Seven Aussie tourist attractions make world’s ‘most boring’ list

Australia appears to be home to seven of the world’s ‘most boring’ attractions and not everyone is happy about it.

Australia appears to be home to seven of the world’s “most boring” attractions, according to a contentious new global study.

The research — conducted by Solitaired in March — has listed the Top 100 Most Boring Attractions Worldwide and it’s already got some Aussies fired up after iconic hotspots across Perth, Melbourne, Sydney and Tasmania made the cut.

“We analysed 66.7 million Google reviews of 3,290 popular tourist attractions worldwide, spanning 384 cities across 71 countries, focusing on 11 keywords indicative of tiresome, lifeless, and downright boring impressions,” Solitaired wrote on its site.

WA Museum Boola Bardip ranked 16 on the global list – Top 100 Most Boring Attractions Worldwide, sparking a heated debate. Picture: Paul Kane/Getty Images)

As such, researchers ranked the attractions by the frequency with which tourists mentioned boredom-related keywords, comparing the mentions to the total reviews for each spot.

The study did not focus on the star-rating of Google reviews, but rather identified the number of times words such as “tiresome”, “lifeless,” and “boring”, were written by reviewers.

American attractions took up the top seven spots, while Shrek’s Adventure London snagged eighth place.

Despite its ranking on the list it has a 4.5 star Google rating out of 3515 reviews.

While it has plenty of positive reviews – it also hand copped a handful of negative reviews.

Four Legoland Discovery Centres made the top 25, with Melbourne’s coming in at 24th alongside a ‘boredom score’ of 2.30.

The other Melbourne attraction to make the list was Luna Park at 80. It had a ‘boredom score’ of 1.90, i.e the number of times the boredom-related keywords were mentioned in its 7996 reviews.

Some West Aussies were shocked to learn the WA Museum Boola Bardip ranked 16th on the global list, with the unique Bell Tower scraping in at 92.

“Naw I thought the museum was good. Maybe it needs a better name that makes it sound more exciting,” one person wrote on Facebook.

The Bell Tower in Perth was also on the list at 92. Picture: Ross Swanborough

“Fantastic museum, got something for everyone in here. Lots about the history of Perth/ Western Australia as well as some really interesting geology exhibits,” another wrote in their Google review.

“I love the museum!!” a third proclaimed, while others also defended Bell Tower.

“Bell tower times is an absolute belter though,” one said.

However, not everyone was of the same view with many agreeing the only four-year-old $400 million WA museum is “underwhelming”.

“Yup I’d agree. Spent so much money on it and now there’s nothing left in it to see. Such a shame,” one local wrote.

Museum of Sydney came in at 32. Picture: Alamy

Melbourne’s Immigration Museum ranked 52. Picture: Nicole Garmston

“It was a great museum when my kids were little. There was a great kids area with lots of activities and some very interesting collections. Now you need a torch to go round,” wrote another, while others blamed the location.

“It’s not only the museum but where it is,” one person added.

It’s also worth noting that out of the 3515 Google reviews, it has a 4.5 star-rating.

But the Northbridge-based attraction wasn’t the only “boring” Aussie museum on the list with Melbourne’s Immigration Museum raking at 52 and the Museum of Sydney at 32.

Melbourne’s Legoland ranked 24th alongside a ‘boredom score’ of 2.30. Picture: Richard Serong

Luna Park in Melbourne was also on the list in 80th spot.

They had a 4.4 star-rating based on 2,659 Google reviews and 41 star-rating based on 2345 reviews, respectively.

Meanwhile, WA Museum CEO Alec Coles argued the findings were at odds with other “credible” sources, insisting feedback on the Perth-based museum has been largely complimentary.

MONA in Berriedale, Tasmania ranked 76th. Picture: Alamy

“The results of this supposed ‘survey’ contradict all credible data sources, all of which suggest that visitors are overwhelmingly positive about Boola Bardip,” Mr Coles told Perth Now.

He considered the museum’s dynamic calendar of events as key to attracting both new and repeat visitors.

“Each year WA Museum Boola Bardip develops and presents a range of captivating local and international exhibitions, interactive displays, diverse programs, and events.

“Last year’s Discovering Ancient Egypt exhibition attracted over 135,000 visitors and people have come over the last two weeks in their droves to visit the To the Moon exhibition.”

Another well-known attraction that also made the list was MONA in Berriedale, Tasmania.

It ranked 76th out of 100 with a ‘boredom score’ of 1.90 based on 11,067 reviews.

However, it has a Google star-rating of 4.4 with those giving it top marks describing it as ‘fantastic’ and ‘amazing’, while others branded the popular museum ‘strange’ and ‘tasteless’.

Meanwhile, the world’s most boring mantle went to Branson Scenic Railway in the US state of Missouri with 3341 total reviews and a maximum boredom score of 5 out of 5.