Lesser known facts about this inhumane punishment
This mountain pass in the Andes between Chile and Argentina is also called Los Caracoles, or Snails Pass. The pass reaches an elevation of 3,200 m (10,499 ft) above sea level.
Located in northern Italy bordering Switzerland, the Stelvio Pass reaches an elevation of 2,757 m (9,045 ft) above sea level and features 48 hairpin bends.
The Lacets de Montvernier—or Hairpins of Montvernier—snake over the Col du Chaussy, a mountain pass in the Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France. Drivers (and cyclists during the Tour de France, pictured) have to negotiate 17 steep and tightly-packed hairpin bends.
Jacob's Ladder climbs up to Ben Lomond Mountain. It's a steep, narrow zigzag road that ascends to the top of the mountain 1,570 m (5,150 ft) above sea level.
Connecting the cities of Cetinje and Kotor, this precipitous serpentine road numbers 16 hairpins along its most scenic 8-km (5 mi-) stretch.
This small mountain pass in Veneto between the towns of Trichiana and Tovena is nonetheless a challenging drive given the five tunnels blasted into the rock with hairpin turns or loops, and six bridges.
The SC-390 road zigzags its way over the Serra do Rio do Rastro in Santa Catarina state up to an elevation of 1,460 m (4,790 ft) above sea level.
A series of stacked hairpins define the D2204 as it snakes its way through the Cols de Brus mountain pass in the Alpes-Maritimes department of southeastern France.
Regularly cited as one of the most dangerous roads in the world, the Sani Pass on the South Africa–Lesotho border remains a challenge even for all-terrain vehicles. You need nerves of steel to negotiate the series of winding twists, hairpins, and plunging drops.
The Serra da Leba mountain range in Angola's Namibe province is accessed by what is regarded as one of the most spectacular and best-constructed roads in the country. Seven hairpin bends test your driving skills.
Portachuelo Llanganuco Pass located in the snow-capped Peruvian Andes includes 29 hairpin bends.
Utah's Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument, Capitol Reef National Park, and Glen Canyon National Recreation Area can all be admired by following this sinewy dirt track, but only in dry weather and at the wheel of a 4WD.
The Sangestar Tso, formerly called Shonga-tser Lake, is reached by following a narrow, winding and extremely treacherous track that has no guardrails. If that doesn't put you off, the fact that you have to apply for a permit to visit the region probably will!
One of Northern Europe's steepest roads, Stalheimskleiva is a one-lane scenic wonder. It features 13 hairpin bends from the end of the Nærøydalen valley to the top at Stalheim.
Following the 22 switchbacks that are the Gata Loops takes you to the top of Nakeela La, nestling in the Western Himalayas. It's a roller-coaster route said to be haunted by the ghost of a long dead trucker.
Sources:(Britannica) (Bradt Guides) (SwitzerlandMobility)
Leveling out at an elevation of 4,173 m (13,691 ft), the Babusar Pass is the highest point in the Kaghan Valley. Numerous switchbacks across mountainous slopes make the route one of the most dangerous in the world.
The stunning drive from Kallikratis to Kapsodasos in Crete with 27 hairpins over an 800-m (2,624 ft) descent down to sea level is one of the most breathtaking drives in the Mediterranean region.
The Moldo-Ashu Pass is one of the most extreme mountain passes of Kyrgyzstan, and certainly one of the most beautiful. The winding road to the summit is gravel, so don't even think about it without a 4WD.
The inauguration in December 2019 of a tunnel has made the drive from Chitral to Peshawar far safer. Nevertheless, there are those who still choose to follow the N45, the perilous road that zigzags its way over the rock-strewn pass.
One of the most vertiginous roads in the world, the famed three-level zigzag in Sikkim state in northeastern India twists and turns through the Himalayan mountains near the historic Silk Route that connected India with Tibet.
Meandering through pastureland close to the border between France and Italy is the Col de Tende. In just 7 km (4.5 mi) you meet an astonishing 48 hairpin turns.
The road snaking through the hills in Congjiang County in southwest China's Guizhou province was built to alleviate poverty in rural districts by connecting remote communities.
Threaded through a verdant cliff face along the coast of Maui, one of the Hawaiian Islands, is the Hana Highway, which provides one of the most scenic drives in the world. It is 84 km- (52 mi-) long and features a mind-blowing 617 white-knuckle switchbacks.
Looking from above like flowing calligraphy etched in green velvet, the Aristi–Paingo road in Epirus, northwestern Greece, takes you round 23 hairpin bends and provides breathtaking mountain scenery.
Connecting Switzerland with Italy, the sinewy Splügen Pass is set over a route that was in use as far back as the Roman era.
Norway's popular Lysevegen road is what mountain driving is all about. Dramatic landscape appears at every bend on the way up to Andersvatn lake, 932 m (3,057 ft) above sea level.
One of Europe's most famous mountain passes is easily negotiated by some equally famous tunnels. But it's far more fun to take the high road with its serpentine twists and turns and sheer-drop views.
Some of the most attractive roads in the world are also among the most notorious for their hairpin bends, serpentine routes, and sheer-drop views. In fact, it takes a steady hand and nerves of steel to negotiate these perilous switchback highways.
Click through and go round the bend following the scariest hairpin roads in the world.
The world's scariest hairpin roads
Dare you follow these serpentine routes?
TRAVEL Transport
Some of the most attractive roads in the world are also among the most notorious for their hairpin bends, serpentine routes, and sheer-drop views. In fact, it takes a steady hand and nerves of steel to negotiate these perilous switchback highways.
Click through and go round the bend following the scariest hairpin roads in the world.