Marco Crisciotti Condé Nast Traveller has published the ranking of the best European cities for 2025: Valletta leads the podium, followed by Oslo and Vienna. Excellent results for Italy, with Florence, Rome, and Venice among the top twenty.
Table of contents
British travel magazine Condé Nast Traveller has published its highly anticipated ranking “The Best Cities in Europe: 2025 Readers’ Choice Awards”, an annual appointment that gathers and interprets readers’ preferences, mapping out beauty, culture, and quality of life across the old continent. The survey takes shape through a careful analysis of responses provided in different categories – from hospitality to culinary offerings, to urban livability – returning a weighted average that expresses the overall level of appreciation for each city.
The list, composed of twenty destinations, ranges from Prague, which closes the ranking, to the top-ranked Valletta, which dominates the classification. What emerges is a varied portrait of contemporary Europe, where history, architecture, tradition, sustainability, and cultural vitality coexist peacefully. Worth highlighting is the success of Italy and Spain, both with three cities in top positions, while Scandinavian nations confirm an increasingly strong appeal, with several entries in the top ten.
The essence of the most beloved cities
From historic capitals to emerging destinations, the survey emphasizes how there is no universal formula for the perfect city break. Each awarded city contains an unrepeatable combination of characteristics: creative energy, architectural beauty, nightlife vitality, local cuisine, and the ability to offer authentic experiences at accessible prices. Europe thus shows itself in its multiplicity: refined and lively, modern and tied to its own memory.
The 2025 podium
Valletta, Malta (97.33 points)
The Maltese capital conquers the summit as Europe’s most beloved city. Small and compact, yet incredibly charming, Valletta is a baroque jewel set in the Mediterranean, where the golden color of fortifications meets the intense blue of the sea. Narrow, winding alleys reveal glimpses that seem straight out of a painting, while the squares tell a story of dominations and rebirths. Not surprisingly, the urban landscape has been chosen as the backdrop for world-famous productions, from Ridley Scott’s “Gladiator” to the series “Game of Thrones.”
Oslo, Norway (94.36 points)
Oslo enters the ranking with a triumphant debut. It’s a city in constant balance between innovation and nature, where experimental design intertwines with forests and the crystal-clear waters of fjords. The city of Oslo ensures an incredible urban itinerary, ranging from lake swimming to panoramic saunas, to glass and steel opera houses that seem suspended between sky and sea. The Norwegian capital embodies the idea of a sustainable city, where modernity merges with deep respect for the environment.
Vienna, Austria (93.75 points)
The Austrian capital maintains its place on the podium for the second consecutive year. Vienna is a hymn to beauty in every form: imperial architecture, classical music accompanying strolls along the avenues, and the aroma of coffee filling historic halls. Its charm, subtle and persistent, conquers anyone who arrives, suspended between nostalgia for the past and the elegance of the present.
Italy as protagonist
Italy also makes an excellent showing in this edition of the Readers’ Choice Awards, with three cities present among the top twenty.
11th place – Florence (91.39 points)
After being nineteenth in 2024, Florence gains ground and reconquers travelers’ hearts. It’s the cradle of the Renaissance, guardian of masterpieces by Michelangelo, Da Vinci, and Botticelli, but also a city to be experienced in the open air. Every square and every bridge tells a story, while the skyline, dotted with domes and bell towers, appears like a painting in warm, intense colors.
13th place – Rome (89.21 points)
Rome remains one of Europe’s most beloved destinations. In 2025, it experienced months of profound emotional intensity, between grief over the death of Pope Francis and joy for the election of Pope Leo XVII. The capital preserves its magnetism intact: among millennia-old ruins and lively neighborhoods, it can guarantee a travel experience that merges spirituality, art, and daily life.
18th place – Venice (87.06 points)
Venice is a city that never ceases to amaze. The canals, Gothic houses, and bell towers emerging from the lagoon compose an unrepeatable landscape, fragile and marvelous. The Condé Nast Traveller article invites discovering it with sensitivity, choosing conscious tourism, away from crowds, perhaps exploring less beaten islands like Murano, where master glassmakers and lace artisans keep centuries-old legacies and traditions alive.
The best twenty European cities of 2025
Here is the complete ranking of the Readers’ Choice Awards, with respective appreciation scores:
1) Valletta, Malta – 97.33
2) Oslo, Norway – 94.36
3) Vienna, Austria – 93.75
4) Copenhagen, Denmark – 93.33
4) Madrid, Spain – 93.33
6) Munich, Germany – 92.89
7) Lisbon, Portugal – 92.22
8) Stockholm, Sweden – 92.06
9) San Sebastian, Spain – 91.94
10) Palma de Mallorca, Spain – 91.67
11) Florence, Italy – 91.39
12) Athens, Greece – 89.63
13) Rome, Italy – 89.21
14) Paris, France – 89.02
15) Marseille, France – 88.15
16) Reykjavik, Iceland – 87.62
17) Porto, Portugal – 87.56
18) Venice, Italy – 87.06
19) Budapest, Hungary – 87.01
20) Prague, Czech Republic – 86.94
Source: Condé Nast Traveller
