60+ Beautiful UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Stunning Pictures
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Unesco World Heritage sites are destinations specially selected by the United National Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation. It shows characteristics about the historical and cultural traditions and customs of many countries around the world. Nowadays, there are hundreds of World Heritage Sites – the world’s most beautiful cultural and natural sites what are protected and preserved by UNESCO. Especially, all places bring enormous values to humanity.
Are you passionate of traveling? You want to discover and enjoy the beauty of world heritage?. We have a collection with more than 60 beautiful UNESCO World Hertitage Sites what is the great choice for your experiences. Our collection will open a new horizon for you with many interesting places and different cultures around the world. These are greats destinations you should definitely visit and should not miss in life.
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Here are 60 beautiful heritage photos from all over the world, I surely believe that when you see these pictures, you just want to go backpacking and begin the journey to explore the world now.
The Taj Mahal
Photo credit: Maciej Bledowski
Taj Mahal is regarded as one of the eight wonders of the world, and some Western historians have noted that its architectural beauty has never been surpassed. The Taj is the most beautiful monument built by the Mughals, the Muslim rulers of India. Taj Mahal is built entirely of white marble. Its stunning architectural beauty is beyond adequate description, particularly at dawn and sunset. The Taj seems to glow in the light of the full moon. On a foggy morning, the visitors experience the Taj as if suspended when viewed from across the Jamuna river.
Great Barrier Reef, Australia
Photo credit: Nick Fader
The Great Barrier Reef is a site of remarkable variety and beauty on the north-east coast of Australia. It contains the world’s largest collection of coral reefs, with 400 types of coral, 1,500 species of fish and 4,000 types of mollusc. It also holds great scientific interest as the habitat of species such as the dugong (‘sea cow’) and the large green turtle, which are threatened with extinction.
Grand Canyon
Photo credit: Edi Chen
The Grand Canyon is among the earth’s greatest on-going geological spectacles.Carved out by the Colorado River, the Grand Canyon (nearly 1,500 m deep) is the most spectacular gorge in the world. Located in the state of Arizona, it cuts across the Grand Canyon National Park. Its horizontal strata retrace the geological history of the past 2 billion years. There are also prehistoric traces of human adaptation to a particularly harsh environment.
Easter Island, Chile
Photo credit: Southamericatourismin
Easter Island has long been an area of interest for historians and archeologists aiming to uncover the mystery of this small island in Polynesian waters. If you do get a chance to tick this off the bucket list, Easter Island is one of the most remote UNESCO World Heritage listed sites to visit and certainly one of the most interesting mysteries.
Petra, Jordan
Photo credit: Mr. Blaidd
Inhabited since prehistoric times, this Nabataean caravan-city, situated between the Red Sea and the Dead Sea, was an important crossroads between Arabia, Egypt and Syria-Phoenicia. Petra is half-built, half-carved into the rock, and is surrounded by mountains riddled with passages and gorges. It is one of the world’s most famous archaeological sites, where ancient Eastern traditions blend with Hellenistic architecture.
Angkor Wat, Cambodia
Photo credit: Pablo Rogat
Angkor Wat is the most famous ancient temple site in Cambodia, and visiting the ancient Angkorian temples is the reason most visitors come to Cambodia, and to Siem Reap. With its five lotus-like towers rising 65 meters into the sky, it is truly a monumental, and awe inspiring sight. This UNESCO World Heritage site was at one time the largest pre-industrial city in the world, and is considered one of the ancient wonders of the world. Angkor Wat is the crown jewel of any visit to the temples of Angkor.
Cesky Krumlov, Czech Republic
Photo credit: Francisco Martin Gonzalez
Český Krumlov is located at the very south of the Czech Republic. It is a small town, approximately 25 km south of České Budějovice. At present, it has a population of over 14 thousand. It is a significant South Bohemian tourist centre and, due to its unique historical town centre, is nicknamed the “pearl of South Bohemia”. For more than five centuries the town centre has been a great example of a well-preserved central European medieval town. Český Krumlov has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1992. It comprises over 300 gothic and renaissance buildings, located around the originally gothic castle on the banks of the Moldau River.
Machu Picchu, Peru
Photo credit: Christopher Taylor
Machu Picchu stands 2,430 m above sea-level, in the middle of a tropical mountain forest, in an extraordinarily beautiful setting. It was probably the most amazing urban creation of the Inca Empire at its height; its giant walls, terraces and ramps seem as if they have been cut naturally in the continuous rock escarpments. The natural setting, on the eastern slopes of the Andes, encompasses the upper Amazon basin with its rich diversity of flora and fauna.
Iguazu Falls, Brazil & Argentina
The semicircular waterfall at the heart of this site is some 80 m high and 2,700 m in diameter and is situated on a basaltic line spanning the border between Argentina and Brazil. Made up of many cascades producing vast sprays of water, it is one of the most spectacular waterfalls in the world. The surrounding subtropical rainforest has over 2,000 species of vascular plants and is home to the typical wildlife of the region: tapirs, giant anteaters, howler monkeys, ocelots, jaguars and caymans.
Hoi An, Vietnam
Photo credit: Xuan Hung
Hoi An Ancient Town is an exceptionally well-preserved example of a South-East Asian trading port dating from the 15th to the 19th century. Its buildings and its street plan reflect the influences, both indigenous and foreign, that have combined to produce this unique heritage site.
Canadian Rocky Mountain Parks
Photo credit: Jordano
The Canadian Rocky Mountain Parks form a striking mountain landscape, that includes a full range of glaciation features and harbours the renowned Burgess Shale fossil site. Its highest peak is Mount Robson at 3,954 m.
Old Havana, Cuba
Photo credit: Sam Gabell
Havana was founded in 1519 by the Spanish. By the 17th century, it had become one of the Caribbean’s main centres for ship-building. Although it is today a sprawling metropolis of 2 million inhabitants, its old centre retains an interesting mix of Baroque and neoclassical monuments, and a homogeneous ensemble of private houses with arcades, balconies, wrought-iron gates and internal courtyards.
Statue of Liberty, USA
Photo credit: Varun Das
Made in Paris by the French sculptor Bartholdi, in collaboration with Gustave Eiffel (who was responsible for the steel framework), this towering monument to liberty was a gift from France on the centenary of American independence. Inaugurated in 1886, the sculpture stands at the entrance to New York Harbour and has welcomed millions of immigrants to the United States ever since.
Pyramids of Giza, Egypt
Photo credit: Dale Johnson
The capital of the Old Kingdom of Egypt has some extraordinary funerary monuments, including rock tombs, ornate mastabas, temples and pyramids. In ancient times, the site was considered one of the Seven Wonders of the World.
Old City of Jerusalem and its Walls, Israel
Photo credit: Kyrylo Glivin
There is no place in the world like Jerusalem – a city held sacred to Jews, Christians, and Moslems. The towering walls, narrow alleyways, and colourful markets are all characteristic of this incredible city.
Medina of Marrakesh, Morocco
Photo credit: Kay – Uwe Goetze
Founded in 1070–72 by the Almoravids, Marrakesh remained a political, economic and cultural centre for a long period. Its influence was felt throughout the western Muslim world, from North Africa to Andalusia. It has several impressive monuments dating from that period: the Koutoubiya Mosque, the Kasbah, the battlements, monumental doors, gardens, etc. Later architectural jewels include the Bandiâ Palace, the Ben Youssef Madrasa, the Saadian Tombs, several great residences and Place Jamaâ El Fna, a veritable open-air theatre.
The Great Wall, China
Photo credit: Liu Han Lin
In c. 220 B.C., under Qin Shi Huang, sections of earlier fortifications were joined together to form a united defence system against invasions from the north. Construction continued up to the Ming dynasty (1368–1644), when the Great Wall became the world’s largest military structure. Its historic and strategic importance is matched only by its architectural significance.
Historic Centre of Rome, Italy
Photo credit: Andrey Nikiforov
Founded, according to legend, by Romulus and Remus in 753 BC, Rome was first the centre of the Roman Republic, then of the Roman Empire, and it became the capital of the Christian world in the 4th century. The World Heritage site, extended in 1990 to the walls of Urban VIII, includes some of the major monuments of antiquity such as the Forums, the Mausoleum of Augustus, the Mausoleum of Hadrian, the Pantheon, Trajan’s Column and the Column of Marcus Aurelius, as well as the religious and public buildings of papal Rome.
Palace and Gardens of Versailles, France
Photo credit: Grant Shepherd
The Palace of Versailles was the principal residence of the French kings from the time of Louis XIV to Louis XVI. Embellished by several generations of architects, sculptors, decorators and landscape architects, it provided Europe with a model of the ideal royal residence for over a century.
Stonehenge, England
Photo credit: Scott Weintrayb
Stonehenge and Avebury, in Wiltshire, are among the most famous groups of megaliths in the world. The two sanctuaries consist of circles of menhirs arranged in a pattern whose astronomical significance is still being explored. These holy places and the nearby Neolithic sites are an incomparable testimony to prehistoric times.
Itsukushima Shinto Shrine, Hiroshima, Japan
Photo credit: Yanis Ourabah
The island of Itsukushima, in the Seto inland sea, has been a holy place of Shintoism since the earliest times. The first shrine buildings here were probably erected in the 6th century. The present shrine dates from the 12th century and the harmoniously arranged buildings reveal great artistic and technical skill. The shrine plays on the contrasts in colour and form between mountains and sea and illustrates the Japanese concept of scenic beauty, which combines nature and human creativity.
Lake Bled, Slovenia
Photo credit: Nikolay Tatarchuk
Lake Bled is without a doubt one of the most romantic lakes in all of Europe, so it comes at little surprise that it has landed itself UNESCO protection! If planning to visit, don’t miss the chance to also visit the capital of Slovenia, Ljubljana, as it is truly a hidden gem.
