Carved out over the course of thousands, if not millions, of years, these rock landscapes are nothing short of breathtaking. From red sandstone slot canyons and volcanic fairy chimneys, to gravity-defying balancing rocks and precarious-looking arches, it’s amazing how much diversity there is in our planet’s geology. Intrigued? Read on to feast your eyes on the Earth’s most gorgeous rock formations.

The clue’s in the name: Arizona’s Vermilion Cliffs are as bright red as you’d expect. But they’re also ochre, scarlet, terracotta and sunshine yellow in places. Located along the Utah/Arizona border, the 280,000-acre national monument is home to myriad enchanting landscapes, the most famous being The Wave. This undulating formation was shaped during the Jurassic period, when sand dunes were swept across the desert by wind, while the different-coloured bands were created by chemicals left on the rock by water runoff. 

Perhaps she didn’t know it at the time, but Mother Nature created the perfect photo opportunity with Preikestolen in Norway. This dramatic granite shelf, towering 1,982 feet (604m) above the Lysefjord, has become a popular attraction thanks to its panoramic views across southwestern Norway’s hulking mountains. Getting there is no mean feat though: visitors will have to trek for around four hours, gaining more than 1,640 feet (500m) in elevation, to reach the picture-perfect spot.

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Along the Nanya Geological Hiking Trail, on Taiwan’s northern coastline near Taipei, sits a mesmerising rock formation that looks like an upturned ice cream cone. The aptly named Ice Cream Rock has many different layers, some of which jut out or cave in – that’s because the rock varies in thickness and hardness so it erodes at different rates. The 0.2-mile (0.3km) long hiking trail is home to several other rock formations with equally whimsical names, including Bamboo Shoot Rock and Fur Seal Rock.

The rainbow stripes of China’s Danxia landforms look like they’ve been painted onto the rock. But they’re actually the result of complex geologic processes. Millions of years ago, sandstone and other minerals left in rivers formed into distinctive layers. Then the collision of tectonic plates caused the land to form mountains, which gradually lifted above sea level. The UNESCO-recognised Zhangye Danxia National Geological Park, often nicknamed the “Rainbow Mountains”, encompasses around 19 square miles (50sq km) of southwestern China.

Composed of around 40,000 interlocking hexagonal columns, the Giant’s Causeway is spectacular. This stretch of Northern Ireland’s Antrim Coast gained its name from the legend of a giant called Finn McCool, who is said to have built the basalt stepping-stones to go and fight his enemy, Bernadonner. Or, if you’re after the geological explanation, the shoreline was created when lava flows solidified into pillars as they cooled.

You might be surprised to learn that this multicoloured mountain was only discovered back in 2015, when the blanket of snow that had once covered it melted away. Located at 17,060 feet (5,200m) above sea level in the Peruvian Andes, its rainbow hues were created by different coloured minerals in layers of sedimentary rock that weathered over time. However, the revelation of the stunning peak isn't exactly cause for celebration: the ice caps in this region have melted away more quickly due to climate change. 

Southern Australia’s 413-mile (664km) long Great Ocean Road skirts past some pretty amazing sights, and the Twelve Apostles are one of the main events. The name's a little misleading though: there were only ever nine of these limestone sea stacks (12 is a biblical reference), then two collapsed in the 2000s. They’re best viewed at sunset, when illuminated by a golden hue as the sun creeps lower in the sky.

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Jutting out from the coastline like broken-off jigsaw pieces, Old Harry Rocks are an impressive collection of chalk stacks. “Old Harry” technically refers to the stack furthest out to sea – there used to be another one next to it called Old Harry’s wife, which fell down in 1896 – yet the moniker is used for the whole group. Located along Dorset’s stunning Jurassic Coast, the rock formations were connected to The Needles on the Isle of Wight thousands of years ago, but the line of hills that joined the land together eroded in the last ice age.

Somewhat unfairly, these otherworldly stone pillars are little-known outside of Russia. Situated in the Ural Mountains, the seven enormous rock formations reach heights of more than 200 feet (61m), earning them the nickname, “The Seven Strong Men”. They were formed millions of years ago after a mountain range was weathered by snow, rain and wind, managing to survive because they’re made of stronger, quartz-containing rock.

One image isn’t enough to capture the ever-changing beauty of Antelope Canyon, which looks radically different throughout the day, depending on how the light hits it. The vivid red sandstone slot canyon, situated near Page, Arizona, owes its wave-like shape to the way in which water ran it over the course of centuries. In fact the ravine, situated on land belonging to the LeChee Chapter of the Navajo Nation, is referred to by Navajo people as “the place where water runs through rocks”. 

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The world’s largest monolith, Uluru (Ayers Rock) looms 1,142 feet (348m) above the surrounding desert. It’s of deep importance to the Anangu people who have lived in Central Australia for more than 60,000 years, and there are a number of sacred caves at its base filled with carvings and paintings. According to scientists, Uluru dates back around 500 million years, around the same time the Australian continent was formed.

The torres (towers) that give Torres del Paine National Park its name certainly don’t disappoint. As if from a fantasy movie, these majestic granite spires tower above turquoise lakes and glaciers, providing photo opportunities at every turn. The national park, located in southern Chilean Patagonia, is filled with an array of wildlife, including Magellanic penguins, Andean condors, pumas, foxes and hawks.

Rock formations don’t get much more gravity-defying than this. The 20-foot (6m) basalt column has been eroded so that just a corner remains attached to the rock below, looking like it might collapse at any moment. It’s reached via a short ferry ride from Digby Neck on the mainland, followed by a 1.6-mile (2.5km) round-trip hike, which includes 235 steps to reach the end of the trail. 

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A dense covering of subtropical forest makes the craggy peaks of Wulingyuan, located in China’s Hunan Province, look all the more special. The 26,000-hectare UNESCO World Heritage Site is composed of quartz and sandstone rock, which has been eroded into an awe-inspiring landscape filled with spires, pillars, ravines, natural rock bridges and caves. It’s said that movie director James Cameron got his inspiration for the fictional world of Avatar (2009) here. 

Corcovado might be Rio's most recognisable peak, but Sugar Loaf Mountain, which looms in the distance, has a distinct charm of its own. The cone-shaped granite mountain rises 1,296 feet (395m) and can be reached via a cable car from neighbouring Urca Hill. It dates back to the period that the Gondwana continent was formed, around 550 million years ago, and was likely created when granite filled into a fracture in the surrounding sedimentary rock.

Nicknamed “Rhino Rock” for its silhouette, Hvítserkur looms over Húnaflói Bay on the Vatnsnes Peninsula. The 49-foot (15m) tall sea stack was created when magma solidified in the neck of a volcano – but the surrounding rock was weathered away, leaving only this strangely shaped structure. The black sandy beach, which is visible at low tide, only makes the scene more striking.

Home to the largest concentration of hoodoos on Earth, Bryce Canyon National Park is filled with a dizzying number of these majestic spires. Beginning around 50 million years ago, flat-lying rocks were deposited at the bottom of a river basin, then the uplifting of tectonic plates led to its higher elevation. Later, weathering and erosion broke down the surrounding rocks, leaving the unusual pillars we see today. They look especially spectacular at sunrise and sunset, or under a fresh dusting of snowfall. 

There are no prizes for guessing how Wave Rock got its name. In fact, the 360-foot (110m) long cliff in Hyden, Western Australia looks so convincing that many tourists pose surfer-style on its granite face. Novelty photo opportunities aside, the recognisable landform was formed some 2,700 million years ago and owes its striped appearance to the way water has run down its face, depositing chemicals along the way.

Vertigo-inducing to look at, Kjeragbolten is a boulder wedged between two cliffs at a towering 3,556 feet (1,084m) above sea level. It overlooks the Lysefjord (just like striking Preikestolen) and attracts more than its fair share of daredevils who come to take pictures perching on the rock. And you’ve got to be an adventurous type just to get here: it’s only accessible via a six to ten-hour round-trip hike which includes a 2,625 feet (800m) elevation gain.

With their gorgeous swirls and stripes, the Painted Cliffs on Tasmania’s Maria Island look like a modern art installation. But rather than being the work of any great artist, they were created by iron-rich groundwater, which filtered through the sandstone rock and left streaks of colour across the cliffs. Meanwhile, wave action has carved the rock into its top-heavy shape.

Few have ever visited Madagascar’s Tsingy de Bemaraha National Park, despite the fact it’s home to some of the most magnificent rock formations on Earth. That’s because the UNESCO World Heritage Site can only be reached via a dirt track – which is inaccessible for half of the year due to the rainy season – plus a ferry journey across crocodile-filled waters. Once visitors arrive, they’ll need to don a safety harness to climb the many ladders and suspension bridges across the limestone karst landscape.

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Many visitors head to Egypt to check out the Valley of the Kings, the Great Sphinx of Giza or the Pyramids. But there are plenty of lesser-known natural wonders here too. Chief among them is the glorious White Desert National Park, a 115.8-square mile (300sq km) expanse of sandy desert in central Egypt filled with plenty of intriguing rock formations. This otherworldly landscape owes its pristine white colour to the presence of white calcium, limestone and quartz crystals.

It’s impossible to show the diversity of the rock-formed landscapes in Yehliu Geopark in just one picture. The mile-long (1.7km) stretch of the northern Taiwan coastline is like a natural sculpture park, filled with sedimentary hoodoo rocks in a variety of strange shapes from mushrooms to cones to faces. There’s even one that’s been named “The Queen’s Head” for its resemblance to a monarch in profile. What’s more, these are some of the only hoodoos known to exist in a coastal environment. 

Although it lost the famous Wall Arch one fateful day in 2008, aptly named Arches National Park still has plenty of the stunning rock formations to choose from. Or, to be more precise, around 2,000 of them. Situated in Moab in eastern Utah, the red sandstone landscape dates back around 65 million years and has been gradually sculpted by rainfall, wind, frost and snow. 

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The cluster of 1,600 islands, islets and pillars in Vietnam’s Hạ Long Bay looks almost like a half-sunken mountain range. This limestone landscape began to form around 340 million years ago, and gradually hardened and thickened into karsts due to the movement of the sea. As well as the stunning landforms themselves, there are plenty of intriguing caves filled with stalactites and stalagmites.

Looking like lumps of aerated chocolate, these famous peaks were named after the colour they turn in the dry season, when the verdant grasses that cover them dry up. The hills cover an area of around 19 square miles (50sq km) on Bohol Island, and Filipino legend states that the hills were created after a fight broke out between two giants. The giants began hurling rocks at each other which were left behind. Geologically speaking, there’s little consensus about how they came to be. One common theory suggests that they were formed by the erosion of limestone underwater, which was then uplifted due to tectonic plate movement. 

Natural beauty and feats of human engineering come together at Bastei. Situated in Saxon Switzerland National Park, the fantasy-esque sandstone spires were formed under the sea millions of years ago. In the early 1800s, locals built a wooden bridge across the pillars in an effort to entice tourists. Then in 1851, a sandstone replacement bridge was built, which still stands today. However, it soars to a height of more than 1,000 feet (305m), so crossing it is not for the faint-hearted.

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In the heart of the Siloli Desert lies an unusual rock formation that looks like a tree – hence the name Árbol de Piedra, meaning “stone tree”. The 16-foot (5m) tall rock has been whipped into shape by the wind, which carries sandstone and salt particles that have gradually carved it out. It’s made up of quartz at the base, which erodes at a faster rate, and iron at the top, which wears away more slowly, leading to its top-heavy shape.

A similar type of rock formation to the Giant’s Causeway, the Organ Pipes are a series of intriguing basalt columns near Twyfelfontein, Namibia. They were formed around 150 million years ago, during the time that the ancient continent of Gondwana was beginning to break apart. As it moved, lava pushed up through slate rock, hardening into columns. Thanks to their sharp lines and vibrant colour palette of rich red, burnt umber and charcoal hues, the rocks are extremely popular with photographers.

So-named because they could have been stolen from a fairy tale, Cappadoccia’s Fairy Chimneys are easily one of the most enchanting places on Earth. Beginning millions of years ago, volcanic eruptions left a thick layer of soft rock, known as tuff, in this region. The softer tuff wore down, leaving pillars of harder rock, some of which are 130 feet (40m) tall. Adding to the magic, in Roman times a number of tiny dwellings were carved into the rock by local people.

Towering 235 feet (72m) above the sand, Haystack Rock draws in visitors from all over the world. The enormous monolith, located at Cannon Beach in Clatsop County, was formed by lava flows from the Blue Mountains and the Columbia Basin, which also created many other sea stacks along the Oregon coast. As the tide sweeps out, a patchwork of pools filled with colourful starfish, green anemones, crabs, corals and limpets are revealed at its base.

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Geologically speaking, Fingal's Cave is a bit like a long-lost sibling of Northern Ireland's Giant's Causeway. It was the same process of lava flows, some 60 million years ago, that formed the recognisable basalt columns of this 72-foot (22m) tall sea cave on the coast of Staffa in the Inner Hebrides. The cave also features in legends about the fight between Irish giant Finn McCool and Scottish rival Bernadonner and is said to have inspired famous visitors from the poet William Wordsworth to Queen Victoria.

The Norfolk town of Hunstanton is home to some of Britain's most spellbinding cliffs. They have three distinctive layers: brown carstone at the base, red chalk (its colour is thanks to the oxidisation of iron) in the middle and white chalk at the top – all formed between 135 and 70 million years ago. Hunstanton became a popular tourist destination in the Victorian era and since then it's kept its time-honoured appeal, with many visitors choosing to walk along the mile-long (1.5km) stretch of beach overlooked by the striped cliffs. 

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The fact that it’s surrounded on all sides by sweeping prairie only makes the Devils Tower, a 1,267-foot (386m) butte, look all the more dramatic. Located on Wyoming’s Northern Plains, the monument is regarded as sacred and is the site of ceremonial rituals for indigenous groups in the area, including the Arapaho, Cheyenne, Kiowa and Lakota. It was likely formed when lava pushed upwards and hit hard rock, forcing it to spread outwards and creating the recognisable flat-topped shape.

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