Cape Town number one place to visit in 2014

New York Times names places Cape Town top of its list

Cape Town has been named the number one place to visit in 2014 by The New York Times.

The city secured the top spot ahead of Christchurch, New Zealand, and North Coast, California, in the American newspaper’s international list of 52 places to visit in 2014.

Making reference to the recently deceased former South African president Nelson Mandela, the newspaper describes Cape Town as "a place to meditate on freedom and the creative life that followed."

The New York Times also cites Cape Town's current title as World Design Capital, saying the city is "again reinventing itself, and the world is invited to its renaissance."

Meanwhile Cape Town is experiencing record visitor numbers from the UK, continental Europe and the US.

International, domestic and regional arrival figures at Cape Town's international airport recorded 780,000 passengers in December, 6.7 per cent of them from overseas, while domestic passengers increased by 2.3 per cent compared with the previous December.