MONTREAL — Montreal is the third-best city to visit in the world according to the new Lonely Planet guide. Marking its 50th anniversary, the brand returns with the release of its iconic print edition, celebrating the world’s top-50 destinations for 2024 and presents the 10 best destinations in the world across five distinct categories: country, region, city, sustainable and value.
Montreal has been selected for the second time by Lonely Planet, which also elected the city in its 2013 list of the best cities. This time, among the distinctive features cited in the new guide are the quality of Montreal’s gastronomy, the quantity of festivals and cultural attractions, the green spaces and breathtaking views from the Mount Royal and Parc Jean-Drapeau, as well as the various artistic and museum exhibitions.
The annual Best in Travel guide is the result of a very thorough selection process. A survey is first sent to all international authors, staff writers, bloggers, employees and collaborators of the editor, who are asked to share their expertise on places and travel experiences that they predict will be buzzing in the year ahead. The survey produces a list of ideas, then reviewed by Lonely Planet’s Best in Travel team. The team reads every pitch and helps whittle down the list to a shortlist of the very best places, which is ultimately submitted to a panel of travel specialists.
The jury changes every year to ensure objectivity and fresh perspectives. This committee scrutinizes each idea and scores them based on three criteria: topicality, uniqueness and wow factor, in order to build the ultimate list of the 50 best places to visit in 2024.
“Lonely Planet is one of the most prestigious and recognized authorities in tourism worldwide. Being among the world’s ten best cities of this special 50th anniversary edition is a real crowning achievement for Montreal, which speaks to the city’s truly distinctive appeal for visitors from around the world,” says Yves Lalumière, president and CEO of Tourisme Montréal.
