# TOP 10 Countries with the MOST World Heritage Sites



## Federicoft (Sep 26, 2005)

hornnieguy said:


> Times Square, Madison Square Gardens, The Golden Gate bridge, The Bronx Zoo, Disneyland and Disney World, Epcot Center, Mall of the Americas... to name a few.


:rofl:


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## ØlandDK (May 29, 2005)

Yoryi said:


> Sidney's Opera House has been declared World Heritage too today...!


Really deserved it - true masterpiece!:yes:


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## Hanshin-Tigress (Apr 10, 2007)

Well i think disney might count..because of all his ideas etc. But the other things not much. I am guessing the US is up there because of all the beautiful scenery.


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## ^Anton^ (Jan 1, 2007)

Well, for a country of its size it's not so "up there".


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## Mahratta (Feb 18, 2007)

Yoryi said:


> Sidney's Opera House has been declared World Heritage too today...!


Red Fort too!


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## Küsel (Sep 16, 2004)

Maki-chan said:


> Well i think disney might count..because of all his ideas etc. But the other things not much. I am guessing the US is up there because of all the beautiful scenery.


The statue of liberty is one of the only post-columbian man-made structrures in the US that is enlisted. Not even the ESB - in my oppinion it should


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## ladolcevita (Aug 11, 2005)

On the flip side, the U.S. has more sites than Canada or Australia though...... It may not compare with old world countries, but it still has quite a number of World Heritage Sites.


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## Mahratta (Feb 18, 2007)

I think China and India are under-represented. Iran and Turkey too.


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## eklips (Mar 29, 2005)

Kuesel said:


> The statue of liberty is one of the only post-columbian man-made structrures in the US that is enlisted. Not even the ESB - in my oppinion it should


I'd rather put the chrystler building


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## Mahratta (Feb 18, 2007)

eklips said:


> I'd rather put the chrystler building


Yeah, I think its one of NYC's best...easily nicer looking than Empire State imo..

Lady Liberty is still deserving of UNESCO status however


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## Yörch1 (Oct 31, 2006)

^^ It is on the list since 1984... 

Here's the complete list for the USA. 

United States of America

* Mesa Verde National Park (1978)
* Yellowstone National Park (1978)
* Everglades National Park (1979)
* Grand Canyon National Park (1979)
* Independence Hall (1979)
* Kluane / Wrangell-St Elias / Glacier Bay / Tatshenshini-Alsek (1979, 1992, 1994) # * 29
* Redwood National and State Parks (1980)
* Mammoth Cave National Park (1981)
* Olympic National Park (1981)
* Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site (1982)
* La Fortaleza and San Juan National Historic Site in Puerto Rico (1983)
* Great Smoky Mountains National Park (1983)
* Statue of Liberty (1984)
* Yosemite National Park (1984) #
* Chaco Culture (1987)
* Hawaii Volcanoes National Park (1987) #
* Monticello and the University of Virginia in Charlottesville (1987)
* Pueblo de Taos (1992)
* Carlsbad Caverns National Park (1995)
* Waterton Glacier International Peace Park (1995) *

Source: http://whc.unesco.org/en/list


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## Küsel (Sep 16, 2004)

eklips said:


> I'd rather put the chrystler building


I like the Chrysler also much more by its perfect art deco design. But I think ESB made a bigger historical impact overall... Otherwise another candidate would be Woolworth Building


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## Metsada (Oct 22, 2006)

the Nigel Effect said:


> I think China and India are under-represented. Iran and Turkey too.


Funny, I was thinking about these same countries too :lol:


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## Purple Dreams (Jan 31, 2007)

^^ Me too; and of course Egypt


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## Mahratta (Feb 18, 2007)

I suppose great minds do think alike. :lol: 

Im going to India in 4 hours...to visit some heritage sites


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## Purple Dreams (Jan 31, 2007)

Have a great trip! I hope to return to India and visit things I didn't have the opportunity to visit on my first trip.


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## Q-TIP (Feb 14, 2005)

UNESCO's World Heritage List numbers 851 properties including 660 cultural, 166 natural and 25 mixed properties.

Australia now has 17 sites and there is a mix of all the criteria:
•	Great Barrier Reef (1981) 
•	Kakadu National Park (1981, 1987, 1992) 
•	Willandra Lakes Region (1981) 
•	Lord Howe Island Group (1982) 
•	Tasmanian Wilderness (1982, 1989) 
•	Gondwana Rainforests of Australia (1986, 1994) 1 
•	Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park (1987, 1994) 2 
•	Wet Tropics of Queensland (1988) 
•	Shark Bay, Western Australia (1991) 
•	Fraser Island (1992) 
•	Australian Fossil Mammal Sites (Riversleigh / Naracoorte) (1994) 
•	Heard and McDonald Islands (1997) 
•	Macquarie Island (1997) 
•	Greater Blue Mountains Area (2000) 
•	Purnululu National Park (2003) 
•	Royal Exhibition Building and Carlton Gardens (2004) 
•	Sydney Opera House (2007)


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## Metsada (Oct 22, 2006)

Purple Dreams said:


> Have a great trip! I hope to return to India and visit things I didn't have the opportunity to visit on my first trip.


India is fascinating, yet I'm a bit scared to go because of certain hygiene issues. I would have to plan everything perfectly ahead. I get lost very easily, lol. I'd like to visit places like Varanasi so much


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## Purple Dreams (Jan 31, 2007)

Metsada said:


> India is fascinating, yet I'm a bit scared to go because of certain hygiene issues. I would have to plan everything perfectly ahead. I get lost very easily, lol. I'd like to visit places like Varanasi so much


You sound like my mother-re the hygiene issues. I don't know how extreme it is with you but she's a borderline maniac.
I have a pretty good sense of orientation so I rarely get lost. But India is pretty chaotic and I was lucky to have a driver.


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## PedroGabriel (Feb 5, 2007)

Portugal

* Central Zone of the Town of Angra do Heroismo in the Azores (1983)
* Convent of Christ in Tomar (1983)
* Monastery of Batalha (1983)
* Monastery of the Hieronymites and Tower of Belém in Lisbon (1983)
* Historic Centre of Évora (1986)
* Monastery of Alcobaça (1989)
* Cultural Landscape of Sintra (1995)
* Historic Centre of Oporto (1996)
* Prehistoric Rock-Art Sites in the Côa Valley (1998)
* Laurisilva of Madeira (1999)
* Alto Douro Wine Region (2001)
* Historic Centre of Guimarães (2001)
* Landscape of the Pico Island Vineyard Culture (2004)


I'm really impressed that Óbidos is not world heritage, it is a true medieval town in the 21th century. The University of Coimbra is also a future candidate.

And Northern Portugal and Galicia in Spain are preparing another one, The Castro/Celtic culture ruins. If they get it, my city will get an world heritage site, and in the area where I live will have the most world heritage sites.

Porto and Guimarães are pretty close by not even a 30 minutes-drive. Douro Wine region is also near and Coa Valley too. In fact, Coa and Douro overlap that some people think it should be the same, but one is for prehistoric art and the other wine culture. So 4, in the future 5 in a very small area. the new one, a 5 minutes-drive.


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## PedroGabriel (Feb 5, 2007)

Portugal-related world heritage sites (Portuguese architecture mostly) around the world:

Brazil

* Historic Town of Ouro Preto (1980)
* Historic Centre of the Town of Olinda (1982)
* Jesuit Missions of the Guaranis: San Ignacio Mini, Santa Ana, Nuestra Señora de Loreto and Santa Maria Mayor (Argentina), Ruins of Sao Miguel das Missoes (Brazil) (1983, 1984) *
* Historic Centre of Salvador de Bahia (1985)
* Sanctuary of Bom Jesus do Congonhas (1985) 
* Historic Centre of São Luís (1997)
* Historic Centre of the Town of Diamantina (1999)
* Historic Centre of the Town of Goiás (2001)

China

* Historic Centre of Macao (2005)

Ghana

* Forts and Castles, Volta, Greater Accra, Central and Western Regions (1979) 

India

* Churches and Convents of Goa (1986)

Morocco

* Portuguese City of Mazagan (El Jadida) (2004)

Mozambique

* Island of Mozambique (1991)

Sri Lanka

* Old Town of Galle and its Fortifications (1988)

Uruguay

* Historic Quarter of the City of Colonia del Sacramento (1995)


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## eddie88 (Apr 3, 2007)

i am very surprised about UK's position


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## Skaros (Jan 25, 2005)

The lists are a bit misleading.
In some cases the sites are single monuments and in some other cases they are big complexes or individual buildings that are in different places.
For example in Turkey there is a site named "historical areas of Istanbul" which includes the byzantine walls, the Hagia Sophia and the Süleymaniye Mosque. (it coould be for example 2 world heritage sites ) while in other cases we have 1 site per monument e.g. Burgos cathedral in Spain.
Also from the 851 properties of the world heritage list (2007) the 660 of them are cultural, 166 are natural and 25 are mixed properties.
For example the case of USA.
Of the 20 sites total only 8 of them are cultural and the other 12 are natural sites.
And that is normal , US is a very big country with great natural environment but none would except to have a number of cultural sites comparable to old european countries.
So kinds of graphs like that presented in the first page of this post are at least misleading in my opinion.


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