UNESCO Has Unveiled 27 New World Heritage Sites, Including Trove-Trusted Destinations

By Trove Content Writer, Hallie Milstein

Koh Ker, Archaeological Site of Ancient Lingapura or Chok Gargyar

Each year, the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) adds to its list of worldwide destinations of “outstanding universal value.” Designated world heritage sites on the list include ancient enigmas, natural marvels, and monuments of immense cultural significance—among them, wonders within Trove’s network. 

Both the long-term fixtures and new additions on this list promise unique travel experiences and once-in-a-lifetime vistas, beholden with rare cultural insights. In 2023, UNESCO supplemented its standing World Heritage List with over two dozen new or expanded destinations, accounting for a wide variety of natural and archaeological landmarks.

New World Heritage Sites in 2023

• Azerbaijan: Cultural Landscape of Khinalig People and “Köç Yolu” Transhumance Route

• Cambodia: Koh Ker, Archaeological Site of Ancient Lingapura or Chok Gargyar

• Canada: Tr’ondëk-Klondike

• China: Cultural Landscape of Old Tea Forests of the Jingmai Mountain in Pu’er

• Congo: Forest Massif of Odzala-Kokoua

• Czechia: Žatec and the Landscape of Saaz Hops

• Denmark: Viking-age ring fortresses

• Ethiopia: Bale Mountains National Park

• Ethiopia: The Gedeo Cultural Landscape

• France: The Maison Carrée of Nîmes

• Germany: Jewish-Medieval Heritage of Erfurt

• Guatemala: National Archaeological Park Tak’alik Ab’aj

• India: Sacred Ensembles of the Hoysalas

• India: Santiniketan

• Indonesia: The Cosmological Axis of Yogyakarta and its Historic Landmarks

• Iran: The Persian Caravanserai

• Latvia: Old town of Kuldīga

• Lithuania: Modernist Kaunas: Architecture of Optimism, 1919-1939

• Martinique: Volcanoes and Forests of Mount Pelée and the Pitons of Northern Martinique

• Mongolia: Deer Stone Monuments and Related Bronze Age Sites

• Republic of Korea: Gaya Tumuli

• Russia: Astronomical Observatories of Kazan Federal University

• Spain: Prehistoric Sites of Talayotic Menorca

• State of Palestine: Ancient Jericho/Tell es-Sultan

• Tajikistan: Silk Roads, Zarafshan-Karakum Corridor

• Tunisia: Djerba: Testimony to a settlement pattern in an island territory

• Türkiye: Gordion 

Belize Barrier Reef Reserve System

Trove’s Must-See Checklist of World Heritage Sites

• Belize: Barrier Reef Reserve System

• Cabo Verde: Cidade Velha, Historic Centre of Ribeira Grande

• Cambodia: Angkor

• Cambodia: Temple of Preah Vihear

• Cambodia: Temple Zone of Sambor Prei Kuk, Archaeological Site of Ancient Ishanapura

• Fiji: Levuka Historical Port Town

• Israel: Masada

• Israel: White City of Tel-Aviv – the Modern Movement

• Israel: Caves of Maresha and Bet-Guvrin in the Judean Lowlands as a Microcosm of the Land of the Caves

• Japan: Itsukushima Shinto Shrine

• Japan: Historic Monuments of Ancient Nara

• Japan: Hiraizumi – Temples, Gardens and Archaeological Sites Representing the Buddhist Pure Land

• Japan: Ogasawara Islands

• Japan: Jomon Prehistoric Sites in Northern Japan

• Peru: City of Cuzco

• Peru: Historic Sanctuary of Machu Picchu

• Peru: Lines and Geoglyphs of Nasca and Palpa

• Peru: Historical Centre of the City of Arequipa

• Peru: Sacred City of Caral-Supe

• Saint Lucia: Pitons Management Area

• Spain: Vizcaya Bridge in Balboa