New Zealand Crowned 3rd Most Beautiful Country

New Zealand has been crowned the third most beautiful country in the world by readers of Rough Guides, a travel publishing company who produces travel guides.

Rough Guides praised New Zealand’s “rolling green hills, majestic mountains, breathtaking fjords and amazing diversity of landscape from one island to the next” in announcing its third place victory.

The top spot was awarded to Scotland for its wild beaches, deep lochs and craggy castles.

Canada’s “mixture of raw beauty and majestic landscapes” helped it win second place, rounding out the top three.

The top 20 most beautiful countries in the world, as chosen by readers of Rough Guides, are:

1. Scotland
2. Canada
3. New Zealand
4. Italy
5. South Africa
6. Indonesia
7. England
8. Iceland
9. USA
10. Wales
11. Slovenia
12. Mexico
13. India
14. Finland
15. Switzerland
16. Peru
17. Norway
18. Ireland
19. Croatia
20. Vietnam