TripAdvisor’s top global destinations of 2019
TripAdvisor is rolling out its annual Travelers Choice Awards for top destinations, landmarks, beaches and more, based on reviews and ratings penned by the travel site’s avid globe-trotters over the last 12 months.
The company unveiled the most popular destinations last week, placing London atop the top 10 destinations in the world. And for the ninth year in a row, New York City holds the No. 1 spot among U.S. destinations.
You can thank Prince Harry and Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, for London’s popularity. The royal wedding prompted many travelers to go see Big Ben and other sights for themselves last year. Desiree Fish, TripAdvisor’s vice president of global communications, noted a surge of interest in not just London, but in London tours with royal appeal. A tour that included the changing of the guard and Buckingham Palace access, for example, saw its bookings increase by 231 percent over the last year, while a Windsor Castle tour, which included transportation from London, rose 173 percent.
The rest of the global top
10included many familiar, bucket-list-worthy cities, from Paris to Marrakech. As for the U.S. top 10, Hawaii dominated the list with three Hawaiian islands sitting pretty in the Nos. 2, 3 and 10 spots. (What, no Kauai?) And San Diego (No. 6) and San Francisco (No. 9) brought California representation to the tally. Here are two top 10s. Find details, including suggestions for where to stay and what to see, at www. TripAdvisor.com/Travelers Choice-Destinations.
TOP 10 DESTINATIONS AROUND THE WORLD 1 London
2 Paris
3 Rome
4 Crete, Greece
5 Bali, Indonesia
6 Phuket, Thailand
7 Barcelona
8 Istanbul 9 Marrakech, Morocco 10 Dubai, United Arab Emirates
TOP 10 U.S. DESTINATIONS 1 New York City
2 Maui, Hawaii
3 Oahu, Hawaii
4 Las Vegas
5 Orlando
6 San Diego
7 Chicago
8 New Orleans
9 San Francisco
10 Big Island, Hawaii
— Staff