ROM AFGHANISTAN TOZIMBABWE, the WorldHeritage Committee hashonored cultural and natural greats across theglobe, designating and

protecting them as UNESCO WorldHeritage Sites.To be considered for the World

Heritage List, these destinations mustmeet at least one of 10 criteria, per-haps hosting threatened species orbeing a “masterpiece of human cre-ative genius.” Of the 1,073 properties

currently on the roster, most arefound in Europe and North America. Some UNESCO sites are wonders

threatened by modern developmentand other dangers, like Vienna’s historic center, Florida’s EvergladesNational Park and war-torn locales in Afghanistan and Syria. A few arewell-known and boast the tourist traffic to match — the canals ofVenice and the waters surroundingthe Galapagos Islands, for instance. The following, however, are six

must-see sites without the instant

name recognition that leads tohordes of international visitors. Pickan underrated UNESCO stop for yournext excursion, from the Chinese forest that inspired “Avatar” to ice age caves in Germany, and you mightencounter an uncrowded escape aswell as a new cultural experience.For information on escorted tours,

resort stays or tropical cruises withconnections to these world wonders,contact the travel discounters atVacations To Go through the providedwebsites.

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Wulingyuan Scenicand Historic InterestArea is among China’s50-plus UNESCO WorldHeritage Sites.

Add an up-and-coming UNESCO WorldHeritage Site to your next itinerary

Wulingyuan Scenic andHistoric Interest Area Hunan Province, China

A slice of serenity in an otherwiseheavily populated area, Wulingyuan is speckled with ravines and gorges,pools and waterfalls, around 40 cavesand, most notably, more than 3,000slim, sandstone pillars, many stand-ing taller than 650 feet. The region was inducted by UNESCO

in 1992 for its natural beauty, and thecreators of “Avatar” seem to agree withthe organization’s vote. Director JamesCameron based the movie’s floatingislands and mountains on a specificspot in Wulingyuan, ZhangjiajieNational Forest Park, which includes a 3,540-foot monolith that has beenrenamed Avatar Hallelujah Mountain.The out-of-this-world scenery also ishome to threatened plants and ani-mals, including the Asiatic black bear,the Chinese water deer and the dhole,also known as the Asiatic wild dog. Pacific Delight Tours offers the four-

day “Zhangjiajie” vacation that visitsWulingyuan and the national forest.

Highlights include picturesque BaofengLake and Yellow Dragon Cave, anunderground network of caverns,pools, stalagmites and stalactites illu-minated in a variety of colors. Get abird’s-eye view of Zhangjiajie during aride in a 1,070-foot-tall glass elevatorand, on the last day, take one of theworld’s longest cable car rides up Tianmen Mountain. Daily departures are available

throughout the year, with prices start-ing at $829. Tack this short itineraryonto another Chinese excursion,www.TourVacationsToGo.com/China.

Taos PuebloTaos, New Mexico

Step into the past, one without elec-tricity and running water, at TaosPueblo. Continuously inhabited formore than 1,000 years, this adobecommunity nestled in the Sangre deCristo Mountains honors (and stillhouses) members of its ancestraltribe, the Pueblo Indians. Inducted in 1992 for its architectural

merit, the tiered, multistory building is

the largest of its kind in existence.Since it is an active, living community,certain rules apply — there are somephotography restrictions, and it canclose unexpectedly for rituals or funer-als. The Pueblo people have an oralhistory that cannot be disclosed due to religious privacy, but archaeologistsplace the tribe’s ancestors in the arealong before Columbus set foot in theAmericas.The main pueblo was built some-

time before 1450. Composed ofbricks made of earth, water andstraw, the adobe structure is home to some 150 full-time inhabitantswho speak the native tongue, Tiwa,often along with English and Spanish. On-site businesses sell traditional

wares like pottery, silver jewelry and animal skin-covered drums andmoccasins. Visitors are welcomed oncertain ceremonial feast days, likeChristmas Eve’s Procession of the Virgin Mary or the annual Taos PuebloPow-Wow weekend, though photogra-phy is off-limits. During these cele-brations, members perform ritualdances and, if you’re lucky, you

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Today, the Taos PuebloIndians continue theirancestors’ traditional wayof life, forgoing electricityand running water in theancient adobe pueblo.

might be invited into a home to enjoy a feast day meal. New Mexico has three World Her-

itage Sites, more than any other U.S.state. Price a Land of Enchantmentstay in Santa Fe, 70 miles south ofTaos, www.ResortVacationsToGo.com/SantaFe.

Plitvice Lakes National Park Lika-Senj and Karlovac counties, Croatia

For thousands of years, water hasflowed over limestone and chalk inCroatia’s first and largest nationalpark. Over time, mineral deposits

created natural dams, forming lakes,caves and cascades. The site stretch-es over 5 miles as mountain streamsfeed into rivers, 16 lakes and thePlitvice and Sastavci falls. The areapossibly is the national park’s mostpopular attraction, and one of themany reasons it was added to theUNESCO list in 1979. The lakes are a true turquoise, set

against the surrounding green forest,and flora and fauna include a fewhundred species of butterfly and thelady’s-slipper, often called the mostbeautiful orchid in Europe. Thebrown bear is the most well-knowninhabitant and serves as the park’s

logo, and wolves, otters and wildboar also roam the area. There are a few historic sites of

note — a fortress left by a prehistorictribe, a Roman watchtower andrestored mills — but visitors head to Plitvice for the scenery. On SITAWorld Tours’ 11-day “Croatia by Landand Sea,” a three-hour stop affordstime for a cruise on Kozjak Lake andfor walks past waterfalls and overstreams. The itinerary moves on tothe beach town of Split before spend-ing seven nights cruising the Croatiancoast. Dates run from April to Octo-ber, with prices beginning at $1,725,www.TourVacationsToGo.com/SITA.

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The turquoise water andlush greenery of Croatia’s

Plitvice Lakes NationalPark provides the perfect

photo backdrop.

TaputapuateaRaiatea, French Polynesia

It’s thought that this region, a col-lection of islands known as the Polyne-sian Triangle, was the last place onEarth to be settled by humans, andTaputapuatea on the isle of Raiateaserved as the starting point. It’s a dazzling island — like its vacation

hot spot neighbors, including Tahitiand Bora Bora — full of lush terrain,wildlife and coral reef systems, but themain attraction is the marae complex. A 2017 UNESCO addition, Taputa-

puatea preserves some 1,000 years ofMaohi and Polynesian culture. Com-posed of stone platforms and shrines,the marae connected the world of theliving to the world of ancestors and

gods. The people believed the spiritsof the deceased rose from the maraeup to the stars, while the unfortunatesank into the underworld to be con-sumed by the gods.Taputapuatea’s sacred site was

dedicated to Oro, the god of war. Itwas a social, political and ceremonialcenter, hosting religious rites, funer-als and gatherings of neighboringislands’ chiefs, warriors and priests,who often would arrive with gifts andsacrifices for Oro — hence Taputapu-atea’s meaning, “sacrifices from afar.”They occasionally would take some of the marae’s stones back to theirhomes to begin one of their own. A variety of French Polynesian sail-

ings call on Raiatea, and companieslike Windstar Cruises overnight onthe island, leaving plenty of time toexplore the marae and the region’sblue-green waters (the line’s seven-night voyages start at $1,899). Alter-natively, many regional cruises beginor end in Papeete, Tahiti, whereflights to Raiatea are just 45 minuteslong, www.VacationsToGo.com/Tahiti.

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The last place on Earth settledby humans, Taputapuateaand its sacred marae served asa social and religious meetingpoint; today, Raiatea (below)is a popular spot for sailingand deep-sea fishing.

Los Glaciares National Park Santa Cruz Province, Argentina

Head south, almost to the tip of theAmericas, for some dramatic scenery.The Patagonian Andes offer snow-capped peaks, shining lakes and blue-tinged icebergs encompassed by LosGlaciares National Park, added toUNESCO’s roster in 1981.Around half of the park’s 2,800

square miles is covered by glaciers, butthe crown jewel is the 97-square-milePerito Moreno bordering Lake Argenti-no. It is one of the world’s few glaciersthat still is advancing, rather thanretreating due to climate conditions. Itsposition occasionally blocks a narrowchannel that upsets the lake’s waterlevel and fragments chunks of ice,

sending them hurtling into the lakebelow and creating spectacular photos. On Natural Habitat Adventures’

11-day “Peaks, Lakes & Glaciers ofPatagonia,” tourists get close-ups ofglaciers over four days spent at LosGlaciares. Embark on a boat ride onDesert Lake, overlooking cascades,glaciers and two mountain ranges,before donning crampons (slip-proofspikes you attach to your shoes) for ashort glacier hike. Another day offersa chance to visit Lake Argentino’s res-idents — flamingos and black-neckedswans — before moving on to the200-foot-high Perito Moreno Glacier. The Argentina portion of the trip

ends with a visit to a sheep farm fora peek into the traditional gauchoway of life. Guests also spend time inChile’s Torres del Paine National Park,

a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, beforeending their travels in Punta Arenas,one of the southernmost cities in theworld. Two departures in Februaryand December, months when theregion experiences the most favor-able weather, are priced from $8,995,www.TourVacationsToGo.com/NHA.

Caves and ice age artSwabian Alps, Germany

Some 43,000 years ago, modernhumans arrived in Europe for thefirst time and created settlements insouthern Germany’s Swabian Juramountain range, also known as theSwabian Alps. The region now issparsely populated but riddled with2,000 caves, six of which hostedhomo sapien residents.

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View the massive, retreatingUpsala Glacier during a Lake

Argentino catamaran cruise onNatural Habitat Adventures’“Peaks, Lakes & Glaciers of

Patagonia” tour.

When the caves first were excavat-ed in the 1860s, relics from the lastice age were discovered, includingmusical instruments and carved figurines. These sculptures depict afemale form and several animals, as well as half-human, half-creaturecreations like the Lowenmensch, or“lion-man,” found in the Hohlenstein-Stadel cave. Standing nearly a foothigh, it’s the first known example offigurative art. It also has led archaeol-ogists to wonder if this cave wasused as a holy place.The curvy female figurine, called

the Venus of Hohle Fels, is so tinythat it could be concealed in a fistand is thought to have been worn asa pendant. It’s considered the world’soldest depiction of the human formand is the most famous of the Swabi-an Alps finds. The musical instru-ments, including several ivory flutes,also are the oldest of their kind.The six caves were added to the

UNESCO list in 2017. Archaeologiststhink the prehistoric humans spentmost of their time in SirgensteinCave, building fires, sleeping andworking. A monster also dwelled

there, according to local lore, butmodern visitors only will encounterthe resident bats. Peer into the prehistoric past while

staying in bustling Munich, about two

hours away. Monograms offers a four-day vacation package, “MunichGetaway,” from April through Septem-ber, priced from $684, www.TourVacationsToGo.com/Germany.

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Germany’s Swabian Alpsare home to ice age-erarelics and some 2,000caves, about a two-hourdaytrip from the Bavariancity of Munich (above).