Saving Our Vanishing Heritage
Over 140,000 visitors a year come to Tikal National Park. Photo: Chensi Yuan
Value of Global Heritage
A GHF-sponsored analysis of 500 global heritage sites by a team of Stanford University economics graduates estimates that global heritage sites in the developing world are expected to generate over $100 billion a year by 2025, up from $24.6 billion today.
Today, 42 of the 500 global heritage sites surveyed for Vanishing each have revenues of more than $100 million a year.
In many developing countries, domestic and international tourism to global heritage sites—when combined with related crafts and community-based services around those areas—now generate more foreign exchange revenue than any other industry, including mining, logging, and agricultural exports. Heritage assets can be core economic engines—transforming developing economies through sustainable heritage preservation and responsible development.
But due to inaction and lack of resources targeted towards our most endangered sites, we risk losing much of this $100 billion opportunity.
Unlike extraction industries like mining and logging, heritage can be a sustainable resource, generating long-term income and investment far into the future. Few other industries offer our lowest-income countries such an untapped opportunity for global development.
Studies over the last decade have identified the five areas where heritage conservation has the most economic impact:
1. Jobs and household income
2. City center revitalization
3. Heritage tourism property values
4. Small business incubation
5. Multiplier effects in all supply chains
Heritage conservation is particularly good for local job creation and income since labor often makes up 60 to 70 percent of the cost of conservation.
By saving our global heritage sites now, we can bring prosperity and hope to millions of people in the most poverty-stricken regions of the world.
Economic Impact of Global Heritage Sites in Developing and Emerging Countries and Regions
| Top 50 Sites | Country | Domestic Visitors |
International Visitors |
Total Site Visitors (2009 est.) |
Total Revenues (in $1,000s) |
|||||
| The Great Wall | China | 16,000,000 | 8,200,000 | 24,200,000 | $2,888,000,000 | |||||
| Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor | China | 10,000,000 | 8,000,000 | 18,000,000 | $1,920,000,000 | |||||
| Memphis and its Necropolis | Egypt | 400,000 | 2,600,000 | 3,000,000 | $936,000,000 | |||||
| Imperial Palaces of the Ming and Qing Dynasties |
China | 5,200,000 | 1,800,000 | 7,000,000 | $904,000,000 | |||||
| Historic Cairo | Egypt | 1,400,000 | 2,600,000 | 4,000,000 | $576,000,000 | |||||
| Ephesus | Turkey | 800,000 | 2,700,000 | 3,500,000 | $572,000,000 | |||||
| Dahshur | Egypt | 400,000 | 2,600,000 | 3,000,000 | $536,000,000 | |||||
| Amritsar | India | 4,000,000 | 1,500,000 | 5,500,000 | $460,000,000 | |||||
| Angkor | Cambodia | 400,000 | 2,100,000 | 2,500,000 | $436,000,000 | |||||
| Pre-Hispanic City of Teotihuacan | Mexico | 2,200,000 | 2,000,000 | 4,200,000 | $432,000,000 | |||||
| Machu Picchu | Peru | 600,000 | 1,800,000 | 2,400,000 | $384,000,000 | |||||
| Monte Alban | Mexico | 1,300,000 | 1,500,000 | 2,800,000 | $352,000,000 | |||||
| Historic Oaxaca | Mexico | 1,300,000 | 1,500,000 | 2,800,000 | $352,000,000 | |||||
| Mitla | Mexico | 1,300,000 | 1,500,000 | 2,800,000 | $352,000,000 | |||||
| Abu Simbel | Egypt | 500,000 | 1,500,000 | 2,000,000 | $320,000,000 | |||||
| Ancient Thebes | Egypt | 500,000 | 1,500,000 | 2,000,000 | $320,000,000 | |||||
| Taj Mahal | India | 1,200,000 | 1,200,000 | 2,400,000 | $288,000,000 | |||||
| Petra | Jordan | 320,000 | 1,280,000 | 1,600,000 | $268,800,000 | |||||
| Old Havana and its Fortifications | Cuba | 573,986 | 1,200,000 | 1,773,986 | $262,959,440 | |||||
| Abu Mena | Egypt | 300,000 | 1,200,000 | 1,500,000 | $252,000,000 | |||||
| Pre-Hispanic City of Chichen-Itza | Mexico | 1,200,000 | 1,400,000 | 2,600,000 | $248,000,000 | |||||
| Querétaro | Mexico | 1,200,000 | 800,000 | 2,000,000 | $224,000,000 | |||||
| Medina of Fez | Morocco | 500,000 | 1,000,000 | 1,500,000 | $220,000,000 | |||||
| Mount Wutai | China | 2,800,000 | 502,000 | 3,302,000 | $212,400,000 | |||||
| Red Fort Complex | India | 1,200,000 | 800,000 | 2,000,000 | $208,000,000 | |||||
| Medina of Marrakesh | Morocco | 200,000 | 900,000 | 1,100,000 | $188,000,000 | |||||
| City of Cuzco | Peru | 200,000 | 800,000 | 1,000,000 | $168,000,000 | |||||
| Nemrut Dag | Turkey | 200,000 | 800,000 | 1,000,000 | $168,000,000 | |||||
| Ancient City of Damascus | Syria | 200,000 | 800,000 | 1,000,000 | $168,000,000 | |||||
| Pharaonic Temples in Upper Egypt | Egypt | 200,000 | 800,000 | 1,000,000 | $168,000,000 | |||||
| Divri˘gi | Turkey | 1,500,000 | 500,000 | 2,000,000 | $160,000,000 | |||||
| Ciudad de Zaruma | Ecuador | 500,000 | 700,000 | 1,200,000 | $160,000,000 | |||||
| Old Town of Lijiang | China | 2,750,000 | 250,000 | 3,000,000 | $160,000,000 | |||||
| Kasbah of Algiers | Algeria | 500,000 | 630,000 | 1,130,000 | $146,000,000 | |||||
| City of Safranbolu | Turkey | 1,600,000 | 400,000 | 2,000,000 | $144,000,000 | |||||
| Ban Chiang | Thailand | 500,000 | 600,000 | 1,100,000 | $140,000,000 | |||||
| Amber Fort and Town | India | 500,000 | 595,000 | 1,095,000 | $139,000,000 | |||||
| Agra Fort | India | 500,000 | 590,722 | 1,090,722 | $138,144,400 | |||||
| Hasankeyf | Turkey | 400,000 | 600,000 | 1,000,000 | $136,000,000 | |||||
| Antiphellos | Turkey | 400,000 | 600,000 | 1,000,000 | $136,000,000 | |||||
| Medina of Tétouan | Morocco | 400,000 | 600,000 | 1,000,000 | $136,000,000 | |||||
| Zhouzhuang Ancient Walled City | China | 1,700,000 | 300,000 | 2,000,000 | $128,000,000 | |||||
| Dubrovnik | Croatia | 100,000 | 620,000 | 720,000 | $128,000,000 | |||||
| My Son Sanctuary | Vietnam | 166,500 | 600,000 | 766,500 | $126,660,000 | |||||
| Lahore Fort and Shalamar Gardens | Pakistan | 1,990,000 | 210,000 | 2,200,000 | $121,600,000 | |||||
| Borobudur | Indonesia | 2,468,864 | 111,136 | 2,580,000 | $120,981,760 | |||||
| Champaner-Pavagadh | India | 2,000,000 | 200,000 | 2,200,000 | $120,000,000 | |||||
| Kiev Historic Centre | Ukraine | 500,000 | 500,000 | 1,000,000 | $120,000,000 | |||||
| Historic Sukhothai | Thailand | 500,000 | 500,000 | 1,000,000 | $120,000,000 | |||||
| Fujian Tulous | China | 2,000,000 | 164,200 | 2,164,200 | $112,840,000 | |||||
| Total - Top 50 Global Heritage Sites | 77,569,350 | 68,153,058 | 142,722,408 | $17,477,385,600 | ||||||
| Total - Other Global Heritage Sites (approx. 450) | 44,670,964 | 27,612,010 | 72,403,107 | $7,268,988,899 | ||||||
| Total - All Global Heritage Sites (approx. 500) | 122,240,314 | 95,765,068 | 215,125,515 | $24,746,374,499 | ||||||
Assumes an average of 1.4 days stay per visitor and spending by domestic visitors of $40 and international visitors of $200.
Source: Based on Stanford University Economics Graduate Analysis by Shwetha Shankar et al, 2010.
See Value of Global Heritage on the right to view the entire site tourism database (500 global heritage sites) with citations.
To read more, download the full Report on the right.
