Salzburg tops Lonely Planet‘s list of the 10 must-visit cities for 2020

Austria’s second city celebrates the centennial anniversary of its famous festival next year

Leading guidebook publisher Lonely Planet has unveiled its Best in Travel 2020 list. It showcases the countries, regions, cities and best value destinations that are worth visiting over the coming year. The 15^th annual list, compiled by Lonely Planet’s staffers and correspondents around the world, is again a mix of well-known and more humble destinations, lauded as hidden gems.

It comes as no surprise that Salzburg, Austria topped the list of the must-visit cities. The upcoming centerary of the world-famous Salzburg Festival will be celebrated lavishly with concerts, plays, readings, matinees, exhibitions etc.  

The anniversary of the prominent festival of classical music and drama is just the cream of the crop, however, as Mozart’s hometown is also a UNESCO World Heritage site, drawing tourists with a mix of Italian and German cultural influence and Baroque architecture.

Washington, DC came second on the best cities list. The US capital, under the spell of the presidential race, will be celebrating the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment, which gave women the right to vote, with a host of special exhibitions.

The third place went to the Egyptian capital Cairo, which is bracing up for the opening of its Grand Egyptian Museum in 2020. 

Galway in Ireland will be European Capital of Culture next year

Galway, described by Lonely Planet as "brilliantly bohemian" and "arguably Ireland's most engaging city", grabbed the fourth position for a good reason – the city will be receiving hordes of tourists as European Capital of Culture next year alongside Rijeka (Croatia).

The German city of Bonn was ranked fifth mainly for its cultural heritage. Like Salzburg, it is the birthplace of another composer of world renown - Ludwig van Beethoven.

Rounding out the top 10 were cities with a lesser tourist appeal: La Paz (Bolivia), Kochi (India), Vancouver (British Columbia, Canada), Dubai (UAE), and Denver (Colorado, USA).

So, if you are a city tourism kind of guy, and a true European, bet on Salzburg, Galway and Bonn in planning your vacation. After all, they are not that far from home.