Unleash your inner explorer and uncover some hidden gems; whether you’re a history buff, nature enthusiast, or simply seeking awe-inspiring vistas UNESCO UK has pulled together 58 sites to discover in a beautiful new illustrated map by Birmingham-based creative Tom Woolley.
Including Biosphere Reserves, Creative Cities, Global Geoparks and World Heritage Sites all corners and coasts that make up 13% of the UK’s landmass are included.
“Some of the illustrations such as Westminster Palace and Stonehenge were fairly straight forward but for some of the other sites it was a bit more tricky to decide what to feature,” Comments Tom, who was tasked with the role of fitting the impressive list of sites on one map.
“The Geoparks and Biospheres are so large and geographically varied I decided to illustrate them with mountain landscapes and coastlines”.
Tom started his mapping journey by selling prints at art markets and soon became the go-to person when destinations and companies were looking for vector-styled maps to share with visitors: “I’ve been fortunate to work with lots of great clients and I enjoy making maps for all different types of industries. A few years ago I worked with the team at Sherwood Forest to create a map for their visitor centre which was a lot of fun to work on. I’ve also worked with clients such as the Wildlife Trust, Lonely Planet Publishing, Northumberland National Park and Hilton Hotels in Hawaii.”
While some of the sites are a little closer to home than Hawaii getting around to visit all 58 would take some time so Tom relied on utilising online tools to get a feel of a place that he hasn’t been able to visit; “I spend a lot of time on Google Maps and Google Images and I’ll often start walking around in Street View exploring the area. I’ll also look at existing maps and Ordnance Survey to gather all the details I need. I’ll then work this up into a rough layout to start the commission.”
Of course the spectacular vistas of the slate landscape of Northwest Wales and the Scottish Highlands, the literary heritage of Manchester or Edinburgh, the mountains of the English Lake District or the peaks of Fforest Fawr, the folklore along the Giant’s Causeway and Stonehenge and sea air of Brighton and Lewes, North Devon or the English Riviera require a visit to fully appreciate their unique offer.
Keen cyclists or walkers can aim to tackle the northernmost frontiers of the Roman empire or you can opt for a gentler stroll around one of the greatest spa towns of Europe in Bath. If you want some a little more lively then dancing the night away in an iconic concert hall in Belfast, heading to a film festival in Bradford or a festival under the stars at one of the world’s largest deep space observatories at Jodrell Bank might be for you.
Many of the sites are free to enter and easy to reach by public transport so if you are looking for somewhere different to explore then we recommend discovering something not too far from your very own doorstep.
You can now download the free map and get to see the breadth and diversity of the sites that make up the UNESCO UK designations. The map can be downloaded direct from: https://unesco.org.uk/our-sites
Image top – Brighton and Lewes Downs Biosphere Reserve. Credit: Sarah Louise.
