Whether it's a quaint little chocolate box village nestled in the rolling English hills or a sprinkle of colourful houses glistening on the Med, the world is full of gorgeous tiny towns and villages. But which villages are the world’s prettiest?
The experts at Faraway Furniture have scoured Instagram to find the answer. Perhaps unsurprisingly, Europe dominates the list, with 12 of the top 20 spots occupied by villages on the continent. Italy bagged three spots on the list, while two villages in France and two villages in the UK made it in the top 20.
And the number one prettiest village in the world? No surprises here: Cinque Terre in Italy came out on top. Technically a string of five Riviera villages, Cinque Terre is famed for its colourful houses teetering on cliffs and fishing boats bobbing in pretty harbours.
In second place was Reine in Norway, a tiny fishing village in the Arctic Circle surrounded by spectacular views of the Lofoten Islands.
Number three on the list is Oia, a coastal spot in Santorini, Greece. The dazzling white walls and classic blue domes come to life during the island’s famous sunset, and it even has views of an extinct volcano.
Burano in Italy and Colmar in France round out the top 5. Here is the complete list of the 20 prettiest villages in the world, according to Farway Furniture.
- Cinque Terre, Italy
- Reine, Norway
- Oia, Greece
- Burano, Italy
- Colmar, France
- Hallstatt, Austria
- Alberobello, Italy
- Hobbiton, New Zealand
- Shirakawa-go, Japan
- Sidi Bou Said, Tunisia
- Wegen, Switzerland
- Ait Benhaddou, Morocco
- Popeye Village, Malta
- Bibury, England
- Ortahisar, Turkey
- Fenghuang Ancient Town, China
- Staithes, England
- Júzcar, Spain
- Palangan, Iran
- Simiane-la-Rotonde, France
It’s giving cottage-core. Predictably, these villages are incredibly popular with tourists — maybe try and pay them a visit when it’s not high season. Crowds or no crowds, though, each of these spots are more than postcard-worthy.
Did you see that the belltower in this popular Italian town has been silenced by grumpy tourists?
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