Europe dominates ranking of the world’s most eye-catching cities

As the end of August brings (marginally) cooler weather to the northern hemisphere, travellers who have sensibly shunned hot urban centres might be looking to get back to city breaks.

For a little inspiration, hotel chain Premier Inn decided to try to classify the most beautiful cities to visit in summer using a bit of science.

The company collected images of over 60 major cities across the globe in summertime and, using eye-tracking technology, studied which pictures people were drawn to quickest and where their gazes lingered the longest.

These are the world’s most beautiful summer cities

The study revealed that Banff in Canada is the most beautiful summer city, achieving a score of 96.0/100.

Participants spent an average of 3.2 seconds gazing at the image of this Canadian city of rustic timbered houses cradled by majestic mountains – the longest time for any image in the study.

In second place is Mykonos in Greece, with an overall score of 87.3/100. Mykonos, with its iconic white-washed dwellings and electric blue sea, was the top city to get people’s attention – taking only 1.5 seconds for those in the study to notice it.

Following closely behind Mykonos is Sydney, Australia, a city whose vibrant urban beaches and laid-back vibe encapsulate summer, with a score of 85.6/100.

Bruges in Belgium – a labyrinth of canals and gabled townhouses – ranks in fourth place (84.1/100), with Bristol, a historic port city in the United Kingdom, rounding out the top five (83.7/100).

A total of five UK cities appeared in the top 30 rankings – Bristol, Liverpool (15th place), Bath (25th place), Glasgow (27th place) and Brighton (29th place).

Germany also has four cities in the top 30 rankings, including Munich (14th place), Freiburg (16th place), Hamburg (22nd place) and Dresden (23rd place).

Overall, European destinations dominate the top 30 most beautiful city rankings, with 19 gorgeous spots making the list.

Here’s the full top 10: