In total, 52 villages from around the globe have been crowned top travel destinations, chosen from 270 entries across 65 UN Tourism member states.
Another 20 villages joined the Upgrade Programme, which recognizes high-potential villages and helps them improve on identified weaknesses.
The Best Tourism Villages Network is now part of the largest community of rural destinations in the world, with the announcement of its 72 new members, coming to a grand total of 319 villages.
UN Tourism Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili says: “Tourism can be a powerful tool to progress shared prosperity, inclusive growth, and territorial cohesion in rural areas. Our Best Tourism Villages 2025 highlight communities that are working to safeguard their cultural heritage, preserve their natural resources, and create economic opportunities through tourism.”
The Best Tourism Villages initiative was launched in 2021 to accelerate the role of tourism in rural development. They are judged on nine areas of evaluation, including cultural and natural resources, economic sustainability, tourism development, and more.
The list of new villages was announced during a special ceremony in Huzhou City, China. Some of the villages that made the list are Asuka, Japan; Ezcaray, Spain; Pacto, Ecuador; and Soheili, Iran.
The full list can be found here.
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