Tel Aviv Among TripAdvisor’s Top 10 Trending Destinations

The city of Tel Aviv was named to TripAdvisor’s list of top “Trending Destinations” in the world as part of the annual Travelers’ Choice Awards for 2020. Tel Aviv came in ninth.

“Believe the hype — these incredible spots (that travelers love) saw the biggest spikes in top reviews and ratings last year,” TripAdvisor said on its Trending Destinations page.

The Travelers’ Choice Awards, first established in 2002 by the global travel platform, is based on reviews of “the very best of travel chosen by millions of travelers around the world.” Besides restaurants, travelers also choose the best destinations, experiences, hotels, attractions, beaches, and airlines.

So far, TripAdvisor has released 2020 award winners for Popular Destinations, Trending Destinations, Emerging Destinations, and Beaches.

“A youthful, modern metropolis with a diverse population, Tel Aviv dates back only to 1909. Clubs, bars, a thriving arts community, gay life and beaches attract artists, musicians and young professionals to Tel Aviv’s more secular scene,” the Tel Aviv entry reads, noting that visitors should take in the UNESCO-designated Bauhaus architecture and explore the cultural exhibition pavilions of the Eretz Israel Museum, historic Independence Hall Museum, bustling Carmel Market and Old Jaffa’s boardwalk.

The top spot on the list went to Kochi (Cochin), India “where sunset strolls, sampling fresh fish from seaside vendors and boat rides through the islands just offshore top visitors’ to-do lists.” That city was followed by Luzon, Philippines, and Porto, Portugal in second and third places respectively.

Brazil’s Porto Seguro and Gramado, Lombok in West Nusa Tenggara, Da Nang in Vietnam, Zakynthos in the Ionian Islands, and Krakow, Poland rounded out the top 10.

Tel Aviv has already been included in a number of top travel lists in 2020, including Forbes magazine’s20 Destinations for 2020, as well as Google’s ranking of Tel Aviv among its top trending destinations worldwide this year. Also, The Washington Post chose Tel Aviv to be its first Israeli city included in its local guide series. And the BBC’s Good Food magazine chose the city-by-the-sea as one of its top 10 destinations for foodies in 2020.

The Tel Aviv-Yafo Municipality recently unveiled a “Master Plan” aimed at making the city even more attractive to international travelers. The plan includes better branding, an upgraded tourism infrastructure, more accommodation options, and efficient, integrative management.

According to the plan, the goal is to focus on improving these aspects and focus on developing more distinct and unique offerings.