埃菲尔铁塔观光电梯
 

湖南省张家界百龙观光电梯

　　在电影“查理与巧克力工厂”中，糖果制造工厂的主人旺卡先生领孩子们在一个玻璃制造的电梯中参观工厂，这座电梯可以横着走，竖着走，斜着走，倒着走，最终让人们欣赏到整个城市的景观。
　　当然这种自由行动的电梯现在还不存在——至少目前不存在，不过当今许多电梯都放弃了金属制造的电梯厢，改用透明玻璃，这样乘客可以在乘坐过程中将电梯外的风景尽收眼底。
　　当今电梯中使用的滑轮系统的设计可以追溯到公元前200年，现代升降电梯在19世纪中期出现，第一台乘客升降机于1857年在纽约百货商场投入使用。
　　如今 ，基于上述设计的电梯在全世界服务着人们，许多在著名景观设立的电梯也被人们熟知。像法国埃菲尔铁塔中的电梯就广为人知，这座全巴黎著名铁塔中的电梯可以将人们带至540英尺的高空，在那里可以鸟瞰整个巴黎，包括凯旋门。
　　其他电梯也许不如埃菲尔铁塔电梯著名。位于旧金山的弗朗西斯酒店中设有供乘客观赏联合广场的电梯设施，人们可在32层的高度看到广场。
　　现在的电梯都力图给乘坐者一种兴奋的乘坐体验，位于湖南省张家界的百龙电梯则提供全世界最刺激的体验，它紧靠着悬崖峭壁，可以承载12人并带至1100英尺的高度上。上升过程中，你可以慢慢感觉到地平线在你眼中消失。
　　特别提醒：坐观光电梯是个不错的计划，如果你没有恐高症，寻求刺激，就去找一些世界著名观光电梯吧。

World's greatest elevator views

　　In the famous elevator scene from the movie “Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory,” the wacky candy maker treats golden ticket-holder and company heir apparent Charlie Bucket to a trip aboard his glass elevator. This lift travels “sideways, and slantways, and longways, and backways ...” Ultimately, it shoots right through the roof and soars over city rooftops.
　　Of course, elevators of this sort don’t exist — at least not right now, anyway — but there are plenty of lifts that can turn a boring few minutes staring at metal (or worse, mirrored) walls into an exhilarating thrill ride. Thanks largely to the clear glass sides, passengers are rewarded with amazing views that literally put the outside landscape on display.
　　These elevators are a far cry from the pulley system–based contraptions used as far back as late 200 B.C., or even the “modern elevator,” introduced in the mid-1800s for moving freight (the first passenger lift debuted at an NYC department store in 1857).
　　Today, following the same basic design (with some safety and technological improvements), elevators are everywhere, moving the masses up and down. Many are even well-known features in iconic landmarks, like those found in the Eiffel Tower’s legs and main shaft. The City of Light’s famed metal tower has lifts that haul travelers to the top lookout point, some 540 feet (or 54 stories) off the ground, where they’re greeted by bird’s-eye views of the Parc du Champ de Mars and the equally famous Arc de Triomphe.
　　Other elevators aren’t as public. The Westin St. Francis Hotel in San Francisco is home to a set of lifts that offer some of the best views of Union Square, from as high as 32 stories. (The elevators are technically for guests, so you should at least try to act like one.)
　　And while all of the elevators have the propensity to incite a bit of heart-pounding excitement, none has the ability to make its riders as prone to panic attacks as the cliffside Bailong Elevator, which can cart dozens of people nearly 1,100 feet off the ground. Just try not to freak out while watching the ground slowly disappear below!
　　Acrophobics, beware: it’s probably a good idea for you to sit these out. But if heights don’t bother you and you’re looking for a thrill, read on for some of the best elevator views from around the world.