Christchurch has been included in TIME’s 2021 World’s Greatest Places.

The magazine’s annual travel guide includes 100 destinations “offering visitors an extraordinary experience that’s unlike any other”. It is the third year the New York-based magazine and news website have published the list.

Northland was the only other New Zealand entry in the list, making Christchurch the only Kiwi city to crack the 100.“Our third annual list of the World’s Greatest Places is a tribute to the people and businesses at the forefront of [the travel, tourism and hospitality] industries who, amid extraordinary circumstances, found ways to adapt, build and innovate,” TIME said, referencing the challenges faced in the context of Covid-19.

“It shines a light on ingenuity, creativity, revitalization and reopenings in destinations across the world.”

The list described the city as “fully in recovery mode, welcoming hotel, restaurant and public-space openings almost every month”.

It specifically called out the Ōtākaro Avon River promenade, Riverside Market, Tūranga and Te Pae Christchurch Convention Centre. Mention was also made of Gap Filler’s creative use of space.