World Heritage Site

Mount Etna

3.00 DannyB Australia - 22-Apr-25

We based ourselves in Taormina for 4 days in early April 2025 to immerse ourselves in this location, as it is a beautiful coastal town (up in the hills) with an amazing amphitheatre and character itself (not UNESCO).  We were blessed with a wonderful view of Mt Etna from Taormina for the first 2 days and then the cloud cover came in.  We choose a local tour company for a Morning Tour of Mt Etna which was 75 Euro per adult.  The tour company picked us up at 8.30am for a leisurely drive up the Northeastern slope of Mt Etna where we then hiked for about an hour and half along the slope of Mt Etna amongst the lava flows and landscape.  Snow was still visible across the top of Mt Etna, although we only went up to 2000 feet

Wadi Al-Salam Cemetery in Najaf (T)

Els Slots The Netherlands - 16-Apr-25

Najaf in Southern Iraq is the holiest city for Shia Islam as it holds the Tomb of Ali – “the” Ali, son-in-law of the Prophet Mohammed and with whom the Shia split from the lineage as recognized by the Sunni. He was assassinated in 661 in nearby Kufa and buried in Najaf (though some believe his remains are elsewhere, the Caliphs since the 8th century have recognized Najaf as the place and it developed into a huge pilgrimage site). 

The Tomb of Ali is now housed in a glitzy mausoleum, rebuilt and embellished over and over again

Great Smoky Mountains

4.00 Darren013 United States - 18-Apr-25

My family went over spring break to the Sevierville area. We stayed in a nice cabin with wonderful views of the mountains in a very secluded hamlet. I went on two hikes. One was through a little river, and then we went into an almost tropical environment. We walked through some beautiful wildflowers and stopped at a picturesque waterfall at the end. The other hike we went on was the Alum Cave/Mt. LeConte Trail, and it was the most beautiful trail I have ever seen. The first mile you are traversing through a river, and then you go through an arch rock natural formation that is pretty cool. Then you start going up a little bit, and there is a beautiful corner that you can climb on and see the view below

Jelling

1.50 Zoë Sheng Chinese-Canadian - 19-Apr-25

I visited this site back in September ‎2017 (compare the picture Frederik Dawson posted and mine you'll see it's exactly the same as five years before. I think it will always look like this although the glass covers might change). In 2017 the museum was new, I think, and it's DEFINITELY worth a visit for more than just the Jelling stones but overall Viking info. You can even go into Valhalla - I mean, literally? Jelling is a must visit but why the low score from me and from most visitors? Well, it's important - but not worth seeing the stones themselves. In fact the picture of a stone would probably be enough anyway. You have to stand in front of it and think "oh, wow, so this was planted here and that's why there are Christians in Denmark afterwards"

Babylon

3.00 Els Slots The Netherlands - 15-Apr-25

I made it to Babylon in April 2025. There’s a lot to explain here – we’re missing a Solivagant-style PhD review, so I have tried my best to cover a few subjects to better be able to understand this WHS. I based myself on the official nomination documents, web searches, and the wonderful book “Mesopotamia, Ancient Art and Architecture”.

First, the Babylonian Empire itself. We had a connection here already. I’ve redone it to distinguish between the “Old” or “First” Babylonian Empire and the Neo-Babylonian Empire. Remains of the first (2nd millennium BCE) are hardly existent at the Babylon WHS. It focuses on the Neo-Babylonian empire, about 1,000 years younger and a relatively late stage in the history of Mesopotamia overall (it is Chapter 12 of 14 in the aforementioned, chronologically ordered book). The King of Babylon (most notably Nebuchadnezzar II) regained regional power and started a monumental building scheme that centered on his capital, Babylon and included the famous Ishtar Gate