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Rome - a traveler favorite in 2007

After much pummeling of calculators and mashing of spreadsheets, we’ve calculated our Top 25 Things to Do in Europe for 2007. As always there are some surprises on the list as well as some notable absences.

In the former category: Rome and Paris. Both of these cities continued to dominate travelers’ itineraries in Europe.

It’s a similar story with London and Florence, both of which maintained their popularity with travelers (and that’s despite the strong pound sterling!). We’re also very pleased to see Granada, Munich and Milan on the list.

And the absences? I’ll admit it, I have a soft spot for Istanbul, Dublin and Madrid. Yet none of these cities made it onto our list. Let’s agree to disagree for the time being.

(We’ll tackle these three cities - and why you should factor them into your 2008 travels - in a future post.) Anyway, enough of the overview let’s get into the winners…

Viator’s Top 25 Things To Do in Europe: 2007

25. Skip the Line: Vatican Museums Entrance Tickets, Rome, Italy

24. Capri and the Blue Grotto Full Day Tour, Rome, Italy

23. Florence Day Tour, Rome, Italy

22. Skip the Line: Guided Tour of the Louvre Museum, Paris, France

#16 - The Royal Castle of Neuschwanstein

21. Eiffel Tower Dinner and Seine River Cruise, Paris, France

20. Chianti Region with Wine Tasting Afternoon Tuscany Tour, Florence, Italy

19. Alhambra and Generalife - UNESCO World Heritage Site, Granada, Spain

18. Giverny and Versailles Day Trip, Paris, France

17. Bateaux Parisiens Dinner Cruise on the Seine, Paris, France

16. Royal Castles of Neuschwanstein and Linderhof Day Tour, Munich, Germany

15. Siena and San Gimignano Full Day Tuscany Tour, Florence, Italy

14. Florence City Sightseeing Morning, Afternoon or Full Day Tour, Florence, Italy

13. Paris City Hop On Hop Off Tour, Paris, France

12. Skip the Line: Vatican Museums Walking Tour including Sistine Chapel, Raphael’s Rooms and St Peter’s, Rome, Italy

11. The Paris Pass, Paris, France

10. Venice in One Day - The Original Venice Walk and Grand Canal Boat Tour, Venice, Italy

9. Dinner and Show at The Moulin Rouge, Paris, France

8. Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel and St. Peter’s Rome Walking Tour, Rome, Italy

#3. Eiffel Tower Dinner and Moulin Rouge Show

7. Paris Illuminations Tour and Moulin Rouge Show, Paris, France

6. Windsor Castle, Stonehenge and Georgian Bath, London, England

5. Rome Hop On Hop Off Double Decker Bus Tour, Rome, Italy

4. Sightseeing Tour including il Cenacolo - Da Vinci’s “Last Supper”, Milan, Italy

3. Eiffel Tower Dinner and Moulin Rouge Show, Paris, France

2. Naples and Pompeii Day Tour, Rome, Italy

1. Skip the Line: Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel Tour, Rome, Italy

Do you have your own list of favorite things to do in Europe? We’d love to hear about them. Simply leave us a reply below and we’ll add them to the list.

Stay tuned for our final ‘Best of’ lists in the coming days, to help you plan your next trip across the globe. In the meantime, if your curious about the top things to do last year in Europe, keep on reading…

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Statue of Liberty, New York City

If you’re already following Viator’s ‘Top 25 Things to Do’ list mania, then no explanation is needed; this is the second-to-last installment in our series of Top Things to Do in 2007, this time focusing on the USA & Canada.

And there are a few surprises. Apparently New York City was and is all the rage in 2007. New York was our most popular North American destination this past year, as evidenced by the number of NYC tours and activities that made it on the Top 25 list below.

Nipping at New York’s heals was good ol’ Las Vegas, Sin City. It’s no surprise that Las Vegas is one of the top travel destinations in the USA. But what is a little surprising is how Las Vegas is evolving into a regional hub for travelers to visit the Grand Canyon, Hoover Dam, even Death Valley. We were also pleased to see San Francisco represented on this year’s list.

The other big surprise in the list? Helicopter tours. You love them. Whether in New York City or the Grand Canyon or Las Vegas, helicopter tours and 2007 went together like peanut butter / Marmite / Vegemite and jelly / butter (take your pick).

Top 25 Things To Do in USA & Canada: 2007

25. Empire State Building Observatory, New York City, New York

24. West Rim Indian Country Deluxe Air and Ground Tour, Las Vegas, Nevada

#23. Everglades National Park

23. Everglades National Park, Miami City Tour and Biscayne Bay by Boat, Miami, Florida

22. Teatro ZinZanni: Love, Chaos and Dinner, San Francisco, California

21. Grand Canyon West Rim Van Tour with Optional Skywalk, Las Vegas, Nevada

20. VISITicket: Power Pass, Las Vegas, Nevada

19. Grand Canyon Helicopter Tour, Las Vegas, Nevada

18. The Phantom of the Opera On Broadway, New York City, New York

17. New York, New York Helicopter Flight, New York City, New York

16. Old Town Trolley Tours, Washington, DC

#17. New York, New York Helicopter Flight

15. Overnight Swim with Dolphins and Everglades Airboat Adventure, Orlando, Florida

14. Grand Canyon West Rim Air Adventure, Las Vegas, Nevada

13. Vegas Night Strip Helicopter Flight, Las Vegas, Nevada

12. The Lion King On Broadway, New York City, New York

11. Mamma Mia! On Broadway, New York City, New York

10. Hop On Hop Off Tour, New York City, New York

9. Alcatraz and San Francisco City Tour, San Francisco, California

#1. Grand Canyon Helicopter Flight

8. Grand Canyon Helicopter and Ranch Adventure, Las Vegas, Nevada

7. New York Elegant Dining Cruise, New York City, New York

6. Grand Canyon Skywalk, West Rim and Hoover Dam Motorcoach Tour, Las Vegas, Nevada

5. The Big Apple Helicopter Flight, New York City, New York

4. The New York Pass, New York City, New York

3. Niagara Falls from New York by Air, New York City, New York

2. Ultimate Grand Canyon 4-in-1 Helicopter Adventure, Las Vegas, Nevada

1. Grand Canyon All American Helicopter Flight, Las Vegas, Nevada

Do you have your own list of favorite things to do in the USA & Canada? We’d love to hear about them. Simply leave us a reply below and we’ll add them to the list.

Stay tuned for more lists in the coming days, to help you plan your next trip across the globe. In the meantime, if your curious about the top things to do last year in the USA & Canada, keep on reading…

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Are you planning a trip to Australia in 2008? If so you’ve come to the right place. Viator’s list of the Top 25 Things to Do in Australia will help kick-start your travel planning.

Australia’s Top 25 Things to Do: Ayers Rock Definitely Makes the List

This is all part of our end-of-the-year Top 25 Things to Do competitions, where we announce the most popular tours and activities around the world based on what was most popular with Viator’s globe-trotting travelers in 2007. So far we’ve covered the Top 25 in Asia, Central & South America, the Middle East & Africa and the Caribbean. Now it is time to shine the spotlight on Australia.

Australia’s Top 25 has a few surprises. And the biggest surprise of all is the sheer diversity of the list. Walking tours of the Opera House in Sydney… sailing on the Great Barrier Reef… Yarra Valley wine tasting… Melbourne dining… penguins, kangaroos, and wildlife…

Viator’s travelers covered a lot of ground in 2007. If you have your own favorite activity or thing to do in Australia, please leave us a comment, we’d love to hear about it. Now, without further ado, here are the top tours an activities in Australia from 2007.

Top 25 Things To Do in Australia: 2007

25. Yarra Valley Wineries and Puffing Billy Steam Train Day Tour, Melbourne, Australia

24. 360 Bar and Dining at Sydney Tower Restaurant, Sydney, Australia

23. Great Ocean Road High Adventure Day Tour, Melbourne, Australia

22. Blue Mountains and Australian Wildlife Day Tour, Sydney, Australia

21. Sydney Harbour Sunset Dinner Cruise, Sydney, Australia

20. Kangaroo Island in a Day Tour, Adelaide, Australia

19. Sunrise Balloon Flight over Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia

18. Sydney Opera House and Australian Ballet Dinner Package, Sydney, Australia

17. 24 Hour Uluru (Ayers Rock) Eco-Pass plus Sounds of Silence Dinner, Ayers Rock, Australia

16. Green Island Reef Catamaran Cruise, Cairns, Australia

15. Cairns in a Day - Kuranda, Cairns, Australia

14. Uluru and Kata Tjuta Helicopter Flight, Ayers Rock, Australia

13. Kuranda Rail, Rainforestation and Skyrail Tour, Cairns, Northern Beaches, Palm

12. Yarra Valley Wine Experience, Melbourne, Australia

11. Great Barrier Reef Cruise and Helicopter Flight, Cairns, Australia

Sounds of Silence Dinner, Ayers Rock Voted #1 in 2006 & 2007

10. Phillip Island: Penguins, Koalas and Kangaroos Day Tour, Melbourne, Australia

9. Great Ocean Road Small Group Eco Tour, Melbourne, Australia

8. Sunrise Breakfast Balloon Flight over the Yarra Valley, Melbourne, Australia

7. Uluru (Ayers Rock), Kings Canyon and Alice Springs 3-Day Tour, Ayers Rock, Australia

6. Sydney Harbour Dinner Cruise on the MV Sydney 2000, Sydney, Australia

5. See Sydney and Beyond Smartvisit Card, Sydney, Australia

4. Spirit of Melbourne Cruising Restaurant, Melbourne, Australia

3. Colonial Tramcar Restaurant, Melbourne, Australia

2. Blue Mountains Deluxe Eco Day Tour, Sydney, Australia

1. Sounds of Silence Restaurant, Ayers Rock, Northern Territory

There you have it. Viator’s list of the Top 25 tours and things to do in Australia in 2007. We’d like to extend a special ‘congratulatory’ note to the Sounds of Silence restaurant at Ayers Rock for winning the #1 spot on our list two years in a row! Well done, this is no easy feat to pull off.

Stay tuned for more lists in the coming days, to help you plan your next trip across the globe. In the meantime, if your curious about the top things to do last year, in 2006, keep on reading…

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Can’t get enough of Viator’s 2007 Top 25 lists? Neither can we.

We’ve been busy compiling the Top 25 Things to Do around the world, from Africa & the Middle East to Central & South America and the Caribbean (with more regions coming soon). These lists are based on tours and activities that actual Viator.com travelers participated in this year.

So what were the major travel trends in Asia in 2007? Surprisingly (given its dominance on our 2006 list), Singapore has slipped a few spots in overall popularity. What happened? Japan in general, and Tokyo in particular, skyrocketed in popularity this year with Viator travelers. (Speaking of which, check out some of the cool new traveler photos submitted by Viator’s travelers in Japan…) Ditto with Hong Kong, which remains one of the top destinations in Asia this year.

On the ‘notable exceptions’ list is China (check out Rod’s trip report to Beijing) and Vietnam (also see our recent blog post of suggested itineraries in Vietnam). Our guess is that China will come storming back thanks to the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. And here’s hoping to Vietnam making a splash in 2008. n the meantime, without further ado, the top 25 things to do in Asia in 2007…

Top 25 Things to Do in Asia: 2007

#1 in 2007? A bullet-train trip to Mt Fuji from Tokyo

25. Malacca Malaysia Day Tour, Singapore

24. Half-day Safari around Phuket, Phuket, Thailand

23. Kuala Lumpur Grand Day Tour, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

22. Afternoon Till Sunset at Sentosa Island, Singapore

21. Lantau Island Tour including Giant Buddha at Po Lin Monastery, Hong Kong

20. Kyoto Day Tour - Golden Pavilion, Nijo Castle, Sanjusangendo, Kiyomizu Temple, Kyoto, Japan

19. Morning at the Singapore Zoo with optional Jungle Breakfast with Orangutans, Singapore

18. Island Tour - Victoria Peak, Aberdeen, Stanley Market, Hong Kong

17. Macau Full Day Tour by Catamaran, Hong Kong

16. Sunrise Sumo Wrestling Tour - Tournament, Tokyo, Japan

15. Mt Fuji, Hakone and Kyoto by Bullet Train, Tokyo, Japan

14. Panoramic Tokyo - Meiji, Asakusa, Tokyo Bay Cruise, Odaiba, Tokyo, Japan

13. Mt Fuji, Hakone and Onsen 2-Day Tour: Return by Bullet Train, Tokyo, Japan

12. Mt Fuji and Hakone Day Tour: Return By Motorcoach, Tokyo, Japan

11. Kyoto 1-Day Sunrise Express Tour By Bullet Train, Tokyo, Japan

10. Kyoto and Nara Day Tour - Golden Pavilion, Nijo Castle, Todaiji, Kyoto, Japan

9. Singapore by Night including Dinner at Boat Quay, Night Market, Raffles Hotel, Singapore

8. Guangzhou (Canton) China including Temple of the Six Banyan Trees, Hong Kong

7. Tokyo Tower, Tea Ceremony, Sumida River Cruise, Tokyo, Japan

6. Mt Fuji, Hakone, Kyoto and Nara 3-Day Sunrise Highlights Tour by Bullet Train, Tokyo, Japan

5. Hong Kong by Night at Revolving 66 Restaurant and Junk Cruise, Hong Kong

4. Night Safari, Singapore

3. Nikko World Heritage, Toshogu Shrine, Lake Chuzenji, Kegon Waterfall, Tokyo, Japan

2. Kyoto and Nara 2 or 3-Day Sunrise Express Tour by Bullet Train, Tokyo, Japan

1. Mt Fuji and Hakone Day Tour: Return by Bullet Train, Tokyo, Japan

Do you have your own list of favorite things to do in Asia? We’d love to hear about them. Simply leave us a reply below and we’ll add them to the list.

And if you’re looking for more inspiration in Asia, Viator’s got you covered in: Cambodia, China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia (including Bali), Japan, Malaysia, Nepal, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam.

Stay tuned for more lists in the coming days, to help you plan your next trip across the globe. In the meantime, if your curious about the top things to do last year in Asia, keep on reading…

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Fellow travelers, it’s time for another installment of Viator’s Top Things to Do list. So far we’ve covered Central & South America and the Caribbean. That makes it three continents down, four more to go in our ‘top things to do in 2007′ series (based on the tours and activities most popular with actual travelers on Viator.com this year).

It’s time for us to shine a spotlight on Africa and the Middle East. There were some exciting regional developments for Viator this year; in January we launched a new destination on the site, safaris and tours in Kenya, and we’re pleased to see the private three-day safari to Kenya’s Maasai Mara National Reserve taking Africa by storm and skyrocketing to #2 on our list.

We also got serious about making Viator the one-stop-shop for tours and things to do in Egypt (with props to Kerrie, who’s been inspiring all of us with her recent blogs about her trip to Egypt).

Rounding out our list of top things to do in Africa & the Middle East are Dubai and South Africa. We’ve been enjoying the dozens of fantastic reviews, photos and trip reports about Dubai over on the main Viator site; have a look. In South Africa it’s been all about Cape Town and Johannesburg. It’s all worth noting that the #20 top thing to do in 2007 was the scuba dive with Great White Sharks in Cape Town. How cool is that!

Finally, an extra helping of congratulations are in order to this year’s winner — the Dubai 4×4 Desert Wonder Safari — not just because it’s such a cool thing to do. But because this is the second year in a row it’s been voted the #1 thing to do in Africa & the Middle East.

Without further ado, the winners of our 2007 Top Things to Do polling…

Top 25 Things To Do in Africa & the Middle East: 2007

25. Private Dubai City Sightseeing Tour - The Golden City, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

24. Private Tour: Abu Simbel by Minibus, Aswan, Egypt

23. Nile River Dinner Cruise on the Nile Maxim, Cairo, Egypt

22. Cape Peninsula Tour, Cape Town, South Africa

21. Sun City and Pilansberg Nature Reserve Safari, Johannesburg, South Africa

20. Scuba Dive or Snorkel with Great White Sharks, Cape Town, South Africa

19. 3-Day Classic Kruger Breakaway Tour, Johannesburg, South Africa

18. Private Full-Day Tour to Petra, Amman, Jordan

17. 4×4 Hatta Safari - Mountain Springs, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

16. Luxor Tour via Plane, Cairo, Egypt

15. Private Air Tour: Cairo, Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt

14. Private 4×4 Adventurer Safari - Sandboarding and Optional Dune Buggy Ride, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

13. Private Tour: Giza Pyramids, Sphinx, Egyptian Museum, Khan el-Khalili, Cairo, Egypt

12. Private Tour: Alexandria, Cairo, Egypt

11. Private Tour: Giza Pyramids, Sphinx, Memphis, Sakkara, Cairo, Egypt

10. Sightseeing Tour - The Golden City, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

9. Dubai Big Bus Hop On Hop Off Tour, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

8. Aquila Game Reserve Wildlife Safari, Cape Town, South Africa

7. Private Abu Galum Tour: Jeep Safari, Snorkeling, Camel Ride and Bedouin Lunch, Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt

6. Private Air Tour: Abu Simbel, Aswan, Egypt

5. Private 4×4 Desert Wonder Safari - Sandboarding, BBQ Dinner and Bellydancer, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

4. 8-day Nile River Cruise on M/Y Mirage, Luxor, Egypt

3. Three Day “Zimbabwe” Victoria Falls Fly-In Tour, Johannesburg, South Africa

2. Private Three Day Safari to Maasai Mara National Reserve, Nairobi, Kenya

1. 4×4 Desert Wonder Safari - Sandboarding & BBQ Dinner, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

#1 in 2007: Dubai 4×4 Desert Safari

There you have it. Viator’s list of the Top 25 tours and things to do in the Middle East & Africa in 2007.

Stay tuned for more lists in the coming days, to help you plan your next trip across the globe. In the meantime, if your curious about the top things to do last year in Africa and the Middle East, in 2006, keep on reading…

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What’s hot in the Caribbean? What are the up-and-coming destinations, the most popular things to see and do? If you’re asking yourselves these questions, you have come to the right place.

See yourself in the Caribbean in 2008?

As part of Viator’s annual “Top Things To Do” lists, we are pleased to announce the Top 25 Things to Do in the Caribbean for 2007.

The results are based on the actual travel choices made by thousands of Viator.com travelers to the Caribbean in 2007. And before we crown this year’s winners in the Caribbean, we wanted to draw your attention to our list of “Top 25 Things to Do in the Caribbean in 2006″, which we’ve included at the bottom of this post in case you’re feeling nostalgic about our 2006 winners.

Otherwise it’s time to crown the 2007 winners: the top 25 activities, tours and things to do in the Caribbean. Congratulations to all our winners.

Top 25 Things To Do in The Caribbean: 2007

We hear you asking, so Viator what were the big trends and surprises for the Caribbean in 2007?

Montego Bay in Jamaica: A top destination in 2007

The main trend is a big jump in travel to both Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic. There’s been a lot of press recently about the Dominican Republic, and it’s safe to say that the Dominican Republic is now firmly on the radar of many travelers to the Caribbean.

Puerto Rico has seen a similar bump in popularity this year, no doubt driven by the new USA passport requirements (which do not include Puerto Rico, as it’s a U.S. Territory).

The other big trend? The ongoing popularity of Jamaica (especially Ocho Rios) and the Bahamas (especially Nassau). We’re also pleased to see Aruba, St Lucia and St Maarten make the list again this year.

Now, without further ado, Viator’s Top 25 Things to Do in the Caribbean for 2007:

25. Saona Island by Catamaran, Punta Cana, Dominican Republic

24. Sailing and Horseback Riding, Negril, Jamaica

23. Santo Domingo City Tour, Puerto Plata, Punta Cana and Bayahibe, Dominican Republic

22. Majestic Lady Dinner Cruise, Nassau, Bahamas

21. ATV Safari in Negril, Negril, Jamaica

20. Negril Irie Adventure, Negril, Jamaica

19. Monster 8 Wheel Truck Excursion, Punta Cana, Dominican Republic

18. SUB Bahamas Adventure, Nassau, Bahamas

17. Catamaran Day Sail, St Lucia

16. Atlantis Submarine Expedition, Oranjestad, Aruba

15. Snorkel Bahamas Adventure, Nassau, Bahamas

14. Aruba ATV Mania Half Day, Oranjestad, Aruba

13. Dunns River Falls and Shopping Tour, Montego Bay, Jamaica

12. St Maarten Golden Eagle Friday Farewell Party, Philipsburg, St Maarten

11. Rum Distillery and Old San Juan, San Juan, Puerto Rico

10. Negril Canopy Tour, Negril, Jamaica

9. Ocho Rios Canopy Tour, Ocho Rios, Jamaica

8. Robinson Crusoe Cruise, Nassau, Bahamas

#1 in 2007: Dominican Republic dolphin swim

7. Dolphin Encounter Program in Ocho Rios, Ocho Rios, Jamaica

6. Rio Camuy Cave Park and Arecibo Observatory, San Juan, Puerto Rico

5. El Yunque Rainforest, San Juan, Puerto Rico

4. Fantastic Exuma Powerboat Adventures, Nassau, Bahamas

3. Swim with Dolphins Program, Ocho Rios, Jamaica

2. The Different Day - Snorkel, Picnic and Sail, San Juan, Puerto Rico

1. Dolphin Swim at Ocean World, Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic

There you have it. Viator’s list of the Top 25 tours and things to do in the Caribbean in 2007.

Stay tuned for more lists in the coming days, to help you plan your next trip across the globe. In the meantime, if your curious about the top things to do last year, in 2006, keep on reading…

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Editor’s Note: If you’re looking for a new idea in gift giving this year, we have a few ideas for you. First off a Viator Travel Gift Certificate helps you put the focus on ‘doing’ instead of ‘having’, and will assist couch potatoes in your life to do something a little different on their next trip or holiday. Alternatively have a look at the Viator Charity Page, which highlights worthy causes around the globe, all of which have gifting programs for those hard-to-please or noble do-gooding people on your list. Finally you could give a helping hand to Help of Southern Nevada along with Viator’s Las Vegas team…

Viator’s Las Vegas team at the KLUC 98.5 Toy Drive

Viator’s Las Vegas office recently participated in the annual KLUC 98.5 Toy Drive. If you’re not familiar with the toy drive, each year Chet Buchanan of KLUC’s Morning Zoo camps (as in, sleeps!) on top of a 30-foot scaffolding for the entire 12 days of the toy drive. So yeah, we felt obligated to help his cause. Sporting 4 dozen hula hoops plus boxes filled to the brim with toys donated by our office staff, we were transported by the Las Vegas Double Decker Bus Of The Stars to the toy drive’s drop-off location.

We were greeted by truckloads of bikes and toys ready to make some special child of southern Nevada very happy! As we carried our share to the awaiting semi-trucks, people from all over Las Vegas stopped in to drop-off gift cards, more toys and even more bikes.

Although we were not able to show off our hula-hooping skills, we were happy to give to a needy child’s Christmas, and we were grateful to have such wonderful people in our community, including the operators of our Grand Canyon All American Helicopter Flight and Self Drive Hummer to Grand Canyon West Rim tours, joining in on our revelry.

All toys were donated to Help of Southern Nevada, assisting individuals and families in becoming self sufficient.

–Melissa Llanes Brownlee

#1 in 2007: Rio de Janeiro

Friends, travelers, countrymen, lend me your ear: It is time to crown the Top 25 Things to Do in Central & South America in 2007.

Last year the staff here at Viator.com compiled lists of the top-rated tours and activities in each of the regions we cover. Our list of “Top 25 Things to Do in Central & South America in 2006″ was a big hit, so if you’re feeling nostalgic jump to the bottom of this post and relive the glory of our 2006 winners in Central & South America.

Otherwise it’s time to crown the 2007 winners, the top 25 things to do in Central & South America based on the actual travel choices made by thousands of travelers over on Viator.com.

Stay tuned, because this list is just the first of many top 25 lists (no kidding: we’re going list crazy this year!) we are publishing as 2007 comes to a close. Stay tuned in the coming days for the Top 25 in Europe, the Caribbean, Asia, Australia-Pacific, USA & North America and the Middle East & Africa. As always, we’ll end the year with our “Top 50 Travel Destinations” list.

Top 25 Things to Do in Central & South America in 2007

We hear you asking, so Viator what were the big trends and surprises for Central & South America in 2007? Well the main trend we’ve spotted is a big jump in the popularity of outdoor activities in Central & South America. Fishing, canopy tours, 4×4 safaris, hot springs treks– Viator travelers were hitting the outdoors in record numbers in 2007.

There’s also one thing that did not change between 2006 and 2007 — and that’s the continued popularity of both Argentina and Brazil. These two countries remain the most popular places to visit in Central & South America, among Viator’s travelers.

We should also take a moment to say “hola!” to Panama; this was a new country for Viator in 2007, and it instantly grabbed a few spots in our Top 25 list. On a sad note (at least to Scott, who’s written more than one blog post about his love of Belize) is the fact that Belize has dropped out of the Top 25. Here’s hoping to a resurgence for Belize in 2008!

Now, without further ado, Viator’s Top 25 Things to Do in Central & South America for 2007:

25. Sightseeing Tour to Corcovado Mountain, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

24. Lapa Star House with Dinner, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

23. Cousino Macul Winery and Concha y Toro Winer, Santiago, Chile

22. Penguin Sanctuary and Otway Sound, Punta Arenas, Chile

21. Four in One - Best of Costa Rica, San Jose, Costa Rica

20. Poas Volcano and Doka Coffee Bike Ride, San Jose, Costa Rica

#13: Buena Vista Hot Springs, Costa Rica

19. City and Canal Tour, Panama City, Panama

18. Arenal Volcano and Hot Springs, San Jose, Costa Rica

17. Soccer Match at Maracana Stadium, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

16. Jeep Tour, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

15. Buenos Aires City Tour, Buenos Aires, Argentina

14. Arenal Volcano / Ecotermales and Rainforest Adventure, Guanacaste, Costa Rica

13. Buena Vista Hot Springs / Canopy Tour and Water Slide, Guanacaste, Costa Rica

12. Panama Canal Transit - Ocean to Ocean, Panama City, Panama

11. Vina Del Mar and Valparaiso, Santiago, Chile

10. Tigre Delta with Bus and Coast Train, Buenos Aires, Argentina

9.