Destination Ratings by Country

Destinations here are listed by country, showing most recent grade. Hot links will be gradually added to provide panelist comments explaining the original grade, recent stewardship news, pertinent blogs, etc.

COUNTRY DESTINATION Grade
Albania Coastal regions C
Andorra as a whole C-
Anguilla as a whole B
Antarctica Antarctic Peninsula B
Antigua as a whole C
Argentina Mendoza wine estancias B
Argentina Valdés peninsula B
Argentina Patagonian Andes region B-
Argentina/Brazil Iguazu C+
Aruba as a whole C-
Australia Kangaroo Island, South Australia B+
Australia Kakadu NP ⚑ B
Australia, Tasmania as a whole B
Australia Fraser Island B
Australia, QL Great Barrier Reef C+
Australia, NSW Sydney Harbor B
Australia, NSW Blue Mountains B
Australia, NT Uluru (Ayers Rock) B
Australia: QL Gold Coast C-
Australia: Victoria Ballarat C+
Austria Wachau/Melk Abbey A-
Austria Graz B+
Austria Salzburg historic center B
Bahamas Eleuthera B
Bahamas Out Islands B-
Barbados as a whole D+
Belgium Historic center of Ghent B+
Belgium Historic center of Bruges B
Belize Reef and islands of Belize C
Bermuda as a whole B
Bolivia/Peru Islands of Lake Titicaca C+
Bolivia/Peru Lake Titicaca as a whole C
Brazil Paratí, RJ B
Brazil Pantanal B
Brazil Ilha Grande B
Brazil Bahia—Northern coast B-
Brazil Rio de Janeiro beach districts B-
Brazil Salvador historic center C+
British Virgin Islands as a whole B-
British Virgin Islands Tortola C+
Bulgaria Black sea coast C-
Cambodia Angkor/Siem Reap C-
Cambodia Sihanoukville D
Cambodia Phnom Penh historic areas D
Canada:   Alberta Jasper N.P. & gateway ⚑ B
Canada:   Prince Edward Island as a whole B-
Canada: Alberta Banff National Park & gateway C
Canada: B.C. Gwaii Haanas NP Reserve and Haida Heritage Site A-
Canada: B.C. Gulf Islands B
Canada: B.C./U.S.: Alaska Inside Passage C+
Canada: BC Kootenay/Yoho NPs B+
Canada: Newfoundland Avalon Peninsula B+
Canada: Newfoundland Gros Morne NP B
Canada: Nova Scotia South Shore B
Canada: Ontario Rideau Canal corridor B+
Canada: Quebec Gaspé peninsula B+
Canada: Quebec Old Quebec City B
Canada: Quebec Montréal historic areas B
Canada: Quebec Laurentian Highlands B
Canada/U.S.:   Alta-MT-BC Waterton-Glacier “Crown of the Continent” region B-
Canada/U.S.: New York-Ontario Niagara Falls C
Cape Verde Archipelago as a whole C
Cayman Is. Grand Cayman Island C-
Chile Chiloe B+
Chile Chilean Fjords B
Chile Torres del Paine B
Chile Rapa Nui (Easter Island) ⚑ B
Chile Valparaiso C
China Qin Emperor Mausoleum, Xian B-
China Suzhou gardens and town C+
China Macao historic areas C
China Hainan C
China Lijiang and Three Parallel Rivers, Yunnan C-
China Beijing historic districts C-
China: Tibet Potala Palace Lhasa C-
Colombia Colonial Cartagena B-
Cook Islands as a whole B
Costa Rica Caribbean Coast B
Costa Rica as a whole C+
Costa Rica Pacific Coast C
Croatia Korcula B
Croatia Hvar B
Croatia Dubrovnik B-
Cuba Old Havana and fortifications C
Curaçao as a whole C
Cyprus Turkish side B-
Cyprus Greek side C
Czech Republic Medieval Cesky Krumlov B
Czech Republic Historic Prague C+
Denmark Faroe Islands A-
Denmark Central Copenhagen B
Dominica As a whole ⚑ B
Dominican Republic Samana peninsula C
Dominican Republic Colonial Santo Domingo C
Dominican Republic North coast D+
Ecuador Galápagos Islands C
Egypt Luxor (Thebes; Valley of the Kings) C-
Egypt Pyramids, Giza C-
Egypt Northern Red Sea coast D+
Egypt Sharm el-Sheikh area D
Estonia Medieval Tallinn B
Ethiopia Rock-hewn churches, Lalibela C
Fiji Yasawa group B-
Fiji As a whole C+
Fiji Viti Levu C
France Vézelay B+
France Aix-en-Provence B+
France Dijon and Bourgogne region B+
France Lyon historic areas B
France Banks of the Seine, Paris B
France Corsica B
France Loire Valley B
France Historic Avignon B
France Brittany B
France Mont-St-Michel C+
France French Riviera C
French Polynesia Bora Bora B
French Polynesia Moorea B
French Polynesia Tahiti C
Germany Potsdam historic areas B+
Germany Bavarian Alps B
Germany Upper Middle Rhine Valley B
Germany Heidelberg B
Germany Munich (München) historic areas B
Germany Baden Baden B
Germany Dresden historic areas B
Germany Baltic coast C+
Greece Hydra (Idhra) B
Greece Meteora B
Greece Delphi B
Greece Crete south coast B-
Greece Olympia B-
Greece Medieval city of Rhodes C+
Greece Corfu C+
Greece Santorini C+
Greece Athens Acropolis area C
Greece Mykonos C
Greece Crete N coast C
Grenada as a whole C+
Guadeloupe as a whole C
Guatemala Antigua B-
Guatemala Tikal/Flores C
Guatemala Atitlán C-
Honduras Copán B-
Honduras North coast C
Honduras Roatan, Bay Islands C-
Hungary Budapest historic areas C+
Iceland as a whole B+
India Rajasthan as a whole C+
India Kerala backwaters C+
India Blue City of Jodhpur historic areas C
India Agra sights – Taj Mahal, Agra Fort, Fatehpur Sikri C
India Amritsar historic areas C
India Golden City of Jaisalmer C-
India Goa D+
Indonesia Ubud B-
Indonesia Lombok C+
Indonesia Bali C+
Indonesia Borobudur C
Indonesia Bali coasts C
Ireland Aran Islands B
Ireland Ring of Kerry B
Ireland Dublin historic areas C+
Israel Masada B-
Israel Haifa C+
Israel Jerusalem (Old City and Walls) C
Israel/Palestine Bethlehem D
Israel/Jordan Dead Sea D+
Italy Siena B
Italy Cinque Terre area B
Italy Assisi B
Italy Amalfi Coast B
Italy Tuscany B
Italy Sardinia B
Italy Bologna historic areas B
Italy Lake District B-
Italy Sicily B-
Italy Florence B-
Italy Pompeii C+
Italy Costa Smeralda, N. Sardinia C+
Italy Capri C
Italy Venice and lagoon C
Jamaica Port Antonio area C
Jamaica Negril C-
Jamaica NW coast: Montego Bay-Ocho Rios C-
Jamaica North Coast D+
Japan Ancient Kyoto B
Japan Nikko historic areas B+
Japan Fujisan (Mount Fuji) B
Japan Okinawa C-
Jordan Petra & area C+
Kenya Lamu B-
Kenya Amboseli C
Kenya Masai Mara C
Laos Louang Prabhang C
Latvia Riga B-
Lithuania Vilnius historic center B-
Malaysia Kota Kinabalu, Sabah B
Maldives All islands except Male C+
Malta as a whole C
Martinique as a whole C+
Mexico Guanajuato, Gto. B
Mexico Querétaro city/Sierra Gorda ⚑ B
Mexico Oaxaca and Monte Albán B-
Mexico Isla Mujeres, QR B-
Mexico Colonial Campeche B-
Mexico Tulum beach area (Tulum to Sian Kaan) C+
Mexico Sea of Cortez and its coast C+
Mexico Sian Ka’an and environs, QR C
Mexico Chichén Itzá C
Mexico Cozumel, QR C-
Mexico Cabo San Lucas region, BCS D
Mexico: Quintana Roo Caribbean Coast, “Maya Riviera” D+
Micronesia Federated States of Micronesia C
Monaco as a whole C-
Morocco Essaouira, Atlantic coast B
Morocco Fez historic center B
Morocco Marrakech medina C+
Mozambique N coast: Cabo Delgado/Quirimbas B-
Mozambique Bazaruto Archipelago B-
Namibia Skeleton Coast B
Nepal Annapurna Circuit C+
Nepal Kathmandu Valley D
Netherlands Amsterdam historic center B
Netherlands Antilles Bonaire ⚑ C+
New Caledonia as a whole B-
New Zealand Te Wahipounamu B+
New Zealand South Island B+
New Zealand Tutukaka Coast, Northland B+
New Zealand Bay of Islands B
Norway Norwegian Fjords A-
Norway Lofoten B+
Norway Bryggen, Bergen B
Oman Batinal (Gulf of Oman) Coast B
Palau as a whole B-
Peru Machu Picchu B-
Peru Cuzco Historic Center B-
Peru Colonial Arequipa C+
Peru Cuzco, Machu Picchu, Sacred Valley C
Peru Nazca lines area C
Phillipines Palawan B-
Poland Krakow B
Poland Warsaw Stare Mjasto B-
Portugal Azores ⚑ B+
Portugal Évora B
Portugal Douro Valley B
Portugal Southern Atlantic Coast B
Portugal Madeira Islands C+
Portugal Porto historic center C+
Portugal Sintra ⚑ C+
Portugal Algarve D+
Puerto Rico Historic San Juan B-
Puerto Rico as a whole C
Romania Sighisoara & Saxon Transylvania C
Russia St. Petersburg B-
Samoa Upolu B
Samoa all coasts B-
São Tomé and Príncipe As a whole B-
Seychelles As a whole B-
Slovenia as a whole B
Soloman Islands as a whole C+
South Africa Kruger National Park B
South Africa Cape Town historic areas C
South Africa KwaZulu-Natal coast C
South Korea Jeju/Cheju ⚑ C+
Spain Córdoba B
Spain Alhambra & medieval Granada B
Spain Toledo B-
Spain Tenerife, Canary Islands C
Spain Mallorca C
Spain Costa Blanca D+
Spain Costa Brava D+
Spain Ibiza D
Spain Costa del Sol D
Sri Lanka Polonnaruwa, Sigiriya, and Dambulla B-
Sri Lanka Galle C+
Sri Lanka Sinhalese coastal regions C-
St Kitts-Nevis Nevis B
St Kitts-Nevis St. Kitts ⚑ C
St. Lucia The Pitons C+
St. Lucia as a whole C
St. Vincent As a whole B-
Sweden Stockholm’s Gamla Stan B+
Switzerland Engadine B
Switzerland Jungfrau-Aletsch-Bietschhorn region B
Switzerland Alpine regions B
Syria Aleppo F
Tanzania Serengeti Plain B
Tanzania Pemba B-
Tanzania Swahili Coast C+
Tanzania Kilimanjaro C
Tanzania Stone Town, Zanzibar C
Tanzania Ngorongoro crater C
Tanzania Zanzibar C
Thailand Chang Mai C
Thailand The Andaman Sea Coast C
Thailand Phuket C-
The Grenadines as a whole C+
Tonga as a whole C+
Trinidad & Tobago Tobago B-
Tunisia Carthage C+
Tunisia Coastal resort region C
Turkey Cappadocia B
Turkey Istanbul historic areas B-
Turkey Turquoise Coast (Aegean) C+
Turkey Azure Coast C
Turks and Caicos Providenciales D+
U.S. Virgin Islands St. John B
U.S. Virgin Islands St. Croix C
U.S. Virgin Islands St Thomas D
U.S.: Alaska Denali NP & gateway region B
U.S.: Alaska Kenai Fjords NP/Seward B
U.S.: Alaska Juneau C+
U.S.: Arizona Hopi Villages B
U.S.: Arizona Grand Canyon/Tusayan B-
U.S.: Arizona Sonora desert C+
U.S.: Arizona Tombstone D
U.S.: California Point Reyes area B
U.S.: California Northern coast (Marin to Eureka) B
U.S.: California Mid-coast (Santa Barbara to Monterey) B
U.S.: California Redwoods National and State Parks B-
U.S.: California The Peninsula—San Mateo/Santa Cruz coast B-
U.S.: California Yosemite area B-
U.S.: California California Napa-Sonoma wine country C+
U.S.: California Sequoia & Kings Canyon NP region C+
U.S.: California Lake Tahoe C+
U.S.: California Santa Catalina & Channel Islands C+
U.S.: CO-UT-AZ-NM Four Corners (Colorado Plateau) B-
U.S.: Colorado Colorado Rockies B-
U.S.: Colorado Mesa Verde NP & area C+
U.S.: Colorado Telluride valley C
U.S.: Colorado Central City D
U.S.: Connecticut Mystic seaport C+
U.S.: Florida Forgotten Coast (Apalachicola area) B-
U.S.: Florida St. Augustine C+
U.S.: Florida Sanibel Island & Captiva C
U.S.: Florida Everglades NP/Big Cypress C-
U.S.: Florida Key West C-
U.S.: Georgia Sea Islands B
U.S.: Georgia Savannah B
U.S.: Georgia Cumberland Island National Park & gateway C+
U.S.: Hawaii Kauai, Na Pali Coast B
U.S.: Hawaii Molokai B
U.S.: Hawaii Hawaii Volcanoes NP B
U.S.: Hawaii Kauai C+
U.S.: Hawaii Maui C+
U.S.: Hawaii Hawaii (Big island) C+
U.S.: Hawaii Oahu C-
U.S.: Hawaii Waikiki C-
U.S.: Kansas Tallgrass Prairie National Park region C+
U.S.: Kentucky Old Lexington, horse country B-
U.S.: Kentucky Bluegrass country B-
U.S.: Kentucky Mammoth Cave National Park & gateway C
U.S.: Louisiana New Orleans historic areas C-
U.S.: Maine Maine coast B
U.S.: Maine Portland historic downtown B
U.S.: Maine Mount Desert Island B-
U.S.: Maine Acadia National Park/Bar Harbor C+
U.S.: Maryland Antietam National Battlefield B-
U.S.: Maryland Annapolis C+
U.S.: Maryland/VA “Hallowed Ground” US15 corridor C-
U.S.: Maryland/VA Chesapeake Bay D+
U.S.: Massachusetts Berkshires B
U.S.: Massachusetts Boston historic areas B
U.S.: Massachusetts Martha’s Vineyard B-
U.S.: Massachusetts Nantucket C+
U.S.: Massachusetts Cape Cod C
U.S.: Michigan Mackinac Island, Lake Huron B+
U.S.: NC/TN Great Smoky Mountains C-
U.S.: New Hampshire Portsmouth B
U.S.: New Jersey Cape May C+
U.S.: New Mexico Chaco Culture National Historical Park B
U.S.: New Mexico Pueblo de Taos, Taos, and Enchanted Circle B
U.S.: New Mexico Santa Fe C+
U.S.: New York Long Island Shore, Hamptons to Montauk C
U.S.: North Carolina Asheville B
U.S.: North Carolina Ocracoke, Outer Banks C+
U.S.: North Carolina Outer Banks & Cape Hatteras National Seashore C
U.S.: Oregon Oregon Coast B
U.S.: Oregon Ashland B
U.S.: Oregon-Washington Columbia Gorge region B
U.S.: Pennsylvania Philadelphia historic areas C+
U.S.: Pennsylvania Gettysburg C
U.S.: Pennsylvania Lancaster County C-
U.S.: Rhode Island Block Island B
U.S.: Rhode Island Newport C+
U.S.: South Carolina Charleston, historic center B
U.S.: South Carolina Hilton Head C-
U.S.: South Carolina Grand Strand (Myrtle Beach & region) D+
U.S.: South Dakota Mt Rushmore/Badlands C+
U.S.: South Dakota Deadwood C-
U.S.: Texas Big Bend region B-
U.S.: Texas Texas Hill Country C+
U.S.: Utah Zion region B-
U.S.: Utah Arches/Canyonlands/Moab B-
U.S.: Vermont as a whole B
U.S.: Virginia Monticello and Charlottesville B
U.S.: Virginia Wiiliamsburg/York/Jamestown B-
U.S.: Virginia Alexandria B-
U.S.: Virginia Shenandoah NP region C+
U.S.: Washington San Juan Islands B
U.S.: Washington Olympic National Park B-
U.S.: Washington North Cascades NP & area B-
U.S.: Washington Puget Sound C+
U.S.: Wyoming/MT/ID Greater Yellowstone/Tetons region B
Uganda Bwindi Impenetrable Forest C+
United Arab Emirates Abu Dhabi C+
United Arab Emirates Dubai D
United Kingdom Isle of Man B
United Kingdom: Channel Islands Jersey and Guernsey B
United Kingdom: England City of Bath B
United Kingdom: England Yorkshire dales B
United Kingdom: England York B
United Kingdom: England Jurassic Coast B
United Kingdom: England England: Cornwall B-
United Kingdom: England Cotswolds B-
United Kingdom: England Canterbury B-
United Kingdom: England Isle of Wight B-
United Kingdom: England Lake District ⚑ C+
United Kingdom: England Stonehenge C+
United Kingdom: England Stratford upon Avon C
United Kingdom: Scotland Shetland Islands B+
United Kingdom: Scotland Isle of Skye B+
United Kingdom: Scotland Scottish Highlands B
United Kingdom: Scotland Edinburgh historic areas B
United Kingdom: Wales Pembrokeshire Coast B+
United Kingdom: Wales as a whole B
Uzbekistan Bukhara C+
Uzbekistan Samarkhand C
Vanuatu as a whole C+
Vietnam Hue C+
Vietnam Hoi An C+
Vietnam Hanoi historic areas C
Vietnam Ha Long Bay D+
Vietnam Nha Trang-Mui Ne area D+
Western Indian Ocean Réunion (Fr) ⚑ B-
Western Indian Ocean Mauritius C+
Zambia Mosi-oa-Tunya/Victoria Falls C
Zimbabwe Victoria Falls Zimbabwe side C
⚑ Recognized in 2014 by the Green Destinations group http://greendestinations.info/
Note—These letter grades interpret some 80% of the numerical survey scores reported by National Geographic (weighted to favor the more recent scores). The Destination Stewardship Center has applied these grades independently, and we take sole responsibility for them.

 

About Jonathan Tourtellot

CEO, Destination Stewardship Center; Editor, Destination Stewardship Report; Principal, Focus on Places LLC; founding Director, former Nat Geo Center for Sustainable Destinations

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