20 Countries With the Most UNESCO World Heritage Sites
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For a destination to be classified as a UNESCO World Heritage site, it must meet particular criteria as either a cultural or natural site. That means the site represents traditions, beliefs, ideas or works of global significance; provides a significant example of architecture; represents a key stage in the Earth's history; or is home to natural habitats where conservation of diverse biology is maintained.
Some countries are lucky enough to have earned several World Heritage Site designations since the UNESCO World Heritage Committee started the program in the 1970s. We’ve gathered up the 20 that happen to have the most in the world, offering an abundance of significant beauty at practically every turn. Just how many sites do they have and how beautiful are they? Well, check them out for yourself.
20. Sweden
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Cultural World Heritage Sites: 13
Natural World Heritage Sites: 1
Mixed World Heritage Sites: 1
Total Number: 15
Notable UNESCO World Heritage Sites
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Sweden's notable UNESCO World Heritage Sites include the Agricultural Landscape of Southern Oland, located in Kalmar. Birka and Hovgarden (located near Stockholm) represent an important Viking Age trading center and a Viking Age archaeological site respectively. In Norrbotten, the Church Town of Gammelstad is found near the city of Lulea. It is representative of a type of town that was once common throughout northern Scandinavia.
In the Hanseatic Town of Visby in Gotland County, the best-preserved medieval city is home to multiple church ruins. It is a popular summer vacation spot for Scandinavians, also attracting thousands of tourists annually. The Rock Carvings in Tanum were declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1994. The collection of petroglyphs includes thousands of images located along a stretch of land near Tanumshede, Bohuslan.
19. Poland
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Cultural World Heritage Sites: 15
Natural World Heritage Sites: 1
Mixed World Heritage Sites: 0
Total Number: 16
Notable UNESCO World Heritage Sites
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Krakow Old Town was one of the first sites to be given a World Heritage Site designation, just after Quito, Ecuador, received one in 1978. Located in the historic central district of Krakow, it was key to the political happenings of Poland from 1038 until 1596. Added to the list in 1978, the Wieliczka Salt Mine in southern Poland produced table salt as one of the oldest operating salt mines from the 13th century until 2007.
The Bialowieza Forest is another noteworthy site, as one of the last remaining traces of the immense primeval forest that was once distributed across the European Plain. Ancient woodland, the forest is located on the border of Poland and Belarus.
18. Portugal
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Cultural World Heritage Sites: 16
Natural World Heritage Sites: 1
Mixed World Heritage Sites: 0
Total Number: 17
Notable UNESCO World Heritage Sites
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Portugal has 16 cultural sites and one natural site deemed UNESCO World Heritage Sites. The Central Zone of the Town of Angra do Heroismo in the Azores, also known as Angra, is both a city and a municipality on Terceira Island. Founded in 1478, Angra was the seat of the Bishop of the Azores, historically the most important city in the Azores.
Belem Tower in Lisbon is a 16th-century building that once served as a point of both arrival and departure for Portuguese explorers. Its significant design and purpose is also representative of the Portuguese Renaissance period. The Alto Douro Wine Region is located beneath mountain ranges and is primarily involved in the production of Port wine, though it also produces table and fortified wines. Other notable Portuguese World Heritage Sites are the Convent of Christ in Tomar, the Garrison Border Town of Elvas and the Cultural Landscape of Sintra, located on the Portuguese Riviera.
16. Turkey (tie)
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Cultural World Heritage Sites: 16
Natural World Heritage Sites: 0
Mixed World Heritage Sites: 2
Total Number: 18
Notable UNESCO World Heritage Sites
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The first sites in Turkey to be listed as World Heritage Sites were the Great Mosque and Hospital of Divrigi and Goreme National Park. The most recent additions are the Aphrodisias and Gobekli Tepe. The Aphrodisias was a small Greek city in the historical, cultural region of Caria in western Anatolia. The Gobekli Tepe is an archaeological site in the southeastern Anatolia Region.
In Canakkale Province, the Archaeological Site of Troy provided inspiration for Homer's “Iliad” and Virgil's “Aeneid” and is one of the best-known archaeological sites in the world. The Archaeological Site of Ani in Kars, near the closed border with Armenia, represents a ruined medieval Armenian city that went into decline after Mongol invasion and a major earthquake in the 14th century.
16. Greece (tie)
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Cultural World Heritage Sites: 16
Natural World Heritage Sites: 0
Mixed World Heritage Sites: 2
Total Number: 18
Notable UNESCO World Heritage Sites
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Greece ties with Turkey for having 18 UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Of note is Athens’ Acropolis, a massive collection of architectural formations that were completed in fifth century B.C. and have had a huge influence on architecture globally. The most famous building of the Acropolis is the Parthenon, an ancient citadel. The spiritual center of the Greek world, Delphi is the location of the oracle of Apollo.
Another must-visit site is the Old Town of Corfu on the western coasts of Albania and Greece at the entrance of the Adriatic Sea. The three forts of Corfu were used to defend maritime trading against the Ottoman Empire. And don't forget to explore the unforgettable sandstone peaks of Meteora and Mount Athos.
14. Canada (tie)
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Cultural World Heritage Sites: 9
Natural World Heritage Sites: 10
Mixed World Heritage Sites: 1
Total Number: 20
Notable UNESCO World Heritage Sites
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It's hard to consider the best-known parts of Canada without thinking of the Canadian Rocky Mountains. There are four national parks within the Canadian Rockies, including Banff, Jasper, Yoho and Kootenay, and they are joined by one of the most notable fossil fields, the Burgess Shale Formation.
Founded in the 17th century by the French, Old Quebec is the most authentic example of a fortified European town north of Mexico. It was listed as one of Canada's World Heritage Sites in 1985. Red Bay, a fishing village in Labrador, is one of the most celebrated underwater archaeological sites in the Americas. It was a major whaling area from 1530 through the early 17th century. Three Basque whaling galleons and four chalupas used in capturing whales can still be observed.
14. Australia (tie)
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Cultural World Heritage Sites: 4
Natural World Heritage Sites: 12
Mixed World Heritage Sites: 4
Total Number: 20
Notable UNESCO World Heritage Sites
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Just like Canada, Australia also has a total of 20 UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Perhaps its most well known is the Great Barrier Reef, the world's largest coral reef made up of almost 2,900 coral reefs and more than 600 islands. More than 1,500-miles long, it is home to a rich diversity of marine life. It has been damaged by pollution and exposure to shipping and sun over the past decades, but it remains a globally significant natural site.
South of the reef, the Greater Blue Mountains in New South Wales are a scenic collection of gorges, sandstone tablelands and eucalyptus forest. In the Northern Territory, the Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park is sacred to Aboriginal people. The massive sandstone formations are culturally significant to the Anangu, forming part of the tjukurpa belief system.
13. Brazil
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Cultural World Heritage Sites: 14
Natural World Heritage Sites: 7
Mixed World Heritage Sites: 1
Total Number: 22
Notable UNESCO World Heritage Sites
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The first Brazilian site to become listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site was the Historic Town of Ouro Preto in 1980. Ouro Preto was central to the Brazilian gold rush in the 18th century, and many of the churches, fountains and bridges were designed by Baroque sculptor and Ouro Preto native Aleijadinho.
Three years later, Jesuit Missions of the Guaranis joined the list, followed by Iguacu National Park and Valongo Wharf Archaeological Site. Iguacu National Park, in Parana State, covers more than 450 acres. Within the park is the Iguazu Falls, one of the largest waterfalls in the world.
12. Japan
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Cultural World Heritage Sites: 19
Natural World Heritage Sites: 4
Mixed World Heritage Sites: 0
Total Number: 23
Notable UNESCO World Heritage Sites
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Japan's many cultural and natural riches provide a wealth of treasures to explore, from the Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto to Himeji Castle, a hilltop complex that is celebrated as the epitome of Japanese castle architecture.
The Buddhist Monuments in the Horyu-ji Area includes landscape and buildings, both monasteries and temples, dating back to the seventh and eighth centuries. Also notable are the Shrines and Temples of Nikko and Itsukushima Shrine in Hiroshima Prefecture.
10. Iran (tie)
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Cultural World Heritage Sites: 22
Natural World Heritage Sites: 2
Mixed World Heritage Sites: 0
Total Number: 24
Notable UNESCO World Heritage Sites
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The many historical sites of Iran provide unforgettable insight into the natural and cultural riches of this nation. Bam and its cultural landscape are located in the southeastern region of Iran. The Arg-e Bam is the largest adobe building in the world. Mount Behistun in the Kermanshah Province in western Iran is home to a large rock relief inscribed with a multilingual script: Old Persian, Elamite and Babylonian. It is also known as the Behistun Inscription, Bisotun or Bagastana, meaning "the place of god."
Other sites of significant natural importance include the Lut Desert, a large salt desert added to the UNESCO List in 2016 and the lush Caspian Hyrcanian Mixed Forests covering about 21,000 square miles near the shores of the Caspian Sea of Iran and Azerbaijan.
10. United States (tie)
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Cultural World Heritage Sites: 11
Natural World Heritage Sites: 12
Mixed World Heritage Sites: 1
Total Number: 24
Notable UNESCO World Heritage Sites
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Tied with Iran for having 24 UNESCO World Heritage Sites, the United States’ first designations were Mesa Verde National Park and Yellowstone National Park. Yellowstone is located across the western states of Wyoming, Montana and Idaho. It is significant for its 150 species of fossil plants and for being the first national park in the world.
One of the country’s cultural sites, the Statue of Liberty in New York, designed by Frederic Bartholdi, was gifted by the French in 1886. And the most recent addition to the list in 2019 was the 20th Century Architecture of Frank Lloyd Wright, with examples of his work spread across six states.
9. Russia
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Cultural World Heritage Sites: 18
Natural World Heritage Sites: 11
Mixed World Heritage Sites: 0
Total Number: 29
Notable UNESCO World Heritage Sites
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Lake Baikal in southeastern Siberia is the deepest and oldest lake in the world. Its age (25 million years) and isolation have ensured it is one of the most biodiverse freshwater environments in the world.
Russian cultural sites include the Historic Centre of Saint Petersburg, named after Peter the Great and once also known as Leningrad. Moscow Kremlin and Red Square all represent the most historically and politically significant events of Russia since the 13th century.
8. United Kingdom
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Cultural World Heritage Sites: 27
Natural World Heritage Sites: 4
Mixed World Heritage Sites: 1
Total Number: 32
Notable UNESCO World Heritage Sites
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There are 32 sites within the United Kingdom deemed to have World Heritage value. Blenheim Palace in Oxfordshire, England, was the residence of John Churchill, first Duke of Marlborough. It is considered a prime example of both English Romantic Architecture and a significant symbol of the victory over the French in the early 17th century. Canterbury Cathedral, St. Augustine's Abbey and St. Martin's Church are all in Kent, England. The oldest church in England, St Martin's Church, was founded during the early stages of introducing Christianity to the Anglo-Saxons. In Durham, Durham Castle and Cathedral represent Norman architecture, an early example of Gothic architecture from the 11th and 12th centuries.
Dorset and East Devon Coast, also known as Jurassic Coast, are valuable sites due to the exposed rock formations that have historical relevance dating back more than 180 million years. The English Lake District in Cumbria is also enormously scenic, rich with mountains, lakes, gardens and parks.
7. Mexico
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Cultural World Heritage Sites: 27
Natural World Heritage Sites: 6
Mixed World Heritage Sites: 2
Total Number: 35
Notable UNESCO World Heritage Sites
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Mexico had six sites designated by UNESCO in 1987. Sian Ka'an, Pre Hispanic City and National Park of Palenque, Xochimilco, Teotihuacan, Oaxaca and the Archaeological Site of Monte Alban, and finally, Puebla. Sian Ka'an is a biosphere reserve established in 1986 and located in Tulum. Oaxaca de Juarez is located in the Central Valleys region at the foothills of the Sierra Madre. While it’s extremely scenic, it is also significant for its colonial-era structures and native archeological sites.
Mexico’s historic monuments in Queretaro, the Pre-Hispanic town of Uxmal and the unforgettable Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve, added to the UNESCO list in 2008, are all also worth a visit.
6. India
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Cultural World Heritage Sites: 30
Natural World Heritage Sites: 7
Mixed World Heritage Sites: 1
Total Number: 38
Notable UNESCO World Heritage Sites
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India has 30 cultural World Heritage Sites and seven natural sites. The Taj Mahal is perhaps one of the best known. In Uttar Pradesh, the Taj Mahal was built by Emperor Shahjahan as a mausoleum. One of the Seven Wonders of the World, the site is white marble in Mughal architecture style, combining both Persian, Islamic and Indian architectural principles. It took 16 years to build.
The Mountain Railways of India are inclusive of several railways, two of which are located in the hilly regions of the Himalayas of Northern India and two in the Western Ghats of Southern India. They are considered significant examples of engineering in challenging terrain.
5. France
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Cultural World Heritage Sites: 39
Natural World Heritage Sites: 5
Mixed World Heritage Sites: 1
Total Number: 45
Notable UNESCO World Heritage Sites
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France, with 45 sites on the World Heritage List, offers 39 cultural sites and five natural properties, with one mixed. Le Havre in Normandy, in the northwest, is located on the right bank of the river Seine. An urban French commune and city, it was founded in 1517 by King Francis.
The Palace and Park of Fontainebleau in Ile-de-France are located just 35 miles southeast of Paris. The medieval castle and palace are one of the largest royal castles in the country. Also in Ile-de-France is the Palace of Versailles, which was the royal residence of Louis XIV and also Louis XVI.
4. Germany
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Cultural World Heritage Sites: 43
Natural World Heritage Sites: 3
Mixed World Heritage Sites: 0
Total Number: 46
Notable UNESCO World Heritage Sites
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For design lovers, the Bauhaus sites in Weimar, Dessau and Bernau are all representative of the most influential art school of the 20th century. Considered perfect examples of Classical Modernism, the sites provide insight into the Bauhaus vision established in 1919.
The Palaces and Parks of Potsdam and Berlin contain more than 1,200 acres of parks and 150 buildings established between 1730 and 1916. The palaces and parks extend along the banks of the River Havel and Lake Glienicke. Upper Middle Rhine Valley became a World Heritage Site in 2002. This region is home to castles, historic towns and vineyards that have inspired artists, musicians and writers the world over.
3. Spain
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Cultural World Heritage Sites: 42
Natural World Heritage Sites: 4
Mixed World Heritage Sites: 2
Total Number: 48
Notable UNESCO World Heritage Sites
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The first Spanish sites were added to the UNESCO list in 1984. The Mosque of Cordoba; the Alhambra and the Generalife; Burgos Cathedral; Monastery and Site of the Escorial; and Park Guell, Palau Guell and Casa Mila were added initially.
The collective works of Antoni Gaudi are included as prime examples of the Modernist style, but also his unique approach to design and aesthetics. An architect from Catalonia, Gaudi designed Park Guell, Palau Guell and Casa Mila. His work also includes Casa Vicens and the Sagrada Familia, an enormous and unfinished Roman Catholic minor basilica in Barcelona dating back to the 19th and 20th centuries.
1. China (tie)
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Cultural World Heritage Sites: 37
Natural World Heritage Sites: 14
Mixed World Heritage Sites: 4
Total Number: 55
Notable UNESCO World Heritage Sites
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With 55 sites listed, China ties with Italy for having the most World Heritage Sites designated by UNESCO. Of these, 37 sites are culturally significant, 14 are natural and four are mixed (cultural and natural). The Great Wall of China, Forbidden City, Zhoukoudian, Summer Palace, Temple of Heaven and Ming Tombs are just some of the famous sites much valued by both locals and visitors. The Great Wall of China was built as a fortification along the northern borders of China to protect the country from nomadic groups of the steppe.
Lushan National Park is one of China’s most beautiful natural sites, situated in Jiangxi province in Central China. It is home to one of the country’s most well-known mountains, Mount Lu. Travelers to China will also want to make time for the Sichuan Giant Panda Sanctuaries, home to more than 30 percent of the world's giant pandas, which are an endangered species.
1. Italy (tie)
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Cultural World Heritage Sites: 50
Natural World Heritage Sites: 5
Mixed World Heritage Sites: 0
Total Number: 55
Notable UNESCO World Heritage Sites
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In 1979, the first Italian sites were included as World Heritage Sites. The City of Verona, on the Adige River in Veneto, is home to just over 258,000 people. It is a historical city that proudly houses more than 2,000 years of urban structures and architecture. It was also referenced as the home of Romeo and Juliet in Shakespeare's classic play.
The Amalfi Coast is a stretch of coastline on the northern coast of the Salerno Gulf in southern Italy. It is one of the most classic examples of Mediterranean coastal landscapes, still beloved of tourists and Italian natives. If scenic coastlines appeal, also visit Portovenere, Cinque Terre and the Islands in Liguria, a region of northwestern Italy near the Alps and Apennines mountains.