made clear not all people with U.S. connections should be allowed in.

As the Supreme Court instructed, not all relationships with a person in the United States suffice to fall outside the stay and within the injunction, Justice Department lawyers wrote. Indeed, not even all familial relationships suffice; rather, a close familial relationship is required.

The matter is likely bound for higher courts. The government had asked Watson to put his ruling on hold pending an immediate request to the Supreme Court for clarification of its ruling, and even those suing agreed that any disputes remaining after Watsons order should be dealt with through expedited appellate review.

The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear arguments in the fall on whether Trumps travel ban can pass legal muster. So far, it has only temporarily blocked lower courts injunctions. Some of the justices predicted there might be problems before that.

Justice Clarence Thomas, in an opinion joined by justices Samuel A. Alito Jr. and Neil M. Gorsuch, wrote that he would have restored Trumps travel ban in full, in part because he felt the courts move to restore it only partially would prove unworkable

Todays compromise will burden executive officials with the task of deciding on peril of contempt whether individuals from the six affected nations who wish to enter the United States have a sufficient connection to a person or entity in this country, Thomas wrote. The compromise also will invite a flood of litigation until this case is finally resolved on the merits, as parties and courts struggle to determine what exactly constitutes a bona fide relationship, who precisely has a credible claim to that relationship, and whether the claimed relationship was formed simply to avoid the executive order, he wrote.

This story has been updated.

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Judge rejects Hawaii bid to exempt grandparents from Trump's travel ban - Washington Post

(CNN) Drones are everywhere these days, and so are the bird's-eye photos they take of cityscapes and countrysides. But when Swiss aviator Walter Mittelholzer took to the skies in the 1920s and '30s, armed with a camera and a restless spirit of adventure, aerial photography was largely unheard of.

Mittelholzer blazed a trail as he soared over the mountains of Switzerland, and later the entire length of Africa, documenting his travels through pioneering photography both from the air and on the ground.

As he traversed the skies, the pilot captured stunning never-seen-before shots of the pyramids of Giza and spectacular panoramas of the Saharan desert. His sometimes controversial images offer an unparalleled aerial perspective on the Middle East and Africa in the early 20th century.

Mittelholzer photographed aerial views of landscapes across the world -- including Mokattam's hilly plateau near Cairo, Egypt.

This text -- the sixth volume in Scheidegger & Spiess's Pictorial Worlds series -- reproduces 200 of Mittelholzer's most striking and historically significant images.

"Mittelholzer founded an enterprise for aerial photographs," the book's author, Kaspar Surber, tells CNN Travel. "He took pictures of the Alps, of cities and industrial enterprises. The aerial photographs changed the established visual habits."

Surber uses the images to investigate Mittelholzer's legacy, charting the rise of a prototype media magnate.

Mittelholzer photographed countries across the world -- including the pyramids of Giza in Egypt.

In 1926-7, Mittelholzer famously conducted the first north-south flight across Africa -- becoming a household name in the process. A few years later, he became the first person to fly over Mount Kilimanjaro

"He was quite an early media entrepreneur," the book's co-editor, Michael Gasser, tells CNN Travel. "He became interested in photography when he was very young ... Then he learned how to fly and then he combined those new techniques."

Mittelholzer visited Syria -- and photographed the 13th century citadel of Aleppo in 1925.

Particularly striking to modern-day eyes are Mittelholzer's photos of Syria. The aviator visited Aleppo in 1925 and photographed the 13th century Citadel. One of the oldest fortresses in the world, the Citadel has been badly damaged in the ongoing Syrian Civil War.

The book examines Mittelholzer's controversial perception of Africa.

The book also critically examines Mittelholzer's trips to Africa with a contemporary eye. The pilot, says Gasser, saw the continent through an explicitly colonial, racist lens.

"This colonial gaze, you can actually see it in many of these photographs," he says.

Surber agrees -- adding that Mittelholzer saw his plane as a "symbol of civilization" -- to be positioned in direct contrast with the countries he was visiting. Surber's book shines a light on this problematic aspect of Mittelholzer's work and this period of history.

"I hope that readers will understand that Switzerland -- being a country without colonies itself -- still has a colonial past," he says. "This is the story that Mittelholzer's pictures tell."

Mittelholzer was an early media mastermind.

The text also examines Mittelholzer as a prototype media magnate.

"He was a very active man, and he had many businesses side by side," says Gasser. "Very early on ... he took those aerial photographs and he was selling them to people who wanted to have an aerial photograph of their home or their company or whatever -- in pre-Google Earth days!"

Mittelholzer even owned a film company. "He was a truly skilful media entrepreneur, who spread his images through all channels possible," adds Serber.

In 1929, Mittelholzer became the first person to fly over Mount Kilimanjaro -- en route, he flew over Mount Kibo (pictured here).

Mittelholzer's lifework paints a picture of a flawed but fascinating figure. A trailblazer in the world of aviation photography and mass media, Mittelholzer was in many ways forward thinking, but in other ways a definite product of his time.

Nevertheless, the images are a trove of rare aerial perspectives.

"These images are not only of an outstanding photographic quality," says Gasser. "They are also very rich visual sources, telling a lot about Mittelholzer's perception of the Middle East and Africa and the way he used visual media to promote and finance his expeditions."

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Walter Mittelholzer: Aviator's rare photos reveal a bygone world - CNN

It's the trip of a lifetime - around the world in 26 days, with stops in nine countries. Just 50 people will travel on this guided tour next year via a private Boeing 757 to places like Marrakesh, Easter Island and Reykjavik, Iceland.

The price: $135,000 per person.

And that's not all. Those who make the journey will be accompanied on various legs by journalists from the New York Times. The newspaper is organizing and promoting the package, which it calls "Around the World by Private Jet: Cultures in Transformation." Among those scheduled to join the traveling party are Times' Washington bureau chief Elisabeth Bumiller, op-ed columnist Nicholas Kristof and Publisher Arthur O. Sulzberger Jr.

The super-luxe journey and other Times-sponsored travel packages are a lucrative source of income for the paper at a time when news organizations are under increasing financial pressure. The round-the-world trip - which could gross as much as $6.7 million - is part of a range of products and services designed to "monetize" the Times' brand name, from $100 tote bags to event sponsorships. Other news organizations, including The Washington Post, which sells T-shirts and other merchandise, engage in the practice.

But the Times' trips raise a question among journalism ethics experts about ethics and access: Is the Times effectively selling its journalists to private interests? Could, for example, corporate lobbyists or political operatives sign on and seek to influence the Times' coverage?

Although the question is largely theoretical, the issue has come up before in a somewhat different context. In 2009, The Washington Post aborted an effort to produce "salons," or small private dinners that would bring together the newspaper's top editors and publisher with government officials and industry lobbyists. The off-the-record dinners were to be sponsored by individuals or corporations willing to pay anywhere from $25,000 to $250,000.

Media reports about The Post's plans triggered a public outcry. Critics said the paper was violating its own principles by peddling its journalists to vested interests and cutting its readers out of the dinner party. The acrimony prompted the paper to back away from the idea before it was ever implemented.

The Times' round-the-world excursion is by far the most elaborate and expensive package it markets using its journalists as a lure. But it also offers other packages under its Times Journeys brand for those with somewhat less disposable income.

For example, a 13-day cruise in October around Southeast Asia aboard a "megayacht," as an online brochure describes it, starts at $10,790 per person, not including international airfare to the trip's embarkation point. The cruise features lectures on "Donald Trump's grand economic plan" by Gretchen Morgenson, the Times' assistant business editor and a Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist.

Prices for a 15-day cruise around Scandinavia featuring columnist Maureen Dowd and chief Washington correspondent Carl Hulse start at $5,129 for an interior cabin. The fare rises to $16,489 per person for a "pinnacle" suite on the tour, which the Times is marketing as "Fjords, Falls and Foreign Affairs."

Times spokeswoman Danielle Rhoades Ha said the paper's travel packages are "educational travel experiences" and that its journalists don't engage in any reporting or writing while abroad or afloat.

"We see no comparison to The Washington Post's much-criticized concept to host private parties that were marketed as having the potential to alter political debates by interacting with elected officials, policyakers and others," she said.

On the other hand: The Times doesn't control who signs up. The passenger manifest isn't screened, she said.

That means the Times "essentially gives unrestricted access to some of the paper's best-known journalists and names," said Andrew Seaman, the chairman of the ethics committee for the Society of Professional Journalists and a reporter for Reuters.

Said Seaman: "No matter what safeguards the paper puts in place, it looks like a bunch of journalists flying off to far corners of the world with incredibly wealthy people. Of course, it looks like that, because that's what it is."

Even without an actual conflict, the arrangement is bound to raise questions, he said. "An already skeptical public is left wondering if the paper may give preferential treatment to the person who just gave a very large chunk of change to their news organization. I don't think that's the question the Times or any news organization wants floating around in the world."

But Indira Lahkshmanan, an ethicist at the Poynter Institute, a journalism-education organization, points out that other news organizations have long sponsored private travel packages without ethical repercussions. For example, PBS NewsHour anchor Judy Woodruff is the featured attraction for a 10-night cruise to Alaska in August that costs between $7,300 and $20,000 per person. National Geographic and NPR have also used their journalists to attract travelers.

"More than anything, it raises a sad commentary on the state of our business, that there's a need for newspapers and news organizations to raise money like this," Lahkshmanan said. "This is another high-end way to make money."

Times Executive Editor Dean Baquet declined to comment, as did several Times journalists who are participating in one of the paper's "Journeys." But others at the paper doubted that their involvement raised any ethical concerns.

Veteran reporter Adam Nagourney said his last trip - a 12-day cruise around the Greek islands and Turkey in 2015 - involved about 60 to 70 people, most of whom were "intensely interested in current events and TheTimes." Much of the shipboard conversation, he said, was about how the paper operates, how decisions are made and who makes them ("It's like, 'You know Maureen Dowd!" he said).

Nagourney, who is featured on a Times cruise around the Gulf of Mexico in late November, added, "I get (this enthusiasm) completely. I would be one of those people if I didn't work here. ... But movers and shakers? Advertisers? People trying to get access to influence things? Honestly, I did not find that at all."

In her only comment, Dowd wrote via email, "I'm not involved in that pricey plane trip one. I did a normal boat one. You should ask one of those people."

Morgenson, who will participate in her first trip this year, said the Times' travel packages are "quite different" from The Post's aborted "salons." The Post's concept was designed to "connect people in power like lobbyists in intimate settings," she said. "The Times Journeys seem focused on the reader."

Morgenson added that no one has to buy an expensive travel package to reach her. "I'm accessible to anyone who has a phone or an email address," she said.

Still, Seaman, the journalism-ethics maven, said it might be time for the Times to stay home.

"My suggestion would be to skip Easter Island, Iceland and wherever else these trips may go," he said. "The Times and other news organizations should send journalists to communities around the United States to teach them what responsible journalism is, how it's made and why it's important."

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New York Times travel business offers 'trip of a lifetime' but is it ethical? - Chicago Tribune

Over the past two years we have been exploring our planet, and trust us when we tell you that weve seen some incredible places. Beautiful places. Places we never knew existed until we reached them and dragged our jaws along. Weve been hot beyond boiling and cold beyond freezing. Weve had perfect sunsets, more than perfect sunrises, gloomy and cloudy days, and days where the sun didnt go down #GottaLoveScandinavia

Now, 40 countries and 70 flights later, we have returned home with magical, life-changing memories...and 14,000 photographs. Yes, four-teen-THOUSAND.

Below you will see our collection of fantasy images (that we created after sifting through said 14,000 snaps) that will (hopefully) prove, that despite all our differences, living thousands of miles apart, places around the world are actually very similar, if you really take the time to look. If anything, we hope you walk away from this collection thinking, how lucky we are, to call this planet, home.

@howfarfromhome on Instagram

@HOWFARFROMHOME ON INSTAGRAM

@HOWFARFROMHOME ON INSTAGRAM

@HOWFARFROMHOME ON INSTAGRAM

@HOWFARFROMHOME ON INSTAGRAM

@HOWFARFROMHOME ON INSTAGRAM

@HOWFARFROMHOME ON INSTAGRAM

@HOWFARFROMHOME ON INSTAGRAM

@HOWFARFROMHOME ON INSTAGRAM

@HOWFARFROMHOME ON INSTAGRAM

@HOWFARFROMHOME ON INSTAGRAM

@HOWFARFROMHOME ON INSTAGRAM

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We Combined Our Travel Photos From Opposite Sides Of The World, And What We Found Was Unreal - HuffPost

Attention adventure lovers: Its time to head to Acapulco.

The coastal Mexican city is home to XTASEA, the largest over-water zip line in the world. The line, which opened in March, extends for more than a mile across Puerto Marquez Bay and reaches speeds of up to 75 mph at an altitude of 328 feet.

XTASEA promises to be one of Acapulcos main tourist attractions and we have great hopes that it will be a success for the destination, Pedro Haces, president of the Acapulco Destination Marketing Office, said in a statement. Haces additionally noted that the over-the-top zip line is simply one part of the recently announced billion-dollar investment aimed at enhancing the destinations tourism offerings.

Beyond the zip line, the plan also includes a massive renovation of the iconic Pierre Mundo Imperial and Princess Mundo Imperial resorts and several new amenities, including the Spa Tlalli and Turtle Dunes Golf Clubhouse. And, to help accommodate all the new guests, the investment will also cover the construction of the Hotel Prince by Mundo Imperial and the Hotel Marqus Boutique, among other properties.

Moreover, the plan includes the construction of the Diamante Retirement Homes, a new Princess Medical Center, a premium shopping center, an eco-amusement park called Aventura Guerrero, a new tennis stadium, security towers, and Princess University. All the individual projects are slated for completion between 2017 and 2022.

Acapulco will also welcome a new $30-million airport terminal, which will increase airport capacity by another 1.3 million passengers. The terminal will be opening in 2018.

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Soar Above a Stunning Blue Bay on the World's Largest Over-water Zip Line - Travel+Leisure

Texas A&M University judo coach Bob Perez is asking the public to help young athletes and staff traveling to the World University Games in Taipei, Taiwan, next month.

Perez, head coach for A&M's judo team since 1993, was voted coach of the year and elected to serve as team manager for the annual games. Perez said that the team is made up of 14 young athletes from colleges and universities from across the U.S., as well as two staff members. Though none of the judokas -- athletes who compete in judo -- are from A&M this year, Perez said the young athletes need to raise the majority of the money themselves to make it to the competition.

"This is the Olympics for the college students," Perez said. "This is the future of the Olympic sports."

Perez said having to raise money takes away from the time students could be training for the competition and puts a strain on their financial situations, since they have to front the cost of traveling themselves.

The athletes need to raise between $2,600 and $3,000 each for the trip, depending on the cost of airfare, Perez said.

Perez said judokas don't get the same funding as more popular American sports such as basketball or track and field, putting a financial burden on the athletes.

"If it's not very popular in the U.S., they just don't get the funding. Unfortunately, that's where judo stands," he said.

Perez said that this competition could be the highest level at which some of these judokas compete, though he's hesitant to say that as a coach because "you always want to make sure we give them a positive outlook for their sports future."

The 14 judokas fronted the cost of their trip and will be reimbursed based on the money raised for the Taiwan tournament.

Perez said the need for these athletes to fund their own trip helps the public remember that "sports aren't just football, basketball and baseball. We've got all these other sports here."

Those asking for public donations to fund their trips are "still athletes," Perez said, because "they still train hard, but they don't have the same financial support."

The National Collegiate Judo Association started a GoFundMe page to help raise funds for the team. To donate, go to http://www.gofundme.com/JudoWUG2017.

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Texas A&M judo coach: Help Team USA travel to Taiwan for the World University Games - Bryan-College Station Eagle

(CNN) The house that Walt Disney built has won the title of world's most popular amusement park.

The Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World in Florida welcomed more than 20 million visitors in 2016, a 0.5% decrease over 2015, according to a June report.

The theme park index ranks the 25 most-visited amusement and theme parks around the world, using attendance figures gathered by AECOM, a global consulting firm.

"Following record-setting numbers in 2015, attendance results in 2016 were more modest but still reflective of a healthy, growing industry," said John Robinett, AECOM's senior vice president, Economics/Americas, in a statement.

"The major theme park operators continued their positive performance, and most markets saw slow, steady growth, while weather, tourism and political issues contributed to minor declines in others."

While the top 25 parks saw a slight decrease in attendance, the top 10 parks measured a 4.3% increase, from 420 million to 438 million visitors.

Once again, Disney dominated the rankings.

Disney parks in the United States and Japan held seven of the top 10 spots and 12 of the top 25 spots. Universal Studios came in second place with three parks in the top 10 and four in the top 25 list.

"Disney parks are the most popular theme parks in the world given our focus on exceeding expectations, which includes managing attendance to ensure a great experience for all guests," said Lisa Haines, spokesperson for Walt Disney Parks and Resorts.

While Disney saw some declines in attendance, Disney officials attribute it to a variable pricing structure that actually theme park unit profits increase.

The top 20 North American theme/amusement parks reported 148 million visits last year, up 5.9% from 2015, while the top 20 Asian theme/amusement parks reported 127.3 million visits last year, down 2.8% from 2015. There were 60.5 million visits to parks in Europe, the Middle East and Africa last year, down 1.1% from 2015.

1. Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World, Lake Buena Vista, Florida, US

2. Disneyland, Anaheim, California, US

3. Tokyo Disneyland, Tokyo, Japan

4. Universal Studios Japan, Osaka, Japan

5. Tokyo Disney Sea, Tokyo, Japan

6. Epcot at Walt Disney World, Lake Buena Vista, Florida, US

7. Disney's Animal Kingdom at Walt Disney World, Lake Buena Vista, Florida

8. Disney's Hollywood Studios at Walt Disney World, Lake Buena Vista, Florida, US

9. Universal Studios at Universal Orlando, Florida, US

10. Islands of Adventure at Universal Orlando, Florida, US

11. Disney's California Adventure, Anaheim, California, US

12. Chimelong Ocean Kingdom, Hengqin, China

13. Disneyland Park at Disneyland Paris, Marne-la-Vallee, France

14. Lotte World, Seoul, South Korea

15. Universal Studios Hollywood, Universal City, California, US

16. Everland, Gyeonggi-Do, South Korea

17. Hong Kong Disneyland, Hong Kong

18. Ocean Park, Hong Kong

19. Nagashima Spa Land, Kuwana, Japan

20. Europa-Park, Rust, Germany

21. Shanghai Disneyland, Shanghai, China

22. Walt Disney Studios Park at Disneyland Paris, France

23. Efteling, Kaatsheuvel, The Netherlands

24. Tivoli Gardens, Copenhagen, Denmark

25. SeaWorld Florida, Orlando, Florida, US

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World's 25 most popular amusement parks - CNN