Sustainable Travel NEWS
BY THE NUMBERS More than 1,100 global sites comprise UNESCO’s World Heritage List – a designation that confers not only status but also legal protection – including 34 new sites inscribed during the World Heritage Committee’s recent 44th session. Add these three to your wish list.
Preservation-worthy: Ljubljana’s Triple Bridge and Jože Plečnik’s Covered Market.
52
V I RT U O S O L I F E
2
Natural wonders on Amami-Oshima, the largest of Japan’s Satsunan island chain, span technicolor coral reefs to a highland cloud forest. The isle also shelters a raft of endemic flora and fauna found nowhere else on Earth. Visit Oshima Tsmugi village, famed for its kimono textile production, or search for rare Amami rabbits while canoeing through Kuroshio-no-Mori Mangrove Park during Windstar Cruises’ 12-day Tokyo-to-Hong Kong voyage aboard the 312-passenger Star Breeze. Departures: October 2, 2022, and April 4, 2023; from $4,999.
3
Lauded for their human-centric design, the architectural works of Jože Plečnik – aka “the man who built modern Ljubljana” – proliferated in Slovenia’s capital from 1920 till his death in 1957. Luxury Slovenia’s nine-day, tailor-made Slovenia tour provides ample time to admire Plečnik’s public squares, green spaces, and iconic landmarks such as Triple Bridge; visit his home; and even sample his favorite tea. Departures: Through 2023; from $5,850.
JURE GASPARIC/ALAMY
1
Thermal springs in Baden-Baden, Germany, one of 11 newly listed Great Spa Towns of Europe, have drawn visitors for 2,000-plus years, beginning with the Romans, who built the city’s first baths while declaring sanus per aquam (health through water). The 100-room Brenners Park (near the springs) features a five-story spa and extensive wellness programs, including nutritional counseling, holistic medicine, and physiotherapy. Doubles from $504, including breakfast daily and a $100 dining credit.
