This China City Ranked World's 2nd Best Travel Spot for 2019

By Jonathan Zhong

Shenzhen has been selected as one of Lonely Planet's ‘top 10 cities to visit in 2019.’ Shenzhen came in second place, right behind Danish capital Copenhagen. 

Shanghai did not make the list.

One of the deciding factors in Shenzhen’s selection is the increasingly rich nightlife in the city. With a ‘strumming indie (music) scene,’ more craft beer bars than you shake a fist at and cool cafes, there is no longer any need to go to Hong Kong to enjoy a good party.

Unsurprisingly, the selection was also largely based on Shenzhen's reputation for tech innovation, which has earned the city the monikers ‘Silicon Valley of China' and ‘City of the Future.’ While some 40 years ago, Shenzhen was nothing more than a tiny fishing village, it has since grown into a booming metropolis that’s now home to some of the world’s biggest tech companies, including Tencent, Huawei and ZTE.

Image via Denys Nevozhai/Unsplash

Lonely Planet also notes that Shenzhen’s array of art and design venues, including the recently established Museum of Contemporary Art & Planning Exhibition (MOCAPE) and the ever-popular OCT-Loft, help to give the city a vivid visual flavor.

The city’s close proximity to Hong Kong has also been accounted for in the selection. Travel between the two metropolises has become even more convenient in recent weeks, with the official launch of the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail last month. According to recent media reports, Shenzhen is also preparing a proposal to have the city linked to the newly-opened Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge.

Below are Lonely Planet's top 10 destinations for 2019:

1. Copenhagen (Den)
2. Shenzhen (CN)
3. Novi Sad (Ser)
4. Miami (US)
5. Kathmandu (Nep)
6. Mexico City (Mex)
7. Dakar (Sen)
8. Seattle (US)
9. Zadar (Cro)
10. Meknès (Mor)

The list has caught some netizens by surprise when it was posted on the official WeChat account of Lonely Planet, with many wondering what made Shenzhen qualify for the unexpected honor.

One of the comments underneath the post reads: "As a local, I don't have the faintest idea why Shenzhen has been selected, but still it's worth celebrating."

[Cover image via @深圳微博发布厅/Weibo]

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