Where can you find a mish-mash of bright, historic architecture, creative local art exhibitions, buzzy bars, exciting new restaurants and loud and lively samba all in one place? It can only be in Rio de Janeiro, where vibrant city street Rua do Senado has just been named the coolest in the world for 2026, according to Time Out.
Time Out’s annual ranking is created thanks to the insight of local editors and experts, who each nominated a street that represented the best of their city. The global travel team then narrowed down and ranked each street against criteria including food, drink, culture, fun and community spirit.
Rua do Senado landed in the number 1 position this year for its excellent food and drink scene, fascinating art and culture, and for generally being a whole lot of fun.
The street is a gleaming representation of the country: curious, creative, joyful, proud and just downright cool. Time Out Rio de Janeiro editor Lívia Breves’ highlights include chef Lucio Vieira’s restaurant Lilia and its sister bar, Labuta, where you can enjoy ice-cold caipirinha cocktails. There are creative shows at Ateliê Bonifácio or Solar dos Abacaxis, and locals flock to the street for Saturday samba sessions at the iconic Armazém Senado.
And raising the bar even higher, Rua do Senado is getting a new Mercado Central, or central market, located within the street’s 113-year-old, bright yellow Granado factory building that will soon house over 40 new food, drink, shopping and entertainment options to become the new epicentRE for locals and tourists. It’s not hard to see why Rua de Senado ticks all the boxes.
Snagging second place on the list of coolest streets is Osaka’s Orange Street, which once housed dozens of antique shops before it transformed into a hub for fashion and hip streetwear in the early 2010s. Now, you can find an eclectic variety of vintage shops next to top Japanese designer boutiques, next to specialty coffee shops, next to takoyaki stands – and the list goes on. When you need a break from shopping, Bio Top Cafe is a great little coffee shop to rest and people watch, and when dinner rolls around, head to Little Birds for sensational Japanese-Italian pasta.
Porto’s Rua do Bonjardim placed third on the list and is located in the city centre, but tucked far enough from the main area to keep this one-kilometre stretch perfectly balanced between tourists and locals. Longtime local grocers stand alongside 1970s neighbourhood restaurants, independent boutique hotels and modern eateries like Ottto, which recently opened and combines wine, art and out-of-the-ordinary small plates to share beneath red neon lighting.
Here are the top 10 coolest streets right now, according to Time Out
1. Rua do Senado, Rio de Janeiro
2. Orange Street, Osaka
3. Rua do Bonjardim, Porto
4. Fanghua Street , Chengdu
5. Sherbrooke Street West, Montreal
6. Montague Road, Brisbane
7. Maybachufer, Berlin
8. Olympou Street, Thessaloniki
9. Orchard Street, New York City
10. Vinh Khanh Street, Ho Chi Minh City
Read the full list of the 31 coolest streets in the world here.
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