'Tantalising' UK city is sweetest destination for chocolate-lovers
Best-known for its quaint cobbled streets and stunning cathedral, York is a surprisingly tempting destination for chocolate-loving tourists.
Christmas may be over and New Year’s resolutions might be written, but the chocolate consumption doesn’t have to stop in 2024.
If you’re looking for a relaxing and delicious staycation this year, and are a lover of all things chocolate, then these cities compiled by Leonardo Hotels are the perfect destinations for you.
To determine which city is the UK’s chocolate capital, Leonardo Hotels analysed a number of different factors: the quantity and quality of chocolate shops, the number of chocolate-themed attractions, and the number of Google searches for queries such as ‘chocolate recipes’ and ‘chocolate shops’.
York has been revealed by the study as the UK’s leading city for chocoholics, scoring a near-perfect 99 out of 100.
Home to the tantalising immersive chocolate tour, York’s Chocolate Story, the city boasts an impressive five bespoke chocolate shops with an average Google rating of 4.7 stars out of five.
The city also amassed the highest number of ‘chocolate’ Google searches in the UK, making it a chocolate-lover’s dream.
Edinburgh is the UK’s second best city for fans of chocolate, scoring 65 out of 100 on the chocolate-loving index.
The Scottish capital is home to six bespoke chocolate shops with an average Google rating of 4.7, and the award-winning micro chocolate factory, The Chocolatarium, which offers tours and delicious chocolate making classes.
Birmingham completes the top three, with a score of 60 out of 100. The city isn’t lacking for chocolatey goodness, with eight chocolate shops with an average rating of 4.4.
England’s ‘second-city’ is home to one of the world’s most popular chocolate brands, and Cadbury World is an exciting attraction that offers interactive exhibits and chocolate-making demonstrations.
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The top 10 best UK cities for chocolate-lovers:
- York
- Edinburgh
- Birmingham
- Brighton
- Exeter
- Oxford
- Cambridge
- Belfast
- Norwich
- Bristol
Perhaps unsurprisingly, London is home to the most chocolate shops in the UK with 75 bespoke stores. However, Brighton and York are treated to the most chocolate shops per person based on population size, with 1.6 shops for every 100,000 people.
Newcastle and Liverpool are home to the nation’s best chocolate shops according to Google, with an average rating of 4.9 out of five. Leeds, Plymouth, and Sheffield follow narrowly behind with an average rating of 4.8.
The UK’s favourite type of chocolate is surprising, with the traditionally popular milk chocolate finishing in third place behind white chocolate, and the most popular dark chocolate - which had an average of 181,000 Google searches in 2023.