The United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) deems certain places around the world extra special — giving them the title of World Heritage Site. These sites can be buildings, cities, complexes, deserts, forests, islands, lakes, monuments, or mountains. They are places UNESCO sees as having special cultural or physical significance.

The original list of World Heritage Sites was compiled in 1978 and contained just 12 locations. Now, there are over 1,000 sites on the list — and some 25 new global locations that are deemed to have “outstanding universal value” are added every year.

Close

LifeZette took a virtual trip around the world to find some of the most interesting, historical, and beautiful sites. So, scroll through the gallery to see 10 Cool World Heritage Sites — and prepare to want to go to them all!

[lz_slideshow ids=”174981,174979,174978,174977,174976,174975,174974,174973,174972,174970″ front-image=”174975″]