UNESCO World Heritage

The world's most wondrous sights and sites, manmade and natural, from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe! In other words, to paraphrase the bestseller, more than 900 places to see before you die (better get hopping!).

cover photo: Hans Reniers/Unsplash

52 Members

Join Us!

Forum

3 spectacular UNESCO sites in Libya

Luca Galuzzi - www.galuzzi.it The territory of what is today Libya, along with Algeria and Tunisia, was once part of ancient Rome´s second most prosperous region after Italy itself, beginning with the Roman Republic´s conquest of Carthage and the rest of the Punic Empire in 146 BCE and lasting until 439, when it was in turn conquered by Germanic Vandals. Its legacy (as well as that of ancient Greece, which had its own colonies along this coast) lives on today in some extraordinary…

Started by Riccardo R

0 Replies

Martinique´s UNESCO World Heritage Mount Pelée

Just over a half hour up the coast from capital Fort-de-France, the town of St. Pierre was once considered the "Paris of the Caribbean" before it was buried by the 1902 eruption of nearby Pelée, the island´s highest peak at 4,583 feet (1,397 meters). And while a new town grew up nearby, visitors can explore the ruins of the old city, including a jail cell which protected of the eruption´s three survivors, and learn more at the Musée Volcanique. These days the volcano is calm (though still…

Started by David Paul Appell

0 Replies

Zambia´s UNESCO World Heritage eco reserves

Diego Delso When it comes to safaris and ecotourism, Zambia often takes a back seat to the likes of Botswana, Kenya, and Tanzania. But this large country in south-central Africa is positively packed with eco treasures, and its marquis attraction is one of the planet´s most spectacular waterfalls, Victoria Falls, which it shares with Zimbabwe. In addition, there are some 20 teeming nature reserves which offer as rewarding an eco-experience as any of Zambia´s neighbors – arguably even more so,…

Started by Helen Brown

0 Replies

UNESCO sites in '10 of the Coolest Experiences You Can Have in Vietnam´

This scintillating southeast Asian country is renowned for its many historic temples, colonial architecture, geological wonders, fine beaches, and mouthwatering cuisine, but Vietnam also offers plenty of cool experiences - some of which are unusual, and several of which you can´t even have elsewhere. Despite years of colonialism, then war, then modernisation, there remain parts of Vietnam which remains relatively authentic, where locals make great efforts to preserve many traditions and…

Started by Tripatini

0 Replies

You need to be a member of Tripatini to add comments!

Join Tripatini

Comments are closed.

Comments

Dave Acton May 24, 2024 at 12:44pm

An interesting article about the inevitable political side of UNESCO World Heritage designations: https://theconversation.com/unesco-has-always-been-mired-in-politic...

UNESCO has always been mired in politics and squabbling, but this shouldn’t detract from its work

Australia has suggested a UNESCO recommendation to list the Great Barrier Reef as ‘in danger’ was motivated by politics. This is hardly the first suc…
Riccardo R October 3, 2023 at 7:44pm

UNESCO recently designated 42 new sites as World Heritage, and it seems that the designation is actually a mixed blessing. In the days after 1,500-year-old site of Si Thep in Thailand´s north was added to the list, 20,000 tourists descended and caused havoc https://www.insider.com/tourists-swarm-ancient-town-in-thailand-aft...

Tourists quickly swamped 1,500-year-old ruins in Thailand after they were named a UNESCO site, prom…

Tourists descended on Thailand's Si Thep, an ancient town around 1,500 years old, after it was named a UNESCO site this month.
Paul Varmuza July 31, 2023 at 12:58pm

In researching one particular UNESCO site, I came across this BBC piece from several years back about what exactly makes a heritage site worthy of its designation: https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/40557262

What is a Unesco World Heritage site?

A report has revealed that the number of World Heritage sites affected by climate change has nearly doubled in three years.
Jordan Simon June 12, 2023 at 1:29pm

As far as I can tell, Thrillist isn't in the habit of covering UNESCO sites, but find out why they made an exception for this city in Malaysia: https://www.thrillist.com/travel/nation/things-to-do-georgetown-pen...

Things to Do in Georgetown, Malaysia - Thrillist

Penang is a mix of Chinese, Indian, and Malay cultures with amazing cuisine. Here are the best hotels, street art, and restaurants in Penang’s capita…
María José February 7, 2023 at 11:42am

The traditional Romanian women's blouse, the "ia", was in December 2022 amongst the latest additions to UNESCO's Intangible World Heritage list, but its local manufacturers are under threat from cheap Chinese imports. Radio Free Europe recently covered the issue here: https://www.rferl.org/a/ia-blouse-romanian-traditional-clothing-une...

Romania's Traditional Clothing Makers Call For Action After UNESCO Listing

Producers of Romania and Moldova's traditional blouse, the ia, hope its recent addition to UNESCO's list of intangible cultural heritage will boost c…
Riccardo R January 26, 2023 at 11:05am

Sadly, UNESCO just added three sites to its "endangered" list, in Lebananon (the 1962 trade fair grounds in Tripoli designed by Oscar Niemayer), Ukraine (Odesa's historic centre), and Yemen (kandmarks of the ancient Kingdom of Saba - the last two because of conflict, the first because of neglect/lack of maintenance: https://edition.cnn.com/travel/article/unesco-world-heritage-sites-...

Three sites 'in danger' added to UNESCO World Heritage List

The historic center of the Ukrainian port city of Odesa was added to UNESCO's World Heritage List as well as its list of sites "in danger" on Wednesd…
John Kipper November 24, 2022 at 11:28am

Last week the Washington Post recently marked the 50th anniversary of the UNESCO World Heritage Site program by publishing a look at two dozen sites in the USA: https://www.washingtonpost.com/travel/2022/11/16/unesco-world-herit...
David Paul Appell September 15, 2022 at 3:13pm

One of six UNESCO sites in Pakistan, in southeastern Sindh province a bit over six hours from Karachi, Moenjodaro dates back some 5,000 years to the Bronze Age, and is one of the world's oldest preserved human settlements: https://edition.cnn.com/travel/article/moenjodaro-pakistan-floods-i...

Pakistan UNESCO site Moenjodaro badly damaged by flooding

One of the world's oldest preserved human settlements has been significantly damaged by torrential rain in Pakistan as the country battles the worst…
José Balido August 28, 2022 at 2:25pm

Tourism to Algeria is still fairly under the radar, but apparently in the past decade the country still ranks in the top five most visited countries in Africa. And part of its allure, besides the welcoming people, is its many historic, cultural, and natural treasures - and there are no fewer than seven UNESCO World Heritage Sites here, with another six on the tentative list. Learn more about them at https://whc.unesco.org/en/statesparties/dz/.

Algeria - UNESCO World Heritage Convention

Algeria - UNESCO World Heritage Convention
María José June 2, 2022 at 9:47am

Of the 1,154 sites on the UNESCO World Heritage list to date, 52 in Africa, the Americas, Asia, Europe, and the Middle East are currently listed as endangered for various reasons, including war/civil strife, environmental degradation, neglect, and encroachment by development which compromises some sites' historical/cultural integrity. Here's that troubled list: https://whc.unesco.org/en/danger/

UNESCO World Heritage Centre - List of World Heritage in Danger

UNESCO World Heritage Centre