Sydney snubbed again as Melbourne named among ‘world’s best places’ to travel in 2027
Melbourne is fast becoming Australia’s city of choice for travel experts, with a nod to the Victorian capital coming in the form of a spot on National Geographic’s best places in the world to travel list.
The list features 25 destinations across six continents pulled together by the publication’s global community of writers, photographers, and explorers.
Melbourne has been named among the best places to travel in 2027. AAP
According to the experts, the destination “checks all the boxes of a great global city”.
Melbourne’s arts and sports scenes, and vibrant neighbourhoods were called out in particular, as well as the “incredibly diverse” culinary scene on offer.
“Sydney has long attracted more visitors, but Melbourne is increasingly earning the spotlight,” they said.
Melbourne is still riding on a high after it was also recently named the world’s friendliest city in Condé Nast Traveller’s 2026 Readers’ Choice Awards.
Plus, it is currently ranked the third most liveable city in the world and first in Australia on the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU)’s Global Liveability Index.
Melbourne was also the first Australian city to top Time Out’s list of the best cities in the world in 2026.
The trendy capital again got a mention on the list of the 40 coolest neighbourhoods in the world in 2026, also compiled by Time Out in September.
Experts love Melbourne’s arts and sports scenes and its green spaces. iStock
South Melbourne was lauded for the “gastronomic delight” that is the South Melbourne Market as well as many cafés and restaurants worth a visit.
Also on the overall list, Niigata, Japan was highlighted as a new way to “explore a quieter corner of Japan”.
Niigata Prefecture sits in the heart of Japan’s snow country, with plenty of Aussies heading to the country over the northern winter.
Niigata, Japan iStock
Cape Froward, Chile, was also lauded for a wild new national park that is opening at the southernmost tip of South America.
The “less travelled Lowlands region” of Dumfries and Galloway in Scotland and the Pacific Coast Highway in California were other destinations that received a call out.
Best Places in the World to Travel to in 2027:
- Vestland, Norway
- Niigata, Japan
- Cape Froward, Chile
- Pacific Coast Highway in California
- Jaipur, India
- Dumfries and Galloway in Scotland
- Melbourne, Australia
- Penang, Malaysia
- Luxor, Egypt
- Madison, Wisconsin
- Puerto Rico
- Chengdu, China
- Grenada
- Salvador, Brazil
- Santander, Spain
- Normandy, France
- Southern Ozarks, Missouri and Arkansas, USA
- Halifax, Nova Scotia
- The Transcaucasian Trail, Armenia
- Leipzig, Germany
- Baltimore, Maryland
- Malawi
- Maya Ka’an, Mexico
- Tricity, Poland
- Kuélap, Chachapoyas, Peru
- Catalina Island
