Nan Profile

Nan
Nan.

It's up to you how you want to spend your holiday, whether that's lazing on the beach at a Caribbean club hotel sipping Mai Tais. Or tending to the garden.

While I do enjoy the occasional Mai Tai on the beach, I prefer to see new things and travel to faraway places. I've read my fair share of travel guides to find out where to go and what to see. And I was often disappointed.

While many guidebooks spend an entire chapter extolling the virtues of a particular destination (e.g. a capital city), World Heritage Sites are different. They're as objective as it gets, and often take you off the beaten track. For example, I have fond memories of my taxi ride through a Czech winter landscape to visit Holasovice, a site that only World Heritage connoisseurs would appreciate. More often than not, WHS are great places.

Initially, I concentrated on visiting as many WHS as possible, which gave me a good overview. However, since I've reached the magic 300 (almost 600 now), I've shifted my focus to visiting the really great sites: quality over quantity.

Ultimately, I recommend that you travel as you please. However, if you find yourself in a country (even if it's just for a beach holiday), take a look at the map of World Heritage Sites on this site to see if any are nearby. You may have to travel a little off the beaten track, but I assure you it will be worth it.

Visited Sites Nan

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Legend

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  • Natural
  • Mixed

Recent Reviews Nan


Bukhara

Nan Germany - 28-Dec-23

Bukhara

In the trifecta of great Uzbek Islamic silk road cities (Xiva, Bukhara, Samarkand), I think there are arguments for either city being the greatest. Samarkand is the biggest city and has the largest sites, but the historic sites are dispersed across a modern city. Xiva has a real old town, enclosed by historic walls, but doesn't have the one stellar site to shine. Bukhara's appeal is that it still has a charming old town feeling (but way less than Xiva) and undoubtedly plenty of stellar sites, most notably the square around Kalon minaret.

Read On

Ancient Jericho

Nan Germany - 28-Dec-23

Ancient Jericho

Jericho supposedly is the world's oldest and/or longest and/or fortified inhabited city. Or one of them. In the pre-Neolithic things get a bit fuzzy.

While Els general comment holds (oldest till they find something older), I think there can be little doubt that Jericho belongs on the list, offering ample historical and archaeological remains ranging from pre-Neolithic times to 500 BCE. Humans settled here permanently after the Ice Age had ended, somewhere between 10.000-9.000 BCE. The location had two things going for it. There is a spring, Ein as-Sultan. And the low altitude (at -250m Jericho is the lowest city in the world) meant it was a bit warmer.

Read On

Sinharaja Forest

Nan Germany - 27-Dec-23

Sinharaja Forest

When showing my Sri Lanka pictures to friends & family, Sinharaja tends to impress the most, especially for kids. While we didn't venture too deep into the jungle, we still saw plenty of amazing wildlife. A chameleon, flesh eating fish, a poisonous snake, a centipede, ... Sinharaja, even on its outskirts, is full of life.

We entered from the South (Lankagama) and hiked up a set of cascades. After a few meters, the trail turned pretty rough. We were happy to have a ranger accompany us to show us the wildlife and help with the hike.

Read On

Upper Svaneti

Nan Germany - 08-Aug-23

Upper Svaneti

Upper Svaneti... For a long time, I had a hard time recalling what a WHS this is and where it's located. Then I read Els' review and wanted to go myself.

As pointed out by Els, the Svan are a people, Svaneti is the region in Georgia's Northwest where they settle and Upper Svaneti refers to the most mountainous part thereof. The access to Upper Svaneti is limited to a river valley and well protected, both naturally as well as with the renowned tower houses. As such the Svan were able to protect their distinct identity for centuries against many invaders.

Read On

Colchic Rainforests and Wetlands

Nan Germany - 18-Jul-23

Colchic Rainforests and Wetlands

Travelling in Georgia you get used to checking the daily weather forecast. Georgia in summer is hot and humid from the Black Sea and has high mountains: All the ingredients you need for subtropical (= heavy) rains and heavy thunderstorms, specifically at the coast. In Batumi it rains roughly 2.100mm each year. This has created a unique subtropical landscape along the coast, breaking down into two types of location as the site's name suggests:

Flat wetlands around Poti. Subtropical rainforests in the mountains north-east of Batumi

Read On

Profile Data

Name
Nan
Country
Germany
Most Impressive
Petra, Machu Picchu, Angkor
Proposal
Seoraksan, Korea. Okefenokee, USA.

Recently Visited WHS

Update 02.03.24
Rating Stats
Angkor 5
Petra 5
Rome 5
Acropolis 4.5
Bukhara 4.5
Cordoba 4.5
Dubrovnik 4.5
Granada 4.5
Meteora 4.5
Ping Yao 4.5
Pompei 4.5
Prague 4.5
Ravenna 4.5
Samarkand 4.5
Vienna 4.5
Brugge 4
Iguacu 4
Kotor 4
Riga 4
Siena 4
Sintra 4
Assisi 3.5
Bethlehem 3.5
Bordeaux 3.5
Bryggen 3.5
Calakmul 3.5
Champagne 3.5
Cuenca 3.5
Edinburgh 3.5
Fujisan 3.5
Gyeongju 3.5
Huangshan 3.5
Kraków 3.5
L'viv 3.5
Masada 3.5
Matera 3.5
Mystras 3.5
Pergamon 3.5
Reims 3.5
Rhodes 3.5
Syracuse 3.5
Tallinn 3.5
Visby 3.5
Albi 3
Arles 3
Avila 3
Belem 3
Cuzco 3
Genoa 3
Hoi An 3
Hué 3
Lyon 3
Macao 3
Mostar 3
Nikko 3
Oporto 3
Potosi 3
Røros 3
Split 3
Sucre 3
Trebic 3
Urbino 3
Uxmal 3
Warsaw 3
Belfries 2.5
Burgundy 2.5
Butrint 2.5
Caceres 2.5
Corfu 2.5
Elvas 2.5
Evora 2.5
Graz 2.5
Hollókö 2.5
Kandy 2.5
Koh Ker 2.5
Le Havre 2.5
Lübeck 2.5
Mtskheta 2.5
Nancy 2.5
Naples 2.5
Nesvizh 2.5
Orange 2.5
Panamá 2.5
Provins 2.5
Puebla 2.5
Red Fort 2.5
Saltaire 2.5
Sarazm 2.5
Tarraco 2.5
Telc 2.5
Tiwanaku 2.5
Toledo 2.5
Trier 2.5
Trogir 2.5
Troy 2.5
Vat Phou 2.5
Vlkolinec 2.5
Lima 2
Modena 2
Nice 2
Pienza 2
Verona 2
Aranjuez 1.5
Campeche 1.5
Ivrea 1.5
Reichenau 1.5
Torun 1.5
Battir 1
Corvey 1
Mafra 0.5
  1. Bukhara
  2. Ancient Jericho
  3. Sinharaja Forest
  4. Upper Svaneti
  5. Colchic Rainforests and Wetlands
  6. Haghpat and Sanahin
  7. Sarazm
  8. Shakhrisyabz
  9. Masada
  10. Hebron/Al-Khalil Old Town
  11. Pergamon
  12. Samarkand
  13. Itchan Kala
  14. Silk Roads: Zarafshan-Karakum Corridor
  15. Medieval Monuments in Kosovo
  16. Surtsey
  17. Wadden Sea
  18. Wadi Al-Hitan
  19. Studenica Monastery
  20. Nubian Monuments
  21. Portovenere, Cinque Terre, and the Islands
  22. Genoa
  23. Aphrodisias
  24. L'viv
  25. Diyarbakir Fortress and Hevsel Gardens
  26. Çatalhöyük
  27. Monastery of Horezu
  28. Arslantepe Mound
  29. Asturian Monuments
  30. Las Medulas
  31. Villages with Fortified Churches
  32. Wieliczka and Bochnia Royal Salt Mines
  33. Krzemionki prehistoric flint mines
  34. Residence of Bukovinian & Dalmatian Metropolitans
  35. ShUM Sites
  36. Wooden Churches of Maramures
  37. Hortobágy
  38. Tokaji Wine Region
  39. Kladruby nad Labem
  40. Roșia Montană
  41. Great Spa Towns of Europe
  42. Žatec – Landscape of Hops
  43. Prague
  44. Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor
  45. Rock-hewn Churches of Ivanovo
  46. Keoladeo National Park
  47. Urnes Stave Church
  48. Iwami Ginzan Silver Mine
  49. Primeval Beech Forests
  50. Crespi d'Adda
  51. Nessebar
  52. Paris, Banks of the Seine
  53. Isole Eolie
  54. Yaroslavl
  55. Olympia
  56. Archaeological Site of Delphi
  57. Daphni, Hosios Loukas and Nea Moni of Chios
  58. Epidaurus
  59. Acropolis
  60. Mycenae and Tiryns
  61. Mystras
  62. Temple of Apollo Epicurius at Bassae
  63. Rjukan / Notodden
  64. L'viv
  65. Rock Art of Alta
  66. Vegaøyan
  67. Røros
  68. Australian Convict Sites
  69. Cistercian Abbey of Fontenay
  70. Sydney Opera House
  71. Greater Blue Mountains
  72. Singapore Botanic Gardens
  73. Tongariro National Park
  74. Te Wahipounamu
  75. Ping Yao
  76. West Lake
  77. Classical Gardens of Suzhou
  78. Huangshan
  79. Xidi and Hongcun
  80. Dengfeng
  81. Longmen Grottoes
  82. Liangzhu Archaeological Site
  83. Le Havre
  84. Loire Valley
  85. Mont-Saint-Michel
  86. Fujisan
  87. Western Ghats
  88. Mount Etna
  89. Modernist Kaunas
  90. Cilento and Vallo di Diano
  91. Cornwall and West Devon Mining Landscape
  92. Neolithic Orkney
  93. St. Kilda
  94. Megalithic Temples of Malta
  95. Hal Saflieni Hypogeum
  96. Jantar Mantar
  97. Antequera Dolmens Site
  98. Val di Noto
  99. Old Rauma
  100. Sammallahdenmäki
  101. Petäjävesi Old Church
  102. Verla Groundwood and Board Mill
  103. Villa Romana del Casale
  104. Corfu
  105. Berat and Gjirokastra
  106. Butrint
  107. High Coast / Kvarken Archipelago
  108. Gammelstad
  109. Laponian Area
  110. Arab-Norman Palermo
  111. Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve
  112. Popocatepetl monasteries
  113. Kii Mountain Range
  114. Zamość
  115. Reims
  116. Champagne
  117. Funerary and memory sites of the First World War
  118. Burgundy
  119. Jaipur City, Rajasthan
  120. Palenque
  121. Churches of the Pskov School of Architecture
  122. Koh Ker
  123. The Prosecco Hills
  124. Angkor
  125. Tomioka Silk Mill
  126. Curonian Spit
  127. Nesvizh
  128. Hill Forts of Rajasthan
  129. Potosi
  130. Preah Vihear Temple
  131. Sambor Prei Kuk
  132. Vat Phou
  133. Luang Prabang
  134. Plain of Jars
  135. La Chaux-de-Fonds / Le Locle
  136. Thang Long
  137. Dolomites
  138. Kaiping Diaolou
  139. South China Karst
  140. Water Management System of Augsburg
  141. China Danxia
  142. Danube Delta
  143. Macao
  144. Plečnik's Ljubljana
  145. Plitvice Lakes
  146. Hiraizumi
  147. Srebarna Nature Reserve
  148. Jesuit Missions of the Guaranis
  149. Aachen Cathedral
  150. Benedictine Convent of St. John
  151. Lavaux, Vineyard Terraces
  152. Swiss Tectonic Arena Sardona
  153. Rhaetian Railway
  154. Hedeby and Danevirke
  155. Engelsberg Ironworks
  156. Residences of the Royal House of Savoy
  157. Istanbul
  158. Selimiye Mosque
  159. Bursa and Cumalikizik
  160. Vineyard Landscape of Piedmont
  161. Ivrea
  162. San Gimignano
  163. Longobards in Italy
  164. Val d'Orcia
  165. Siena
  166. Etruscan Necropolises
  167. Jesuit Missions of the Chiquitos
  168. El Fuerte de Samaipata
  169. Mir Castle
  170. Tiwanaku
  171. Qhapaq Ñan
  172. Sucre
  173. Machu Picchu
  174. Cuzco
  175. Nasca Lines
  176. Swiss Alps Jungfrau-Aletsch
  177. Bellinzone
  178. Neolithic Flint Mines at Spiennes
  179. Old City of Berne
  180. Gwynedd Castles
  181. Sceilg Mhichíl
  182. Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and Canal
  183. Ironbridge Gorge
  184. Nord-Pas de Calais Mining Basin
  185. Belfries
  186. Tarnowskie Góry Lead-Silver-Zinc Mine
  187. Białowieża Forest
  188. Malbork Castle
  189. Speicherstadt and Kontorhaus District
  190. Boyana Church
  191. Thessalonika
  192. Rila Monastery
  193. Pirin National Park
  194. Archaeological site of Philippi
  195. Meteora
  196. Mount Athos
  197. Archaeological Site of Aigai
  198. Peking Man Site
  199. Rock Carvings in Tanum
  200. Grimeton Radio Station
  201. Jesuit Missions of Trinidad and Jesus
  202. The Architectural Work of Le Corbusier
  203. Fray Bentos
  204. Peninsula Valdes
  205. Los Alerces National Park
  206. Cueva de las Manos
  207. Los Glaciares
  208. Churches of Chiloé
  209. Valparaiso
  210. Rapa Nui
  211. White Monuments of Vladimir and Suzdal
  212. Mafra
  213. Fagus Factory
  214. Par force hunting landscape
  215. Holasovice
  216. Xochicalco
  217. Tlacotalpan
  218. Caves of Yagul and Mitla
  219. Taj Mahal
  220. Medina of Tétouan
  221. Gorham's Cave Complex
  222. Mathildenhöhe Darmstadt
  223. Caves and Ice Age Art
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