Delhi Ranks 193rd In World’s Friendliest Cities List; Mérida Tops And Paris Ranks 196th

Mérida in Mexico has beaten Glasgow, Bogotá and 197 other cities to become the world’s friendliest city. Meanwhile, Paris, Delhi and Las Vegas have landed in a rather less flattering part of the list. Scroll on to know more about this Reddit analysis. 

Top 10 Friendliest Cities In The World

Travel company Fernwayer has released its Friendliest Cities Index, after analysing 1.2 million Reddit comments across 200 cities to understand how travellers actually felt about the people they encountered. The research looked for descriptions such as “friendly”, “welcoming” and “hospitable”, while also tracking mentions of residents being “unfriendly” or “rude”. Each city was then given a score out of 100.

And the winner is not Paris, London, Tokyo or Dubai.

It is Mérida, Mexico, with an impressive 95.0/100.

Travellers repeatedly described Mérida as warm, easygoing and human-scaled, with locals who made it relatively easy for visitors to settle in and make connections. Here are the top 10 friendliest cities in the world, based on 1.2M online reviews: 

1. Mérida, Mexico: 95.0
2. Glasgow, UK: 94.9
3. Bogotá, Colombia: 94.5
4. Bodrum, Türkiye: 94.4
5. Manchester, UK: 94.0
6. Hamburg, Germany: 93.6
7. Perth, Australia: 93.5
8. São Paulo, Brazil: 93.3
9. Mexico City, Mexico: 93.2
10. Nashville, USA: 93.1

There is a pretty obvious regional winner here too. Latin America has four cities in the global top 10, making it the strongest-performing region. Mexico alone has two, while Colombia and Brazil contribute one each. The UK follows with Glasgow and Manchester.

The research also throws up a fascinating pattern; lesser-known cities often beat their country’s superstar destinations. Glasgow ranked far above Edinburgh, Manchester comfortably outperformed London, and Mérida left several better-known Mexican destinations behind.

Also Read: Not Surprising! Finland Emerges As The Happiest Country For 9th Consecutive Year

10 Least Friendly Cities In The World Include Paris, Delhi & Las Vegas

The bottom of the index looks like a roll call of some of the world’s most famous tourist destinations.

The 10 least-friendly cities are:

1. Buenos Aires, Argentina: 42.0
2. Los Angeles, USA: 42.2
3. Madrid, Spain: 42.5
4. Las Vegas, USA: 42.6
5. Paris, France: 42.9
6. Milan, Italy: 43.0
7. Barcelona, Spain: 43.4
8. Delhi, India: 43.6
9. Miami, USA: 43.8
10. Cape Town, South Africa: 43.9

So yes, Paris ranks 196th out of 200, while Delhi sits at 193rd.

The regional split gets interesting here too. Four European cities feature in the bottom 10, alongside three from the US. Buenos Aires represents South America, Delhi represents Asia, and Cape Town represents Africa.

The researchers also found that cities built heavily around tourism, entertainment and resorts tended to score lower. Las Vegas, Cancún and Dubai were among the destinations sitting near the bottom of the wider ranking.

Maybe that is the real twist. A city can have spectacular architecture, Michelin-starred restaurants and millions of tourists passing through every year, but apparently none of that guarantees someone will stop and help you find the metro.

Also Read: 67% Indian Travellers Find European Cruising Appealing; What Does This New Trend Mean?

Sometimes, the cities winning travellers over are simply the ones where people have time for a conversation. 

Cover Image Courtesy: sabirmallick/Canva Pro