Best world holiday destinations 2024

More than 3,000 holidays rated by visitors told us which long-haul cities were best, with a surprise winner for best city in the US  
Which?Editorial team

There are some surprise winners in our annual survey of the best world cities. Sydney comes out top, while Chicago is recommended, ahead of New York and Los Angeles, as the best city in the US. 

Each destination was rated by visitors across seven measures, from the quality of its cultural attractions to accommodation and food and drink. And to counter problems of overtourism, we've also included a 'lack of crowds' score to help you avoid the herd.

There are some bargains too. Bangkok in 12th spot has average hotel rates of just £44 a night - one of the cheapest in our survey, while in Kuala Lumpur, which gained a string of four star ratings, a hotel is £45 a night on average. 


Find a provider you can trust with our reviews of the best and worst travel agents and the best and worst escorted tour providers. Or see the best-rated city breaks in Europe.


Sydney88%£1054£119
Cape Town85%£798£113
Chicago84%£537£185
Kyoto84%£878£118
Singapore84%£852£133
Melbourne83%£1000£95
Perth82%£1120£91

Airfare/hotel rates (3-4 star hotels) from skyscanner.net and kayak.co.uk. Star ratings range from one to five. A dash (–) indicates we didn’t receive enough responses to provide a rating. Cultural sights Includes range, quality and price of historic buildings, galleries, museums, parks and city tours. Ease of getting around Includes range of public transport options, ease of understanding transport-related maps/information/ transport ticket pricing systems, ease of walking/travelling between sights. City score Based on a combination of overall satisfaction and how likely people are to recommend the city as a holiday destination

Sydney - best world city

Your top-rated city outside of Europe, Sydney remains the ultimate all-rounder: scoring four stars for its cultural attractions, shopping and vibrant cuisine. For visitors, it packs in those ‘pinch-me-I’m-in-Australia’ moments you seek. It’s the double-whammy of the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Sydney Opera House on a sun-spangled waterfront. It’s surfers and salt-air on the cliff-walk from Bondi beach to Coogee; dining beachside at Doyles at Watsons Bay and even the screech of cockatoos in the Royal Botanic Gardens. 

Don’t miss the ferry ride to Manly: a beach suburb with pretty coves on North Head. You’ll get to cruise down one of the greatest harbours in the world, enjoying spectacular city views, on the way.


Check with booking.com to easily compare and find accommodation deals in Sydney


Cape Town - best city in Africa

High quality food and drink and low prices are part of the appeal in Cape Town.  It was one of the few destinations awarded the full five stars for dining. The city has outstanding cultural sites too, including the Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art and District Six Museum on apartheid. But it’s the scenery that really sets this city apart: no photo prepares you for the drama of Table Mountain or the view from Lion’s Head lookout. All that before we get to city beaches like Clifton and Camps Bay. For the savvy traveller, the Mother City is the best of both worlds: a city break and nature escape in one which blossoms as European winters bite. And, to add to its appeal, there’s no jet-lag.

Don’t miss the Cape of Good Hope: ruddy cliffs, two mighty oceans and lungfuls of pure air. You can stop off to meet Boulders Beach’s adorable residents, a colony of African penguins, enroute.


Which? Shorts podcast: listen as we visit captivating Cape Town, one of the world’s greatest cities. Check with booking.com to easily compare and find accommodation deals in Cape Town


Chicago - best city in North America

Chicago is skyscrapers and shopping as trains rumble on elevated tracks in America’s most atmospheric downtown, baseball at the Cubs’ historic Wrigley Field, then cocktails in a blues bar like Buddy Guy’s Legends, all packaged into a relaxed city. Imagine better cinematic appeal than Manhattan but without the crowds (or litter) – probably why it beat New York in most categories.

Architecture cruises float up the Chicago river through a canyon of art deco spires, modernist boxes and glass skinned arcs. Pair it with the viewing platform at Hancock Tower or Willis Tower to see the full scale of the city’s architectural achievement.

Don’t miss The home of gospel music, Louis Armstrong and much of black American history in the Bronzeville neighbourhood.


Check with booking.com to easily compare and find accommodation deals in Chicago


Kyoto - joint best city in Asia

If the fascination of Japan is its balance between technological future and ancient tradition, Kyoto is the yin to Tokyo’s yang. The imperial capital from the 8th century to the 19th is less a city than the repository of Japan’s cultural soul. 

You come to explore Unesco-listed Buddhist temples (like hillside Kiyomizu-dera and Kinkakuji -aka the Golden Pavilion) and Zen gardens; to enjoy tea ceremonies in wooden houses on Sannen-zaka or Ninen-zaka lanes and see geishas in Gion district’s Shimbashi street (visit at dusk if possible). Kyoto’s cherry blossom is Japan’s best and wildly popular, probably why the city scores five stars for culture but two for its crowds. 

Don’t miss Fushimi Inari, a Shinto shrine where over 10,000 crimson torii gates snake like tunnels over mountainside paths. 


Check with booking.com to easily compare and find accommodation deals in Kyoto


Singapore - joint best city in Asia

If it had only received five stars for shopping, this might have suggested Singapore was a bit of a sterile layover (albeit one with the cleanest, safest metropolitan streets you’ll ever walk). 

But its five stars for food gets closer to understanding this city state. While prosperity has introduced glittering hotel restaurants by Western celebrity chefs, food markets (aka ‘hawker centres’) are a head-spinning journey through China, Malaysia, India and Indonesia - Singapore’s fascination is, undoubtedly, its cultural stew. 

Tiong Bahru Market and Maxwell Food Centre are excellent. Many visitors also come for a Singapore sling in Raffles Hotel’s Long Bar. 

Don’t miss The Botanic Garden is 74 acres of Unesco-listed greenery where rare orchid collections and a stand of pre-settlement rainforest lie alongside trimmed lawns. Team it with Gardens by the Bay, a $1bn, 250-acre fantasyland.


Check with booking.com to easily compare and find accommodation deals in Singapore


Vancouver - best city in Canada

There are places in the world that make you recalibrate your idea of a good life. Vancouver is one. Ranked equal or above Canadian rivals (and many US cities) in all categories, this beach town captures Canada in all its easy-going charm, cosmopolitan cuisine (last year it won eight Michelin stars) and epic scenery. Sure, it has glass towers, but galleries, boutiques and heritage charm are abundant in the Gastown neighbourhood.

Granville Island Market shows off culinary plenty, while outside in the harbour whales breach (whale tours are popular) and residents commute by paddleboard. Make sure to cycle along the seawall of Stanley Park, the city’s premier hang out – because in Vancouver you visit to do as much as to see. 

It doesn’t come cheap, mustering just two stars for value for money, but visitors say it’s worth every penny.

Don’t miss a cycle ride around Stanley Park: a transition from glass towers to First Nation totem poles then raw forest en route to west-coast Third Beach. 


Check with booking.com to easily compare and find accommodation deals in Vancouver


Our research

In October 2023, 1,879 Which? members completed a survey about the city breaks they had taken outside of the UK and Europe in the past four years.  

The city score is based on a combination of overall satisfaction and the likelihood of recommending the city. Only cities reviewed by at least 30 people are included.