World's Coolest Staircases

It looks like a standard roller coaster from a distance, but upon closer inspection, you’ll be faced with an ingenious staircase stretched through all kinds of curves. German artists Heike Mutter and Ulrich Genth made this interactive sculpture, unveiled in late 2011, so that visitors could explore the 249 steps both at day, taking in views high above the Rhine, and at night with LED lights on the handrails illuminating the staircase. If you’re wondering how to climb around the loop, well, you can’t. It’s closed off by a barrier. —Lyndsey Matthews

Opened in 1906, Lello is one of the world’s most beautiful bookstores, thanks largely to its centerpiece: this glossy red staircase with carved wooden banisters that leads up to a glass atrium. The stairs are just as beautiful from underneath, with carved leaflike flourishes and the same bluish-green and gold paint as the ceiling above it. Look for lovely neo-Gothic and Art Nouveau elements to the rest of the shop as you browse. —Lyndsey Matthews

You may recognize this mazelike Benedictine abbey overlooking the Danube River as inspiration for Umberto Eco’s popular novel The Name of the Rose. It’s full of architectural flourishes like this Rococo-style spiral staircase—best viewed from underneath to catch a glimpse of the pink-and-gold painted underside. While the staircase leads to other rooms of the library, they aren’t open to the public. —Lyndsey Matthews

You’ll climb 999 grueling steps to an opening in the mountains considered to be the door to heaven. A cliff collapsed years ago, leaving this more-than-400-foot-tall hole. The number 999 was selected as lucky since the number 9 has the same pronunciation as the word that means “eternal,” or “perpetual,” in Mandarin—which may seem cruelly appropriate to those who attempt the climb. Just to get to the base of the staircase, visitors must first take a cable car that climbs 4,000 feet or a bus along a mountain road so winding it’s been compared to a dragon’s back. —Lyndsey Matthews

This small village outside the northern city of Jaipur has a concentration of distinctive step wells called baoris, developed for collecting rainwater. Chand Baori is one of the deepest and largest of these wells, with some 3,500 steps that descend 13 stories deep. While it is possible to see down all 13 flights, it isn’t currently used as a well as the bottom few stories are gated off. Dating from around the ninth century, this step well is located in front of the medieval Harshat Mata Temple. —Lyndsey Matthews

If you’re afraid of heights, this staircase is definitely not for you. The “Stairway to Heaven” begins at the base of a fir tree and spirals round and round, reaching 82 feet into the sky. Climbers arrive and face another challenge: a rainbow-colored suspension bridge that stretches 43 feet over the forest floor. It’s the only way to reach the Treehouse Observatory, which provides expansive views of Mount Rainier and the Nisqually Valley. Guided tours cost $80 for two people; make a weekend of it and book the Cedar Creek Treehouse ($300 a night, observatory tour included), which is 50 feet up a nearby tree. —Lyndsey Matthews

There are 163 mosaic panels—one for each step—that make up this staircase at 16th Avenue and Moraga in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Heights neighborhood. The panels begin depicting the ocean and, by the time you reach the highest step, you’re in the sky with the birds. Aileen Barr and Colette Crutcher designed the thematic mosaics and enlisted the help of community members. After several years of work and fundraising, the stairs were completed in 2005. —Lyndsey Matthews

The Queen’s House in Greenwich features the first geometric self-supporting spiral staircase in Great Britain—commissioned back in 1616. The intricate flowers in the wrought-iron balustrade inspired the name Tulip Stairs (although, technically, the stylized blossoms are said to be fleurs-de-lis). In 1966, the Tulip Stairs were the site of Reverend R. W. Hardy’s ghost photograph, which shows a shrouded figure ascending the staircase. —Briana Fasone

Florentine architect Guido Ciompi came up with distinctive flourishes for each of the 21 rooms and suites at this boutique hotel in central Milan. One of the most spectacular results is a sprawling duplex suite connected by this floating stairway with futuristic wooden steps that resemble hollowed boxes. Wenge wood floors, ebony furniture, animal-print fabrics, and suspended beds only add to the hotel’s design pedigree. —Briana Fasone

Opened in 2008 on a man-made island in Doha Bay, this I. M. Pei–designed building houses a 4,500-work collection of some of the world’s greatest Islamic art—and happens to have this grand double staircase. Located underneath the geometric dome in the main entryway, its most unique feature is the steps cut into its underside, which create the illusion of an upside-down staircase. —Lyndsey Matthews

The Renaissance kings and queens of France chose this Loire Valley palace as their preferred residence and continued making refinements. When François I took over in 1515, he made his own mark by adding a wing with this staircase tower—notable for the interior’s beautiful spiral staircase and for an ornately carved exterior that mimics the likeness of a tower. It turned out to be the most recognizable part of the Château de Blois. When Richard Morris Hunt designed the Biltmore Estate in Asheville, NC, he built a similar tower that spirals in the opposite direction. —Lyndsey Matthews

The sleek steel of this 30-foot-tall double-helix staircase pops against the backdrop of an orange-and-glass vertical office tower. Located in the courtyard of the global accounting firm KPMG Deutsche Treuhand-Gesellschaft since 2004, Umschreibung (or “rewriting” in German) is the creation of the Danish artist Olafur Eliasson. The staircase doesn’t actually lead anywhere and isn’t open to the public to climb, but it certainly makes a statement. —Lyndsey Matthews

Pope Pius XI charged Giuseppe Momo with designing a bronze staircase at the entrance to the Vatican Museums in the late 1920s. He rose to the challenge, creating wide ramplike steps and two separate helixes of the spiral staircase so that one leads up and the other goes down—twisting together into a double-helix formation decades before Watson and Crick discovered the structure of DNA. The staircase’s finishing touches, bronze angel decorations, were the contribution of sculptor Antonio Maraini. —Lyndsey Matthews

A masterpiece—and mystery—of woodworking, this spiral structure is entirely self-supporting, without any central column to provide stability and with wooden pegs instead of nails. Legend has it that when the chapel was finished in 1878, there was no way to access the choir loft except by ladder due to space issues. An unknown carpenter came into town and built this miraculous staircase only to disappear without pay. —Lyndsey Matthews

It takes effort to reach this Baroque church at the top of an exquisite granite staircase with 686 steps. But at least it’s not straight uphill the entire way. You’ll want to pause to admire the detail work—and catch your breath—on nine platforms decorated with intricate tiles, fountains, and statues. Construction began in the 18th century but wasn’t finished until the early 20th century. Each year, there is a festival that culminates in early September with a pilgrimage here that includes a torchlight procession, concerts, and dancing. —Lyndsey Matthews

Antoni Gaudí is the architect behind Barcelona’s famously trippy landmarks including Park Güell and the Sagrada Família. Casa Batlló is his contribution to the Block of Discord, a collection of buildings designed by celebrated architects in clashing styles. Built for the Batlló family between 1904 and 1906, this beautiful Modernist home is also known as the House of Bones for Gaudí’s skeletal detailing of the grand staircase. The carved wood banister of this staircase evokes an animal’s spine and winds up through the other floors of the building, which has been open to the public since 2002. —Lyndsey Matthews

Artist Horst Gläsker took a drab staircase wedged in between two buildings in the town of Wuppertal and painted it a rainbow of colors, transforming an eyesore into a bright, energetic spot. He named the 112-step public artwork Scala (“staircase” in Italian) and embellished it with stencils of German words that relate to human relationships, such as love, sympathy, and dance. —Lyndsey Matthews

Apple is famous for its attention to design, which extends even to the details of its retail stores. The one in New York’s Chelsea neighborhood wasn’t the first or last to install a magnificent (patented) glass staircase, but its staircase was notably the first to spiral twice up to the second and third floors. Made from multiple layers of chemically tempered glass, the staircase has a central glass core with cantilevered glass beams and it is supported by steel grillage beneath the ground floor. You’ll feel like you’re walking on air. —Lyndsey Matthews

Built by eccentric English poet Edward James in 1962, this Surrealist sculpture garden took more than two decades to complete and covers 80-plus acres of Mexican jungle with groovy structures like the “Stairway to the Sky,” a winding staircase you can climb up several stories—but that leads nowhere. Las Pozas also has natural waterfalls and pools. —Briana Fasone

The opulent Grand Staircase is one of the most recognizable features of the Palais Garnier, the Parisian landmark that became the 13th theater to house the Opéra when it opened in 1875. At the foot of the double marble staircase stand two bronze female statues holding bouquets of light. New Yorkers: do these steps look familiar? Well, they should, because they were the model for the stairways at Grand Central Terminal that rise up from the Main Concourse.  —Briana Fasone

Winding up the cylindrical Gothic tower of Palazzo Contarini del Bovolo is this spiral staircase with elegant white vertical arches. The stairs are said to be the work of Giovanni Candi, who was employed by the aristocratic Contarini family to enhance the tower at the turn of the 16th century. Climb to the top for a fantastic panoramic view of Venice. —Briana Fasone

Architect I. M. Pei’s controversial addition of a 71-foot glass pyramid is now as iconic as the Louvre’s original 18th-century structure. This staircase within the pyramid leads visitors down to the Louvre’s subterranean plaza. Centered in the museum’s old stone courtyard and unveiled in 1989, the pyramid has become a preferred entryway to the galleries. —Briana Fasone

The MAXXI Museum immediately makes a big impression, thanks to this colossal black-painted steel staircase, which connects multilevel atriums. Designed by Zaha Hadid, Italy’s first public museum for contemporary arts was hailed at its 2010 opening as a modern architectural wonder—and our readers seem to agree. MAXXI was voted one of the world's top new landmarks in a recent survey. —Briana Fasone

Originally built for pedestrians passing from Vendome Street up to Descanso Drive in L.A.’s hilly Silver Lake district, these steps got their moment of fame in the Laurel and Hardy 1932 short The Music Box: the comedic duo unsuccessfully attempts to move a piano up this long flight of steps. See the steps and the rest of the beautiful neighborhood by walking the Music Box Loop, as outlined in the book Secret Stairs: A Walking Guide to the Historic Staircases of Los Angeles. —Lyndsey Matthews

Haunted by spirits, widow Sarah Winchester dedicated her time to the continuous construction of this beautiful Victorian mansion. There are many strange elements, but the most curious may be the staircase that dead-ends in the ceiling. Some speculate that Mrs. Winchester chose this baffling design to confuse evil spirits and throw them off her track. —Lyndsey Matthews

To overcome a steep climb over the Traversiner Ravine, Jürg Conzett designed this wooden suspension bridge to be a hanging staircase. Hikers ascend 176 steps to cross over this abyss in the Viamala Gorge. Photographer Wilfried Dechau captured the bridge’s construction in a beautiful photo book released after the bridge’s completion in 2005. —Lyndsey Matthews

This grand double staircase, with its original wrought-iron balustrade and vivid patterned carpeting, swirls up three stories of this Gothic Revival hotel adjacent to St. Pancras Station. It was lovingly restored in 2011, but much of its original late-19th-century character remains, from the vaulted gold-leaf ceiling to the red hand-stenciled wall designs. Even the Spice Girls took a liking to this staircase, dancing on the steps in their music video for “Wannabe” back in 1994. —Briana Fasone

Guests can’t help but see red in this hotel lobby, dominated by a commanding staircase with dizzying mirrored walls, patterned tile floors, and dripping chandeliers. The stairs branch out toward 149 luxe rooms that were redesigned by Philippe Starck in late 2010—and earned the Raffles property a spot in T+L’s annual It List. —Briana Fasone

The Manhattan flagship, opened in 2009, occupies 43,000 square feet of prime Fifth Avenue real estate—enough room for a restaurant, a chocolate shop, numerous Armani collections, and this fabulous whirling staircase clad in white plastic. Designed by Doriana and Massimiliano Fuksas, it links four floors of suits, shoes, handbags, and yes, designer underwear. —Briana Fasone

Artist Charles Jencks built this cascading switchback of steps to represent the story of the universe and its development over billions of years. They descend from Portrack House to the architectural garden below. Though the gardens are private, they open to the public once a year through Scotland’s Gardens Scheme to raise money for Maggie’s Cancer Caring Centres, in honor of Jencks’s late wife. —Lyndsey Matthews

This beautiful Baroque staircase is widely believed to be the handiwork of Neapolitan architect Ferdinando Sanfelice. While it looks like an open-faced building, the double flight of stairs was actually built in 1738 to connect multiple stories of two buildings he owned. Over the years, several Italian filmmakers featured the ornate carvings and arches of this pistachio-and-cream-colored masterpiece in their films, including John Turturro’s recent Passione. —Lyndsey Matthews