The top 10 cities of culture across the globe revealed

Audley Travel shares the ten cities with the most five-star rated museums and galleries across the globe

Experts at Audley Travel have revealed which cities have the highest number of five-star rated museums and galleries. Following an analysis of TripAdvisor data, the travel company can now unveil that London, Prague, Paris, Istanbul, and New York City respectively top the list for cities of culture.

Audley’s specialists have shared their thoughts on why these destinations make culture connoisseurs happiest of all.

London ranked in first place

It’s unsurprising that cosmopolitan, historically rich London ranks high on this list. There are over 170 museums and galleries in the city — enough to visit a new one every week for more than three years — and 97 of them have 5-star ratings on Trip Advisor. So, what is it that makes London a cut above the rest of the cultural juggernauts the world over?

“London’s museums and galleries give it their all,” explains Jacqui Kaliouby, a UK specialist at Audley Travel. “They aren’t just these enormous spaces for artifacts to gather dust — they’re constantly changing with fresh exhibitions, new talks, innovative interactive experiences… you name it.”

It also helps that many of the city’s biggest, most renowned museums are free and easy to access. “Take the British Museum,” says Jacqui. “You can get off a train at Kings Cross Station and within 25 minutes be walking among relics and ruins from antiquity to the Antipodes.”

London’s long history and multicultural populace have shaped a unique cultural scene. On one hand, it’s home to huge, family-friendly institutions that house the rarest of the rare: the Rosetta Stone, Van Gogh’s Sunflowers, Warhol’s Marilyn Diptych, to name a few.

Other cities on the list

Next on the list is the city of a thousand spires, Prague. Where London shines for its mosaic of multicultural museums, Prague dazzles with its attention to detail — in particular, when it comes to its own history. The Museum of Communism and the Jewish Museum are just two examples of carefully curated smaller-sized institutions sprinkled around the city.

The vibrant City of Light, Paris, is third on the list. “Paris is so much more than the Mona Lisa,” states France specialist Lisa Finnegan. “Travelers flock here for its unparalleled devotion to fashion, art, heritage, food… Museums like Musée d’Orsay showcase all of this and more — in sprawling, palace-like buildings on the banks of the Seine.”

Rounding off the top five are Istanbul — where travelers can explore collections dedicated to Byzantine art and the Ottoman Empire — as well as the Big Apple itself, New York City. With its finger on the pulse of the present, as well the past, New York offers a versatile mix: from flamboyant modern art pieces at The Metropolitan Museum of American Art to touching stories of survival at the Ellis Island National Immigration Museum.