Istanbul has been named as the “Most Desirable City” in Europe at the 2025 Wanderlust Reader Travel Awards – winning Gold at a ceremony hosted at London’s National Gallery. This comes after taking the Silver award in the same category at last year’s ceremony.
One of the most globally respected travel awards
The awards ceremony was hosted by British broadcaster and travel adventurer, Simon Reeve, and are amongst the most respected awards within the global travel industry, having been successfully presented for the past 24 years.
In total, 4.8 million votes were cast across 22 different categories honouring travel destinations, tour operators, and even airlines. In the “Most Desirable City” in Europe category, Istanbul in Turkey won Gold, Dubrovnik in Croatia won Silver, and Madrid in Spain won Bronze.
Istanbul’s East-meets-West magnetism
The Editor-in-chief of the magazine said: “Readers describe it as a city that still surprises them every time. Istanbul’s energy lies in how comfortably it lives between worlds. It has history in its stones but also imagination in its future.”
The magazine also noted that Istanbul blends history with modernity, with readers particularly enjoying crossing the Bosphorus Sea at night, enjoying the unique tastes of Turkish cuisine, and walking through churches, mosques, and art galleries.
A standout year of recognition for Istanbul travel
The Gold award comes amid a month of global recognition and praise for Turkey’s largest city. At the Condé Nast Traveller’s 2025 Reader’s Choice Awards, Istanbul Airport was recently named as the Best Airport in the World for Food offerings.
Turkey also recently announced that it had welcomed just over 50 million international visitors to the country throughout the first nine months of 2025, from January to September. This was an increase of 1.6% when compared to the same months in 2024, as Turkey looks set to post another tourism record by the end of the year.
Fethiye 
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