10 UNESCO World Heritage Sites To See in Your Lifetime

We have selected and listed 10 UNESCO World Heritage Sites To See in Your Lifetime.

There are 1,121 UNESCO World Heritage Sites around the world, ranging from the pyramids of Egypt to the Great Barrier Reef. The gold standard for places of global historical and aesthetic significance. To be included on the list, the site must be of “outstanding universal value” and meet at least one of ten criteria, such as: representing a “masterpiece of human creative genius” or containing “superlative natural phenomena or areas of exceptional natural beauty.”

It would be impossible to see all of the UNESCO sites in a lifetime, so to help guide your choices, we asked T+L’s top travel advisors to share their favorite, under-the-radar sites.

Tokaj Wine Region, Hungary

For a little-known UNESCO site, I’d pick the Tokaj Wine Region in Hungary. It’s more about visiting authentic little villages, meeting vintners and exploring their wines, and meeting local craftspeople who are keeping the traditional arts alive. — Gwen Kozlowski, Exeter International

Mount Kōya, Japan

Japan has an immense collection of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in well-known areas such as Kyoto, Nara, Hiroshima, and Nikko, all of which I would encourage one to see and experience. Little known to Western travelers is Mount Kōya, Japan’s Buddhist mountain retreat. It’s is a very spiritual and beautiful area, quite remote, and is the heart of Shingon Buddhism. It is also the resting place of the sect’s founder, perhaps Japan’s best-known Buddhist monk, known as both Kukai and Kobo Daishi. The eight-forested peaks of Mount Kōya reach eight hundred meters into the clouds, surrounding the high plateau with a sense of serenity and boasting over one hundred temple complexes. — Scott Gilman, Japanquest Journeys

Lake Turkana National Parks, Kenya

We recently launched our Roar Explorer’s Heli Safari program – a once-in-a-lifetime, adrenalin-fueled, highly specialized travel experience. On one of these helicopter trips I took last year, we visited Lake Turkana, the world’s largest inland desert lake and the most saline of Africa’s large lakes. Our journey of Lake Turkana National Parks continued by soaring over ancient cycad forests on Kenya’s Northern Frontier District and touched down on the lip of the Silale Crater in Kenya’s Pokot Land. A memory I recall almost every single day, is flying over thousands of pink flamingos on the shores of Lake Logipi and marveling at the exquisite patterns they make as they wade through the dense spirulina that covers the lake. —Deborah Calmeyer, Roar Africa

Ennedi Massif, Chad

This site is unique and otherworldly, and very few get to visit it. The sandstone canyons and valleys are known for incredible rock art that dates to 5000 B.C. Elsewhere in Africa, the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest in Uganda (which is home to the endangered mountain gorilla) is a place that everyone should see in their lifetime. — Michael Lorentz, Passage to Africa

Champagne Hillsides, France

We plan many trips that are food and wine-focused and a visit to Reims. Reims is the unofficial capital of the Champagne wine-growing region, and Champagne Hillsides, Houses, and Cellars are all listed as world heritage sites (as is the magnificent Cathedral of Notre-Dame in the city center.) You sip champagne while visiting the cellars of Taittinger and Dom Perignon, and it’s the magnitude of the tunnels and cellars beneath the city that distinguishes this wine-producing area from anywhere else in the world. Don’t miss a visit to Domaine Pommery, located at the top of the famed Hill of Saint-Nicaise, where they display magnificent contemporary art exhibits throughout their seemingly endless underground tunnels.— Judy Stein, Ovation Travel

Southwestern Indigenous Sites, United States

Mesa Verde in Colorado and Taos Pueblo, Carlsbad Caverns, and Chaco Canyon in New Mexico are some of my favorite UNESCO world heritage sites and can be combined together in a fabulous southwest road trip. Understanding and experiencing Native American culture is so vital to our history in the U.S., although we typically have more inquiries from foreign clients than we do from Americans. We get behind the scenes with local guides, to see a side to these areas that few are offered a glimpse into. -—Sandy Cunningham, Outside Go

Willemstad, Curaçao

The Historic Area of Willemstad, Curaçao is one of the most interesting areas you’ll come across in the Caribbean. When you see the brightly colored building from across the Queen Emma floating bridge it’s an odd juxtaposition because the weather and colors scream the Caribbean while the architecture feels like you’ve just landed in a quaint Dutch town. Curaçao is perfect for history and architecture enthusiasts alike, you can spend hours wandering the narrow streets, enjoying a cocktail on the harbor, or admiring street art in Otrobanda.— Amina Dearmon, Perspectives Travel

San Antonio Missions, Texas

As a native Texan, I’m partial to the history San Antonio Missions. Most just know of The Alamo, but the site encompasses a group of five frontier mission complexes situated along a stretch of the San Antonio River basin in southern Texas, as well as an adjacent ranch. You’ll see beautiful architectural and archaeological structures, farmlands, residencies, churches, and granaries, as well as water distribution systems. The San Antonio Missions are also an example of the interweaving of Spanish and Coahuiltecan cultures, illustrated by a variety of features, including the decorative elements of churches, which combine Catholic symbols with indigenous designs inspired by nature.— Keith Waldon, Departure Lounge

Fossil Hominid Sites, South Africa

These incredible sites—which contain many of the world’s oldest humanoid fossil remains dating back 3 million years—are known as the “Cradle of Mankind. ” This is a full or half-day excursion from Johannesburg. — Mary Ann Ramsey, Betty Maclean Travel

Wieliczka Salt Mines, Poland

One of the true advantages of using a travel advisor is the knowledge and access to sites they would otherwise not be able to see. For me, one of the top lesser-known places is the Wieliczka Salt Mines in Krakow, Poland, one of the oldest mines in the world. You can see the development of mining techniques in Europe from the 13th century, plus statues and chapels carved from rock salt. — Jennifer Wilson-Buttigieg, Valerie Wilson Travel

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