This Colorful City Has Thriving Food and Art Scenes but Feels Like a Small Town — and It Was Just Voted No. 1 in the World
T+L readers selected their favorite cities in the world in our annual "World’s Best Awards" survey for 2024 — here are the top 25, led by San Miguel de Allende, Mexico.
Published on July 9, 2024
When thinking of a city vacation, bustling traffic and crowds may come to mind, but this year’s list of favorites around the world, voted by Travel + Leisure readers, prove that cities come in all shapes and sizes. From destinations with views of beaches or seemingly endless greenery to metropolises where centuries-old churches and monuments stand alongside modern shops and restaurants, there’s a city to suit every travel interest.
How Voting Works
Every year for our World's Best Awards survey, T+L asks readers to weigh in on travel experiences around the globe — to share their opinions on the top hotels, resorts, cities, islands, cruise ships, spas, airlines, and more. Over 186,000 T+L readers completed the 2024 survey. A total of more than 700,000 votes were cast across over 8,700 properties (hotels, cities, cruise lines, etc.).
Cities were specifically rated on the criteria below:
Sights/landmarks
Culture
Food
Friendliness
Shopping
Value
What Readers Loved
Although this year’s list of favorite cities around the world was diverse, reaching all corners of the globe, hubs in Mexico, Spain, and India were prominently featured. San Miguel de Allende took the No. 1 spot, up from No. 5 last year, joining two other Mexican cities: Oaxaca (at No. 11) and Mexico City (No. 14). India and Spain both had three cities each, including Udaipur, in the Indian state of Rajasthan, which held its No. 2 spot from last year, and newcomers San Sebastián (No. 12), Marbella (No. 13), and Barcelona (No. 23). This year’s group of winners also reflects the state of the travel world, as people flocked to Asia — including Japan, South Korea, and Indonesia — thanks to several airlines launching new flights across the continent in 2024.
See why T+L readers favored these cities around the world.
1. San Miguel de Allende, Mexico
Described as “unbeatable in every category” by one reader, our No. 1 spot this year goes to Mexico’s San Miguel de Allende, up from the No. 5 spot last year. Known for its stunning architecture — most notably, the Parroquia de San Miguel Arcángel — food, and art scene, the city is a cultural hub that marries old and new. “The food was totally amazing, the city was clean, [and] the people were very friendly and helpful,” another reader noted.
Reader Score: 91.88