Scottish city named in new guide to UK’s best city breaks

Only one Scottish destination is named in a new guide to the best places in Britain for a short break this year.

Hailed as "Scotland's renaissance city" by one of the world's leading luxury and lifestyle bibles, Conde Nast Traveler has rated Dundee ahead of Glasgow and Edinburgh in its top 10 locations "that are having a particularly storming year."

It has praised Dundee for its "ascendance as one of the UK’s must-visit cultural destinations" since the opening of its "dramatic" waterfront V&A museum in September.

Conde Nast Traveler has rated Dundee ahead of Glasgow and Edinburgh in its new guide. Pictures; Creative Commons

The latest plaudits for Dundee have emerged days ahead of the opening of the £80 million visitor attraction's second major exhibition, which is dedicated to videogames.

Dundee has been rated alongside Bristol, Cambridge, Manchester, Newcastle, Birmingham, Bath, Brighton, Swansea and Liverpool by Conde Nast Traveler.

It has cited Dundee's forthcoming design festival, the Dundee Contemporary Arts centre, the planned redevelopment of a former printworks where Bean and Dandy annuals were once made, and a restaurant on the other side of the River Tay run by a Masterchef winner in its praise of Dundee.

The V&A in Dundee. Picture: Hufton Crow

The city's design festival, DCA arts centre, hotel developments and the forthcoming overhaul of the printworks where Oor Wullie and The Broons annuals were once made have also been cited.

The transformation of Dundee, and the impact of the V&A, have previously won the praise of Lonely Planet, Bloomberg, Vogue, GQ, the Wall Street Journal and National Geographic.

City council leader John Alexander said: “Its fantastic to see another influential travel title recommend Dundee as one of the top 10 places in the UK for a city break.
“Dundee has award-winning visitor attractions, an expanding choice of accommodation, independent cafe’s, restaurants and entertainment to suit all budgets and a fantastic programme of events and entertainment on offer throughout the year.
“We’re delighted that Conde Nast Traveller, read by curious travellers across the globe has tapped into our city as the place to be this summer.”

The Conde Nast Traveler report on Dundee states: "Dundee’s ascendance as one of the UK’s must-visit cultural destinations continues unabated after the opening of the dramatic waterside V&A last autumn, Scotland’s first design museum.

"It is casting a spotlight on digital creativity in Videogames: Design/Play/Disrupt, an exhibition celebrating videogame design from Scotland, an international centre for the field (Lemmings and Grand Theft Auto were both created in Dundee), and around the world.

"The third ever Dundee Design Festival begins on 21 May and looks at ‘what makes a city liveable and loveable’ in an unexpected venue: the city centre’s once thriving and much-loved Keiller Shopping Centre that has since fallen on hard times.

"If you aren’t in town in May, catch an exhibition, film or talk and have a meal at Dundee Contemporary Arts (DCA), one of the venues that kick-started it all for Dundee in terms of cultural development.

"As for food, there's exciting Scottish cuisine by Masterchef winner Jamie Scott at waterfront restaurant The Newport, where you can see beautiful sunsets over the River Tay from its windows (and stay the night in one of its four bedrooms).

"For a longer stay, try the just-opened Staybridge Suites, in a cleverly-converted former jute mill. And explore the town on one of the 300 new e-bikes to be installed across the city from July.

"Keep an eye out for the redevelopment of West Ward Works, a print factory that made DC Thomson’s Beano and Dandy annuals, that will eventually host live performances, festivals and exhibitions, and become a base for designers, artists and other creative workers and companies."

Caroline Warburton, regional leadership director at VisitScotland, said: “The city’s remarkable rise within Scotland’s travel scene continues as its thriving hub for design, innovation and culture is revealed.

“To be listed in such a prestigious publication raises awareness of Dundee as a destination, namely as a place to visit and a place to spend a night or two.

“The growing number of visitors building the tourism sector’s contribution to the local economy by creating jobs and sustaining communities.”