The 100 best U.S. summer travel destinations: Washington DC leading

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besttraveldestinations-USA
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Washington DC is the number one, Orlando the number two and Austin number three U.S. Travel Destination for the Summer on a scale from 1 to 100. The number 100 is Santa Rosa, California. This is according to a recent study released by Wallethub.

According to the study comparing the best vs. worst:

  • Theย average flightย to a popular summer destination costs $319, lasts 3 hours and 57 minutes and has 0.4 connections.
  • The Las Vegas metro area is theย most attractive destinationย on the West Coastย and the Washington D.C. metro areaย on the East Coast.
  • Florida and Texas are home to theย top summer destinations in the U.S., each with at least two metro areas in the top 15. Oppositely,ย  ย Pennsylvania has one of the largest number of mostย unpopular summer destinations.
  • The Oklahoma metro area has the lowestย nightly rate for a three-star hotel room, $43, which is five times less expensive than in New Orleans, the metro area with the highest at $214.

artwork 2018 best worst summer spots v2 | eTurboNews | eTN

 

Compared with other rankings that focus on each destinationโ€™s scenic quality, this report focuses primarily on the cost and convenience of traveling to each location as well as its affordability. However, it does take into account the number of attractions and variety of activities in each destination to ensure visitors will stay busy and entertained throughout the trip.

Source: WalletHub

 

Rank
(1=Best)
Destination (Metro Area) Total Score โ€˜Travel Costs & Hasslesโ€™ Rank โ€˜Local Costsโ€™ Rank โ€˜Attractionsโ€™ Rank โ€˜Weatherโ€™ Rank โ€˜Activitiesโ€™ Rank โ€˜Safetyโ€™ Rank
1 Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV Metro Area 67.34 9 84 8 19 14 6
2 Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL Metro Area 67.25 23 14 9 62 2 67
3 Austin-Round Rock, TX Metro Area 66.37 19 36 13 21 18 32
4 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI Metro Area 66.18 8 86 4 55 3 38
5 Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA Metro Area 65.93 10 55 16 15 10 58
6 Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN Metro Area 64.85 1 34 36 48 16 25
7 Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX Metro Area 64.56 3 15 31 41 34 37
8 Oklahoma City, OK Metro Area 62.80 11 1 48 17 79 69
9 Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise, NV Metro Area 62.63 20 19 7 77 7 91
10 Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX Metro Area 62.36 7 9 23 50 29 77
11 New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA Metro Area 62.26 33 93 2 66 1 10
12 Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA Metro Area 62.17 46 82 1 49 9 51
13 Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL Metro Area 62.12 28 43 28 40 15 29
14 St. Louis, MO-IL Metro Area 62.06 21 50 25 12 24 57
15 Salt Lake City, UT Metro Area 61.21 12 64 27 11 25 83
16 Richmond, VA Metro Area 60.93 66 21 35 32 23 18
17 San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX Metro Area 60.57 26 6 18 38 45 89
18 Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD Metro Area 60.26 35 83 12 42 12 40
19 Knoxville, TN Metro Area 59.66 64 2 50 36 50 62
20 Pittsburgh, PA Metro Area 59.47 16 54 47 71 20 8
21 Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO Metro Area 59.42 6 67 20 70 19 53
22 Columbus, OH Metro Area 59.30 22 25 74 20 56 31
23 Omaha-Council Bluffs, NE-IA Metro Area 59.27 25 7 77 44 39 41
24 Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI Metro Area 59.25 2 20 66 56 51 61
25 Charleston-North Charleston, SC Metro Area 58.86 38 72 53 3 36 56
26 Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI Metro Area 58.82 4 74 34 75 17 27
27 Chattanooga, TN-GA Metro Area 58.58 56 18 38 14 77 76
28 San Diego-Carlsbad, CA Metro Area 58.56 27 92 10 80 4 20
29 Louisville/Jefferson County, KY-IN Metro Area 58.56 60 13 32 16 53 66
30 Raleigh, NC Metro Area 58.42 29 45 46 22 52 59
31 El Paso, TX Metro Area 58.33 43 10 86 10 86 23
32 Jacksonville, FL Metro Area 57.95 48 16 26 61 27 65
33 Boise, ID Metro Area 57.85 75 24 39 30 62 5
34 Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL Metro Area 57.81 39 77 14 67 5 71
35 Albuquerque, NM Metro Area 57.71 40 3 24 5 54 99
36 Kansas City, MO-KS Metro Area 56.99 5 56 51 37 67 70
37 Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD Metro Area 56.93 15 53 30 43 41 84
38 Cleveland-Elyria, OH Metro Area 56.91 14 81 41 51 37 35
39 Nashville-Davidson–Murfreesboro–Franklin, TN Metro Area 56.50 49 76 21 6 42 73
40 Tulsa, OK Metro Area 56.41 42 12 60 18 60 86
41 Indianapolis-Carmel-Anderson, IN Metro Area 56.03 13 31 44 52 57 81
42 Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA Metro Area 56.03 37 85 6 90 11 30
43 Cape Coral-Fort Myers, FL Metro Area 55.82 51 40 75 64 44 16
44 Sacramento–Roseville–Arden-Arcade, CA Metro Area 55.78 58 79 33 31 28 42
45 Tucson, AZ Metro Area 55.70 70 17 17 57 30 88
46 Grand Rapids-Wyoming, MI Metro Area 55.65 36 35 59 76 69 12
47 Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR Metro Area 55.45 62 5 49 9 88 98
48 Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH Metro Area 55.35 31 96 11 73 26 7
49 Madison, WI Metro Area 54.84 34 65 57 87 22 4
50 Dayton, OH Metro Area 54.75 30 26 89 65 83 39
51 Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC Metro Area 54.61 24 37 40 23 58 96
52 Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ Metro Area 54.41 17 8 21 92 47 60
53 Memphis, TN-MS-AR Metro Area 54.25 45 11 45 13 87 97
54 Birmingham-Hoover, AL Metro Area 53.58 41 27 76 24 80 90
55 Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News, VA-NC Metro Area 53.19 57 87 55 26 31 44
56 Jackson, MS Metro Area 52.74 82 38 92 8 96 25
57 Columbia, SC Metro Area 52.66 72 28 64 28 73 85
58 Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis, WI Metro Area 52.26 18 59 58 79 38 79
59 Greensboro-High Point, NC Metro Area 52.05 61 42 83 35 65 55
60 Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area 51.77 55 32 95 53 94 33
61 Springfield, MO Metro Area 51.76 59 60 61 27 82 94
62 Augusta-Richmond County, GA-SC Metro Area 51.54 81 29 88 29 95 48
63 Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR-MO Metro Area 51.44 54 30 91 25 78 93
64 Pensacola-Ferry Pass-Brent, FL Metro Area 51.29 50 61 62 N/A 32 54
65 Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ Metro Area 50.91 73 47 72 60 66 63
66 Lexington-Fayette, KY Metro Area 50.63 74 41 52 54 84 47
67 Rochester, NY Metro Area 50.18 63 73 56 85 46 14
68 New Orleans-Metairie, LA Metro Area 50.16 78 91 15 39 21 74
69 Lafayette, LA Metro Area 50.12 80 33 73 47 97 50
70 Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA Metro Area 49.90 83 71 80 7 76 45
71 Akron, OH Metro Area 49.30 68 22 93 74 100 24
72 Buffalo-Cheektowaga-Niagara Falls, NY Metro Area 49.28 65 70 42 82 43 43
73 Syracuse, NY Metro Area 49.18 71 69 67 84 75 11
74 Colorado Springs, CO Metro Area 48.51 69 68 37 78 72 52
75 Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT Metro Area 48.19 84 62 85 68 92 13
76 Greenville-Anderson-Mauldin, SC Metro Area 47.94 47 57 54 N/A 35 95
77 Fresno, CA Metro Area 47.81 92 52 71 2 93 80
78 Wichita, KS Metro Area 47.74 52 23 79 33 90 100
79 Providence-Warwick, RI-MA Metro Area 47.61 67 89 63 72 55 17
80 Honolulu, HI Metro Area 47.31 98 100 19 1 6 46
81 Baton Rouge, LA Metro Area 47.17 94 51 69 46 48 78
82 San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA Metro Area 47.03 44 94 43 88 49 21
83 Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, FL Metro Area 46.97 76 80 94 45 40 64
84 San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA Metro Area 46.70 32 99 3 95 8 72
85 Corpus Christi, TX Metro Area 46.36 87 66 68 34 64 92
86 Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA Metro Area 45.45 53 97 5 94 13 68
87 McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, TX Metro Area 45.10 96 4 96 58 98 34
88 Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond Beach, FL Metro Area 44.83 79 58 100 59 59 49
89 Scranton–Wilkes-Barre–Hazleton, PA Metro Area 44.77 91 48 97 81 63 22
90 Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA Metro Area 44.70 93 75 70 N/A 70 3
91 Toledo, OH Metro Area 44.49 89 44 84 63 89 75
92 Lansing-East Lansing, MI Metro Area 44.39 85 46 90 82 99 36
93 Portland-South Portland, ME Metro Area 44.30 77 95 29 93 33 1
94 Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY Metro Area 44.15 90 78 78 86 81 15
95 Spokane-Spokane Valley, WA Metro Area 43.14 86 39 65 89 74 82
96 Bakersfield, CA Metro Area 41.51 99 63 87 4 91 87
97 Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT Metro Area 39.14 100 90 81 69 71 2
98 North Port-Sarasota-Bradenton, FL Metro Area 37.63 88 49 99 N/A 61 28
99 Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA Metro Area 33.84 95 88 82 95 85 9
100 Santa Rosa, CA Metro Area 28.01 97 98 98 91 68 19

 

eTN last week published an article on Where Americans are going on their vacation?

Source: Wallet Hub

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About the author

Avatar of Juergen T Steinmetz

Juergen T Steinmetz

Juergen Thomas Steinmetz has continuously worked in the travel and tourism industry since he was a teenager in Germany (1977).
He founded eTurboNews in 1999 as the first online newsletter for the global travel tourism industry.

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