UNESCO travel tips and stories. Vacations ideas, cruises spa and resorts

National Park Pirin takes up a significant part of the beautiful Pirin Mountain in Bulgaria. To the west is located the valley of the Struma and to the east of the Mesta Rivers. Area: 71,669.5 hectares, Total length: 85 kilometers, 70% of all ecosystems are natural, Highest peak: Botev at 2,376 meters above sea level, There are 9 nature reserves, with a combined area of 20,019 hectares.

The park is a home to 18 local endemic species, 15 Bulgarian and many Balkan endemic and a large quantity of preserved species, such as the Edelweiss, a symbol of Pirin.

 The Park contains rare and endangered wildlife species and communities, self-regulating ecosystems of biological diversity. Over 130 higher plants and animals encountered in the Central Balkan National Park are listed in the Bulgarian and the World Red Book of Endangered Species. The latter include 177 bird, 45 mammal and only 6 fish species.

Pirin is known with its abundance of water. There is only one distinctive waterfall, the Popinolashki waterfall , which is 12 m high. The mountains also have diverse and unique landscapes of great aesthetic value.

 Pirin National Park was included in the World Heritage list of Unesco in 1983.

The Giant’s Causeway is a World Heritage site, National Nature Reserve and Northern Ireland’s premier tourist attraction. It is made up of some 40,000 massive black basalt columns sticking out of the sea.  Formed between 50 and 60 million years ago, takes its name from the legends of Finn MacCool. Known to the Irish as the 8th Wonder of the World.

There are 15 miles of footpaths along the Causeway Coastline, owned and maintained by the National Trust. The formation of the Giant’s Causeway was due to intense volcanic activity. Lava welling up through fissures in the chalk bed formed a -lava plateau.

Within the nature reserve, a series of paths run between the visitor centre at Causeway Head and Hamilton’s Seat.
Most of the columns are hexagonal, although there are also some with four, five, seven and eight sides, the tallest are about 12 metres.

Sea birds can be seen off the coast around the Causeway, with species such as fulmar, petrel, cormorant, shag, redshank guillemot and razorbill being frequently observed.

Suomenlinna or Viapori (Finnish), or Sveaborg (Swedish), is an inhabited sea fortress built on six islands, today within Helsinki, the capital of Finland. The Sea fortress Suomenlinna is a unique architectural monument, a popular recreation area and museum. Although the island is located off the coast of Helsinki, it is part of the city. The Fortress was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage in 1991!

Suomenlinna Sea Fortress was built over 250 years ago and once had a population of 4600, larger than the population of Helsinki at the time. The Swedish crown commenced the construction of the fortress in 1748 as protection against Russian expansionism. All the effort didn’t hinder the Russians taking over in 1808. Finally in 1918 the Fortress became Finnish. Nowadays it is a popular park with museums, interesting flora and beaches.

Today, the island is inhabited by 1000 residents and so you will see some kids biking around. There is a big Visitor Center, which has a 25 minute “multi-vision show” and computers about the fortress.

There are plenty of nice spots for a picnic and you can also swim and sunbathe in various locations on the island – be prepared to walk a bit though. The trip to the fortress in Suomenlinna could be carried out by using the inter-island connecting motor boat from the Port in Katajanokanlaituri.

The Cathedral of Basil the Blessed, is a Russian Orthodox cathedral erected on the Red Square in Moscow in 1555–1561. The Monument to Minin and Pozharsky is made of bronze. Not particularly large, it consists of nine chapels, built on a single foundation. According to legend, however, it was built by an Italian architect who was blinded so that he could never create anything that was similar or equal. The St. Basil’s Cathedral, along with the Red Square were inscribed by Unesco as World Heritage Sites in 1990!

The Cathedral was commissioned by Ivan the Terrible in the 16th century to commemorate a military victory.Victory came on the feast day of the Intercession of the Virgin, so the Tsar chose to name his new church the Cathedral of the Intercession of the Virgin on the Moat, after the moat that ran beside the Kremlin.

St. Basil’s original construction involved a total of nine pillars or churches, replacing the former wooden churches, situated on a single foundation. A tenth pillar was added (1588) after the death of St. Basil and stands over his burial site.

The inside of St. Basil’s is a maze of narrow, dimly lit corridors connecting the different chapels. Each of the painted domes differs in design and colour.

The Verla Groundwood and Board Mill is a well preserved 19th century mill village. Only a handful of such settlements survives to the present day. It’s now a museum and one of the sites on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Hugo Neuman founded the Verla Groundwood Mill in 1872, but was destroyed by fire in 1876. Wilhelm Dippell having died in 1906, Verla became a limited company called the Verla Groundwood and Board Mill.

Throughout its unbroken 81-year history Verla Mill produced about 150,000 tonnes of board.

The historical machines were preserved in their places, except for several pieces brought from other buildings.

These Lagoons are of exceptional natural beauty. The New Caledonia Barrier Reef is located in New Caledonia in the South Pacific. It’s the third largest coral reef structure in the world.

The Lagoons of New Caledonia are a group of six lagoons that contain coral reef ecosystems. Its flora and fauna are one-of-a-kind in the world, with more than 1,000 species of fish and 6,500 species of marine invertebrates.

The reef encloses a lagoon of 24,000 square kilometers (9,300 sq mi), which has an average depth of 25 meters (82 ft).

The lagoons features an exceptional diversity of coral and fish species and a continuum of habitats from mangroves to sea grasses. About 5,000 pairs of Roseate Tern ( Sterna dougalli ) have been found.

The reef complex is globally unique in that it is “free-standing” in the ocean and encircles the island of New Caledonia.

The Lagoons of New Caledonia were recorded on the prestigious list of sites that are declared a World Heritage by UNESCO, which is a first for an overseas territory of France.

Malpelo Island and the surrounding marine environment are located 500 kilometers west of mainland Colombia. This vast marine park, the largest no-fishing zone in the Eastern Tropical Pacific. It has a land area of 0.35 square kilometers (86 acres). The highest point, “El Cerro de La Mona”, is 376 m above sea level.

The island is a largely barren oceanic rock. Plant species are few and small: ferns, leguminous and grassy shrubs, mosses, lichens and algae which are also widespread underwater.

Sea birds like the pique, the tijereta de mar and the pico rojo nest on the hilltops, which serve them as a way station.

Malpelo holds a unique shark population; swarms of 500 hammerhead sharks and hundreds of silky sharks.

Endemic to the island are one crab species, two starfish, various species of coralline fish, and two reptiles.

As it is an oceanic island at quite a distance from the continent, Malpelo is a living laboratory, ideal for scientific research, as well as nature tourism-related activities like diving.

UNESCO declared the area a World Natural Heritage Site by virtue of its marine biodiversity!

The Semmering Railroad – located in Austria this line connects the cities of Gloggnitz and Muerzzuschlag, it’s a section of the southern line called -Suedbahn. It is still fully functional as a part of the former Austrian Southhern Railway which is now part of the Austrian Federal Railways.

The Semmering Railway, built over 41 km of high mountains between 1848 and 1854, is one of the greatest feats of civil engineering. Difference of 460 m; on 60% of its length the steepness is 20-25‰. And 16% exhibit a curvature radius of only 190 m.

The main tunnel, 1,430 meters long, at the time considered the most famous construction of its kind and 15 other tunnels.

The Semmering railway and its surrounding region offer a multitude of recreational activities for virtual.Today, the Semmering Railway is not only a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site, but also a popular tourist destination with lots of references to its “fin de siecle” heritage. The first criteria was- it represents an outstanding technological solution to a major physical problem in the construction of early railway.

There are also many hiking tours, mountain climbing areas and ski pistes which all invite one for a mountainous adventure – in both winter and summer season.

Shark Bay, Western Australia. This World Heritage Area is of extraordinary global significance. Communities of corals, sponges and other invertebrates, together with a unique mix of tropical and temperate fish species.

Shark Bay is also home to five species of endangered mammals, as well as 35 percent of Australian bird species and abundant marine flora and fauna. Shark Bay is home to approximately 13% of the world population of dugong.

The area has a population of fewer than 1,000 people and a coastline of over 1,500 kilometers. In 1699, William Dampier gave the area the name Shark Bay.

Shark Bay also contains the largest number of seagrass species ever recorded in one place.

Bottle-nose dolphins abound in Shark Bay. At Monkey Mia , they come close to shore and interact with visitors who wade into knee-deep water.

Pearling, once important, has given way to fishing (prawns, crayfish, whiting, snapper).

Damascus, Syria is one of oldest cities in the Middle East, known to have been inhabited from the 3000 B.C. In 1979 the old city of Damascus, was added to the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites. Khan As’ad Pasha is one of the most beautiful and famous historical buildings in the Old City. 

Khan As’ad Pasha was built and named by the governor of Syria – As’ad Pasha al-Azem in 1751-52. It is situated in the walled city of Damascus, covers an area of 2,500 sq. m. and has been described as one of the finest work of architecture in the city.

The construction contains walls of stone, consisting of alternate courses of black basalt and white limestone, four central pillars, flat roof, brick domes and stone vaults. The rooms are arranged in several stories around a central courtyard, which is covered by nine domes.

This is a national park that is flanked by both Ngaoundere and Garoua. Benaoue is Cameroon’s second largest game reserve where you can see lions and buffaloes in their natural habitats. You will also see here giraffes as well as elephants, and do not forget the rhinoceros too.

Almost completely surrounded by the Dja River, which forms a natural boundary, the reserve is especially noted for its biodiversity and a wide variety of primates. There are more than 1,500 known plant species in the reserve, over 107 mammals and more than 320 bird species in the park, five of which are threatened.
 
Dja is known to hold some of the largest breeding colonies of Picathartes oreas in the country (with at least 50 nests known, and much habitat not yet prospected).

Internationally recognized as a Biosphere Reserve under UNESCO’s Man and the Biosphere Programme in 1981 and inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1984.

This unique hotel is located in the heart of the old quarter of Lyon, France which has been classed World Heritage site by UNESCO. The apartments,  symbolize all by themselves the magical spirit of a unique place in Europe. The hotel contains 4 floors  accessible with 3 lifts.

A beautiful jewel, Cour des Loges is a stunning contrast of modern and old. Some rooms have impressive carved stone fireplaces; others open onto gardens; still others boast exposed original stone walls hung with modern art. While all are spacious, the duplex suites are particularly open and airy and have the feel.

Amenities: Heating , Bathroom, Satellite TV , Heating , Bathroom , Toilet , Bathroom Amenities , Air Conditioning , Telephone, Pay TV , Safety Deposit Box , Bath , Shower , Minibar.

The hotel’s refurbished spa features a fitness room, a hammam, thermal baths and a heated counter-current swimming pool.

The town in the North West of the Alps, Chamonix, Mont-Blank is famous as a skiing resort. Mont Blanc became famous in 1924 with the organisation of the First Winter Olympics Games. The Chamonix Mont Blanc ski region covers 4 major ski resorts; Brevent/Flegere, Grands Montets, Domaine du Balme and Les Houches.

In twenty minutes, two cable-cars will take you from the valley floor in Chamonix up to the arrival station perched on a rocky spur at an altitude of 3842 m, in the heart of some of the highest peaks in Europe.

Fancy a bit of skiing, snowboarding, telemarking, cross-country skiing, ski-touring, mountaineering, ice climbing or snowshoeing.

Or if you prefer something a little more sedate then just enjoy the beautiful scenery and fresh Alpine air.

Chamonix, the cradle of alpines, remains the meeting of nature and mountain lovers.

Australiais a beautiful and ancient land with a remarkable plants, animals and landscapes.The Willandra Lakes Region is an extensive area that contains a system of ancient lakes. Today are dry lake beds with salt-tolerant low bushes and grasses. Access to this striking, awe-inspiring landscape is mostly made through Mungo National Park.

Aboriginees lived, fished, hunted, and occasionally were buried near the lakes. The Willandra Lakes Region is a World HeritageLikes that covers 2,400 square kilometres in south-western  New Douth Wales.

Some 20 mammalian species have been recorded, including red and grey kangaroos, etchings and several species of bat.

 Park open Daily. Visitors Centre open 8.30am – 6.30pm

Srebarna lakeis located in the Srebarna Nature Reserve in northeastern Bulgaria. The reserve covers an area of 8000 decares.18 km west of Silistra and 2 km south of the Danube.
The reserve embraces 6 km. 

The reserve has an Ecological Research and Visitor Station. A exhibition of stuffed birds and a terrace with a reasonable view. It is the breeding ground of almost 100 species of birds, many of which are rare or endangered. Some 80 other bird species migrate and seek refuge there every winter. The most interesting bird species are the Dalmatian pelican, great egret, night heron, purple heron, glossy ibis and white spoonbill.

In the vicinity there is a Nature museum and an Ecological research station.
In 1994 two new canals permitting a flow of water to the Reserve began to restore the condition of the lake
The first step for protecting the lake’s flora and fauna was made as early as 1942.In 1977 Srebarna was included in the “Man and Biosphere” programme pf UNESCO.