Bulgaria's often-overlooked capital has beaten out heavyweight names like Lisbon and Copenhagen to be crowned Europe's best city break for 2027, in a new ranking from European Best Destinations.
The organisation, which puts together an annual shortlist, says Sofia wins for combining "ancient history, contemporary culture and the mountains" - a rare mix where you can tick off Roman ruins in the morning and be on a forest trail by the afternoon. It's a compact city, so you cover a lot without exhausting yourself.
Sofia's history runs deep: it was once Serdica, one of the most important cities of the Byzantine Empire. Key sights include the Saint George Rotunda, the gilded Saint Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, the Square of Tolerance, and the Boyana Church, the city's only UNESCO World Heritage Site. Add in good food and a lively evening scene, and the value-for-money factor becomes even more appealing.
Lisbon takes second place, freshly armed with its title as the world's happiest travel destination. The advice for Portugal's hilly capital is refreshingly loose: pick a neighbourhood, book a dinner table, and let the slopes decide your route. Budget time for art, the historic centre and long, unhurried meals.
Copenhagen rounds out the top three, pitched as a city best enjoyed through its small, everyday pleasures - design shops, neighbourhood restaurants and getting around by bike. It suits couples and groups of friends who like a slow-paced weekend with coffee stops and waterside breaks built in.
The rest of the 2027 list mixes the expected with the surprising. Cannes (4th) and Basel (5th) give the top five a distinctly moneyed feel, while Bristol in 6th is the only UK entry. Leuven in Belgium - better known for its university and beer than for tourism - lands 7th, ahead of Milan in 8th. Spain's Calpe, a coastal town on the Costa Blanca best known for its towering rock formation, is the list's only beach pick at 9th, and Verona closes it out at 10th as the romantic opera-city option.
European Best Destinations frames the list as covering cities with very different personalities - romantic escapes, weekends with friends, a few days by the sea, or a milestone celebration. That variety is the point: there's no single template for a good city break here.
Why it matters: if your 2027 travel plans are still a blank page, this ranking is a shortcut to ideas beyond the usual Paris-Rome-Amsterdam circuit. Sofia in particular is a strong pick for travellers who want culture, mountain scenery and low prices in one weekend - and going before the crowds catch on is half the fun. Calpe is worth a look too if your idea of a break involves the sea rather than museums.
Credit: Euronews Travel
