The planet looks pretty amazing from up high. From skyscraper-clad cities to scenic national parks, many spots take on a whole new dimension when the camera is pointed downwards. We've picked some of our favourite aerial shots that capture the Earth from new heights.

The Tegallalang rice terraces are less than 6 miles from Ubud, a Balinese town known for its laid-back culture and bounty of backpackers. From the air, the lush, terraced rice fields scattered with palms and wandering tourists look almost otherworldly. On the ground, you can tour the terraces with a local guide or walk around alone – visit early in the day for cooler temperatures and fewer crowds.

Hong Kong's skyline is the stuff of legend with skyscrapers glittering in the inner city and at the water's edge. The glassy Bank of China Tower, the pointed Central Plaza and the Manhattan Heights building are all among the most striking structures. Gazing upwards is enough to give you vertigo but you'll get an even more impressive view of the urban forest from above. For soaring vistas, many visitors take the tram to the top of Victoria Peak, a 1,811-foot bluff that looks out over the city. Read our guide to Hong Kong here.

The pretty Maltese island of Gozo is worth a visit for its Neolithic sites and rugged stretches of coastline. The isle is also famous for its salt production and in the north you'll find large clusters of salt pans. They're are at their most picturesque when seen from above: the pans appear like a mosaic with hues of earth brown, white and sand punctured by emerald-green water.

The Golden State has many celebrated stretches of coastline (we're looking at you, Big Sur), but the glorious Shark Fin Cove in Davenport, Santa Cruz County is often overlooked. It's named for the fin-like hunk of rock that rises from the Pacific Ocean moments from the shore. While the spot is beautiful from the ground, from above you can appreciate the drama of the frothing waves and sheer cliffs.

The Thai island of Koh Lipe floats in the Andaman Sea, dotted with swish resorts and fringed with sugar-white sands. While the island has become busier in recent years, there are still pockets of calm to be found and from the sky you can appreciate the crystal clarity of its waters. Popular activities here include snorkelling, diving and drifting along in a colourful boat with a local guide at the helm.

You may well have seen the revered Golden Gate Bridge from vantage points such as Fort Point or Baker Beach, but it takes on a whole new dimension when seen from up high. Cars appear like ants below and the giant red span, 4,200-feet across, contrasts dramatically with the deep-blue bay. You can get a similar view on a helicopter tour, such as those run by San Francisco Helicopters.

Calm, blue waters and soft, white sands characterise Grace Bay on Providenciales (Provo), part of the idyllic Turks and Caicos archipelago. While some crescents of sand on the isle have loungers and umbrellas belonging to nearby resorts, others are pristine and quiet. And the waters, with their colourful cays and marine life, are a haven for divers and snorkellers. The stillness here is captured from above.

The formidable Namib Desert is thought to be the oldest in the world, its sunset dunes and famous petrified trees attracting many adventurous travellers. Helicopter tours are common here and from above, the expanse appears like a golden ocean with sandy waves rippling and breaking below. The occasional oryx may break up the orange abyss.

If it's a white-knuckle ride you're after, the mountain road of Transfăgărășan truly delivers. Traversing the imposing Fagaras mountains, it spools out for some 60 miles, slicing through moss-green landscapes as it goes. Its sharp switchbacks can be truly appreciated from above. Discover more incredible roads around the world here.

The Niagara Falls is a cluster of three sensational cascades: Horseshoe Falls, American Falls and Bridal Veil Falls. Pictured here in aerial view is Horseshoe Falls, so named for its curved shape. The magnitude of this thundering arch of water – it's 188 feet in height and it bends round for some 2,200 feet – is only truly comprehensible from above. For comparison, check out the size of the boat here, as it edges towards the white curtain of water. Find stunning pictures of more amazing waterfalls here.

The Big Apple loves the camera from any angle but it's truly jaw-dropping from above. Sweeping over Midtown, this shot takes in leafy Bryant Park and the striking Bank of America Tower at One Bryant Park, with its angular roof and bold spire. Toy-like cars weave through the thoroughfares below. Read our guide to what to do, see and eat on the ground in New York.

The Land of Ice and Fire is a stunner whichever way you look at it, but from above there's extra drama. This highland road slices through Iceland's Interior, not far from the volcanic fissure of Laki. A bird's-eye view shows how the lime-green moss contrasts with the ink black of the lava rocks. Due to the rugged nature of Iceland's Highland roads, you can only drive them in summer.

Chile's Atacama Desert is one of the driest places on the planet with rust-red rocks, cracked earth and white salt pans. From the sky, you can see how green-blue lagoons break up the arid expanse. They include smaller pools like the one pictured, close to the town of San Pedro de Atacama, plus spots popular with tourists such as Laguna Cejar, shaped a little like a fish, and larger Laguna Tebinquiche.

San Francisco is famed for its steeper than steep roads and this aerial shot shows the tight twists and turns of a section of the city's Lombard Street. You can see why it's affectionately known as 'Crooked Street'. It was built this way to help combat the steepness of the road but its abrupt hair-pin bends present their own set of challenges for drivers. The road is also popular with tourists who can alight from one of the city's famous cable cars right by the wiggly route.

These otherworldly rock formations are found in Nā Pali Coast State Wilderness Park on Kauai, which is often dubbed the 'Garden Isle' for its abundance of forest and greenery. Indeed Nā Pali's russet mountains, rugged and deeply ridged, are splashed with green, plunging towards champagne sands and the Pacific Ocean. Many take in this 17-mile stretch of coastline by boat but the most epic vistas are from up high.

Shanghai is well known as a thrumming hive of activity and its perpetual motion can be perfectly captured from above. A handful of skyscrapers rise beside the busy Yan'an Elevated Road Interchange which is peppered with cars and features an expressway which spools from every compass point, knotting in the middle. It was completed in 1996 and has since made a cameo in James Bond movie Skyfall.

Green-topped cliffs, cobalt waters and pale gold sands are reason enough to visit this strand on the Greek island of Zakynthos. But the ambient shipwreck settled on the sand is what really intrigues travellers and it has earned Navagio the moniker of 'Shipwreck Beach'. Once sailed by smugglers, the ship is thought to have been washed up in the 1980s. Here it appears as a mere speck on the sand, protected by arching limestone crags. Find more stunning photos of the world's most spectacular shipwrecks here.

Berthoud Pass is a lofty route through the Rocky Mountains in the southwestern state of Colorado. The pass sits at an elevation of 11,307 feet, stretching from Clear Creek Canyon to Fraser River, and has been used since the 1860s. There are incredible views over the surrounding forestland from the road but from directly above, the snow-covered evergreens seem almost to burst from ground, an explosion of frosted branches and leaves dusted in white.

Kenya's Maasai Mara National Reserve stretches for 580 square miles and is home to wildlife such as wildebeests, impala and the Big Five: leopards, rhinos, elephants, cape buffalo and, of course, lions. The area is a popular place for safaris but the sheer size of the preserve means you're unlikely to see all the incredible wildlife that inhabits the park. You can cover more ground from the air, though, and here, two courting lions gaze up at the curious phenomena above.

This wave-beaten outcrop is the most westerly point in Europe, situated in Portugal's Peniche area. Those willing to strike this far west will be afforded uninterrupted views across the Atlantic Ocean. From up high, the drama of the natural rock formations come into the fore. Beaten into shape over many years by wind and water, the crags look like mismatched jigsaw puzzles, with determined greenery forcing its way through the cracks.

The Great Ocean Road runs along the south coast of Australia, in Victoria, and is rightly held up as one of the country's greatest drives. Along the way, the Twelve Apostles are a top sight: these limestone sea stacks were formed by erosion thought to have begun between 10–20 million years ago, and today they jut from the Southern Ocean, still lapped by foaming waves. Helicopters soar over the natural landmarks, offering a bird's-eye view of the stacks plus the orange sands and green ocean below.

It's the perfect symmetry of this roundabout in Bangkok that makes it such a superb feat, especially when viewed from the air. Wongwian Yai can be found in the city's Thonburi district, close to the Chao Phraya River. Its name means 'big circle' and at the centre you'll find a statue of former Thai leader King Taksin. You can't see the statue from this bird's-eye view but you can drink in the perfectly balanced concentric circles and the straight splay of roads decorated with bug-like cars.

Northern Thailand is awash with tea plantations and there are several that are an easy day trip from the city of Chiang Rai. One of the most popular is Choui Fong Tea Farm, where tea leaves are hand-picked by highly-trained workers. The plantation is already at an altitude of more than 3,900 feet above sea level but looking down on the farm, you can soak in the pickers weaving between neat, maze-like rows of tea plants.

Home to the Toronto Blue Jays, the city's Rogers Centre attracts many a tourist eager to soak up the buzz of a Major League Baseball game. While a stadium might not first spring to mind when imagining a scenic view, the angular venue is a pleasing sight from above. The arch of fans appears like rainbow confetti in the stands, contrasting with the field's popping blocks of grass green and terracotta. We bet you can hear the roaring cheers from up high too. Read more about what to do in Toronto here.

With an area of less than 8 square miles, dinky Silhouette Island is part of the Seychelles archipelago and if you're dreaming of paradise, this is as close as you might get. The surrounding waters are a National Marine Park and Silhouette National Park protects more than 90% of the island's land. That means this glorious aerial image shows the real thing: pristine white beaches scattered with rocks and edged by clear blue waters and flourishing forestland.

When it comes to fall foliage, New England is held on a pedestal but the Midwest boasts some stunning autumnal vistas too. A relatively unknown pocket of rural eastern Michigan, Richfield County Park in Davison puts on an incredible display for the season. BMX tracks, hiking and cross-country ski trails lace through the park, whose fiery orange and ochre trees look glorious from above. Discover more under-the-radar leaf-peeping spots here.

Fez has become a deserving fixture of the tourist trail in Morocco, with the city best known for its medieval walled medina filled with souks and riads. Getting up high offers the chance to drink in sweeping views of the city's colourful rooftops, arranged like a Cubist painting, plus its famous tanneries (at the centre of this photo). In the Tanner's Quarter you'll see workers plunge hides into pits of dye, coloured deep brown, tan, mauve and white.

Though Turkey's tourism industry has suffered in recent years, it's rebuilding once more. The UK'S Foreign and Commonwealth Office has now lifted a number of its warnings, and Turkey still remains a top spot for those after a cultural escape or a fly-and-flop break. This sweeping aerial snap of Cleopatra Beach in Analya captures the latter: the motley umbrellas show up like polka dots on the sand and the dinky tourists rush between their sun-loungers and the sea.

The Okavango Delta in Botswana is described as 'Africa's last Eden' – not too bold a claim given the unspoiled nature and diverse wildlife of this sprawling wetland area. The fluctuating delta is created as the Okavango River floods the Kalahari Desert, and is at its largest from March through to June. Some 160 species of mammal can be found within the delta area from the African bush elephant to big cats like lions and cheetah. Here, two lone hippos wade through the lush wetlands.

The Ningaloo Marine Park off the shores of Exmouth hugs more than 160 miles of Western Australia's coastline, and is home to more than 500 species of fish and 200 types of coral. From this eagle viewpoint, you can see how the cyan waters meet the pale shores of Cape Range National Park, known for its sandy beaches, rugged gorges and orange rockscapes. We're too high in the sky here to spot the park's resident wildlife: kangaroo, wallabies, dingoes and more.

The chocolatey canals and rivers of Vietnam's Mekong Delta routinely buzz with activity, specked with simple boats steered by tourists or locals operating floating markets. All around are verdant rice paddies and fruit-filled orchards. This snapshot shows four wooden boats bobbing on the water, piled high with colourful fruit and carrying several busy vendors.

Rio de Janeiro is a joy to admire from heady heights with Sugar Loaf Mountain and Christ the Redeemer among the city's most lauded sights. This downward-looking view of Copacabana beach offers a glorious glimpse of the swirling mosaic sidewalk that fringes the palm-lined sands. Look at it up close by idling along the edge of the strand, ice cream in hand.

Switzerland's Rheinschlucht, or Rhine Gorge, in the east of the country, was made to be viewed from above. Often dubbed Switzerland's Grand Canyon, the area is filled with forest-covered banks which stand proud at the edge of the Rhine. Winding roads beat through the area and travellers can take in scenic views from the Rhaetian Railways routes which operate here.

While it may look like a giant paint palette, this pink landscape is actually made up of salt flats and is situated in the seaside resort of Colonia de Sant Jordi in Mallorca's Ses Salines district. Salt is a major export here and a great source of local pride – a symbol of a salt mound even appears on the area's coat of arms. The colours – earthy pink, deep tan and rich nude – pop when captured from up high.

Dubai has little shortage of futuristic vistas, from its uber-modern skyscrapers to its elaborate hotels. Pictured here is the first interchange on Sheikh Zayed Road, the longest road in the UAE. A stone's throw from the towering Burj Khalifa, the interchange is at its most impressive captured overhead and lit up at night, its glowing roads tangling like knotted cables. Read our full guide to Dubai here.

These 'rainbow mountains', found in Zhangye National Geopark in northern China, look like they've been painted by hand. They take on their colour from many millions of years of mineral and sandstone deposits, while the dramatic dimples and ridges were chiselled out by wind and rain. A top view brings the bands of dandelion yellow, red and electric blue into breathtaking focus.

The lavender fields of France's Provence region explode in a fragrant haze of purple from around mid-June up until August (though they're at their peak in early July). Top spots for a sighting include around the mountainous Luberon area – the beautiful Sénanque Abbey, with its fields of purple out front, is often photographed. Looking down, though, you can admire the precise lines of purple sweeping in diagonal lines across the landscape.

Shifen Waterfall, in Taiwan's Pingxi District, is not the world's most famous cascade but it's one of the best looking from above. It crashes over terraced rock for more than 130 feet but despite its power, the water remains gloriously glassy on top, like an infinity pool at a swish hotel. A top view captures the water's surprising stillness. If the conditions are right, you might even spot a rainbow arching from the water.

Reached from the Omani town of Al Hamra, Misfat Al Abriyeen is a picturesque mountain village that's now on the radar of some adventurous travellers. It's best known for its traditional mud-brick houses which cling to the mountainside. Here, their flat, cube-like roofs are highlighted by the bright green date palms all around.

Dubrovnik needs little introduction, loved as it is by Game of Thrones devotees (it was used as a location for the hit TV series) and sun-seeking city breakers alike. This expansive shot offers a new perspective on the city's well-trodden Old Town. The deep blue of the ocean contrasts with Dubrovnik's signature terracotta roofs which are edged by the city's defensive walls. Those who want a view from above should take the cable car to the top of Mount Srđ.

On a trip to Channel Island Guernsey, history buffs will love visiting Clarence Battery, a defensive site with views over St Peter Port and remnants of the old artillery once stored here. From up high, take in the ruins of defensive structures, the rocky shoreline, the dense thickets and the lapping waves of the English Channel. Read our perfect weekend itinerary in Guernsey here.

North Iceland exists largely off the tourist map, but this eye-popping shot of Hverir Geothermal Area proves why the country's northern reaches should be on your radar. This is a landscape filled with simmering mud pots and hissing hot springs, and is part of the so-called 'Diamond Circle' – the northern answer to Iceland's Golden Circle down south. A view from the sky shows the brilliant tones of blue and yellow, not too dissimilar to the US' famous Grand Prismatic Spring.

The mountain-carved roads of Chapman's Peak Drive will undoubtedly make you dizzy, whether experienced by car or viewed from above like this. The 5.5-mile route spreads out from the Cape Town suburb of Hout Bay and rises up to a stunning vantage point, before dropping back down to Noordhoek. This top shot shows the tiny size of the road relative to the craggy rocks of Chapman's Peak and the swirling ocean below. Explore more of Cape Town with our guide.

The mountain city of Ronda, in the province of Málaga, is one of Spain's most photogenic spots. It's sliced in half by the El Tajo gorge, which plunges down for more than 300 feet. Ronda's two segments are joined up by the dramatic Puente Nuevo or 'New Bridge', which is held up by giant stone arches. This aerial photograph shows the scenic bridge, as well as the head-spinning drop into the gorge below.

This dazzling glacial lagoon sits immediately south of Vatnajökull National Park. Jökulsárlón plunges down for 650 feet, though its placid surface, dotted with 1000-year-old hunks of ice, gives no whisper of its great depth, especially when viewed from the sky. Down below, seals call the lagoon home and tourists take boat rides across the water.

Rub' Al Khali, part of the Arabian Desert, means 'empty quarter' in Arabic and this sprawling area covers swathes of Saudi Arabia, Oman, Yemen and the UAE. It lays claim to being the largest continuous area of sand on the planet. From above, the shrub-flecked landscape appears surreal with sandy orange crests and shadowy ridges. It's not hard to see why it was used as a location for Star Wars: The Force Awakens.

The serene oasis of the Maldives' Vaavu Atoll is a world-class diving destination with pristine coral reefs and diverse marine life, including bright butterflyfish, manta rays and even hammerhead sharks. This dreamy bird's-eye shot skims over the turquoise waters, showing the clusters of coral beneath the surface and a lone shipwreck poking out from the water.

Floating in the sapphire Lake Bled is the little islet of the same name. Bled Island is celebrated for its fairy-tale church, the Church of the Mother of God whose tower rewards visitors with panoramic views of the glacial lake. But when seen from the air, the famous church is overshadowed by Provost's House with its sloping roof and the mottled greenery that surrounds the islet.

You might not consider Portugal a top destination for tea production but the Gorreana Tea Factory on São Miguel Island in the Azores archipelago has been operating since 1883. It claims to be the only tea plantation in Europe and attracts thousands in the know every year. A view over the fields shows prim rows of the tea plants, broken up only by the odd tree or diagonal pathway.

You'll likely be familiar with Santorini's sugar-cube buildings from the pages of glossy travel brochures but they take on new life when seen from the air. Captured here is the village of Pyrgos Kallistis (better known as just Pyrgos) and the white-washed houses, labyrinthine passageways and contrasting blue domes appear like a geometric pattern. Explore things to do and see in Santorini here.

At first look, you might not believe that this smooth sweep of sand can be found in Britain but you'll come across its idyllic expanse in the southwestern county of Devon. Tucked as it is between two headlands, the strand remains comfortably sheltered from the wind. While  summer sunbathers lounge on the fine sand, surfers take to the waves. Here, the immaculate, water-streaked sand can be seen in all its glory, with coastal walkers making the first footprints.

Montenegro's Bay of Kotor is lined with terracotta-roofed medieval towns, the best known of which is namesake Kotor. Posh marina towns such as Tivat also fringe the bay, tourist boats and cruise liners ply the water, and coastal roads wind beside the shore. This aerial view captures the magic. 

Read more: The best views in the world (but only for the brave)

Canada has such an impressive number of national parks that the country's lesser-known provincial parks often fly under the radar. But Joffre Lakes Provincial Park in southeastern British Columbia is a vision in blue and green, its turquoise lakes hemmed in by a rush of evergreen trees and glacial peaks. Hiking trails criss-cross the park which is inhabited by grizzly bears and mountain goats, and its dramatic blocks of colour are even more striking from above.

Read more: 50 of the most beautiful small towns in the world

One of the USA's most revered natural wonders, Grand Prismatic Spring, the largest hot spring in the country, is located in Yellowstone National Park. The pool is a fierce blue with a ring of acid yellow and bright orange framing it like fire, and its psychedelic colours are caused by bacteria which thrives in the heat. From above you can better comprehend its scale (it's 370 feet in diameter) and the way its rainbow colours contrast with the pale earth all around. Plan your northern Wyoming road trip including Yellowstone here.

Read more: The world's most stunning clifftop towns