Bangkok has been named the best city in the world for 2026 by readers of Condé Nast Traveller, topping the magazine’s annual Readers’ Choice Awards with a score of 97.68. The Thai capital finished ahead of Paris, Istanbul, Rome, Tokyo and Sydney, having missed the top 20 last year.
The magazine attributed Bangkok’s rise to its mix of architecture, history, Michelin-starred dining and street food culture, and said Thailand’s popularity among travellers is at a record high.
The result adds to a run of 2026 recognition for the capital, including Time Out’s best city for nightlife title and No.3 on The New York Times’ 52 Places to Go list.
Condé Nast Traveller is a luxury travel and lifestyle magazine. Its Readers’ Choice Awards are decided by reader votes, with each city given a score out of 100.
This year’s awards drew close to 300,000 responses from readers sharing their travel experiences. The cities’ rankings are published on the magazine’s website as Condé Nast Traveller’s best cities in the world 2026 list.
Bangkok led the list, followed by Paris, Istanbul, Rome, Valletta, Shanghai, Tokyo, Seoul, Sydney and Amsterdam in the top 10.
Stockholm, Vienna, Lisbon, Hong Kong, Cape Town, Porto, Madrid, New York, Jaipur and Singapore completed the top 20, in that order from No.11 to No.20.
Bangkok did not make the magazine’s top 20 cities last year, marking a jump from outside the list to the best city in the world in a single year. In the magazine’s 2026 friendliest cities ranking, Bangkok placed ninth with a score of 96.16.
Last year, Bangkok placed 22nd in a separate report by Resonance Consultancy, ranking the World’s Best Cities.
In Bangkok’s old town, Condé Nast Traveller pointed to the Grand Palace and Wat Phra Kaew for some of Thailand’s finest architecture. Nearby Wat Pho houses a renowned reclining Buddha. The magazine also cited the city’s markets, Michelin-starred restaurants, rooftop bars and entertainment.
In a separate 2026 study of 36 cities by UK travel specialist Travelbag, Bangkok placed fifth for food. Euromonitor International also ranked it the world’s most-visited city in 2024, with 32.4 million international visitors.
Thailand featured in other categories of the same awards, with Koh Lanta, Phuket and Koh Samui placed No.3, No.4 and No.9 among Asia’s best islands.
Four Thai beaches made the Asia list: Railay at No.2, Ao Nang Beach at No.10, Pattaya Beach at No.16 and Maya Bay at No.18.
The story Bangkok tops magazine’s 2026 city vote after missing last year’s list as seen on Thaiger News.
