Preserving Our Past

Seabourn’s partnership with UNESCO ensures a prescient vision for cultural relevance.

BY JIMMY IM

A Buddhist monk reflects on the Angkor temples in Siem Reap, Cambodia.

In 1977, The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) found beautiful parts of the world so significant that it aimed to preserve them. UNESCO established the first World Heritage Committee which, in 1978, inscribed 12 breathtaking, cultural places to the first UNESCO World Heritage List. Forty years later, there are more than 1,000 locations that inspire travelers every day.

UNESCO is the Academy Awards for travel destinations; making the list is highly competitive and the criteria is strict. Selected places prove exceptional testimony to culture and have aesthetic importance. As such, viewing the sites is a once-ina-lifetime experience—and there’s no better way to reach them than a Seabourn cruise.

Via a unique partnership with UNESCO, Seabourn Journeys curates land-based extensions pre- and post-cruise that take guests to appointed, awe-inspiring sites, including World Heritage sites that can’t be accessed on a single-day excursion.

Seabourn fosters similar values as UNESCO in promoting sustainable tourism, which is pivotal to the success of its journeys. Guests not only explore treasured UNESCO sites (many in just one itinerary), but in addition, dedicated onboard experts give lectures on what makes the sites so impressive, precious, and protected. Seabourn celebrates UNESCO World Heritage Convention’s mission to identify, safeguard, and promote unique, global cultural, and natural heritage that possess outstanding universal value for mankind. In other words: prepare for life-changing moments.

A Buddha statue marks the ancient Borobudur temple in Central Java, Indonesia.

Brazil’s gorgeous Iguazu Falls.

Guests can choose itineraries based on World Heritage visits, and Seabourn offers special access with its handcrafted World Heritage Tours (denoting appointed sites on cruises) and Discovery Tours—exclusive, enhanced World Heritage shore excursions explored through Seabourn’s UNESCO alliance.

Among the incredible journeys, guests can embark on “UNESCO South America: Rio, Iguazu Falls & Buenos Aires.” In Rio, guests will visit Christ the Redeemer and Sugar Loaf Mountain—two World Heritage sites with sweeping views of the city. They’ll experience the magnificent Iguazu Falls on a suspended walkway before heading to Buenos Aires for iconic sites, like “Evita” Peron’s monument in La Recoleta cemetery.

With “UNESCO Treasure of China: Beijing, Xi’an & Hong Kong,” guests will explore the historic Temple of Heaven, Tiananmen Square and Forbidden City in Beijing, as well as the Mutianyu section of the Great Wall of China. Ancient history is explored in Xi’an, home to the Chinese-style Great Mosque and ancient City Wall. In Hong Kong, guests truly immerse in the dynamic city by visiting notable attractions like Hollywood Road and Victoria Peak.

A bucket-list destination in Southeast Asia, “Cambodia: Phnom Penh & the Temples of Angkor” takes guests through Cambodia’s most distinguished attractions, including Angkor Wat. The temple complex (which dates back to the 12th -century) is full of wonder, with fascinating architecture and history.

Among Seabourn’s once-in-a-lifetime trips, “UNESCO India’s Golden Triangle” takes guests on an exotic journey through Old Delhi and New Delhi, as well as to admire the Agra Fort. Guests visit the Taj Mahal and then explore the colorful city of Jaipur. It all ends with an elephant safari in a forest camp for a highly personalized experience.