Sydney Opera House has been named as the top modern wonder of the world in a new survey of Britons this week.
Halifax conducted a poll of 2,000 holidaymakers and found that the iconic building came out at number one, beating off competition from the Eiffel Tower in Paris and the Christ the Redeemer stature in Rio de Janeiro.
The research also showed that 45 per cent of respondents gave the reason for their choice as an admiration of architectural splendour, while 17 per cent listed TV and film appearances as the main basis.
Coming in at fourth place in the list was the Palm Resort in Dubai - an interesting inclusion considering it is still under construction at present.
The rest of the top ten was rounded off by the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, the Petronas Twin Towers in Kuala Lumpur, The Kremlin in Moscow, Ground Zero in New York, the CN Tower in Toronto and the Atomium in Brussels.
With many British travellers set to head for some of the destinations on the list, Halifax has warned that it is vital to take out
cheap travel insurance or a backpacker travel insurance policy.
Spokesperson Vicky Watson said: "For those who may be tempted to travel without any travel insurance at all, here's a sobering thought - if you have an accident and have to return to the UK due to medical reasons, it can cost as much as £45,000 to be repatriated from the USA. It's really not worth the risk."
