Gizo has taken out the top place in the Oceania section of the prestigious Travel Lemming magazine ’50 Best Places to Travel in 2024’ guide.
Adding even more lustre to the result, the Western Province capital also came in second in the magazine’s list of the best 50 places, Yucatán in Mexico taking out the number one slot.
Read by an estimated 10 million-strong audience, the annual ‘best places’ list highlights emerging destinations and hidden gems worldwide and is the result of a collaboration between 35 travel writers and editors, each of whom nominates their favourite destinations for consideration by Travel Lemming’s editorial board which are then put to a vote.
One of those contributors was Australian-based blogger Rachel Davey of the Very Hungry Nomads (pictured) who visited the Solomon Islands with fellow blogger Martina Sebova as guests of Tourism Solomons earlier this year – www.veryhungrynomads.com/destinations/solomon-islands.
Commenting on the result, Tourism Solomons Head of Sales & Marketing, Fiona Teama said the Travel Lemming result was a huge accolade for the entire country and great recognition for the Solomon Islands and its tourism sector on the international tourism stage.
“We may only be a tiny country and our annual visitor intake relatively small compared to some of the top 10 places listed but these types of results really underline just how well we punch above our weight out there on the international tourism scene,” she said.
“This is a great honour and points to our continued commitment to providing travellers with a unique Solomon Islands travel experience that they have come to expect.”
The Travel Lemming 2023 list included nominations from Europe, Asia, Oceania, South America, Africa and North America with the final top 10 listed as follows:
1 – Yucatán, Mexico
2 – Gizo, Solomon Islands
3 – Stavanger, Norway
4 – Antigua, Guatemala
5 – Memphis, Tennessee
6 – Phú Quốc, Vietnam
7 – St. John’s Newfoundland, Canada
8 – Kodiak, Alaska
9 – Guatape, Colombia
10 – Eureka Springs, Arkansas