New Study Reveals Where Tourists Queue the Longest — But There's a Simple Way to Skip It

Tired of losing valuable holiday time queuing in what seems like endless queues? Travel specialist 'Just You' has unveiled its secret for beating the tourist trap nobody mentions – waiting times which can devour hours of your hard-earned break.

From majestic Taj Mahal in India, sun-kissed lines at Rome's Colosseum to serpentine queues wrapped around the Eiffel Tower in Paris, the world's most familiar landmarks have a common unpleasant attribute – queues which can swallow up three hours of your holiday day before you're able to whisper 'holiday disappointment.'

Which Are the Most Time Consuming Attractions in the World?

1. Taj Mahal in Agra, India: 4 hours

The gleaming white marble of the Taj Mahal in Agra may be India's most photographed attraction, but what the postcards don't show are the winding queues that can steal half your day faster than a monsoon downpour to visit other important places like Fort of Agra.

2. Château de Versailles in Paris, France: 2 hours 20 minutes

Versailles is one of the most iconic royal-related places in the world, and is the second biggest attraction in France but Chateau has a waiting time of more than two hours, which can be better used to keep exploring Paris. The tour itself is already very long considering the dozens of rooms in the palace and the time it takes to hear every backstory, so it's almost pointless to add those waiting times.

3. The Colosseum in Rome, Italy: 2 hours 30 minutes

Rome wasn't built in a day, but that is the amount of time some people spend in the Colosseum. The waiting time to enter this beautiful monument from the past is of 2 and a half hours, plus the time it takes to see all it has to offer. This waiting time can cut short a rich experience around the city of Rome, which has a lot to offer in gastronomy, other attractions and its impressive architecture.

4. Leaning Tower of Pisa in Pisa, Italy: 1 hour 50 minutes

The leaning tower of Pisa is considered the second most popular landmark in Italy, but this causes long lines that can diminish a positive experience. Although people prefer to take pictures with the tower in the garden outside, lines can go up to 2 hours, especially because of the 30-person limit they have on the tower, and the 35 minutes it takes to go up and down the landmark.

5. Uffizi Museum in Florence, Italy: 2 hours 30 minutes

The majestic Renaissance treasures of Florence's Uffizi Gallery draw art lovers from every corner of the globe, but the price of admission often includes an unexpected tax on your holiday time – a gruelling two-and-a-half hour queue that leaves many visitors too exhausted to truly appreciate Botticelli's Venus when they finally reach there.

6. Shrine Of Our Lady of Pompeii in Campania, Italy: 1 hour 20 minutes

7. Tokyo Tower Observation Deck in Tokyo, Japan: 1 hour

8. Blue Grotto in Capri, Italy: 1 hour 30 minutes

9. Te Puia Thermal Reserve in Rotorua, New Zealand: 1 hour 30 minutes

How Can Travellers Avoid These Long Lines?

Standing in queues for hours on end wasn't the picture-postcard holiday brochure, was it? And here you are, seeing valuable holiday time ticking away outside the Uffizi as Florence's cobblestone streets and hidden gems stay tantalisingly out of reach.

'This holiday anti-climax is exactly what 'Just You' tackles head-on', says Marketing Director Charlotte Field. 'We transport our travellers to the heart of their destination of choice and make them visit all its famous sights,' Field claims. Her company's secret? Holiday Directors who bypass the queues that make independent travellers fade in the Mediterranean sun.

The maths is grim. Total up the average waits – four disastrous hours at the Taj Mahal, three at Versailles, and a few more at each of Italy's most popular hotspots – and you've lost almost an entire day of your precious break standing around in trainers that aren't made to stand still.

What surprises many visitors is that even those who are savvy enough to reserve tickets in advance online still end up waiting in line. That 'skip the line' guarantee on most reservation sites actually typically means getting in another line – still hours, not minutes.

'By coming with us as part of an organised tour with a company like Just You, we can help you bypass the queue and get the most out of the stunning views we take you to,' says Field, dispelling the hype which has left so many holidaymakers disappointed.

The best recommendation possible is to hire a travel planner or specific tours that allow tourist to skip lines, even when buying tickets online, these tickets do not add fast-track or fast passes and can leave travellers waiting to see the attractions in the time-wasting long lines.

'Just You' and other similar apps offer the opportunity to skip more than 20 hours of queues with just a few clicks, something that wouldn't be possible otherwise and could leave travellers thinking about what other landmarks or iconic places they missed in a city because they were left waiting in a line.