Tel Aviv Named 8th Best City In The World, According To Time Out

The city of Tel Aviv has been ranked the eighth-best of 37 “best cities around the world in 2021”, according to a global survey released on Thursday by the worldwide edition of Time Out magazine.

It was also deemed the “funnest” city in the world.

“For the second year in a row, we were voted the ‘funnest’ in the world, and were most likely to be described as ‘good for people like me’,” wrote Tel Aviv-based writer Dan Savery Raz, “We came in second in the ‘food and drink’ category behind only Shanghai.”

The results were based on the Time Out Index: a poll of 27,000 city-dwellers from across the world, in cities like Melbourne, Tokyo, San Francisco, and more. The culture publication asked for opinions on food and culture, community projects, green space, and sustainability.

“We were after the cities that were not only thinking about the now but also the future. The ones making life better both for us and for our grandkids,” Time Out writers said.

According to the poll, 81 percent of Tel Avivians said their city was “fun” and 84 percent said they can “express themselves” there. Time Out also highlighted the wide choice of vegan options, the superb nightlife, and Tel Aviv as home to the region’s biggest Pride Parade. The city is also known for the Carmel Market, the “pulsating heart of the city” where locals sell spices, hummus, and free and organic produce alongside beers and arak.

“Tel Avivians are a hardy bunch. When Covid hit tourism, this high-tech hub hit the Reset button. The pandemic caused the ‘city that never stops to take a well-needed pause. Spaces like Dizengoff Square and Park HaMesila played host to picnics, gigs, screenings and talks. After the lockdowns, Israel led the vaccination race and before long locals were back sipping cappuccinos in cafes and doing yoga on the beach,” Raz wrote.

The city of Tel Aviv has taken a hit after more than a year of little to no tourists, canceled social gatherings, and battling COVID-19, but in 2021, the Tel Aviv Pride Parade returned, alongside a slew of Pride Month festivities, serving as another example of Israel returning to normal life. Though the Delta variant is currently running rampant, the country’s ambitious mass vaccination program, which currently includes a third vaccine booster for ages 12 and up. Tel Aviv continues to offer unique cultural programming during the pandemic including COVID-friendly date nights in lifeguard towers and “sail-in” movies theaters.

San Francisco (USA) took first place as the best city in the world, followed by Amsterdam (Holland), Manchester (UK), Copenhagen (Denmark), New York (USA), Montreal (Canada), and Prague (Czech Republic.)