Philadelphians have always known exactly how awesome our city is.
Incredible culture? Check. History? Duh. Restaurants that your favorite chef’s favorite chef drools over? Obviously.
So it’s no surprise that three of travel’s most prestigious publications — Lonely Planet, Time Out and AFAR Magazine — say Philadelphia needs to be added to everyone’s travel bucket list for 2024.
Reading Terminal Market
— Photo by Visit Philadelphia
Lonely Planet
In Lonely Planet’s “Best In Travel” 2024 awards, Philly is a big winner.
The renowned travel authority highlighted the top 10 cities across the globe for travelers to visit as part of its larger travel guide of 50 destinations to visit in 2024. And — you guessed it — Philly made the list.
In fact, the City of Brotherly Love and Sisterly Affection is one of only two U.S. spots (alongside Kansas City) to make the “cities” list. Also included: international destinations like Paris, Nairobi and Prague.
The publication’s awards committee specifically cited Philadelphia’s “kinetic energy,” museums and thriving restaurant scene as reasons for this win.
That award-winning restaurant scene claimed all four spots in the 2024 travel guide’s Highlights overview. The write-up specifically called out three of the city’s awesome markets, including:
Also namedropped: Zahav, the Israeli modern standout which won Outstanding Restaurant at the 2019 James Beard Awards and remains one of the hardest reservations to check in the city.
Zahav
— Photo by D. Knoll for Visit Philadelphia
Time Out
Time Out writers took to the streets to curate their list of “the 50 best cities in the world in 2024” — and guess who ended up on the list.
The team surveyed city residents from around the world to get the inside scoop on what it’s really like to live in their hometowns — from how they spend their Saturday nights to how affordable are groceries.
Philadelphians repped the city hard, with 92% of respondents reporting that they’re happy here. Time Out gave a nod to Philly’s incredible showing at the 2023 James Beard Foundation Awards but focused more on how the city’s favorite restaurants, centers of activity, and attractions bring their history with them as they evolve. (One could say we’re not new to this but true to this.)
Specific callouts include:
Bok Bar
— Photo by J. Fusco for Visit Philadelphia
AFAR Magazine
AFAR dropped its choices for “the 25 most exciting places” in the world for their “Where To Go in 2024” list, and Philadelphia rounded out the top 10 alongside destinations such as Fiji and Sydney, Australia.
Philly’s exceptional culinary and arts scenes were the draw for the AFAR team. They encouraged travelers to take advantage of the fare at 2023’s Beard Award-winning restaurants, including the seasonal menu at Friday Saturday Sunday and the Thai cuisine at Kalaya.
Kalaya
— Photo by D. Knoll for Visit Philadelphia
The experts at AFAR also suggested guests make it out to the Rodin’s sculpture exhibition Rodin’s Hands and the Philadelphia Museum of Art’s photography exhibition In the Right Place.
More Accolades & Awards for Philly
2023 was a good year for accolades in Philadelphia:
For even more, check out our roundup of awards and accolades from publications like Travel + Leisure, the New York Times, Bon Appétit, the James Beard Foundation, Condé Nast Traveler and more.
