The top deserts in the world offer unique natural environments with breathtaking landscapes, stunning night sky views, and endless adventures. These are the best 20 deserts in the world ranked by Visited travelers. Visited is a popular travel app that allows you to mark off places you’ve been and get a personalized travel map. You can browse bucket list destinations and plan your dream trip with the Visited app.
The top desert destinations in the world are:
1. Sahara Desert
The Sahara Desert is the largest hot desert in the world, with an area of 9.2 million square kilometers (3.6 million square miles). The vast desert includes stunning scenery, with different-colored sand dunes, expansive rocky plains, and unforgettable starry night skies. Travelers can embark on camel treks to see the desert from the back of a camel. Adventure-seekers can also enjoy sandboarding, similar to snowboarding but on sand. There are also desert camping accommodations and off-road driving expeditions to fully immerse yourself in the desert experience.
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2. Arabian Desert
The second most popular desert to visit is the Arabian Desert. Situated across most of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia, the Arabian Desert extends from the Persian Gulf to Yemen and from Oman to Jordan and Iraq. The sprawling desert is 2,330,000 square kilometers (900,000 sq miles) and includes massive sand dunes and rugged mountain ranges. Giant sand seas cover much of the desert in dunes. The most well-known sand sea is the Empty Quarter (Rub’ al-Khali), the largest continuous sand desert in the world, covering about a third of the Arabian Peninsula. The Al-Ḥajr Mountains run along the western edge of the desert. The Jebel Akhdar mountain range in Oman features the highest point on the eastern Arabian Peninsula.
3. Red Desert
The Red Desert is a high-elevation desert located in the state of Wyoming in the U.S. The picturesque desert has unique features that do not exist anywhere else. The desert landscape was created by wind, water, and time and includes colorful badlands, towering sandstone cliffs, deep canyons, and expansive sand dunes. These formations, painted in red, orange, and yellow hues by iron oxide deposits, create a stunning geography. The desert is 24,139 square kilometers (9,320 square miles). It offers endless opportunities to hike, camp, and explore. History buffs can also see petroglyphs left behind by native tribes who once inhabited the land.
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4. Mojave Desert
The Mojave Desert is located in the southwestern U.S., primarily in southeastern California and southwestern Nevada. It’s a rain shadow desert formed by the Sierra Nevada mountains blocking moist Pacific air. The desert includes long stretches of dry, rocky terrain interspersed with mountain ranges and valleys. Visitors can see some sparse plant life adapted to the arid conditions, with creosote bushes, Joshua trees, and cacti. Outdoor enthusiasts enjoy hiking, camping, biking, and off-roading in the desert. The Mojave Desert has various national parks and monuments, such as Death Valley National Park, Joshua Tree National Park, and Mojave National Preserve.
5. Wadi Rum
Wadi Rum, also called the Valley of the Moon, is in southern Jordan. At 720 square kilometers (280 square miles), it is the largest river valley in Jordan. The area includes distinct red sand dunes and arched rock formations, giving it a moon-like aesthetic. In addition to the unique landscape, Wadi Rum has ancient ruins and petroglyphs, making it a popular destination for history lovers. Adventure travelers also enjoy hiking and rock climbing in the desert.
6. Great Salt Lake Desert
The Great Salt Lake Desert is a vast, dry lakebed located in northern Utah, nestled between the Great Salt Lake and the border with Nevada in the U.S. It is part of the larger Great Basin Desert and is 10,000 square kilometers (4,000 square miles). Visitors frequent the Bonneville Salt Flats, a stretch of blindingly white salt crust that lasts as far as the eye can see. The area has a cold desert climate that’s hot in the summer and cold in the winter.
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7. Highlands of Iceland
The Highlands of Iceland, also called the Central Highland, is a vast area encompassing over 40,000 square kilometers (15,445 square miles). The raw natural beauty of Iceland is on display in the Highlands, a cold desert sculpted by volcanic activity, glaciers, and geothermal forces. The area has a high elevation, with most parts over 300 to 400 meters high. The Highlands are uninhabitable, with ground made from volcanic ash broken up by stark black lava fields, colorful mountains, and steaming geothermal vents. The cold desert is a thrilling hiking destination in the summertime, the only time when the roads are accessible. Visitors can see volcanoes, waterfalls, mountains, glaciers, hot springs, and black sand deserts in the stunning Central Highland.
8. Judaean Desert
The Judaean Desert or Judean Desert is in Israel and the West Bank. The desert is situated east of Jerusalem, bordering the Dead Sea. The Judaean Desert has plunging cliffs, dramatic valleys, sand dunes, and rock formations in different colors, ranging from beige to black. Travelers enjoy hiking, rock climbing, and seeing historic ruins in the Judaean Desert. Some of the historic sites include Masada, a mountaintop fortress known for its siege by Roman forces, and Qumran, where the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered. The Dead Sea, the lowest point on Earth, also attracts many visitors to its salty waters. Related Post: Visited Travel App Ranks Top 25 Ancient Sites
9. Negev Desert
The Negev Desert is an expansive area covering over half of Israel’s land. The desert stretches from the southern mountains to the shores of the Red Sea, encompassing over 13,000 square kilometers (5,000 square miles). The Negev Desert is covered in rocky plateaus, cliffs, canyons, and mesas. Tourists flock to Makhtesh Ramon, “Israel’s Grand Canyon,” a giant erosion crater that’s nearly 40 kilometers (25 miles) long and up to 8 kilometers (5 miles) wide. The desert includes archaeological sites from ancient civilizations, including the Nabataean city of Shivta. Outdoor adventurers can explore the unique landscape on foot by hiking and camping or embark on Jeep tours.
10. Namib Desert
The Namib Desert is a desert in South Africa, Namibia, and Angola that stretches over 2,000 kilometers (1,200 miles) along the Atlantic coast. The ancient desert is estimated to be at least 55 million years old. The desert has some of the world’s highest sand dunes, reaching 300 meters (328 yards) and stretching for more than 32 kilometers (20 miles). The desert also has gravel plains, rocky outcrops, and coastal lagoons. The Namib Naukluft Park protects a large portion of the Namib Desert. A cold Benguela Current flows along the coast, bringing cool, moist air and frequent fog to the desert. The moisture helps animals like antelopes and black rhinoceroses live in the desert.
11. Sonoran Desert
The Sonoran Desert is the hottest desert in the U.S. and Mexico. The desert spans the northwestern Mexican states of Sonora, Baja California, and Baja California Sur. It reaches into southern Arizona and southeastern California. In contrast with many deserts, the Sonoran Desert has two seasons of rainfall. It provides a home for plants like desert wildflowers and the Saguaro cactus, a towering symbol of the Sonoran Desert. The desert is also home to a variety of wildlife, including coyotes, javelinas, rattlesnakes, roadrunners, and kit foxes. Visitors can hike, camp, and enjoy watching the wildlife in the Sonoran Desert.
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12. Merzouga Desert
Merzouga is a town in Morocco located in the Sahara Desert on the edge of the Erg Chebbi, a vast expanse of sand dunes in eastern Morocco. The Erg Chebbi dunes are some of the most dramatic in the Sahara Desert, rising hundreds of meters above the surrounding desert floor. The constantly shifting sands of the Erg Chebbi dunes create a beautiful and ever-changing landscape. Adventurous travelers can try camel trekking, sandboarding, and off-road driving tours of the Erg Chebbi dunes.
13. Atacama Desert
The Atacama Desert is the driest non-polar desert in the world. The desert plateau is located in northern Chile on the Pacific coast of South America. The desert is west of the Andes Mountains and sprawls over 104,741 square kilometers (40,441 square miles). The extreme environment creates a surreal-looking landscape with sculpted sand dunes, expansive salt flats, and rocky outcrops. Visitors can explore the unique landscape of the Atacama Desert, including the Valle de la Luna (Valley of the Moon), composed of sand dunes and rock formations that resemble the surface of the moon.
14. Painted Desert
The Painted Desert is a colorful desert landscape in northern Arizona, U.S. The multi-hued desert stretches from the east end of Grand Canyon National Park and southeast into Petrified Forest National Park. The desert exhibits a stunning landscape of brilliant colors, ranging from red and yellow to lavender. The colors are caused by the layers of sedimentary rock that have been exposed over millions of years.
15. Great Sand Dunes National Park
Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve is located in the San Luis Valley in southern Colorado, with the Sangre de Cristo Mountains bordering its eastern edge. The park is known for its massive sand dunes, which are the tallest in North America, reaching up to 229 meters (750 feet) tall. The park offers stunning views of the desert dunes, surrounding mountains, and plenty of outdoor activities, including hiking, camping, and sandboarding.
16. Kalahari Desert
The Kalahari Desert is an expansive semi-arid savannah in Southern Africa, covering parts of Botswana, Namibia, and South Africa. The vast desert is 900,000 square kilometers (347,492 miles) and includes a variety of terrain, with red sand dunes and sandy grassland. The desert is home to a wide range of wildlife, including lions, cheetahs, elephants, giraffes, zebras, and many species of birds.
17. Erg Chebbi
Ergs are sprawling areas covered by wind-blown sands. Erg Chebbi is located on the eastern edge of the Sahara Desert in Morocco. The golden dunes in Erg Chebbi are constantly shifting due to the wind, creating a breathtaking landscape that contrasts with the wide-open blue skies. Erg Chebbi is a popular place for stargazing, offering spectacular views of the Milky Way and countless stars.
18. Great Basin Desert
The Great Basin Desert in the western U.S. stretches across parts of Nevada, Utah, California, Idaho, Oregon, and Wyoming. The desert is nestled between the Sierra Nevada and the Wasatch Mountain Range. Most of the desert basin floor sits at a high altitude between 1,200 and 1,800 meters (4,000 and 6,000 feet) above sea level. One of the best places to experience the Great Basin Desert is Great Basin National Park in Nevada. The park offers a variety of ecosystems, including bristlecone pine forests, mountain ranges, and valleys. Visitors can hike, camp, rock climb, and explore ancient cave paintings.
19. Patagonian Desert
The Patagonian Desert, also called the Patagonian Steppe, is the largest desert in Argentina and the eighth-largest in the world by area, covering over 673,000 square kilometers (260,000 square miles). The desert is located primarily in Argentina, stretching from the Andes Mountains to the Atlantic Ocean, and spills over slightly into Chile. Unlike many deserts, the Patagonian Desert is a cold desert with year-round cool temperatures and low precipitation. The desert includes glaciers, rocky plateaus, salt flats, shrub-steppes, and sandy plains. The desert has many animals, including guanacos, rheas, penguins, condors, flamingos, and whales along the Atlantic coast.
20. Karoo Desert
The Karoo Desert is a sprawling semi-arid region in South Africa. The name “Karoo” comes from a Khoisan word meaning “land of great thirst,” referencing the region’s arid climate. However, it receives more rainfall than a true desert and has a unique ecosystem. The terrain includes flat plains, rolling hills, mountains, and valleys. Wildlife in the region includes springboks, black rhinoceros, zebras, and a variety of birds.
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