Gary Arndt Profile

Gary Arndt
Gary Arndt.

I sold my home in 2007 to travel around the world for a year. That year has turned into a decade as I never really stopped. Early in my travels, I discovered world heritage sites and I started going out of my way to visit them. The first few didn't require any extra effort, but when I made a special trip to the island of Rennell in the Solomon Islands, I knew I was hooked. 

During my travels, I taught myself photography and have been named Travel Photographer of the Year three times in North America. 

I have been to over 380 UNESCO World Heritage sites around the world. I photograph and document each site I visit and post about it on my website. 

Visited Sites Gary Arndt

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Recent Reviews Gary Arndt


Hegra

Gary Arndt USA - 22-Feb-19

Hegra

I visited Mada'in Saleh in December 2018 as part of a trip to Saudi Arabia for the inaugural Formula E race hosted in Riyadh. I took a day trip up to Al Oula where our group got permission to visit Mada'in Saleh.

(Mada'in Saleh is currently closed indefinitely for improvements, however, I didn't think the site was actually in that bad of shape. The roads and signs did need some upkeep, but the current conditions were more than passable for visitors. I've seen much worse at other sites around the world).

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Nahanni National Park

Gary Arndt USA - 31-Jan-19

Nahanni National Park

Nahanni National Park might very well be the greatest national park in the world. That is a big statement, but anyone who has been to Nahanni (and few people have) can back it up.Nahanni is home to one of the world's largest waterfalls (Virginia Falls) which is higher than Niagara Falls and has a flow comparable with Victoria Falls in Africa.That alone would be enough to make it a world heritage sites. However, it is also home to the Cirque du Unclimables, which is a stunning collection of mountain peaks, and the Ram Canyon, which is one of the most impressive canyons in the world. Nahanni only gets about 800 visitors per year. There are no roads to the park, so the only way to enter is by hiking or float plane

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Corvey

Gary Arndt USA - 06-Dec-18

Corvey

I visited the Carolingian Westwork and Civitas Corvey in the summer of 2018 when I drove from Belgium to Berlin.

I visited the site on my own without a guided tour. There wasn't a whole lot available in English and I couldn't tell if there were any English language tours or guidebooks available. 

The interpretative tools available for non-German speakers was rather slim. It was one of the least accessible sites I had visited in all of Germany (and I have visited most of the German sites). 

I spent about 2 hours exploring the grounds and taking photos. At least the entrance fee was affordable. 

This site is probably only going to be of interest to local school groups and world heritage site completists. 

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Hawaii Volcanoes

Gary Arndt USA - 10-Nov-18

Hawaii Volcanoes

On my list of world heritage sites, Hawaii Volcanoes National Park is listed as my very first site. When I began traveling full time in 2007, my first stop was in Hawaii, and my first stop in Hawaii was the Big Island. 

I had previously visited here in 2006 on a geology field trip, so I guess that would actually be my first visit to the park. 

This is probably the best place on Earth to see lava and volcanism, however, your ability to see really good lava flows is going to be dependent on luck and when you happen to be there. Unfortunately, I never saw flowing lava during any of my trips. 

This is one site where to have the best experience, you should pay attention to the news and show up when there is activity going on. 

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Battir

Gary Arndt USA - 17-Mar-18

Battir

The village of Battir is not far from Jerusalem and is right on the Israel/Palestine border. In fact, there are Israeli train tracks which go right past the terraces at the bottom of the hill.

I could not find any organized tours to Battir, which was a shame. Nearby Bethlehem gets most of the attention in the region. That being said, it wasn’t that hard to get to Battir from Bethlehem. I had my tour guide in Bethlehem call a taxi for me which took me to there. It took about 15 minutes and cost about $10.

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Profile Data

Name
Gary Arndt
Country
USA
Most Impressive
Nahanni National Park
Proposal
Denali National Park
Website
website

Recently Visited WHS

Update 25.07.21
Rating Stats
Angkor 5
Petra 5
Rome 5
Uluru 5
Borobudur 4.5
Hegra 4.5
Iguacu 4.5
Lalibela 4.5
Pompei 4.5
Prague 4.5
Redwood 4.5
Sintra 4.5
Taj Mahal 4.5
Yakushima 4.5
Aksum 4
Brugge 4
Copán 4
Kotor 4
Masada 4
Naples 4
Nikko 4
Paphos 4
Quito 4
Vienna 4
Ayutthaya 3.5
Budapest 3.5
Corfu 3.5
Gyeongju 3.5
Mostar 3.5
Ravenna 3.5
Reichenau 3.5
Seville 3.5
Siena 3.5
Split 3.5
Tarraco 3.5
Trebic 3.5
Trier 3.5
Arles 3
Belem 3
Hoi An 3
Hué 3
Kandy 3
Macao 3
Mafra 3
My Son 3
Orange 3
Reims 3
Riga 3
Telc 3
Trogir 3
Verona 3
Vigan 3
Warsaw 3
Belfries 2.5
Champagne 2.5
Elvas 2.5
Modena 2.5
Corvey 2
Evora 2
Ibiza 2
Le Havre 1.5
Battir 1
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