Europe's Best City To Visit In 2026 Isn't Prague Or Rome

Prague, the "City of a Hundred Spires," and Rome, the "Eternal City," are frequently listed among Europe's top city breaks, but according to Travel+Leisure readers, Florence is the best city to visit in Europe in 2026. Indeed, the stunning Tuscan capital took the No. 1 spot in the publication's European city rankings for 2026, scoring 89.48 points in its annual World's Best Awards and placing No. 13 worldwide.

Florence's mass appeal is easy enough to understand. The city is stuffed with Renaissance masterpieces like Michelangelo's "David" at La Galleria dell'Accademia di Firenze and Botticelli's "Birth of Venus" at the Uffizi. There are endless restaurants and bars, tucked along streets that wind through the city's historic core of antique churches and street art that spans medieval to modern. The river and the Tuscan countryside beyond provide a picture-perfect frame of undulating hills punctuated by cypress trees and the occasional medieval tower.

Getting around Florence is undoubtedly part of its appeal. Visitors can easily explore its historic center on foot, while the T2 tram connects Florence Airport with Santa Maria Novella Station in about 20 minutes. Add to this dozens of well-rated hotels, an unusually high concentration of artisans and boutiques, and affordable aperitivo — the Italian pre-dinner ritual of drinks and small bites — and it's easy to understand why Florence is the No. 1 city to visit in Europe in 2026.

Florence's historic center is filled with landmarks and monuments. The Uffizi Gallery is an obvious starting point for lovers of Renaissance art, with works by Botticelli, Michelangelo, and Raphael, while the Duomo dominates the city skyline with Brunelleschi's enormous brick dome and Giotto's campanile rising from the cobbles. From here, a picturesque walk to Piazza della Signoria, via Palazzo Vecchio, Florence's political center in the Middle Ages, takes you towards the enchanting Ponte Vecchio, still filled with goldsmiths and jewelry shops and built directly into its structure.

Aside from the major museums and galleries, which are best booked ahead and explored early in the day before the crowds and queues form, there's little need to extensively plan your trip in Florence. The city's compact UNESCO-listed core is largely pedestrianized, which means that the Duomo, Uffizi, Piazza della Signoria, Ponte Vecchio, Santa Croce, and Santa Maria Novella can all be reached effortlessly on foot. Indeed, Florence has often been named the world's most walkable city. Start on the boutique-packed Via Tornabuoni, and you might accidentally stumble into the ornate Piazza della Signoria for a light lunch and a cocktail at Gucci Giardino, followed by an afternoon of art and culture as you walk history-soaked streets past the open-air sculpture galleries at the Loggia dei Lanzi.

For another side of Florence, cross Ponte Vecchio into Oltrarno, where Palazzo Pitti and the Boboli Gardens occupy a former Medici complex. From there, embark on a stroll to nearby Piazza Santo Spirito, which offers a more local, youthful setting with artisans, restaurants, and bars set around Brunelleschi's Basilica of Santo Spirito.

Beyond the major sights, there are bustling food markets such as Mercato Centrale in San Lorenzo, excellent for local Florentine dishes, while the busy streets around San Frediano buzz with contemporary bars and restaurants. Detour into an old town backstreet, and you might find yourself amongst the antique streets and stories of Dante in "Dante's District," where the writer was born, or into a jewelry-box-sized square like Piazza del Limbo, an attractive medieval piazza with a macabre past that's also home to the impressive Romanesque church of Santi Apostoli.

Florence is also famed for its Renaissance views, whether from the lush surrounds of Boboli Gardens or the iconic Piazzale Michelangelo looming above the south bank of the Arno River with sweeping rooftop views of the Duomo, Palazzo Vecchio, and the famed Tuscan sunset burning in fiery oranges and reds across the sky.

Utilize Florence as your base in Tuscany, and you'll be perfectly positioned to explore the countryside and more of its historic towns. Under two hours by train, you'll find Pisa, home to the leaning tower and the town's beautiful Romanesque architecture and the delightful walled city of Lucca. And, if you'd like to explore the Tuscan coast, we recommend the beguiling Porto Ercole on Monte Argentario, home to the stunning La Roqqa resort.