When asked to think about the best European cities, many of us will conjure up images of Paris, Rome, or Barcelona. However, the top city in Europe has been named—and it is a lesser-known destination praised for its beautiful architecture and unique culture. Condé Nast Traveller has revealed its list of 20 winners of the annual Readers’ Choice Awards, and Valletta in Malta has come out on top.
Announcing the winning city, CN Traveller called Valletta a “rambling, shabby-chic jumble of cultures and influencers” and a ” sun-blessed Mediterranean stepping stone that wears its history on its sleeve and has the uncanny ability to time-travel visitors back to earlier epochs.”
Sites to explore in Valletta include St John’s Co-Cathedral, which has won a 2025 TripAdvisor Travellers’ Choice and gathered thousands of positive reviews. Many of which called the cathedral “stunning”, with one visitor writing: “Incredible cathedral. The details and intricacies of this church are unbelievable. This is a must visit.”
Other attractions include the Lascaris War Rooms and the Upper Barrakka Gardens with its beautiful arches that offer views out to sea. For history lovers, there is the Saluting Battery and the National War Museum Fort St Elmo – both of which also have TripAdvisor awards. One visitor said of the latter: “Excellent historic museum, large, well illustrated and documented, worthy to be on top three things to do in Valletta. An immersion in the history of Malta, which is impressive, but also an amazing place to see the Sliema and the three cities windswept shores.”
From the waterfront, visitors can take water taxis across to the Three Cities – a fortified district across the Grand Harbour. One visitor described the view as “just what you’d see in a postcard, so picturesque and yet so varied”. Another said: “The view was just beautiful, especially with the colourful doors and windows that give the city its unique charm.”
The architecture and scenery are so impressive that a number of movies have been filmed in Valletta, including World War Z, Murder on the Orient Express, and Jurassic World Dominion.
Valletta is joined on the CN Traveller top 20 list by: Oslo in Norway; Vienna in Austria; Copenhagen in Denmark; Madrid in Spain; Munich in Germany; Lisbon in Portugal; Stockholm in Sweden; San Sebastian in Spain; and Palma in Spain.
Florence in Italy; Athens in Greece; Rome in Italy; Paris in France; Marseille in France; Reykjavik in Iceland; Porto in Portugal; Venice in Italy; Budapest in Hungary; and Prague in the Czech Republic are also all on the list.
