rio de janeiro has been declared a world heritage site by unesco, due to the unique composition of cultural and natural attractions within the city. specifically listed as contributing factors in this classification, was the presence of some of the forts in both, rio and its sister city, niterói.

in particular, the forts at the entrance of guanabara bay, such as the fortaleza de santa cruz da barra, the forte de são luiz, the forte do pico, the forte do rio branco, and the forte do imbuhy received praise - the complex of forts in rio and niterói is considered to be the most important of latin america, the reason for this lies in the city's history.