Cape Town voted Best City in Africa – naturally!
Telling Capetonians that we live in the best city in Africa is like telling us that the Earth revolves around the sun; we already know it and we’re pretty cocky about it too. But telling us that Cape Town has been voted the Best City in Africa and the Middle East by the readers of Condé Nast Traveller – now that is something to celebrate!
The Condé Nast Traveller Awards is the tourism industry’s equivalent of the Emmy Awards and if the Mother City could give an acceptance speech, it would go something like this: “Thank you, thank you! I could not have done this without my fantastic residents, my awe-inspiring monuments and my spectacular views. This award really is a testament to how well we live, work and play together and I am proud to be your city, your Mother!”
Not one to shy away from such prestigious accolades, the city is the second-time winner of the Readers’ Choice Award in this category, winning for the first time in 2008. It seems that visitors all over the world have been spellbound by our bustling restaurants, our eye-catching attractions, our welcoming spirit and our colourful cultural sites.
This latest honour is just one in a long line of achievements. Since 2005, we’ve garnered awards from travel judging panels and travellers, including One of the World’s Top Twenty-Five Places to Visit by TripAdvisor 2010, One of the World’s Most Beautiful Cities by Forbes.com 2010, Africa’s Leading Destination by World Travel Awards 2010 and last, but by no means least, Favourite Host City of the 2010 FIFA World Cup™ by our fellow South Africans, our president and visitors.
Our Condé Nast win is based on the opinions of nearly 26 000 readers who evaluated Cape Town on aspects such as atmosphere and ambience, culture and sites, friendliness, lodging, restaurants and shopping.
With all of that going for it as well as a score of 83.7 (out of 100) for the most scenic places and properties, Cape Town is now ranked the fifth most desirable city to visit in the world, following closely on the coattails of Sydney, Florence, San Francisco and Charleston.
So, let’s raise a glass of bubbly and applaud ourselves on a job well done. We’ll continue to lap up all the attention coming our way, but we know the real prize still awaits us: being voted the Best City in the World!
