20 of the world's best cities for travellers

Here are the destinations that came out tops in MasterCard's latest survey of the globe’s most-visited cities - and why they're well worth adding to your bucket list.

1. LONDON

London is the centre of the universe in more ways than one (it straddles 0 degrees longitude for starters). The British Capital of Everything received 18.69 million tourists in 2014 - a whopping 2 million more than it nearest competitor.

Visitors came to enjoy the city's fantastic living history, marvellous skyline and superb art, food, theatre and museums. Not only does London have one of the best public transport systems in the world, its vibrant pop culture simply cannot be beaten.

2.BANGKOK

A city that used to be called the Venice of East on account of its waterways and canals (and mystery too), Bangkok is Southeast Asia’s most popular city. It will seem chaotic until you visit Wat Po temple at dawn, and it has some of the best street food in the world. Some 16.4 million people visited last year, many for the easy connections to the rest of the region, but many because Bangkok is, well, a cool place to be.

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3.PARIS

The heart of France, Paris is consistently one of the most desired places on earth to visit. 15.6 million tourists came last year to see its art, shop in the Galeries Lafayette and sit at sidewalk cafes with coffee and croissants while watching the city bustle past. Take an evening stroll along the Seine – and stop for a picnic – and you’ll see why people say this is the city of love.

4. SINGAPORE

The city that grew up to be a country, Singapore is booming on the back of massive investment in its economy, of which tourism is a major part (it had 12.7 million visitors in 2014) . Along with great links to the rest of Southeast Asia, the city is famous for its food, its great shopping and its fine outdoor attractions such as the Botanic Gardens.

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5. DUBAI

The flashy, grande dame of the UAE, in 2014 Dubai saw just under 12 million visitors who were drawn by its world-famous shopping, its outrageous attractions – such as the tallest building in the world, or the vast indoor ski park which boasts a 400m-long black run, or the way the dunes of Arabia’s Empty Quarter lick at the city’s outskirts – as well as its sheer brazenness. It’s as if the city’s architects said “let’s build it and they will come”. And they did – visitors last year outnumbered locals by about five to one.

6. NEW YORK

Is New York (12 million tourists in 2014) the most famous city in the world? It’s certainly one of the most fast-paced and endlessly interesting places on earth, driven by its wildly diverse and cosmopolitan inhabitants which means you can eat, drink and see the world, all in one fascinating and mind-blowing city. It has some of the best art, music and theatre, a skyline that will take your breath away and food – so much glorious food – that you will be compelled to go back again and again just to scratch the surface.

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7. ISTANBUL

The very crossroads of Europe, Istanbul straddles an ancient trading route that linked East and West. Once you have crossed the river Bosphorous on a ferry and seen the magnificent Hagia Sofia or Sleymaniye mosques etched against the sky, you will understand why 11.6 million people trekked here last year. It’s not just the food or the carpets or the other Turkish delights – it’s the chance to get a jolt of living history.

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8. KUALA LUMPUR

Some 10.8 million tourists visited the Malaysian capital last year drawn by everything from the outlandish Petronas Towers to the huge standing Buddha in the Batu caves. As for the food, it's a glorious fusion of the best that India, China and Southeast Asia have to offer. As capital cities go, it’s also pretty cheap, something which has ensured its continued position as one of the world’s most popular cities for travellers.

9. HONG KONG

Hong Kong is the part of China that isn’t really China. The city (8.9 million tourists in 2014) is a sometimes chaotic blend of neon and shopping, towering apartment blocks, some fine beaches and the best seafood restaurants ever. There's also an added dollop of British colonial whimsy, like the noonday gun at Causeway Bay, or the lovely Anglican cathedral where people go at lunchtimes to escape from the city’s bustle. It's hot, humid and relentless. It will do your head in, and when you leave, you’ll wish you were still there.

10. SEOUL

Some 8.63 million people to the vibrant, rapidly-expanding capital of South Korea, which is also the world’s eighth-biggest airline hub. Some came to see the gorgeous palaces of the Joseon Dynasty, others for the pleasures and offerings of the vast Dongdaemun and Namdaemun markets. It’s not all about the bustle of the city, though: the Bukhansan National Park, with its trails and hidden temples and grand views, is ranked by TripAdvisor as Seoul’s second most popular attraction.

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11. BARCELONA

You would be forgiven for calling this Gaudi’s City but you’d only be half wrong because of the 7.37 million tourists who visited last year, you know that most probably came to see the gloriously weird – and as yet unfinished – Sagrada Familia cathedral, as well as the equally odd but compelling Casa Milà, Casa Batlló and Park Güell. And then there’s the food, and by that we mean some of the best tapas in Spain. Smoked burrata cheese with rosemary and tomato and muesli compote anyone?

12. AMSTERDAM

Amsterdam is one of the world’s most easygoing places, a city of canals and bicycles and polite, friendly people. Many of the 7.23 million travellers who visited in 2014 would have flocked to the famous red light district, but there’s much more to Amsterdam than mere titillation, such as the newly revamped Rijksmuseum where, if you go this year, you'll see a retrospective on Rembrandt’s breathtaking later work.

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13. MILAN

There is more to Milan than some of the world’s best shopping, such seeing the city from the roof of the Duomo – Christendom’s third largest church – or getting a ticket to see Leonardo da Vinci’s The Last Supper, which hangs in the refectory attached to the church of Santa Maria delle Grazie. If its shopping you want, the Gallerie Vittorio Emanuele is the place of your dreams: built in 1867, it has style on the outside and the inside. Some 6.8 million people came to Milan last year, just pipping Rome.

14. ROME

The Eternal City has been on the tourist trail since, well, Roman times, although not all the visitors over the centuries have come in peace. It's still a perennial favourite – just under 7 million people visited last year – because it has some of the world’s best attractions such as the Colosseum, the Forum, St Peters, the Trevi Fountain, the wonderful Pantheon with its eye to the sky, hundreds of beautiful buildings and exquisite churches and running through it all, the green and rushing river Tiber. The food’s pretty good too, and the traffic cops all look like they’re wearing Armani.

15. TAIPEI

For a long time the Taiwanese capital has been almost off the map in more ways than one, but it's taking great strides as cool city for hip travellers. No longer just a place for business deals, the city pulled 6.3 million tourists last year on the strength of its frenetic pace, its easy connections and its growing reputation as one of Asia’s hottest food destinations.

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16. SHANGHAI

The arty antidote to the Beijing’s commercial bustle, Shanghai is China’s other hot city of our times, drawing 6.1 million people in 2014. With a good art scene, great food and fascinating architecture both old and new, it's sure to move up the list as more travellers discover its multiple delights.

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17. VIENNA

A city of waltzes, grand architecture and the finest pastries in the universe. Don’t let the gloomy Leonard Cohen song put you off – Vienna should be on every serious fine art-and-history traveller’s itinerary. Some 6.5 million travellers agree.

18. RIYADH

It’s no glitzy Gulf state capital but Riyadh – which saw 5.6 million visitors in 2014 – has plenty to offer including Al Musmak Castle, the City of Old Diriyah and the Museum of History and Archaeology, which is reportedly excellent. One of its best attractions is the Edge of The World, a high escarpment about 90 minutes from the city which offers an astonishing view into the desert where craggy rock formations rise into the sky. Go at dusk when the wind – and dust – have settled.

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19. TOKYO

People come for the food, the hotels, the fast trains, the neon lights, the buzz of Japan… Some 5.38 million travellers came to Tokyo last year and it will only get busier – and more expensive than it already is – once the 2020 Summer Olympics are done and dusted, so go. Now.

20. LIMA

There’s always an outlier and this year it’s Lima, the high and dusty capital of Peru which saw 5.1 million tourists last year. Many were en route to the lost city of Machu Picchu but Lima, with its city centre now a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is a worth spending some time in.

Each year MasterCard’s Global Destination Cities Index ranks the 132 cities that received the most international visitors.