A destination rich in culture and tradition, Kyoto is home to some of Japan’s most spectacular attractions. The folks over at Architectural Digest seem to agree, as the ancient capital was recently ranked in the design magazine’s shortlist of the most beautiful cities in the world.
The list was compiled based on each city's historical significance, nature spots, cultural landmarks, and of course, architecture. Kyoto was ranked 12th on the list, coming in behind Adelaide, Australia (No 1), Tallinn, Estonia (No 2), Portsmouth, Dominica (No 3), San Miguel de Allende, Mexico (No 4), Antigua, Guatemala (No 5), Singapore (No 6), Paris, France (No 7), Chefchaouen, Morocco (No 8), Chiang Mai, Thailand (No 9), Luxor, Egypt (No 10), and Istanbul, Turkey (No 11).
In the ranking, Kyoto was praised for its rich cultural heritage, cherry blossoms, iconic bamboo forest and sacred shrines. It also highlighted the fact that Kyoto is home to an impressive 17 Unesco World Heritage Sites including the city’s brilliant gold Kinkaku-ji Temple, the Zen rock garden at Ryoan-ji Temple and the moss-laden Saiho-ji Temple.
Trailing behind Kyoto to round out the top 20 was Barcelona, Spain (No 13), Cape Town, South Africa (No 14), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (No 15), Florence, Italy (No 16), Djenné, Mali (No 17), New York City, US (No 18), Amsterdam, Netherlands (No 19), and Jaipur, India (No 20).
For more on this year’s ranking, visit the website.
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