Newcastle named among world's best cities
Looks like the Sydney versus Melbourne contest has lost some of its sheen with one of Australia's lesser-known cities trumping both to make it to the list of top 10 must-see destinations in the world.
Newcastle, the harbour and beach city of New South Wales, is a surprise No. 9 in Lonely Planet's Top 10 Cities to Visit list, unveiled on Monday.
While cities like London and Paris have failed to make the cut, Australian bigwigs Sydney and Melbourne have been described as "obvious but too boring" by the authors.
Lonely Planet Asia Pacific editor Shawn Low has been quoted by agencies as saying that Newcastle is "a great city with imagination, sophistication and laid-back surf culture".
The list is said to have raised many eyebrows for giving some of world's biggest hubs a royal miss. But Low says the cities have been ranked on topicality, excitement and that special X-factor.
"The whole idea is to challenge people to get off the beaten track and visit places like Newcastle that have been flying under the radar," Low is quoted as saying.
Other cities to make the list include New York City, US; Tangier, Morocco; Tel Aviv, Israel; Wellington, New Zealand; Valencia, Spain; Iquitos, Peru; Ghent, Belgium; Delhi, India and Chang Mai, Thailand.
