ToolsThe World Travel Index
The World Travel Index
Weight cost, climate, safety, internet, food, nightlife and more; scores recalculate from the data we actually hold.
40 destinations ranked for January
| # | Destination | Score | Cost | Climate | Safety | Social o | Transpor | Internet | Long-ter | Food | Nightlif | Hiking | Beaches | Walkabil | Digital | Backpack | Metrics used |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chiang Mai Thailand | 86 | 4.7 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 4.0 | 3.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 3.0 | 4.0 | n/a | 4.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 13/14 |
| 2 | Tbilisi Georgia | 86 | 4.1 | n/a | 5.0 | 4.0 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 4.0 | 5.0 | n/a | 4.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 12/14 |
| 3 | Budapest Hungary | 83 | 2.9 | 2.4 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 3.0 | n/a | 5.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 13/14 |
| 4 | Bangkok Thailand | 80 | 4.1 | 4.7 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 1.0 | n/a | 2.0 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 13/14 |
| 5 | Mexico City Mexico | 79 | 3.3 | 4.3 | 3.5 | 5.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 3.0 | n/a | 4.0 | 5.0 | 4.0 | 13/14 |
| 6 | Buenos Aires Argentina | 77 | 3.6 | 4.3 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 1.0 | n/a | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 13/14 |
| 7 | Medellín Colombia | 77 | 3.9 | 5.0 | 2.0 | 5.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 3.0 | 5.0 | 4.0 | n/a | 3.0 | 5.0 | 4.0 | 13/14 |
| 8 | Seoul South Korea | 77 | 2.7 | 2.4 | 5.0 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 3.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | n/a | 4.0 | 4.0 | 3.0 | 13/14 |
| 9 | Da Nang Vietnam | 76 | 4.6 | 4.9 | 5.0 | 4.0 | 3.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 4.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 3.0 | 5.0 | 3.0 | 14/14 |
| 10 | Rio de Janeiro Brazil | 76 | 3.2 | 4.6 | 3.5 | 5.0 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 14/14 |
| 11 | Kuala Lumpur Malaysia | 75 | 4.4 | 3.7 | 5.0 | 3.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | n/a | 2.0 | 5.0 | 3.0 | 13/14 |
| 12 | Prague Czechia | 75 | 2.7 | 2.4 | 5.0 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 4.0 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 3.0 | n/a | 5.0 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 13/14 |
| 13 | Hanoi Vietnam | 74 | 4.7 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 4.0 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | n/a | 3.0 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 13/14 |
| 14 | Cape Town South Africa | 72 | 3.1 | 5.0 | 3.5 | 4.0 | 2.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 2.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 14/14 |
| 15 | Ho Chi Minh City Vietnam | 72 | 4.5 | 4.7 | 5.0 | 4.0 | 3.0 | 5.0 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 4.0 | 1.0 | n/a | 2.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 13/14 |
| 16 | Tirana Albania | 72 | 3.9 | n/a | 3.5 | 4.0 | 2.0 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 13/14 |
| 17 | Barcelona Spain | 71 | 1.0 | 2.4 | 3.5 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 2.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 14/14 |
| 18 | Lisbon Portugal | 70 | 1.9 | 2.1 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 2.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 4.0 | 14/14 |
| 19 | Antigua Guatemala Guatemala | 69 | 4.2 | 4.9 | 2.0 | 5.0 | 2.0 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 5.0 | n/a | 5.0 | 3.0 | 5.0 | 13/14 |
| 20 | Athens Greece | 69 | 2.3 | 2.4 | 5.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 14/14 |
| 21 | Hoi An Vietnam | 69 | 4.6 | 4.9 | 5.0 | 3.0 | 2.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 14/14 |
| 22 | Oaxaca Mexico | 69 | 3.8 | n/a | 3.5 | 4.0 | 2.0 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 3.0 | 4.0 | n/a | 5.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 12/14 |
| 23 | Las Palmas de Gran Canaria Spain | 68 | 2.4 | 4.2 | 3.5 | 4.0 | 3.0 | 5.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 3.0 | 14/14 |
| 24 | Split Croatia | 68 | 1.6 | 2.3 | 5.0 | 4.0 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 14/14 |
| 25 | Bali (Canggu and Ubud) Indonesia | 67 | 3.8 | 3.1 | 3.5 | 5.0 | 2.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 1.0 | 5.0 | 4.0 | 14/14 |
| 26 | Pai Thailand | 67 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 4.0 | n/a | 4.0 | 2.0 | 5.0 | 13/14 |
| 27 | Lima Peru | 65 | 3.7 | 5.0 | 3.5 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 4.0 | 2.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 3.0 | 14/14 |
| 28 | Porto Portugal | 64 | 2.4 | 1.4 | 5.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 14/14 |
| 29 | Tokyo Japan | 64 | 1.6 | 2.4 | 5.0 | 3.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 3.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 3.0 | 2.0 | 4.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 14/14 |
| 30 | Istanbul Türkiye (Turkey) | 62 | 3.2 | 2.2 | n/a | 4.0 | 5.0 | 4.0 | 3.0 | 5.0 | 4.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 13/14 |
| 31 | Kyoto Japan | 62 | 1.8 | 2.4 | 5.0 | 2.0 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 3.0 | 5.0 | 2.0 | 4.0 | n/a | 5.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 13/14 |
| 32 | Playa del Carmen Mexico | 62 | 2.7 | 4.3 | 3.5 | 4.0 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 1.0 | 5.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 3.0 | 14/14 |
| 33 | Siem Reap Cambodia | 62 | 4.7 | 5.0 | 3.5 | 4.0 | 2.0 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 2.0 | n/a | 3.0 | 3.0 | 5.0 | 13/14 |
| 34 | Marrakech Morocco | 60 | 4.0 | 3.7 | 3.5 | 3.0 | 2.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 2.0 | 5.0 | n/a | 4.0 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 13/14 |
| 35 | Cartagena Colombia | 59 | 3.2 | 5.0 | 2.0 | 4.0 | 2.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 1.0 | 3.0 | 5.0 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 14/14 |
| 36 | Cusco Peru | 58 | 4.0 | 2.9 | 3.5 | 4.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 5.0 | n/a | 4.0 | 2.0 | 5.0 | 13/14 |
| 37 | Funchal (Madeira) Portugal | 56 | 2.2 | 3.4 | 5.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 2.0 | 5.0 | 2.0 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 3.0 | 14/14 |
| 38 | Kathmandu Nepal | 56 | 5.0 | 3.4 | 3.5 | 4.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 2.0 | 5.0 | n/a | 2.0 | 2.0 | 5.0 | 13/14 |
| 39 | Luang Prabang Laos | 54 | 4.7 | 5.0 | 3.5 | 3.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 4.0 | 1.0 | 3.0 | n/a | 5.0 | 2.0 | 4.0 | 13/14 |
| 40 | Zanzibar (Stone Town and Paje) Tanzania | 51 | 3.3 | 4.7 | 3.5 | 3.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 1.0 | 5.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 14/14 |
Compare the top five side by side →
How the index is built
Score = weighted mean of the available metrics, each rescaled from 1–5 to 0–100, with your slider as the weight. A metric that is unavailable for a destination is left out of that destination’s mean and the “metrics used” column shows how many were counted, so a place is never penalised with an invented zero.
- Cost: Derived from our daily cost estimates (lower cost scores higher).
- Climate: Derived from WMO monthly normals for the month you choose.
- Safety: Country-level: current U.S. State Department advisory level (official, not city crime data).
- Social opportunities: Editorial assessment of hostels, meetups and traveller density.
- Transport: Editorial assessment of getting around and onward connections.
- Internet quality: Editorial assessment from reported fixed and mobile speeds.
- Long-term accommodation: Editorial assessment of monthly rentals availability and value.
- Food: Editorial assessment of range, quality and value.
- Nightlife: Editorial assessment.
- Hiking: Editorial assessment of trails within a day trip.
- Beaches: Editorial assessment; null where there is no coast.
- Walkability: Editorial assessment of the central districts.
- Digital nomad suitability: Editorial composite of internet, coworking, community and visas.
- Backpacker friendliness: Editorial composite of hostels, prices and social scene.
Limitations: editorial metrics are one desk’s judgement, dated October 2026; cost uses the mid-range tier only; safety is a country-level advisory, not neighbourhood data; climate is a long-term normal, not a forecast.