Most Remarkable Elevators in the World: Top 10

The most remarkable elevators in the world include a glass lift that climbs a 326 m cliff in China and a lift in Guangzhou that reaches 21 metres a second.

This Finepedia guide, written in October 2026, looks at ten elevators and lifts that stand out for their height, speed, age or clever design. Some carry tourists up cliffs and towers, others serve busy city streets, and one lifts whole boats between two canals. Together they show how the humble lift has grown from a simple hoist into a feat of engineering. For more tall structures, see the Finepedia guides Top 10 Tallest Buildings in the World and Tallest TV and Observation Towers: Top 10.

How We Chose These

We looked for passenger lifts that hold a record, use an unusual design or have become landmarks in their own right. Heights, speeds and opening dates were checked against operators, Guinness World Records, national park services and Wikipedia, as of October 2026. We left out funicular railways, which run on sloping tracks, but included inclined and rotating lifts where the idea of lifting people or vessels upward is central. Opening hours and ticket prices change, so check before you travel. Two of the ten are in China.

The 10 Most Remarkable Elevators at a Glance

1. Bailong Elevator Climbs a 326 m Cliff

The Bailong Elevator, whose Chinese name means "Hundred Dragons Elevator", is a glass lift fixed to a sandstone cliff at Wulingyuan, part of Zhangjiajie in Hunan, China. It climbs 326 m (1,070 ft), a trip of about a minute and a half, saving visitors a hike of around two hours. In 2015, Guinness World Records named it the tallest outdoor elevator on Earth.

Key Facts

• Height: 326 m (1,070 ft)
• Opened: 2002, with construction from 1999
• Ride time: about 92 seconds
• Setting: Wulingyuan, a UNESCO World Heritage Site

Did You Know?

The lower part of the shaft is cut inside the rock, so riders spend the first stretch in a tunnel before bursting out into open views. The forest of stone pillars around it helped inspire the floating mountains in the 2009 film Avatar.

2. Hammetschwand Lift Hangs Above Lake Lucerne

The Hammetschwand Lift in central Switzerland rises 153 m (502 ft) up the side of a cliff on the Bürgenstock mountain, high above Lake Lucerne. It opened in 1905, the work of two hotel pioneers, Bucher and Durrer. It is still the highest and fastest outdoor lift in Europe.

Key Facts

• Height: 153 m (502 ft)
• Opened: 1905
• Location: Bürgenstock, near Lucerne, Switzerland
• Upgraded: 1935 and later, with a ride now under a minute

Why It Matters

When it opened, the first cabin was made of wood and zinc-plated metal and took almost three minutes to reach the top. More than a century later, the open lattice tower remains a celebrated piece of early Swiss tourism engineering.

3. Guangzhou CTF Finance Centre Has the Fastest Lifts

The Guangzhou CTF Finance Centre, a 530 m skyscraper finished in 2016, houses two lifts that reach 21 m per second, or about 75 km per hour. Built by Hitachi, they carry hotel guests from the ground floor to the 95th floor in roughly 43 seconds. In 2019, Guinness World Records recognised them as the world's fastest.

Key Facts

• Top speed: 21 m per second (about 75 km/h)
• Building height: 530 m
• Number of lifts in the building: 95
• Previous record holder: Shanghai Tower, 20.5 m per second

Did You Know?

At such speeds, riders could suffer blocked ears, so the cabins adjust their own air pressure. Special rollers and guides also help keep the ride smooth as the lift races up the shaft.

4. The Gateway Arch Tram Rides Inside a Monument

Standing in St. Louis, Missouri, the Gateway Arch is the tallest arch in the world at 192 m (630 ft). Because the legs curve, an ordinary elevator could not work, so engineers built a tram of small, egg-shaped capsules that tilt to stay level as they climb. The tram opened in 1967 and takes about four minutes to reach the viewing area at the top.

Key Facts

• Arch height: 192 m (630 ft)
• Tram opened: 1967
• Cars per tram: eight capsules, five seats each
• Location: Gateway Arch National Park, Missouri

Why It Matters

The tram design, by Richard Bowser, solved a puzzle that once threatened the whole project. It has carried millions of visitors to small windows at the top, where they can look out over the Mississippi River.

5. The Eiffel Tower Lifts Follow Curved Legs

When the Eiffel Tower opened for the 1889 World's Fair in Paris, it needed lifts that could climb its sloping, curved legs. Engineers used a mix of French and American designs, including lifts by the Otis company. Lifts installed in 1899 in two of the four legs keep their floors level as the angle of the track changes.

Key Facts

• Tower height: about 330 m
• Opened: 1889
• Visitors: about 6 million a year
• Oldest lifts in service: from 1899

Did You Know?

The old lifts were once driven by water pressure and had to close in winter because the water could freeze. They were modernised in the 1980s, but the original water hydraulics still help balance the cabins.

6. Santa Justa Lift Is a Neo-Gothic Landmark

The Santa Justa Lift in Lisbon links the low-lying Baixa district with Largo do Carmo, a square on the hill above. Designed by the engineer Raoul Mesnier du Ponsard, it opened in 1902. The 45 m iron tower is decorated with Neo-Gothic arches, and its two wooden cabins carry about 29 people each.

Key Facts

• Height: 45 m
• Opened: 1902
• Designer: Raoul Mesnier du Ponsard
• Cabins: two, lined with wood and mirrors

Why It Matters

It is the only one of Lisbon's city lifts that rises straight up, as the others are really funicular railways on slopes. A viewing platform at the top gives one of the best views of the old city, the castle and the river Tagus.

7. Lacerda Elevator Joins Two Halves of Salvador

The Lacerda Elevator in Salvador, Brazil, connects the Lower City by the bay with the Upper City on the cliff above. Completed in 1873 after four years of work, it rises 72 m (236 ft) and was among the first public city lifts in the world. Its towers were rebuilt in an Art Deco style in 1930.

Key Facts

• Height: 72 m (236 ft)
• Opened: 1873
• Ride time: about 30 seconds
• Daily users: over 33,000 (2019)

Did You Know?

The lift was first powered by water and switched to electricity in 1906. Its name honours the local businessman Antônio de Lacerda, and it and was listed as part of Brazil's national heritage in 2006.

8. The Falkirk Wheel Lifts Boats, Not People

The Falkirk Wheel in central Scotland is a one-of-a-kind turning boat lift. Opened in 2002, it links the Forth and Clyde Canal to the canal running east towards Edinburgh, raising boats 24 m (79 ft) in a single turn. It replaced a long flight of locks that boats needed nearly a whole day to climb.

Key Facts

• Height raised: 24 m (79 ft)
• Opened: 2002
• Wheel diameter: 35 m (115 ft)
• Load: about 500 tonnes in each gondola

Why It Matters

Because a floating boat pushes out its own weight in water, the two gondolas stay balanced and very little power is needed to turn the wheel. Its shape, based on a Celtic double-headed axe, has made it a popular visitor attraction.

9. Paternoster Lifts Never Stop Moving

A paternoster is a chain of open cabins that loops slowly up and down through a building without stopping, so riders simply step on and off. The British architect Peter Ellis put the earliest lifts of this type into an office block in Liverpool in 1868. The name comes from the Latin words that begin the Lord's Prayer, as the loop resembles rosary beads.

Key Facts

• First installed: 1868, Liverpool
• Cabin size: usually two people
• Remaining examples: roughly 230 in Germany, plus dozens in the Czech Republic
• New units: no longer built in most countries since the 1970s

Did You Know?

West Germany banned new paternosters in 1974 over safety concerns, but many still run in offices, town halls and universities. Riding over the top or under the bottom of the loop is safe, as the cabins simply move across and change direction.

10. SkyView Rides Up the Outside of an Arena

SkyView in Stockholm carries visitors up the outside of the Avicii Arena, a giant white sphere once known as the Ericsson Globe. Two glass gondolas, each holding up to 12 people, travel on curved tracks to the top of the building. It opened in February 2010.

Key Facts

• Opened: February 2010
• Gondolas: two, up to 12 passengers each
• Building: Avicii Arena, a large spherical arena
• Type: inclined exterior lift

Why It Matters

The slow ride gives a wide view across Stockholm and shows how lifts can be designed as attractions in themselves. It follows a long line of scenic lifts that turn a simple journey upward into a memorable experience.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who invented the safety elevator?

Elisha Otis showed his safety brake in 1853, a device that stopped a lift from falling if the rope broke. The first passenger lift using it opened in a New York store in 1857, paving the way for skyscrapers.

What is the tallest outdoor elevator in the world?

The Bailong Elevator in Zhangjiajie, China, is the tallest outdoor elevator, rising 326 m up a cliff face. Guinness World Records confirmed this record in 2015.

Conclusion

These ten lifts, from the Bailong Elevator on a Chinese cliff to the paternosters still looping through German offices, show how creative engineers have been in moving people upward. Some set records for height and speed, while others are loved for their age, beauty or clever design. For more record-setting structures, read the Finepedia guides Top 10 Tallest Buildings in the World and Tallest TV and Observation Towers: Top 10.