World's top 10 destinations

World's top 10 destinations, according to TripAdvisor

London is the number 1 destination in the world, according to TripAdvisor users.

Over a 12-month period,  the booking and user review site ranked the most searched cities that had more than one million reviews.

"The Travelers' Choice Destination awards recognize the world's most beloved travel spots, based on feedback and booking interest from the TripAdvisor community," said Barbara Messing, chief marketing officer for TripAdvisor. "For those planning a summer vacation, now is a great time to plan a trip to one of these popular destinations where hotels are bookable on TripAdvisor for an average of $200 per night from June through August."  

It is the second time London has come first and despite political instability, Istanbul came second this time.  The terror attacks in Paris didn’t dissuade tourists either.  The City of Lights moved up five spots to take the no.  4 spot.

Here’s a list of the top 10:

• 1. London, United Kingdom

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PERFECT FOOD ADVICE

HOW DO I MAKE PERFECT MEAL

Tomato sauce or barbecue? Attica or Quay? George or Gary? The chicken or the egg? These are all big questions of the kitchen but far bigger are seven most pressing concerns that so many of us have when it comes to cooking. Here are all the answers to the seven food questions people ask me most often … according to me that is*.

How not to offend people while travelling

The culturally insensitive things people do on holiday

The Queen’s Guards are great to photograph, but not to mess around with.

NO MATTER how well researched and thoughtful a tourist you might be, there is often the risk of offending locals abroad with a cultural insensitivity you had no idea existed.

Thankfully, Reddit has come to the rescue by unearthing a list of the sometimes surprising things tourists often do in various countries that they should definitely avoid.

Reddit user Draculix has asked the Reddit community about what things were considered extremely insensitive in their countries that tourists might not know beforehand.

Some answers derived from well-known common sense — such as avoiding the Nazi salute while in Germany — while other faux pas were a lot more surprising.

So, thanks to the good people at Reddit, here are some of the top things to avoid as a tourist.

TRAVEL IDEAS

10 drinks worth travelling for

Holidays and exotic drinks are a match made in heaven

NOTHING says holiday like kicking back with a cocktail or quenching your thirst at a street stall.

There are the obvious ones, like Guinness in Ireland and Cosmopolitan in New York, but some of the most interesting drinks are those you’ve never heard of until you arrive in a new country (and then may swear never to drink again).

Lonely Planet’s latest book, The World’s Best Drinks, lets readers in on the recipes of some of the world’s most famous beverages, as well as some of the lesser known liquid delights that can be found around the globe.

TRAVEL GEAR

Top 5 planning tools for summer travel

Summer is just around the corner, which means many are making plans for their big getaway.

Planning a trip is exciting, but it can also be exhausting. Whether it’s finding the best hotel deal, keeping track of booking information or getting directions to wherever you’re going, there are a few easy-to-use resources that can cut down the stress.

Here are my five favorite travel resources, designed to make any vacation thoroughly enjoyable from start to finish.

HISTORICAL SITES

Infamous botched Jesus painting now a big tourist draw

It was an unholy mistake — that became one town’s miracle.

In 2012, an amateur art restorer in the small village of Borja, Spain, turned her attention to a fresco of Jesus Christ called “Ecce Homo” (“Behold the Man”).Alas, Cecilia Giménez’s “fix” rendered the face of Jesus — painted in 1930 by Elías García Martínez — wholly unrecognizable. Ecce Homo 2.0 became a global laughingstock, compared to a blurry potato and a monkey.

TRAVEL AFRICA

9 things no one ever tells you about climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro

Mt. Kilimanjaro is a climb of 19,340 feet through all kinds of terrain and vastly fluctuating temperatures. (Reuters)

TRAVEL ALERT

Travelers grow skittish amid Zika virus fears

The list of countries pregnant women are being urged to avoid because of the Zika virus has gotten longer. (AP)

Avoiding the mosquito-borne Zika virus just got more complicated.

A case of Zika contracted through sexual transmission was confirmed Tuesday by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) in Dallas County, Texas. The patient, who had not traveled to a Zika-impacted country, became infected after having sexual contact with an infected person who had returned from Venezuela, where Zika is present.

BUDGET TRAVEL

The best way to win at Valentine's Day

Check out cud­dle-worthy New England coast of the white sands and turquoise waters of North Bimini. (iStock)

ECO ADVENTURE

Cruel travel mistakes you don’t realize you’re making

Wat Pa Luang Ta Bua, or Tiger Temple, in Thailand’s western Kanchanaburi province, has been investigated for links to wildlife trafficking. (Reuters)

You smile and strike a fearsome pose next to a tiger, confident you’ve just scored the perfect holiday photo.

You pick up an adorable sea turtle and gently pat it. You go on an incredible elephant ride, in awe of the majestic and gentle giants. You laugh hysterically as a monkey dances and rides a bike.

ADVENTURE IN TROPICAL VACATION

Adventurous tropical vacations for people who hate winter

Just because you love the holiday season, doesn’t mean you have to love the blustery, bone-chilling weather that (for most parts of the U.S.) comes with it.

TRAVEL GADGETS NEWS

Korea wants to lend tourists a Samsung Galaxy Note 5

File photo - A Samsung Electronics Galaxy Note 5 smartphone is seen at the company's headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Oct. 27, 2015. (SAMSUNG-ELEC-RESULTS/ REUTERS/Kim Hong-J)

South Korea is a very connected country, and it's home to two of the world's top mobile phone makers, Samsung and LG.

WORLD RISKIEST TRIP

The one-way ticket to ISIS central

Story highlights

• A bus still takes people from Beirut to Raqqa in Syria, now the stronghold of ISIS
• Men are advised to grow long beards before they travel and wear loose pants
• Passengers scrub their mobile phones of anything that ISIS forces may not like

Beirut, Lebanon (CNN) -- It's a pretty normal bus  windows slightly cracked, dust, the occasional button missing on the dashboard. But when its passengers say they take it knowing they could be on a one-way ticket to death, they aren't exaggerating.

From the dark and dank underpass that is Charles Helou bus station in central Beirut, leaves the bus to Raqqa. It has done so for

REAL ESTATE

You Must Check Out This Cool Curvilinear Roof in Encinitas

Open Living Space

This Encinitas, CA, home, now on the market for $2.1 million, comes with a twist -- or rather, a curve.

CRUISES

Why cruises are becoming good for the whole family

The Norwegian Escape. (©2015 Michel Verdurewww.verdurephoto.com)

Connie Abodeely  isn't a fan of mega ships or  Caribbean  itineraries. But she's really looking forward to her family's upcoming trip on Norwegian's newest ship, the Escape, which carries more than 4,200 passengers.

HOTEL IN LONDON

Why is there a treehouse in the middle of London?

The 35 foot high luxury treehouse was inspired by the Lion Sands Game Reserve treehouse accommodation in South Africa. (Virgin Holidays)

A treehouse has popped up in central London that has many scratching their heads.

AIRCRAFT

Supersonic aircraft promises to fly from New York to London in 11 minutes

The Antipode would be able to reach Mach 24 or speeds of 12, 427 miles an hour. (Charles Bombardier/Imaginactive)

As the age of supersonic travel fast approaches, there is yet another concept aircraft that promises to go from New York to London in an unbelievable 11 minutes.

Called the Antipode, it would be powered by rocket boosters on its wings for takeoff and climb to 40,000 feet at Mach 5.

JAPAN TRAVEL NEWS

Japan axes use of a swastika map symbol so it will stop confusing tourists

If you’ve ever traveled in Asia, you may have been caught off guard by a symbol considered by most Western travelers as a sign of fascism.

HISTORY TRAVEL

Discovering the history of Berlin

Guests of the Westin Grand Berlin picking at the Berlin Wall. (Westin Grand Berlin)

Could you have done it?

One family zip-lined to freedom -- in a home-crafted zip line. A woman escaped hiding in a hollowed-out surfboard strapped atop her car. Two other families made it in an impossibly small hot-air balloon. There were escapes in hollowed-out machines, in repurposed cars, in a kayak and hang glider, through tunnels. Incredible!

AIRLINE NEWS

Andie MacDowell learns 'lessons' after railing against having to fly in ‘tourist’ class

Andie MacDowell says she learned her "lessons" after being blasted on social media for complaining about having to sit in "tourist" class on an American Airlines flight, despite paying for first class.

The Academy Award-nominated actress of "Four Weddings and a Funeral" and "Groundhog Day" sparked a debate on social media after she tweeted Friday that the airline had put her in "tourist" class, along with an image of the actress and several excited-looking seatmates. The actress explained that she and her seven-pound rescue dog were moved because the pet "couldn't go under" the hold.

"@AmericanAir HELP I paid for first class & they put me in tourist because of my dog that I pre-booked & paid for." 

The 57-year-old actress added how she came across "the rudest person I have ever had to deal with" as she was checking in for her flight in Charlotte, N.C. While MacDowell revealed that her dog was "really relaxed and surrounded by sweet people," it wasn't enough to spare her from the bashing from social media users.

But others came to her defense, saying her complaint was legit.

The situation continued on Sunday when MacDowell once again took to Twitter to reassure her fans that she wasn't being a diva.

She continued to insist she would appreciate a refund from American Airlines, and complained once again about the poor customer service she had received with the company. 

Despite the efforts to explain herself, she later turned to Twitter to raise the white flag. 

"Lessons learned never,complain on Twitter & don't pay for first class on American Airlines, only express gratitude...can we move on now," she wrote.

source: http://www.foxnews.com/travel