Paris has maintained its position as the most desirable city in the world by taking the top spot in Euromonitor International’s Top 100 City Destinations Index. This destination has managed to retain its top position for four years in a row. The honour comes during a historic year for the French city, which saw Notre Dame Cathedral reopen and the Olympics.
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The report took into consideration significant factors like tourism, sustainability, economic performance, and safety and health, the annual report evaluates cities worldwide. As per the report, European cities dominated this year’s rankings, holding six of the top ten positions. While Barcelona finished in the top 10, Rome and Milan took the fourth and fifth position, while Amsterdam occupied the seventh, and Madrid in second. It’s interesting to note that Delhi is the only Indian city on the list, and was ranked 74th.
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In contrast, London, last year’s 10th-place finisher, dropped to 13th. Despite strong infrastructure, the city fell short in areas like tourism policy, health and safety, and sustainability.
Asia-Pacific cities also shone in the rankings. Tokyo took the third spot, with a surge in international visitors fueled by the yen’s record lows. Sydney and Singapore ranked eighth and ninth, respectively. New York, the only US city in the top 10, ranked sixth, while Los Angeles landed at 18th. Bangkok led in tourism policy and drew a staggering 32.4 million international visitors, becoming the most-visited city of the year.
Significant changes in tourism activities have also taken place in 2024. By implementing electronic travel authorisations and temporary visa-free entrance programs, several locations streamlined their visa requirements. Nonetheless, the year brought to light issues like overtourism, which led to the implementation of policies by towns such as fines and limited visiting hours.
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Tourism trends for 2024
Along with the rankings, Euromonitor International has identified a number of indicators too. With the rise of electronic travel authorisations and temporary visa-free entry, many destinations have been making efforts to streamline visa requirements. Meanwhile, overtourism has also been a burning issue, for which governments have implemented policies like visitor charges and limited visiting hours.
