Cape Town announced as Best City in the World by Time Out
15 January 2025
The City of Cape Town has been named Time Out’s Best City in the World for 2025, climbing one place since last year’s second ranking.
In
an announcement on Wednesday morning, Time Out said Cape Town scored highly
across the board for its beauty, overall happiness and top-notch food scene,
with the Mother City offering visitors countless opportunities to discover
incredible food, culture and nightlife, not to mention impeccable green spaces
and access to nature.
More
than 18 500 people around the world shared
their thoughts on their city, including Time Out’s regular readers. A panel of
more than 100 city experts, drawn from Time Out’s global network, was also
asked to name the most exciting cities in the world right now. Time Out then combined
all the data – a total of 44 different criteria – to rank the best cities in
the world for 2025.
Cape
Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis said the City is delighted with Cape Town’s first
place on the prestigious Time Out ‘Best Cities in the World’ list for 2025.
‘While
Cape Town often features at the top of global travel destination lists, this
recognition is particularly meaningful as it is largely based on the responses
from residents of the city themselves. In addition to all the things that make
Cape Town a must-visit tourism destination – our unmatched natural beauty, blue
flag beaches, wonderful cuisine, nightlife and cultural diversity – it is the
overall happiness of residents that perhaps means the most in this extensive
survey. All our work is aimed at making Cape Town the best city in the world to
live in – where people are able to build lives of value and where they have a
real sense of ownership of their city – and we could not be prouder that this
came across so strongly in the responses of our residents,’ said Mayor
Hill-Lewis.
‘This
recognition speaks volumes about the incredible spirit of Cape Town. At the
heart of it all are our communities sharing cuisine and cultures. This is a
shared achievement, and we’re excited to continue attracting visitors from
around the country, continent, and the rest of the world. The
2023 Gross Value Add of the industry for Cape Town was more than R27 billion in
addition to supporting over 91 000 jobs. This acknowledgement from Time
Out and their readers is sure to be a further boost to our wonderful local
tourism industry, further fuelling
Cape Town’s economic growth. Cape Town isn’t just the best city to visit – it’s
the best city to be a part of,’ said Alderman James Vos, Mayoral Committee
Member for Economic Growth.
‘To
be recognised as Time Out’s Best City in the World is a huge high five to the
Capetonians who work so hard to create a city which can be enjoyed by locals
and visitors alike. Cape Town provides not only an amazing playground for those
looking for the best food, best sights, and best adventures, but it is also a place that people are happy to call home. If
you’ve never been to Cape Town, do it! You won’t be disappointed,’ said Andrew
Hallett, Time Out South Africa’s Content Director and resident Capetonian.
‘Our
annual list of Time Out’s Best Cities in the World right now proves that if you
want to know what makes a city truly great, ask a local. Thousands of
city-dwellers worldwide responded to our survey this year, sharing their
opinion on everything from nightlife and food to public transport, green spaces
and friendliness. Their collective insights, coupled with the opinions and
expertise of Time Out experts around the globe, allow us to create a definitive
ranking of the best cities in the world right now.
‘From
affordability to access to nature, liveability was a key factor in our survey
this year. This list not only showcases the world’s most exciting cities to
visit in 2025, where world-class culture, great food and exciting nightlife can
be found on every corner, but also reflects the places where locals feel most
at home,’ said Grace Beard, Travel Editor at Time Out.
Find
the full list of 50 Best Cities in the World here: timeout.com/bestcities
End
Published by:
City of Cape Town, Media Office
