Top 10 Best Beer Cities in the World

Prague is the birthplace of Pilsner-style lager and leads the world in per-capita beer consumption. The city's 40-plus breweries and centuries-old brewing tradition are showcased at venues like U Fleku, a brewpub operating since 1499. The Prague Beer Festival each May brings together 100+ Czech beers from across the country.

Brussels is the gateway to Belgium's extraordinary brewing heritage, with over 1,500 Belgian beer styles and a UNESCO-recognised beer culture. The city is the spiritual home of lambic and gueuze, spontaneously fermented ales unique to the Senne valley. Cantillon Brewery has been making wild-fermented lambics since 1900 and offers tours year-round.

Portland holds the record for the most craft breweries per capita of any major city in the world, with over 80 operating breweries within city limits. Nicknamed "Beervana," it is the epicentre of the American craft beer revolution and hosts the Oregon Brewers Festival each July — one of the largest craft beer festivals in North America. Deschutes Brewery and Breakside Brewery are local legends.

Bruges is a compact medieval city with an outsized beer legacy: De Halve Maan Brewery has brewed within the city walls since 1856 and even built an underground beer pipeline to its bottling plant. With over 350 Belgian beers on tap across its bars and a thriving trappist ale tradition nearby, Bruges is essential for any serious beer traveller.

Dublin is inseparable from stout: the Guinness Storehouse at St. James's Gate Brewery — the world's largest stout brewery — is Ireland's most visited tourist attraction. Beyond the iconic dry Irish stout, Dublin's craft scene has exploded with 20-plus independent breweries like Rascals and White Hag now operating across the city, offering everything from session IPAs to barrel-aged sours.

Denver is the craft beer capital of the American Mountain West, with over 150 breweries in the greater metro area and more breweries per capita than almost any US city outside Portland. The Great American Beer Festival — held in Denver each autumn — is the largest commercial beer competition in the world, judging over 9,000 entries. Odell Brewing and Great Divide are Colorado institutions.

Cologne is home to Kolsch — a crisp, delicate top-fermented ale that by law can only be brewed within the city and its immediate surroundings. Over 20 traditional Kolsch breweries operate in Cologne, most with their own brewpub (Brauhaus), where cylindrical 200ml glasses called Stangen are kept coming by waiters known as Kobes. The Fruhlingsfest each April kicks off the city's beer calendar in style.

Bamberg punches far above its weight for a city of just 75,000 people: it has 11 breweries — more breweries per capita than any other city on earth — and is the world's undisputed capital of rauchbier (smoked beer). Brauerei Schlenkerla has been serving its iconic smoked Marzen from the same half-timbered tavern since 1678. Bamberg's entire historic centre, including its breweries, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Asheville has more breweries per capita than any other US city and has earned the nickname "Beer City USA" multiple times in national polls. Nestled in the Blue Ridge Mountains, its 50-plus craft breweries — including Highland Brewing and Burial Beer Co. — draw on local ingredients and Appalachian water to produce award-winning IPAs, sours, and farmhouse ales. The annual Asheville Beer Week celebrates the city's vibrant brewing community each spring.

Prague is the birthplace of Pilsner-style lager and leads the world in per-capita beer consumption. The city's 40-plus breweries and centuries-old brewing tradition are showcased at venues like U Fleku, a brewpub operating since 1499. The Prague Beer Festival each May brings together 100+ Czech beers from across the country.

Brussels is the gateway to Belgium's extraordinary brewing heritage, with over 1,500 Belgian beer styles and a UNESCO-recognised beer culture. The city is the spiritual home of lambic and gueuze, spontaneously fermented ales unique to the Senne valley. Cantillon Brewery has been making wild-fermented lambics since 1900 and offers tours year-round.

Portland holds the record for the most craft breweries per capita of any major city in the world, with over 80 operating breweries within city limits. Nicknamed "Beervana," it is the epicentre of the American craft beer revolution and hosts the Oregon Brewers Festival each July — one of the largest craft beer festivals in North America. Deschutes Brewery and Breakside Brewery are local legends.

Bruges is a compact medieval city with an outsized beer legacy: De Halve Maan Brewery has brewed within the city walls since 1856 and even built an underground beer pipeline to its bottling plant. With over 350 Belgian beers on tap across its bars and a thriving trappist ale tradition nearby, Bruges is essential for any serious beer traveller.

Dublin is inseparable from stout: the Guinness Storehouse at St. James's Gate Brewery — the world's largest stout brewery — is Ireland's most visited tourist attraction. Beyond the iconic dry Irish stout, Dublin's craft scene has exploded with 20-plus independent breweries like Rascals and White Hag now operating across the city, offering everything from session IPAs to barrel-aged sours.

Denver is the craft beer capital of the American Mountain West, with over 150 breweries in the greater metro area and more breweries per capita than almost any US city outside Portland. The Great American Beer Festival — held in Denver each autumn — is the largest commercial beer competition in the world, judging over 9,000 entries. Odell Brewing and Great Divide are Colorado institutions.

Cologne is home to Kolsch — a crisp, delicate top-fermented ale that by law can only be brewed within the city and its immediate surroundings. Over 20 traditional Kolsch breweries operate in Cologne, most with their own brewpub (Brauhaus), where cylindrical 200ml glasses called Stangen are kept coming by waiters known as Kobes. The Fruhlingsfest each April kicks off the city's beer calendar in style.

Bamberg punches far above its weight for a city of just 75,000 people: it has 11 breweries — more breweries per capita than any other city on earth — and is the world's undisputed capital of rauchbier (smoked beer). Brauerei Schlenkerla has been serving its iconic smoked Marzen from the same half-timbered tavern since 1678. Bamberg's entire historic centre, including its breweries, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Asheville has more breweries per capita than any other US city and has earned the nickname "Beer City USA" multiple times in national polls. Nestled in the Blue Ridge Mountains, its 50-plus craft breweries — including Highland Brewing and Burial Beer Co. — draw on local ingredients and Appalachian water to produce award-winning IPAs, sours, and farmhouse ales. The annual Asheville Beer Week celebrates the city's vibrant brewing community each spring.