UK magazine readers vote Hoi An as top city

Hoi An came out with a massive 97.18 percent satisfaction rating. According to Wanderlust, nearly 3,000 of its readers voted in this year’s awards.

At the award ceremony held on January 31 in London, the magazine’s founder and Editor-in-Chief, Lyn Hughes, handed over the certificate of gold award of the Top City category to Counsellor of the Embassy of Vietnam to the UK Le Thi Thu Hang.

The Top City category is part of the Wanderlust Travel Awards that include various categories such as the Top Country, Top Airline and Top Airport.

Lyn also said that a total of 976 cities received votes in this year’s awards, but none could quite match Hoi An. With a whopping 97.18 per cent satisfaction rating, the cultural Vietnamese hub was a clear winner.

“A beautiful city, it really is very likeable,” Wanderlust’s Mark Stratton has been quoted as saying in the magazine’s press release. Mark, who has just returned from a visit, added: “Beaches and rural surrounds add up to a great package for travellers. A worthy winner.”

The Wanderlust Readers’ Travel Awards 2013 are based on readers’ travels from December 2011 to November 2012. Results are based on an average satisfaction score (converted to a percentage) rather than a number of votes cast. An entry required a minimum number of votes to be considered. In categories where no percentage is shown, results are based on number of votes cast. Cusco, a city in southeastern Peru received 95.76 per cent of the vote and won silver award; while Kyoto , Japan , took the bronze award with 94.81 per cent.

Hoi An, an ancient town in central Quang Nam province, was recognised as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1999. Its building and its street plan reflects the influences, both indigenous and foreign, that have combined to produce this unique heritage site.

The Wanderlust magazine, which was launched in 1993, has subscribers in 112 countries.