The countries lying between Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn are called the Tropical countries. They basically fall in the tropic zone of the world. These countries receive perpendicular rays from the sun for at least one day every year. It will be incorrect to generalize the atmosphere of the tropical countries as one with palm trees and beach but mostly the ones that attract tourists have this kind of an ambiance. You have the sunlight for tanning, the beach for bathing and the breeze for relishing. However, many of these tropical countries, apart from these typical things, also offer some of the world's heritage spots. These range from museums and palaces to gardens and parks to statues and monuments. If you ever chance upon planning a trip to any of the tropical countries, do not forget to visit these heritage spots as they will definitely add value to your trip.
Following are the top 10 world heritage spots in Tropical countries:
- Hawaii Volcanoes National Park: The Hawaiian islands of the Hawaii state in USA are world famous for a tropical ambiance. It is popularly known as the Big Island. It houses the world's most dynamic volcano in the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. The active volcanoes that it covers include the Kīlauea and the Mauna Loa. Some of the historic things contained in this historic place are as follows:
Aino Trail
1790 Footprints
Kilauea Crater
Volcano House
Ainahou Ranch
Wikes Campsite
Whitney Seismograph Vault No. 29
Puna-Ka'u Historic District
- Mauna Loa: Also situated in Hawaii, Mauna Loa is the world's largest mountain in terms of volume which is originally an inactive volcano and an international astronomical center. Its summit holds plethora of astronomical observatories. The landscape, looking starkly like those found on Mars and bearing technological jewels, are totally enthralling.
- The Pu'uhonua O Honaunau National Historic Park: This is a great keeper of Hawaiian heritage. It hosts tours, traditional art and craft demonstrations, Hukilau simulations, etc. A sanctuary of Hawaii's past, this park preserves traditional Hawaiian lifestyle with ancient temples and ki'i (wooden images) highlighting their traditional stories. As this place provided refuge to Hawaiians, it continues as a sanctuary which provides peaceful environment to visitors and acts as a safe haven for all the native wildlife in the region. Pu'uhonua O Honaunau National Historical Park displays the spirit of peace and forgiveness on which this park has been built.
- Christ the Redeemer of Rio de Janeiro: Brazil happens to be the largest tropical country in the world. It is also famous for its tropical sandy beaches and green vegetation. However, it also famous for the attractions like the Christ statue standing on Rio de Janeiro's Corcovado mountain with arms wide open as if embracing the city. Situated inside the Tijuca Forest National Park, this is considered to be the world's 2nd largest statue of Art Deco. Already an icon of Brazil, this statue has recently gained the honor of being one of the New Seven Wonders of the World.
- Iguaçu Falls: Again located in Brazil, this is another heritage spot worth visiting. It is a collection of multiple waterfalls standing together to woo the tourists. Iguacu literally means "big water". It divides the Iguaçu river into two halves.
- The Amazon rainforest: This hardly needs an introduction. If you are in Brazil you just cannot afford to miss out this place. It is the largest tropical rainforest of the world. The flora and fauna of this region is exquisite and exotic. It has 2.5 million species of insects, 10,000 species of plants and around 2000 species of mammals and birds.You might also get to see the Native Americans still living as per their old lifestyle.
- Banaue Rice Terraces: Situated in Philippines, these are terraces that are 2000 years old and cut up into the Ifugao's mountains by the ancestors. It is often called the 8th wonder of the world by the Filipinos. It is counted among the UNESCO World Heritage sites. Some say that these terraces were built primarily with hands using minimum instruments. It is also said that if these steps of the terraces are put continuously end to end one after the other, it would cover the entire circumference of the earth.
- Baroque-style Philippine Churches: This is another world heritage site found in Philippines. It includes Ilocos Norte's San Agustin Church, Ilocos Sur's Nuestra Senora de la Asuncion Church, Manila's San Agustin Church and Iloilo's Santo Tomas de Villanueva Church. These are all Spanish-era churches included in the World Heritage List of UNESCO.
- Tubbataha Reef National Marine Park: UNESCO has identified this site as a World Heritage Site owing to its rich regional diversity. It is counted among the most extraordinary coral reefs of Southeastern Asia. It is basically an underwater tourist spot containing duple coral atolls along with a perpendicular wall of 100m stretched over an area of ten thousand hectares located at Sulu Sea's center, around 150km southeast of the city of Puerto Princesa in Cagayancilo. The marine diversity is claimed to be the best by many biologists.
- Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve: This is a conservation area and present in the list of World Heritage Sites. It is situated in the Trans-Mexican volcanic Belt's pine-oak forest eco-region on the Michoacan border and state of Mexico, to the northwest of Mexico City around 100 kilometers away. It is said that somewhere between sixty million to one billion butterflies migrate to this region per year from the month of October to the month of March. This biosphere aims at not only preserving the species of the migrating butterflies but also the ecosystem it is a part of.