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How Bethlehem’s UNESCO World Heritage Site could boost tourism to the Christmas City
August 7th, 2024 | In The News
By Lindsay Weber | liweber@mcall.com | The Morning Call
Bethlehem has joined the historic UNESCO World Heritage Site ranks, and local leaders are preparing for an influx of visitors to the city’s historic downtown quarter.
The UNESCO World Heritage Committee voted in late July to officially inscribe the city’s historic Moravian sites onto the World Heritage List, an international award that recognizes “outstanding universal value” in historic and national sites. The sites are the 26th U.S. location to receive the World Heritage designation.
At a news conference Wednesday morning, local officials detailed how the city received the historic designation, and ways they will celebrate and promote the international honor that took two decades to achieve.
The Moravian World Heritage Sites span 10 acres near downtown north Bethlehem and include nine structures, four ruins and God’s Acre cemetery. The Moravians, a Christian church established in modern day Czechia in the 15th century, arrived in Bethlehem in 1741. Descendants of the Moravians have owned and maintained most of the Moravian sites since then.
Alex Michaels, CEO of Discover Lehigh Valley, said it is “difficult to project” what the exact economic impact of the inscription will be. But the Lehigh Valley had 16 million visitors in 2023, and he expects the numbers to “significantly increase” as a result of the historic honor.
“It’s going to become a big factor in our package when it comes to selling the Lehigh Valley,” Michaels said.
Discover Lehigh Valley has plans for a major digital and social media campaign to promote the Moravian sites, Michaels said. He expects the UNESCO recognition to attract more international and long-term visitors, in particular.
Pennsylvania’s 2025 budget has allocated $15 million to tourism initiatives, according to Anne Ryan, director of the Department of Tourism, and state officials still are working out how that bucket of funds will be spent. Pennsylvania’s tourism arm is mulling creating a Pennsylvania “World Heritage Trail” promotion campaign, Ryan said, which would include Bethlehem as well as Independence Hall in Philadelphia and Frank Lloyd Wright’s Fallingwater in Fulton County, the state’s two other UNESCO-recognized sites.
“The fact that Pennsylvania, the commonwealth, has three sites, it’s just such a day to celebrate,” Ryan said.
The Bethlehem settlements were nominated together with sites in Gracehill, Northern Ireland; Herrnhut, Germany; and Christiansfeld, Denmark, as a single World Heritage Site representing the Moravian Church’s historical value.
LoriAnn Wukitsch, president of Historic Bethlehem Museums and Sites, said the organization will soon offer programming seven days a week and is recruiting more volunteers to help guide tours and programs, in preparation for expected increased visits.
“We’re excited about bringing the community together, not only in the Valley, but throughout the state, throughout the country and, soon, internationally,” Wukitsch said.
The city will host representatives from the three other Moravian sites for an official UNESCO inscription ceremony in October, Mayor J. William Reynolds said. Bethlehem also plans to host a public celebration of the inscription in the spring, though details of the event still are being worked out.
In addition to the expected influx of tourism and interest, Reynolds said he hopes Bethlehem residents, even those who do not share Moravian heritage, will embrace the historic designation.
“No matter how long you’ve been here, no matter whether you are a Moravian or not, no matter whether or not you’ve toured these buildings, our work is to design this over the long term to truly represent everyone,” Reynolds said.
Read the article on the Morning Call website.
