Sun and samba capital Rio de Janeiro has been named the top city to visit in 2014 by Rough Guide, a world renowned guidebook publisher.

All eyes will be on Rio this summer as Brazil is set to host the Fifa World Cup.

And away from the samba and the soccer, Rio’s parks, beaches and gardens are frantically being spruced up for the 2016 Olympics.

Sarajevo, the formerly war-torn capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina, was ranked second. The city has risen from the ashes to carve out an exciting future.

Away from the samba and the soccer, Rio’s parks, beaches and gardens are frantically being spruced up for the 2016 Olympics

“Theatres and coffee houses are the main creative breeding grounds, but among the bullet-scarred buildings and swirling coils of shisha smoke, you’ll find riotous nightclubs, sweet-smelling bakeries and independent bookshops,” Rough Guide wrote.

Number three was Liverpool: home of the Beatles, two famous football clubs, scouse wit and riotous nightlife.

“Visit in 2014 to experience the Liverpool Biennial, a 10-week-long contemporary arts festival over the summer that sees the city filled with works from around the world,” Rough Guide wrote.

“Also keep an eye out for new, creative quarters like the Baltic Triangle, where bars and fashion studios are springing up in old, brick-built warehouses near the Mersey.”

The top five was completed by Umea, in Sweden, this year’s European Capital of Culture; and Lviv in Ukraine, which boasts a Unesco-listed city centre.

A notable addition to the top 10 was Marseille, which can be reached by Ryanair from Malta.

Marseille’s tenure as European Capital of Culture 2013 was marred by embarrassing delays.

“Now, the gleaming art galleries planned for the event have finally opened their doors and the coastal city, long feared domestically for its high crime rate, is beginning to make headlines for the right reasons.”

Glasgow, the host of this year’s Commonwealth Games, was the second British city in the top 10. It was praised for its “smoking-hot artists’ studios and museums, which have appeared in rejuvenated docks”.

Rough Guide’s top 10 cities in 2014

■ Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
■ Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina
■ Liverpool, Britain
■ Umea, Sweden
■ Lviv, Ukraine
■ Marseille, France
■ Almaty, Kazakhstan
■ Rotterdam, Netherlands
■ Glasgow, Britain
■ Portland, US