20 October 2008

Sydney voted number one city in the world for travellers

New South Wales Minister for Tourism Jodi McKay has congratulated Sydney for being named the number one city in the world in the Conde Nast Traveller Awards in New York for the thirteenth time.

Readers of the Conde Nast Traveller voted Sydney the top city in the world for the thirteenth time, and the top city in the Australia-Pacific region for the twentieth year in a row, reports Travelmole.com. 

"Thirteen years at number one and twenty years in a row as the best city in the Australia Pacific region is a fantastic achievement and a strong endorsement by the discerning readers of Conde Nast," Ms McKay said.

Conde Nast delivers monthly magazines to 770,000 people in the US and has a reported 3.1 million readers.  After winning the award for top city again, the magazine told its readers Sydney has remained an excellent destination for travellers due to its friendly, welcoming nature and consistent cleanliness.  It also described Sydney as having a vibrant character, a laid-back environment, and outstanding restaurants.

The survey asked readers to give cities a vote out of 100 for various criteria, including ambience, friendliness, culture-sights, restaurants, lodging and shopping.

"Our laid-back lifestyle along with the city’s iconic attractions, the beauty of our natural environment, the eclectic nightlife and gourmet restaurants are part of what makes Sydney so appealing to international visitors," Ms McKay said. 

In the past year, 292,000 American tourists on an Australian holiday visa spent an estimated $527 million, and it is hoped Tourism NSW's new international marketing campaign, 'There's no place in the world like Sydney' will encourage these tourism numbers to grow.

"The new Brand Sydney will take city’s reputation and credentials to the next level by promoting its business, education and cultural attributes," Ms MacKay added.

This year, Sydney has also won 'Favourite Overseas City' in the Guardian and Observer Travel Awards and 'the number one city brand in the world' in the annual Anholt City Brands Index.

"Sydney has taken out the number one ranking ahead of London, Paris, Rome and New York – and there are plenty of good reasons why," NSW Premier Morris Iemma said.

"Sydney has shown that it is not just a great tourist destination, it is truly a global city, ranked top of the class for beauty, climate and friendliness.  Importantly, the index also found that Sydney is seen as one of the top three cities for employment and business opportunity," he added.

In related news, New Zealand also came top of the ranks in the Conde Nast Awards; it was voted the number one country to visit in the world, scoring an impressive 99.22 for its scenery, 96.47 for safety and 96.86 for value for money.

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The Australian Visa Bureau is an independent consulting company specialising in helping people with their Australian visa application.

Article by Jessica Bird, Australian Visa Bureau.