Friendliest Cities In The World

updated 2/25/2021

This month, we asked our followers on Facebook and Twitter to vote for the friendliest city they've visited. Here are the top 15 they chose.

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15. Atlanta, Georgia, USA
14. Wellington, New Zealand
13. Vientiane, Laos
12. Cape Town, South Africa
11. Budapest, Hungary
10. Melbourne, Australia
9. Manchester, England
8. Dubai, UAE
7. Copenhagen, Denmark
6. Vancouver, Canada
5. Tokyo, Japan
4. Liverpool, England
3. Montréal, Canada
2. Dublin, Ireland
1. Glasgow, Scotland

15. Atlanta, Georgia, USA

First up is Atlanta, Georgia, with a population of more than 440,000 apparently lovely people.

Atlanta, Georgia USA downtown city skyline © Sean Pavone/Shutterstock

14. Wellington, New Zealand

On Twitter, Ben Les Hoole was one of many who voted for Wellington, New Zealand’s capital. Described as an "urban jewel" in The Rough Guide to New Zealand, it’s one of the few cities travellers make an effort to visit in the country – perhaps that has something to do with its rather friendly residents.

Wellington, New Zealand © Tom Zahnas/Shutterstock

13. Vientiane, Laos

A quiet but beautiful capital city, situated on a wide bend in the Mekong River, Vientiane got votes on Facebook from readers including Tamara Bollen and Adam Mason.

Reclining Buddha at Wat Pha That Luang, Vientiane, Laos © Mongkolchon Akesin/Shutterstock

12. Cape Town, South Africa

More than just penguins on a beach, Cape Town got our readers' vote as one of the friendliest cities in the world. It’s South Africa’s most visited city, and with Table Mountain as a stunning scenic backdrop, there’s little wonder why.

Lion's Head in Cape Town, South Africa © Richard Cavalleri/Shutterstock

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11. Budapest, Hungary

Budapest, Hungary's rather grand capital, sits on the banks of the Danube and has a number of thermal springs supplying baths across the city – perfect for a friendly, relaxing weekend away.

Budapest from the Gellert hill © Resul Muslu/Shutterstock

10. Melbourne, Australia

An unsurprising entry at number ten after being voted most liveable city in the world four times in a row: Melbourne, Australia was voted for by many as the friendliest city in the world.

Melbourne, Australia © f11photo/Shutterstock

9. Manchester, England

At number nine it’s Manchester, one of the highlights of the north of England. Once described as "the belly and guts of the nation" by George Orwell, our readers think it’s one of the friendliest cities in the world.

Lowry theatre gallery in Manchester © SAKhanPhotography/Shutterstock

8. Dubai, UAE

This fast-growing city is the hub of the United Arab Emirates and got a vote from one of our Facebook followers because "everyone is polite and friendly".

Camels at the beach in front of Dubai city line, United Arab Emirates © Rasto SK/Shutterstock

7. Copenhagen, Denmark

A compact and easy to navigate city, Copenhagen makes number seven in the world’s friendliest cities vote thanks to a thumbs up from readers including Rob on Twitter, and Natalia Rangel on Facebook.

Bicycle in Copenhagen © Aleksandar Mijatovic/Shutterstock

6. Vancouver, Canada

Canada makes an appearance at number six with the coastal city of Vancouver, in British Columbia. Twitter follower Sascha Neth said: "We hosted the friendliest winter Olympics!"

Water view of Vancouver city and harbour, Canada © canadastock/Shutterstock

5. Tokyo, Japan

Tokyo was voted as the fifth friendliest city in the world. LukmanAul says on Twitter, "despite being very hectic, Tokyo is the friendliest city and is very safe." After getting lost at 3am, he said an office worker directed him back to his hotel using her smartphone, even though there was a language barrier.

In the Tokyo metro © oneinchpunch/Shutterstock

4. Liverpool, England

Another northern English city, Liverpool was one of our top cities to visit 2014 and is also one of the friendliest in the world according to you.

Albert Dock at Liverpool waterfront

3. Montréal, Canada

In third place is Montréal, Canada’s second largest city. On Twitter, Paul Chibeba said: "my #friendlycity pick is #Montréal: colourful, engaging and welcoming in French and English!".

2. Dublin, Ireland

With a the bulk of votes on Facebook, Ireland’s capital Dublin makes second friendliest city in the world. Spend a weekend enjoying the Georgian townhouses, squares and historic churches among some of the friendliest people in the world.