Guidebook publisher Dorling Kindersley reveals the hip, hot and happening city breaks for the coming year
DK Eyewitness Travel team
Istanbul
One of the greatest cities the world has ever known, nowhere does the cliché of East meets West, old meets new, apply more aptly.
The last few years have seen Istanbul thrive with boutique hotels, uber-trendy bars and gourmet restaurants adding to its already intoxicating mix of historic and cultural sites. Watch it ramp up another notch as the city becomes a European Capital of Culture in 2010.
Vancouver
Feted as the world’s most livable city, this West Coast gem has a lively cultural scene with superb restaurants and hotels. A beautiful city where glass towers and skyscrapers are set against a backdrop of coastal mountains, in 2010 it will host the Winter Olympics.
With a strong focus on sustainability, the legacy of the Games for Vancouver will see improved public transport, striking ‘green’ buildings and a huge arts and culture programme.
Delhi
Rejuvenated and refreshed, Delhi is sprucing up to host the 2010 Commonwealth Games. The colonial city centre and Delhi’s main shopping area, Connaught Place, has been given a new façade, while the city’s monuments are being cleaned and revitalised and improved transport links are opening up the city. Don’t be surprised to find bullock carts still plodding placidly alongside the latest luxury car though – Delhi is a city where contrasts sit happily.
Nottingham
In May 2010 Hollywood’s eyes will focus on this humble corner of the East Midlands, as Ridley Scott’s new Robin Hood film is released to the world. Meanwhile old meets new at Nottingham Contemporary, a new building designed by award-winning architects Caruso St John, with a series of exhibitions and art projects running across four galleries. Add to this Nottingham’s designer shopping credentials and you have plenty of reasons to visit the city.
Nara
Japan’s ancient capital Nara celebrates its 1300th anniversary in 2010 with special displays of hidden national treasures and rarely-seen Buddhist statues, as well as a host of other cultural events including an International Film Festival.
With its wooded hills, temple, parks and some of the world’s oldest wooden buildings this ancient city remains a symbol of tranquility in a country where teenagers experiment with the gadgets of the future.
Boston
New England’s largest city exists to be explored. From spring 2010, intrepid visitors will benefit from the biggest bike share scheme to launch in the US to date, with two and a half thousand bikes available to hire at the swipe of a credit card from special stands across the city.
Film lovers might choose to seek out locations used in a slew of filmed-in-Boston movies due to hit screens in 2010, including Ben Affleck’s The Town and Mel Gibson’s Edge of Darkness.
Oslo
There aren’t many capital cities where you can swim in summer and ski in winter, all within the city’s boundaries. Oslo is charmingly Scandinavian but with the kind of outdoor ‘chilling’ culture more usually associated with Southern Europe.
With new flights from Ryanair and costs that now compare favourably with many Euro-zone destinations, Oslo is more affordable than ever. And in 2010 it plays host to the Eurovision Song Contest.
Tel Aviv
Touted as the New York of the East, Tel Aviv looks set to really attract attention in 2010 as news spreads about the city’s party credentials. New Easyjet flights from Stansted, starting in late 2009, are bound to encourage the crowds. The heat generated by the city’s nightlife is matched only by the temperatures on its glorious sweep of city beach.
Valparaiso
A charming town, where Chilean socialist Pablo Neruda hid in the late 1940s when Communism was outlawed. 2010 will mark the 40th anniversary of Chile’s first democratically-elected socialist head of state, Salvador Allende.
Valparaiso offers a fairly unique South American experience, with painted houses sitting on hills leading down to a huge bay, with old elevators taking you up and down the city’s steep slopes.
Reykjavik
Financially speaking it’s a relatively good time to visit. Getting there might be easier too, with Iceland Express flying to New York four times a week from June 2010, and Icelandair increasing its services from Glasgow and Manchester, and connections to North America.
Logistics aside, Reykjavik offers a fine visit, from hedonistic revelry to the calming charm of a city that offers glaciers in its sea views, a mountainous backdrop and geothermal lagoons.
Compiled by the DK Eyewitness Travel team. Traveldk.com
Source: www.timesonline.co.uk/, 25 November 2009