The Danube Limes, as part of the border of the ancient Roman Empire, has also been designated as a new World Heritage Site. The Lower Germanic Limes along the Rhine had previously been included in the World Heritage list. In Germany the Danube Limes extends over Regensburg to Passau. The ancient border stretched from Great Britain to North Africa.

Situated on the equator in northern Gabon, the largely pristine site encompasses an area of almost 300,000 hectares crossed by a network of picturesque blackwater rivers. It features rapids and waterfalls bordered by intact rainforest, which make for a landscape of great aesthetic value. The site's aquatic habitats harbor endemic freshwater fish species.

The serial property comprises 12 component parts consisting of ensembles of porticoes and their surrounding built areas, located within the Municipality of Bologna, with some elements dating back to the 12th century. These portico ensembles are considered to be the most representative among city's porticoes, which cover a total stretch of 62 km (38.5 miles).

Located in the Republic of Karelia in the Russian Federation, the site contains 4,500 petroglyphs carved in the rocks during the Neolithic period, dated 6,000-7,000 years ago. It is one of the largest such sites in Europe. The rock art depictions represent birds, animals, half-human and half-animal figures, as well as geometric shapes that may be symbols for the moon and the sun.

Joze Plecnik's architectural works, built in Ljubljana between World War I and World War II, present an example of a human-centered urban design that changed the identity of the city following the dissolution of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. With his profoundly human vision of the city, the architect contributed to transforming a provincial city into the symbolic capital of the people of Slovenia.

Between the 17th and 19th centuries, traders from Sudan came as far as West Africa. On the Ivory Coast, local and Islamic architecture intermingled. Eight well-preserved mud-brick mosques have now been declared World Heritage Sites. Today, they still represent important evidence of the trans-Saharan trade that facilitated the spread of Islam and Islamic culture.

The German cities of Speyer, Worms and Mainz — located near each other along river Rhine — were a center of Jewish cultural life in the Middle Ages. Referred to as Shin, Vav and Mem in medieval Hebrew, the three towns are collectively known as ShUM cities. Worms is home to Europe’s oldest Jewish cemetery (pictured above).

The Roman Empire was protected by border fortifications known as the Limes. Three frontier sections are already on the World Heritage Sites list, now the Lower Germanic Limes joins them. Running 400 kilometers along river Rhine from Bonn to the Dutch coast, this military structure was established in the last decades B.C., lasting until the demise of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century A.D.

Nice joins France's more than 40 world heritage sites which include the banks of the river Seine in Paris, the Amiens cathedral, the Mont Saint Michel and stretches of the Loire Valley. The history of Nice, Mediterranean and Alpine, European and cosmopolitan, has produced an architecture and a landscape that are unique, a model for many other cities in the world.

This is Japan's Sannai-Maruyama site, containing remnants and reconstructions of a large Jomon-era settlement. This hunter-gatherer culture is thought to have lasted from about 13,000 B.C. to roughly 300 B.C.. Now a total of 17 Jomon sites have been inscribed on the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage list.

Peru's Chankillo complex, located some 360 kilometers north of the capital Lima, dates back to the early Horizon period (500 – 200 B#.C.). The Thirteen Towers (pictured) form a man-made horizon when viewed from below. The line of buildings, running north to south along a ridge, closely corresponds to the movement of the rising and setting sun over the year.

Ancient engravings found at Hima bear testimony to the rich cultural life on the Arabian Peninsula some 7,000 years ago. Well-preserved rock images depict hunting scenes, flora and fauna. Inscriptions are in different scripts including Arabic, Greek and Musnad, an old South Arabian script. The site is located along an ancient caravan route.

China's ancient Guangzhou port — once praised by Italian explorer Marco Polo as one of the most prosperous and glorious cities in the world — has been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site. Situated on China's eastern coast, it played a key role in maritime Silk route trade.

India's Ramappa Temple, situated some 200 kilometers northeast of Hyderabad, has been designated a UNESCO Word Heritage site. The sandstone and basalt construction dates back to the early 13th century. It is deemed an exemplary piece of Kakatiyan era architecture.

These Mongolian Bronze Age sculptures have been added to UNESCO's prestigious World Heritage Sites list. The deer stones, as they are known, are engraved with highly artistic renderings of animals, weapons, shields and decorative patterns. Between one and four meters tall, the monuments are believed to have been dedicated to ancient chiefs and warriors.

Built between 1927 and 1938, the 1,394-kilometer-long Trans-Iranian Railway line connects the Caspian Sea and Persian Gulf, boasting no less than 360 bridges and 224 tunnels. The vast infrastructure project was paid for exclusively by Iranian taxpayers in order to prevent foreign interference.

68-meter-tall Cordouan Lighthouse is the oldest structure of its kind in France today. Designed by engineer Louis de Foix and in operation since 1611, the lighthouse occupies a rocky plateau at the mouth of Gironde estuary, meaning it can be accessed by boat only. UNESCO has now recognized its unique architectural and technological legacy.

Madrid's Paseo del Prado boulevard and Retiro Park have been granted UNESCO World Heritage status. The sprawling space in the Spanish capital is home to numerous prestigious art institutions, including the Prado museum and Reina Sofia National Arts Center. Paseo del Prado dates back to the 16th century, whereas Retiro Park was established one century later.

Padua's famous 14th century frescos are now part of the UNESCO World Heritage list. Adorning the walls of eight religious and secular building complexes within the historic walled city of Padua, they include Giotto's Scrovegni Chapel fresco cycle. Crafted by different artists, they nevertheless maintain a unity of style and content.

Designed as an expansive defense network, the New Dutch Waterline encompasses 45 fortresses, six fortifications, various bunkers and waterworks, spanning a total of 85 kilometers. Operational between 1815 and 1940, its purpose was to prevent enemies advancing on the Netherlands. Tucked away in the landscape, many of these structures are easy to miss.

Hessian Grand Duke Ernst Ludwig founded the Mathildenhoehe artists' colony in the late 19th century to promote the arts and crafts. The eclectic site comprises numerous buildings, including a Russian Orthodox Church, exhibition halls and artist residencies. The site's iconic Wedding Tower was gifted to Ernst Ludwig and his wife by the city of Darmstadt in 1905.

Eleven historic spa towns, located across seven European countries, have together made the UNESCO World Heritage list. Among them are Baden-Baden and Bad Kissingen (pictured) in western Germany, both of which are famed for their natural mineral water springs. The British city of Bath, boasting well-preserved ancient Roman baths, is also included.

The healing power of water is at the center of every spa treatment. Seven mineral-rich healing springs bubble up in and around Bad Kissingen in Bavaria. You can bathe in the spring water, inhale it — or drink it. Freshly tapped water is available at this historic fountain bar with a foyer. It is served by fountain women who also advise the guests.

Pleasure has always been just as important as health. The desire to do something good for oneself led to a new form of tourism at the end of the 19th century. Aristocrats traveled through Europe and often spent weeks in one place. Tailored to their needs, sophisticated spa facilities, parks and hotels were created. Like the Kurhotel an der Lahn in Bad Ems in Rhineland-Palatinate.

European spa towns boasted entertainment galore, staging grand balls and artistic shows to amuse visitors. Throughout the summer months, aristocrats would come here to let their hair down and celebrate in style. Gambling — for example at Baden-Baden’s famous casino — was also hugely popular. Artists, musicians and poets like Fyodor Doystoevsky and Leo Tolstoy regularly joined the fun.

Special among Europe's spas are those in the West Bohemian Spa Triangle. Frantiskovy Lazne is the youngest and smallest of the three health resorts. It was only in the early 18th century that healing springs were discovered here. A hundred years later, Emperor Franz II had a magnificent spa built. Frantiskovy Lazne's reputation as a moor spa is legendary; it was one of the first in Europe.

The neighboring town Karlovy Vary is probably one of the most traditional health resorts in the world. Its springs were already used in the 14th century. 500 years later imperial personal physician Josef von Löscher made the place popular with an essay on the effect of healing waters. Karlovy Vary developed into one of the most fashionable health resorts in Europe.

The third spa resort is also glamorous and world-famous: Marianske Lazne. From the Habsburg Emperor Franz Joseph and the British King Edward to Richard Wagner, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe and Frederik Chopin, they were all here. In the historic Hotel Nove Lazne with its 225 luxury rooms, you can still book the historic imperial cabin today.

Today nobody says healing water; the term "spa" is more common. Spa, like the Belgian town of the same name. Three hundred springs helped the place to a rapid career. In the 18th and 19th centuries, spa buildings, a spa hall and, of course, a casino were built next to the fountains. Spa became the meeting place of crowned heads of Europe, which is why it was soon called "Café de l'Europe."

Water from Vichy is known all over the world. Without exaggerating you can say it is the foundation of the city and its soul. Louis XV and later the Bonapartes were treated here, and Napoleon III made Vichy his summer residence. This led to the construction of mansions, hotels, and later a huge thermal center with a drinking hall and a colonnade (photo), an Oriental-style bath and an opera house.

Halfway between Pisa and Florence lies Montecatini Terme. It has only 20,000 inhabitants and is the largest and most elegant health resort in Tuscany. Guests can choose from an array of 200 hotels of all categories and three thermal baths. The most beautiful is the Stabilimento Tettucio Spa. The entrance area alone takes visitors back in time.

In the 19th century, during construction work in Bath, the remains of a Roman bath house, the origins of bathing culture in the English spa town, were discovered by chance. The ancient complex was uncovered and opened to the public. For hygienic reasons, it is no longer possible to bathe here. To do this, visitors have to go next door to the modern Thermae Bath Spa, which opened in 2005.

Baden also looks back on a 2,000-year-old tradition, which was founded by the Romans. Here too, of course, Baden bei Wien developed its own characteristic spa architecture. But there is also modern architecture to admire. The largest free-hanging glass roof in Europe spans the Römertherme Baden. Below it, hot sulfurous healing water splashes, supplied by 14 springs.