Tourism and liveability: London still first, Rome falls back and Madrid gains positions

The podium remains unchanged: London remains first, followed by New York and Paris. Rome moves back one position (from sixth to seventh), while Madrid advances. Dubai enters the top ten. This is the new ranking of Best Cities, the ranking made by Resonance, a consultancy firm that measures the value of urban centres on perception and performance.

Resonance analyses cities with a population over one million. "We determined the top 100 cities," it is explained, "using a combination of basic statistics and user-generated data from online sources such as Google, Instagram and TikTok to measure the quality of place in terms of experiential factors. As of 2022, the classification excludes Russian cities "because of the country's illegal invasion of Ukraine and its continued military aggression". The three indices used are vivability, amiability and prosperity, reflecting the opinions and preferences of over 21,000 respondents in 31 countries across North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America and Africa.

The research gave the same result for 2025 as the previous 11 editions: London is still first. The 'capital of capitals' is ranked 1st, 2nd and 3rd respectively in the indices of prosperity, amiability and liveability. It is followed by New York (which has elected its new mayor Zohran Mamdani, the first Muslim in that post), in 2024 a destination for almost 65 million visitors, which will be around 64.1 million in 2024 (international travel declining, domestic travel holding out). Paris, the city of the cycling revolution (the Plan Vélo), closes the podium: 'Parisians will have more than 960 kilometres of bicycle lanes by mid-2025, with the rate of bicycle use almost doubling in two years. Property prices remain more moderate than in London 'with a 2%-3% increase last spring, thanks to urban reforms and social housing commitments'.

In fourth place is Asia's first city (Tokyo), followed by Madrid: the Spanish capital is awarded for its 'ambitious green transformation'. Indeed, the Bosque Metropolitano, the project of the 'largest metropolitan forest in Europe', is advancing. The goal is a 75-kilometre ring of trees. A forest in the city that will contain over 450 thousand new trees, part of a broader "urban re-naturalisation process which includes the recently completed Santander Park and an expanding network of bicycle lanes. Not only that: the fleet of electric buses now among the most extensive in Europe.

Madrid took fifth place from Singapore and set back Rome, which dropped to seventh place. Of the Eternal City, the star of the Jubilee, the "ambitious modernisations" that will have an impact on both residents and visitors are emphasised. Also in the spotlight because of the election of the new Pope, the Italian capital is described as being 'in full bloom': 'Sacred and profane life converging in an atmosphere full of ceremonies, art and discovery in a city ranked in the top 5' in both the liveability and friendliness indexes.