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I visited this WHS in June 2019 focusing on a number of different locations in Peru. Like the Struve Geodetic Arc WHS, the Qhapac Nan WHS requires a lot of preparation mainly by reading parts of the 500MB+ nomination file, using the Find function on the PDF version and writing down a number of GPS coordinates.

The Qhapac Nan or Andean Road System was an administrative, transportation and communications system also used to demarcate the 4 basic divisions of the Inca Empire. The system expanded on almost all the territory of the Andes, nowadays Peru, Bolivia, Ecuador, Argentina, Chile and Colombia.

A main path started in Cusco towards each of the four suyos or regions. The roads were inscribed in the geography of the State. The Qhapac Nan connected Cusco with the main administrative centres of the Inca empire like for example Pachacamac (more info on the archaeological site itself in another review of the tentative site). Pachacamac is the main part of the inscribed Xauxa/Jauja - Pachacamac coastal desert section (p. 930 of the nomination file) in the Lurin Valley. It was the second largest urban centre after Cusco. This section is made up of two different types of road systems. The coastal road to Pachacamac was originally one of the best and most used roads since the times of the Wari Empire. It was also used by the first Spaniards who arrived in Peru in 1533. On the other hand, the route along the sierra linked …

The capital of the Alentejo region, Évora, is a city with more than twenty centuries of history. But its profile is much lower than that of other points of interest in Portugal, so a day after we had to dodge the insane crowds in Sintra (in late April), we encountered a much more manageable amount of fellow visitors in Évora. The town was far from deserted but instead just lively enough for our liking.

Évora retains various monuments from different eras. The oldest is the Roman temple of Diana, free-standing on an airy square at the edge of the town center. The medieval cathedral, a short walk away, first dates from the early 13th century; its suitably somber exterior hides a fairly vibrant interior. One of the prominent features here is the Baroque altar with a statue of pregnant Virgin Mary (called Nossa Senhora do O), created in the 15th century; it is highly uncommon in its positioning in the middle of the central nave of the church. You can also climb to the roof of the cathedral, both for views over town and for a number of impressive details.

The town roof line, I have to admit, is actually kind of bland. Three colors predominate in Évora’s palette: white, yellow, and red. The core of the town is practically all whitewashed with yellow accents and red roofs, with many of the houses dating from between 16th and 18th centuries, Évora’s golden age, when it was a …

I visited this WHS in June 2019. When visiting World Wonders or top WHS, I like to allow more time to visit and possibly revisit. Undoubtedly, Machu Picchu is Peru's most iconic and famous WHS, even though I must say that most of the other WHS I visited in Peru were top notch too.

As things stood till my visit, the confusion and difficulty of actually getting hold of the right entrance tickets, of organising your way to get there, and the general misinformation on the internet, all contribute to lowering the number of visitors, which in itself isn't a bad idea. Most visitors seem to opt for the Inca Trail while the others rely on the Peru Railway System with different levels of comfort (normal Peru Rail train, Voyager or Vistadome) and different points of departure/arrival (Cusco, Ollantaytambo or Aguas Calientes). I really hope that the international airport project underway in the Inca Sacred Valley never materialises. As it is, Peruvian authorities are already struggling to lower the number of visitors, but at least other areas with Inca sites of significant importance in the Sacred Valley benefit from tourism. The already expensive entrance tickets to Machu Picchu are now only valid for a maximum of 6 hours even though nobody was really checking; however, if you get hungry or need to use the toilets re-entry is NOT allowed!

For that reason I decided to pay for 2 entrance tickets, a morning one valid from 8am with a …

It's not that aqueducts aren't impressive, but I have much stronger memories of my conversation with my taxi driver on the way to and from the Aqueduct of Padre Tembleque Hydraulic System in January 2017 than I have of the actual aqueduct itself. After my visit, I'm still not sure exactly what it adds to the list. The Romans were constructing aqueducts with skill across Europe (see Segovia) many centuries before the technique was brought to the Western Hemisphere; I'd be more impressed with recognizing indigenous water management techniques. What constitutes the importance of this aqueduct to UNESCO, though, is the use of adobe, an adaptation of local building techniques, which enabled the construction of the picturesque span over the valley near Tepeyahualco. This main span is what draws most visitors, and it is the section I chose to visit. A sign near the parking area gave me some background about the route of the aqueduct, and a path allowed me to walk next to the tall arches. All told I didn't need much more than a half hour to visit this site; the remainder of my trip I spent in a fascinating but fretful conversation with my taxi driver, who used to live in the United States, about the future of Mexican immigration to the US after the presidential inauguration that week.

Logistics: The Aqueduct of Padre Tembleque requires private transporation, but can easily be paired with a visit to nearby Teotihuacan; I chose to hire a taxi …

Visit in July 2019.

Surtsey is a place that I have been fascinated with for essentially my entire life. In fact, the island and I are almost exactly the same age. Technically, Surtsey was “born” about eight weeks before I was, but I also existed at the time Surtsey rose from the sea, I just hadn't “erupted” quite yet. I also remember watching movies about the creation of the island, and also of the eruption ten years later on the nearby island of Heimaey, in the Vestmannaeyjar, when I was in the fifth grade in primary school. Consequently, I was very motivated to make an actual visit to this difficult-to-reach WHS.

Nothing has really changed in recent years regarding the status of Surtsey. It is still prohibited to land on the island, and it is unlikely that this will ever change. That leaves a trip to its offshore areas by sea, or a flyover in a small aircraft, as the only realistic options for a visit. In my opinion, this is not really a bad thing, since I don't believe that actually walking on the island would provide any real value compared to what you could see by the other methods. Additionally, there is not a safe landing site for small boats anywhere on the island at this time.

As I neared the area, there was still one tour operator in the Vestemannaeyjar that advertises a Private Tour to Surtsey on their Web site. However, when I …

Joggins Fossil Cliffs is just a 2.5 hour drive from Halifax, Nova Scotia airport. The site is in a rural area located right on the Bay of Fundy. I was fortunate to visit on a beautiful day in May at low tide. As a result, I was able to walk below the cliffs to see how the extreme tides of the Bay of Fundy is eroding the cliffs and exposing fossils of trees and other plant life. The various coal seams and ridges of fossil remains along the beach also made the site visually interesting.

You'll need a car to visit this site as it is a couple of hours from - well - anywhere. Fortunately, the roads are great and there is no traffic. Once there, definitely make time to visit the Joggins Fossil Center - part museum/gift shop/visitor's center. Also, the 2 or 4 hour tours offered by the Fossil Center staff are excellent.  

I visited this WHS in June 2019 and allowed 5 nights to explore the historic centre and the several sites around Cusco. It was a very welcome change from Lima even though there were many more tourists here. There are so many sites to see though and different festivals going on in June that it rarely felt crowded or congested except close to the main square.

If you intend to visit different sites around the Sacred Valley, make sure to buy the bolleto general which costs 130 soles and is valid for 10 consecutive days. It would cost way to much if you were to pay around 70 soles for each and every site. Apart from several minor monuments and museums (most interesting being the one of Qorikancha in Cusco), it will give you access to several Inca sites, namely Sacsayhuaman (best to visit before sunset), Qenqo, Puka Pukara and Tambomachay (these 4 can easily make up a worthwhile half day); Pisac and Ollantaytambo (quite a way from Cusco but a worthwhile stop on the way to/from Aguas Calientes and Machu Picchu); Moray and Chinchero (another worthwhile trip which we did on our way back from Machu Picchu and also included Maras salt pans and rural area); as well as Tipon and Pikillacta (which we combined with Rumicolca for an interesting visit of the Qhapac Nan and a combination of Wari and Inca structures).

At over 3400m above sea level, it is worth taking it easy for the …

Sintra is one of the most impressive and attractive places to visit in all of Portugal. It is also one of the most maddeningly overcrowded. We were there in late April; boarding the local bus to drive up to the higher-situated sights, navigating the sole road that leads to those sights, or touring Pena Palace have all become rather challenging by early afternoon. I can only imagine how insane it may get in the summer.

That aside, Sintra is an exceptional mixture of nature and architecture. The inscription lists a large number of sights that comprise the overall cultural landscape. With one full day dedicated to it, most of the people would go for a few of the most famous components, which is what we did. Our first stop was the National Palace, which dates from 15th century. Inside, there is a number of attractive indoor and outdoor spaces, with some incredible azulejo tile work and elements of Mudéjar and Manueline styles. Decorated wood-panel ceilings are among the most remarkable features of the palace. One of the last rooms on the tour is the dazzling 16th-century Sala dos Brasões; the azulejos in this room are about 150 years younger and are simply phenomenal.

After the palace, we proceeded about a kilometer away from the village center to Quinta da Regaleira, which ended up as our favorite sight in Sintra. The gardens of this 17th-century villa are simply enchanting, with a number of attractive features. The palace itself …

I visited this WHS in June 2019 as a day trip from Lima. It would be an ideal stepping stone between Lima and Trujillo but I had decided against visiting the Northern WHS of Peru in favour of more time at the Galapagos islands.

In June the river is almost at its lowest levels and from Lima we crossed through the Supe valley right over the river's pebble basin without the use of a 4x4 vehicle. From Trujillo there now is an easier route which can accomodate coaches even though this WHS is quite off the beaten track with few visitors yearly.

Even though most of the site remains still unexcavated, with local and international archaeologists still on site during my visit, the pyramid structures were quite impressive and seem to have been built in harmony with the surrounding desert/mountain environment. Even though I haven't visited yet, at times it felt like Teotihuacan but with a surrounding environment not very different from the Nile in Egypt. The recently discovered reliefs as well as the rotten wooden structures still visible on-site hint at how these structures could have been in ancient times. Caral Supe is the biggest of several similar sites in the Supe valley and it is believed to be one of the most ancient sites of the Americas, even though another site being excavated in the Peruvian desert seems to be the oldest one discovered as of yet.

The guide gave us ample time to marvel …

I have been taking groups of Entomologists and Photographers to Darien National Park and Rancho Frio since July 2013, probably visiting there at least 10 times, usually spending a week at the camp. You can get an idea of what is involved in getting there by reading another review by Jarek Pokrzwynicki that pretty much covers it.

We have rental SUV's and trucks to haul the massive amount of equipment it takes for an Entomology research trip there, and it usually takes the better part of 2 days from the time we leave Panama City until we get to the camp at Rancho Frio.

I usually go there for 6 to 8 nights with groups from 6 to 14 entomologists. We bring all of the food needed for a week stay there along with several coolers with perishable food and ice (the park guards can obtain small blocks of ice, and some basic food items, from the village of EL Real if needed).

As of early 2018 there is a large chest freezer that runs on propane. You should buy a fresh tank when you go to the camp to insure you have cold storage while there. Another propane tank is used for the stove for cooking your meals so you might want to get one for the stove, too. They are not too expensive ($10-$15).

I bring several 2000w generators, fuel cans, bright Mercury Vapor lights, dozens of extension cords, and small electric fans for …

The Historic Quarter of the Seaport City of Valparaiso is both overwhelming (from a traffic perspective) and underwhelming (just looks like a shabby port city) at first - until you go up! However you choose to get there - drive, walk, bus, funicular - just go up. It is one of the most visually stimulating cities that I have ever visited.

A good way to understand the Historic Quarter is on Cerro Concepcion - especially around the Casa Patrimonial area where you can see tons of historic houses indicative of the historic period of the late 19th century while also looking out onto the historic port.  

Although the murals of "Valpo" are not technically part of the World Heritage site, they are a must to visit and are located throughout the historic area. There are many tours that focus specifically on the colorful murals but you are guaranteed to stumble upon some of them by simply wandering the hills of Cerro Concepcion and Cerro Alegre. 

It is very easy to get to Valparaiso by bus from Santiago (the city or the airport) in about 90 minutes. You can also drive - but beware - it's the first city that ever nearly got the best of me. Google maps doesn't work well because the hills of the city are so vertical that GPS doesn't work well. Also, the streets are generally not marked. Parking is also a challenge.

Valparaiso is considered to be somewhat unsafe at night …

I visited this WHS in June 2019 and stayed a total of 5 nights here using it as my base for several short and long day trips to other WHS. To be fair, I wasn't expecting much from Lima and I chose to visit during 'garua' season as it happens to be the best season for the highlights of Peru further South.

That said, I couldn't not compare it to other WHS I had visited 'close' by such as Quito and Panama Viejo which were definitely better overall and more of an ensemble than the Peruvian capital. Lima's biggest problem is traffic, which doesn't even spare the main attraction of this WHS, Plaza de Armas. I enjoyed my numerous visits to the lively square at different times of the day and overall I enjoyed it the most in the evening when several 'cultural shows' took place to celebrate Afro-Peruvian communities. My personal highlight were the ornate wooden balconies of the Archbishop's Palace (photo) and the Torre Tagle Palace.

Moreover, Lima lacks a truly iconic building, monument or landmark and the majority of the places of interest are merely worth visiting but nothing very special, certainly not of outstanding universal value or unique. The Cathedral with Pizarro's tomb, St Martin's square, San Marcos Mansion's interior, the Rimac district, the Barrio Chino, the Santo Domingo Convent and Museum, the Government Palace, etc. are worth seeing but none would be must-sees to justify a revisit (if not a visit in the …

We were pretty thrilled that we arrived in the area in the late afternoon with just enough time to visit Shaubak Castle the evening before we went to Petra. This made it our first stop in Jordan, and it was pretty cool to see the ruins of a crusader castle and to ponder the history there. Its hilltop location is great with an interesting overview of the desert landscape. All that said, there isn't really much to see in the way of castle remains here. One main tower and Shaubak's famous stairway/passageway are pretty much what there is to see. We later visited the Karak (Kerak, Al Karak,...) crusader castle, and I much preferred that one -- there was just a lot more to see and explore there. (There's also a lot more to see at other crusader castles such as Belvoir in Israel.)

The Sanctuary of Bom Jesus de Congonhas is located just 90 minutes south of Belo Horizonte, the capital of Minas Gerais. The dusty town of Congonhas has absolutely nothing else of tourist value so this site is best visited as a side trip from Belo Horizonte or Ouro Preto. The roads in this area are excellent thanks to all the iron ore mine trucks and rental cars are super cheap so I recommend a self-drive and doing the 4 World Heritage sites of Minas Gerais beginning in Belo Horizonte. Parking is sometimes a challenge here but try to park directly behind the Sanctuary. Fortunately, the site is well marked once you get to Congonhas.    

I have nothing to add to the other site reports however if you smile and mumble a few words of Portuguese, the workers will usually let you slip into the Sanctuary although it is mostly covered in plastic. Otherwise, enjoy the amazing soapstone statues of The Prophets that would be right at home in any European Basilica and take time to visit the little chapels with lifelike, full size carvings of scenes form the passion of Christ.  

White Sands is a marvel, an extremely underrated park, oops "National Monument", that should and probably would be inscribed instantly if not for the use of the US Army missile testing in the area!!

Start out with the usual visitor center. The video introduction to the park is wonderful to prepare you, the slides at the exhibit a little basic, the gypsum sandbox to fake footprints is cute. The gift shop is actually bigger than the visitor center. The park (covered by the annual interagency card) is a further few miles in. I hiked the first few short trails but it didn't seem so impressive, also I got totally distracted by some dude letting his dog off the leash and trampling the bushes. The "back" side of the park is the real gem. Leave the crowds and sand plows behind to see blindingly white dunes. Take the grueling 3h Alkali Flats Trail over these dunes and through untouched (since their last shift) areas, spotting animals (only saw a mouse and lots of white earless lizards) and taking plenty of pics. The dunes keep shifting so each hike is slightly different. Pro tip right now: do this really early morning! You can also do a sunset walk with a ranger but I didn't feel like hanging around the park all day for 7pm. This is not the same 3h hike btw.

White earless lizards are one of the aspects the park has for inscription: adapt to survive, don't blend …

After reading many travel reviews on Cartagena suggesting that less time is better (cost, crowds and hassle were frequently mentioned) we only gave ourselves one full day to see the old town. The highlights can certainly be seen in a busy day but I felt rushed and didn't do all that I'd hoped.

As a strategic Caribbean port for the colonial Spaniards, Cartagena was wealthy and needed protection. A lot of protection. Inscribed as the largest system of military fortifications in South America there are a lot of forts surrounding the bay/port and the wall surrounding the colonial core is still intact and good for strolling as well. We started with a visit to the massive Castillo de San Felipe, the largest and most important of the forts before venturing into the colonial core. Within, the centre is well preserved and densely packed with narrow streets and more traffic than it needs to have. Maybe it is obvious because of its location but the overall feel is much more Caribbean than South American. Think Havana, not Lima. 

We were lucky and didn't have any cruise ships unloading hoards of tourists to overwhelm the centre but it still felt busy and there is no doubt this is the most visited city in Colombia. Trips into the bay or out to nearby islands should give a better perspective of the overall defensive strategy but we didn't have time. I was happy to have gotten a window seat on our flight …

I visited this WHS in June 2019. I opted for a VERY long day trip from Lima and combined a birdwatching boat trip to Islas Ballestas, a land panoramic lookout stop of some of the older Palpa lines (the Paracas Family, the Voyager, etc.), the Nasca Watchtower (really nothing special compared to the airborne view - another metal watchtower has been built in front of this one which is even worse!), and last but not least the Nasca Lines flight.

The mystery of how these geoglyphs were made, the sheer size of them and the endless amount of geoglyphs all add to make this WHS very unique and special and a must-see in Peru. Allow enough time to get there before your established flight time and make sure to add 5-10kg to your declared body weight. Apart from the extra kilos you might gain while in Peru, the personnel will NOT exclude your hiking clothes and shoes weight when checking, which might mean you'll be placed on a different flight or separated if you're with friends or family (due to weight restrictions and balancing).  

PLEASE NOTE

Anyone planning a visit to this site should be aware that the coordinates given on the map above are known to be "inexact". 

They are based solely on 2 general descriptions of how to reach the site provided in e-mails by a resident of Santiago de los Caballeros. As it proved impossible to determine exact coordinates from this description, a location 500 metres north of Tres Cruces where the road crosses the Rio Jacagua was chosen. This is situated in the neighbourhood of the site but with the exact distance and direction from there unknown.

Anyone trying to visit the site should also be aware that it is situated on private land and entry is only possible via the owner and an entry/guiding payment. Contact should be made with Pepe or Emmanual Benoit Tel 809-676-6781. It is understood that the owner prefers prior contact. It is also understood that the ruins are in bad condition and overgrown such that ICOMOS in the Dominican Republic has placed them on its National "In danger" list. See here for a video of a visit.

The "detailed" descriptions provided on how to reach the site from Tres Cruces were

a. (from central Santiago de los Caballeros) "hacia el norte. Se pasarán Obras Públicas, el liceo Mélida Giralt y Las Tres Cruces de Jacagua. Se sigue recto por un buen trecho hasta encontrar un cruce con una bifurcación a mano derecha. Se seguirá derecho y al doblar …

Poverty Point was the largest earthworks structure in the Americas in the period between 1,700 - 1,000 BC. Built by Native Americans as a full-scale city, it is thought to be the center of trade for the Americas at the time and is sited just 25km from the Mississippi River. This site pairs well with the Cahokia Mounds site in Southern Illinois about 900km to the north - also near the Mississippi River.  

While there isn't a lot to see today, you can get the idea of how the mounds created a giant "C" shape with easy river access that would facilitate trade. The remains of a dock are even still there. The small museum on site helps to better understand the site but the best way is to look at an aerial view - either on the site's website or Google Earth.  

Logistics: I visited Poverty Point in September, 2014, just after it received World Heritage status. It was a 4.5 hour drive from my home in Dallas but Monroe, Louisiana is the nearest airport with decent air service. I agree that you'd need a car in order to visit this site. For US$4.00 you can have the run of the place - possibly even alone - as this site is VERY far off the tourist track. The site is managed by the Louisiana State Parks. Nearby you can find the American Civil War battlefield site of Vicksburg - just 50 minutes to the southeast and the …

The previous reviews have already covered the sites that I have visited, so I am not going to repeat what was already mentioned. But I'd like to add to the reviews by sharing how my day went when I visited the Glover House and Kosuge Slip Dock in July 2019.

My friend and I decided to do a day-trip to Nagasaki from Fukuoka on a Monday. We aimed to visit the Glover House and the area around the Peace Park, and nothing else. We sort of started the day out late, leaving Hakata Bus Station at 8am and arriving in Nagasaki around 2.5 hours after. After a late breakfast at a tiny café near the bus station, we headed straight to the Glover Garden. The ticket counter staff told us that entry to the Glover House was not possible as it is under renovation, which started in January 2019 and is expected to finish by November 2020. 

We started the visit on the top of the hill with the former Mitsubishi Number 2 Dock House, which has a decent informative museum showcasing the different properties inscribed under this WHS. We then continued down the hill to see the other houses/buildings, like the cute Former Walker House, Former Ringer House (probably my favourite) and the Steele Memorial Academy. Going around the area I felt like I was visiting a theme park. We then arrived at the Glover House, which was fully covered with construction tarpaulin and heaps of metal …