Thinking of visiting an amazing beach trip, a whirlwind European vacation, or checking out the United States' hot travel destinations? Not sure where to go? U.S. News Travel has released their lists of the best vacation spots for the 2012-2013 travel year.
Using expert and consumer opinions, U.S. News Travel determined which vacation spots are the best of the best. The rankings were determined by how strongly a destination was recommended by travel experts and U.S. New Travel users.
For the first time, destinations including places from Asia, Australia and the Pacific Central, Central and South America, and Africa and the Middle East made the list.
"We are pleased to expand our coverage of top travel destinations to a worldwide scale," said Chad Smolinski, Vice President of Rankings and Reviews at U.S. News & World Report. "This expansion allows us to make comparisons between places as geographically disperse as Bali, Corfu, and Rio de Janeiro. For someone planning a major vacation or a honeymoon, this can be important."
As part of the 2012-2013 U.S. News Best Vacations rankings, 200 destinations were considered. They rank vacation destinations by region or type of vacation like adventure, relaxation, family, romantic, beach destinations, and more.
London topped the list of the world's best places to visit overall. The English city was followed by Barcelona, Paris, Maui, and New York City.
Those who want to stick to traveling around the United States should visit the top destination of Yellowstone National Park. New York City, Washington D.C., San Diego, and San Francisco are also high up on the best U.S. vacation spots.
Barcelona, Spain is at the top of the best European vacation spots. It was followed by Paris, Berlin, Budapest and Lisbon.
For those looking for the best summer vacation, U.S. New Travel says Nice in the French Riviera is the place to go. It was followed by Mykonos, Maui, San Francisco and Paris. However Yellowstone is at the top of the best cheap summer vacation destinations list. The famous park was followed by Santo Domingo, Lisbon, Reno and Myrtle Beach.
Maldives, Bora Bora, St. Kitts & Nevis, Santorini, and Sychelles may have topped the best island destination list, but the best beaches in the world are ranked in different order and they're in slightly different places. They include Bali, Kauai, Sychelles, Maldives and Anguilla.
For the newlyweds, U.S. News Travel suggests visiting the top honeymoon location of Kauai. However Maui, Florence, Crete and Santorini were also high up on the list. Those looking to take a nice family vacation should go to London, Serengeti National Park, Yellowstone, the Galapagos Islands, or of course, Disney World in Orlando.
The complete Best Vacations rankings, overall and sorted by region, are available here: http://travel.usnews.com/Rankings/.
