Marrakech Tops List of Best African and Middle Eastern Cities for Travelers

The American specialized media "Travel+Leisure" has drawn up its ranking of the 10 favorite cities of its readers in Africa and the Middle East based on their vote. This vote is based on several criteria, including sites and monuments, culture, food, hospitality and shopping. More than 186,000 T+L readers responded to the 2024 survey and more than 700,000 votes were cast on over 8,700 establishments (hotels, cities, cruise lines, etc.).

In the end, it is Marrakech that tops the ranking for the second consecutive year with a score of 89.17. "Oh my God, Marrakech, it’s a hidden gem!" exclaimed one of the Travel+Leisure readers. He will add: "every place is an explosion of the senses... all these secret places, unexpected discoveries, glamour on one side but modest on the other". "A treasure of culture and history! A must-see if you are in Morocco," comments another reader.

Two other Moroccan cities are also in the ranking. These are Fez (84.37) and Essaouira (83.97) which occupy 6th and 7th place respectively. With a score of 88.87, Cape Town (South Africa) is in second place. Then come Jerusalem, Israel (87.25), Dubai, United Arab Emirates (86.14) and Kigali, Rwanda (85.93). Tel Aviv, Israel (82.46) takes 8th place, while Luxor, Egypt (82.04) takes 9th place. Cairo, Egypt (81.40) closes the podium.