7.1 Purpose
The ranking system organizes a global repository into a useful travel-discovery experience. It balances worldwide significance, geographic representation, source confidence, and readable map behaviour. It does not declare an absolute or permanent list of the world’s best places.
7.2 Eligibility
A record may be considered when it represents a recognizable natural, cultural, historic, architectural, scientific, religious, civic, entertainment, or experiential place that can reasonably support travel discovery. Access may be direct, seasonal, viewpoint-based, restricted, or symbolic when the significance remains meaningful.
7.3 Master Rank
Master Rank is the final editorial ordering across the global attraction repository. Lower numbers indicate higher placement. Rank may consider significance, global recognition, uniqueness, visitor relevance, geographic distribution, source confidence, repository balance, and editorial judgment.
7.4 Importance Score
Importance Score reflects the strength of an attraction’s cultural, historic, natural, architectural, scientific, religious, civic, or experiential significance. It may consider recognition beyond the immediate local area, uniqueness, longevity, and the strength of reliable sources.
7.5 Distribution Score
Distribution Score supports geographic and thematic balance. It helps prevent heavily documented destinations from crowding out important places in less represented countries, regions, cultures, or attraction categories.
7.6 Display Tier
Display Tier groups attractions into practical visibility levels. Higher tiers may appear more prominently in discovery, summaries, and map views. Tier is related to rank but may also reflect map usefulness and repository coverage.
7.7 Marker priority and zoom
Marker Priority, Minimum Zoom, Label Minimum Zoom, Always Display Label, Cluster Eligibility, and Cluster Group control map readability. These fields do not independently determine editorial importance. They manage when and how records appear as the user changes map scale.
7.8 UNESCO and formal recognition
UNESCO designation and other formal recognition are important evidence, but they do not automatically determine rank. Non-designated places may still be globally significant. Designated sites may be represented at a parent-site or component level to reduce duplication.
7.9 Geographic balancing
The repository may consider continent, country, travel region, province or state, administrative region, city, locality, and category distribution. Geographic balancing does not assign equal quotas. It is an editorial control used to identify omissions and over-concentration.
7.10 Source confidence and verification
Official sources, recognized heritage organizations, authoritative institutions, geographic references, and reputable secondary sources inform classification and review. Confidence level, last verified date, review notes, source URLs, coordinate accuracy, and access status help identify records requiring further review.
7.11 Images do not determine rank
Image availability, licence status, and image quality affect display readiness but do not determine whether an attraction is significant. A record may remain ranked while awaiting an approved image.
7.12 Editorial independence
Affiliate compensation, sponsorship, advertising, or a commercial relationship does not purchase Master Rank or an Importance Score. Sponsored placement, if offered, will be identified and separated from editorial rankings.
7.13 Editorial changes
Rankings, tiers, scores, descriptions, map settings, and inclusion may change as data improves, new places are added, geographic gaps are identified, or repository standards evolve. Material changes may be recorded through repository history and review notes.
7.14 Personal preference
Global ranking is separate from a user’s bucket list, favourites, visited history, personal rating, and travel plans. Personal choices do not alter the editorial Master Rank.
7.15 Questions and corrections
Users may submit ranking questions, missing-place suggestions, factual corrections, or methodology feedback through Community Contributions. Submission does not guarantee acceptance, publication, or review within a specific period.