Colour Context: The most colourful places in the world

Ever dreamed of living in the most colourful, Instagram-worthy place in the world? From rows of brightly coloured houses to natural rainbow landscapes. Where better to reside than a town or city filled with character and colour?

With this in mind, the mortgage comparison team here at Uswitch have looked at colour palettes, global search volumes, and the places gaining the most Instagram hashtags, to compile a list of the most colourful destinations in the world for you to put down roots - and their top tips for moving abroad. 

The world’s most colourful locations revealed

Colourful locations not only make for breathtaking photographs, but these vibrant destinations also bring you joy and lift your mood - take a tour with us and discover the most colourful spots in the world.

So how did we determine the most colourful locations in the world? Using a seed list of 20 different colourful places selected from a range of articles, including Wanderlust, Travel Nation, Love Exploring and Veranda, we used a digital colour picking tool, and the top 10 images on Shutterstock, to determine which locations had the largest colour palette.

Leading the way as the most colourful location in the world according to its colour palette is Cinque Terre in Italy, with eight colours. Sitting on the Italian Riviera, the multicoloured destination is home to an abundance of colourful houses that vary from red, dark and light orange, shades of yellow, green and blue.

Following closely behind as the second most colourful place in the world is Kampung Pelangi, which translates to ‘Rainbow Village’ in Indonesia, with seven colours. The brightly-painted village uses a varied range of colours, including yellow, orange, red, pink, purple, blue and green, making it the ultimate location for a photograph that really pops on your Instagram.

Guatape in Colombia, La Boca in Buenos Aires and Nyhaven in Copenhagen all came in third place with seven colours. Following these rainbow cities, Old Havana in Cuba was found to have six different shades in its colour palette. The city’s vibrant baroque-style buildings are painted in a range of hues from blues and greens to yellows and peaches, and a variety of pink shades.

Chefchaouen in Morocco is another destination to add to the list if you are looking to capture ‘Instagrammable’ content that adds azure tones to your feed. The stunning city known for its cerulean buildings has a palette of six colours, with four of the colours being occupied by varying shades of blue.

Although it doesn't have the biggest colour palette with just five colours, Willemstad in Curaçao is perfect for those wanting to add warmer-toned snaps to their Instagram feed. The picturesque capital city is bursting with colourful architecture, with red, peach, orange and yellow being the most predominant colours

The most searched-for colourful locations on the planet

Those looking to create an Instagram feed filled with colourful ‘picture perfect’ destinations, often spend time searching for the locations beforehand. So, where are the most colourful places people are searching for the most? Taking a seed list of the most colourful places in the world, we discovered which ones are the most searched for globally using Google search volume data from SemRush.

Taking the top spot as the most searched-for colourful destination is the vibrant Cinque Terre in Italy, with 718,000 searches globally. The old seaside villages boast a collection of colourful houses nestled on the clifftops, with natural greenery and turquoise sea as their backdrop.

Arising in second place as a colourful location with the most searches is Colmar in France, with a global search volume of 337,500. The vibrant village is bursting with flamboyant medieval buildings that are half-timbered, and use a varied palette of colours.

Completing the top three as a city renowned for its colourful architecture is Old Havana in Cuba, with 334,600 searches. The capital city is home to beautiful baroque-style buildings that come in hues of blues, greens, oranges and pinks.

Ironically, the destination that came out as the least searched colourful location is Rainbow Village in Taichung, with a global search volume of 4,800.

Picture Perfect: The world’s favourite colourful places according to Instagram

From photographing the picturesque setting of your hometown to snapping scenic shots along your travels, there are many colourful locations around the world that use a vibrant and varied colour palette. Using Instagram hashtag data, we looked at which places are the most snapped by travellers, to reveal the world’s favourite colourful places.

1. Old Havana, Cuba - 247,642 hashtags

Securing itself in first place as the most Instagrammable colourful destination in the world is Old Havana in Cuba, with 247,642 hashtags. The city's eclectic architecture painted in a bold and bright colour palette, means that every building makes the perfect backdrop for an ‘Instagram worthy’ shot.

2. Cinque Terre, Italy - 170,695 hashtags

The colourful coastal area of Cinque Terre in Italy emerges as the world’s second favourite colourful location according to Instagram, with 170,695 hashtags. The breathtaking destination is home to an extensive range of brightly-painted houses that are complemented by the natural greenery on the cliffs and the turquoise and blue hues of the sea.

3. Grand Prismatic Spring, USA - 73,290 hashtags

In third place is the awe-inspiring Grand Prismatic Spring in Yellowstone National Park, USA, with 73,290 hashtags. The phenomenal natural hot spring’s rainbow palette of blues, greens, yellows and oranges is created by heat-loving organisms clinging to the edges of each section - and has all the makings of a picture-perfect snap. 4. Burano, Italy - 72,329 hashtags

The picturesque island of Burano in Venice, Italy, follows closely behind as one of the world’s favourite colourful destinations to capture a picture for Instagram, with 72,329 hashtags. The vivid streets are lined with brightly-coloured fishermen’s houses and connecting canals leading to the turquoise Venetian Lagoon.

5. Colmar, France - 71,529 hashtags

The vibrant town of Colmar in France is a haven of colour that is extremely Instagrammable, with 71,529 hashtags dedicated to the place. The combination of half-timbered medieval architecture and multicoloured paintwork, makes the town look and feel like the setting of a fairy-tale and, most importantly, an ideal backdrop for a great Instagram picture.

6. Gamla Stan, Sweden - 42,378 hashtags

Gamla Stan, known as the Old Town of Stockholm is a colourful hub and tourist attraction for those looking to capture a picturesque photograph, with the destination having 42,378 hashtags on Instagram. The cobbled streets are lined with 17th and 18th century buildings in a colour palette of mainly warm tones, including reds, oranges and yellows with the odd pop of green.

7. Little India, Singapore - 36,967 hashtags

Little India is one of Singapore's most colourful districts, with its vibrant streets being so scenic, the location has 36,967 hashtags dedicated to it. Boasting an abundance of colour, the houses are decorated with a range of colours from reds, blues and greens, to oranges, yellows and pinks that give it a bohemian vibe.

8. Kampung Pelangi, Indonesia - 26,967 hashtags

Kampung Pelangi is one of the world’s favourite colourful locations according to Instagram, with 26,967 hashtags. The small village is painted in joyful colours and has eclectic and whimsical designs adorning the walls of most buildings, making this destination the ultimate Instagrammable spot in Indonesia.

9. Wroclaw, Poland - 18,088 hashtags

It’s no surprise that the city of Wroclaw is one of the most Instagrammed colourful locations in the world, with 18,088 hashtags. Its famous medieval market square is lined with multicoloured townhouses that bring a creative and youthful vibe to the contrasting architecture.

10. Guatape, Colombia - 17,506 hashtags

The brightly-decorated town of Guatape in Colombia, takes the final place on the list of the world’s favourite colourful places according to Instagram, with #17,506 hashtags. The ornately designed buildings feature sculpted patterns and illustrations that are painted in a varied palette, to add a splash of colour to each building.

Moving abroad checklist

If we’ve helped convince you that you’re ready to take the plunge and find a colourful beautiful city abroad to move to, spontaneity can be liberating, but it is important that you are fully prepared. So to help you get ready, the mortgage team here at Uswitch has created a moving abroad checklist for you to follow:

• Ensure you know the visa requirements of your new country of residence to make sure you can apply for the right documents.

• Think about the actual moving process, should you leave some items in storage? Should you hire an international moving company?

• If you’re planning on buying a new house abroad via a mortgage, it’s important to be aware of how long the mortgage process can take.

• Sort out your insurance for all areas of your life including home, life and car, and make sure your new location complies with your policies.

• Make plans to help you settle into your new community, including local activities that allow you to get to know people and feel more at home.

• Sort out your financial resources, alerting your bank or credit card companies of the move to ensure you can still use their services.