20 Absolute Best Places For A Staycation in the U.S.
While getting away on a vacation this year may sound desirable, sometimes we just need to find the best places for a staycation instead. Uncle Fred said Don, “most days…
Is your city one of the best for a staycation? We take a look at the best ones around the country.
karenfoleyphotography / Getty ImagesWhile getting away on a vacation this year may sound desirable, sometimes we just need to find the best places for a staycation instead.
Uncle Fred said Don, "most days are sunny and hardly ever hotter than 80." My wife Debbie has an aunt and uncle that live in Honolulu, Hawaii. We both spent a week in paradise a few years ago and like uncle Fred said, every day was full of sunshine and blue skies and no matter where you are on the island of Oahu, the tropical waters of the Pacific Ocean are only a few minutes away. Those seven days were some of our best days ever.
Recently, our good friends at Wallethub released its annual survey of the Best Places for a Staycation. Results of the survey were based on attractions, food, entertainment, rest and relaxation, spas, museums, zoos, aquariums, swimming pools, tennis courts, golf courses, ice cream shops and coffee shops per capita.
If you happen to be a local living in any of the top areas on the list, consider yourself lucky. But don't fret for those of you on the bottom of the list, there's still hope if you're creative and find ways to make the most of your staycation.
Oh, and if you're around the Fayetteville area, we came in at No. 131 on this list.
Check the list below and see how many of the locations that you have visited. We've also added all the North Carolina cities appearing on the list, so you can see where we rank.
The Top 20
1-Honolulu, HI
2-Orlando, FL
3-Chicago, IL
4-Fort Lauderdale, FL
5-Portland, ME
6-Las Vegas, NV
7-San Francisco, CA
8-New York, NY
9-San Diego, CA
10-Seattle, WA
11-Tampa, FL
12-Charleston, SC
13-Salt Lake City, UT
14-Portland, OR
15-New Orleans, LA
16-Miami, FL
17-Cincinnati, OH
18-Tucson, AZ
19-Atlanta, GA
20-Denver, CO
North Carolina Cities on the List
71 - Raleigh
79 - Charlotte
96 - Durham
114 - Greensboro
129 - Winston-Salem
131 - Fayetteville
Methodology
In order to determine the best staycation spots, WalletHub compared 182 U.S. cities — including the 150 most populated U.S. cities, plus at least two of the most populated cities in each state — across three key dimensions: 1) Recreation, 2) Food & Entertainment and 3) Rest & Relaxation.
We evaluated those dimensions using 44 relevant metrics, which are listed below with their corresponding weights. Each metric was graded on a 100-point scale, with a score of 100 representing the most favorable conditions for staycationers. For metrics marked with an asterisk (*), the square root of the population was used to calculate the “Number of Residents” in order to avoid overcompensating for minor differences across cities.
We then determined each city’s weighted average across all metrics to calculate its overall score and used the resulting scores to rank-order our sample.
Recreation – Total Points: 33.33
- Public & Municipal Golf Courses per Capita*: Full Weight (~2.30 Points)
- Tennis Courts per Capita*: Full Weight (~2.30 Points)
- Swimming Pools per Capita*: Full Weight (~2.30 Points)
- Basketball Hoops per Capita*: Full Weight (~2.30 Points)
- Baseball & Softball Diamonds per Capita*: Full Weight (~2.30 Points)
- Parks per Capita*: Full Weight (~2.30 Points)
- Playgrounds per Capita*: Full Weight (~2.30 Points)
- Walk Score: Full Weight (~2.30 Points)
- Bike Score: Full Weight (~2.30 Points)
- Bike Rental Facilities per Capita*: Full Weight (~2.30 Points)
- Hiking Trails per Capita*: Full Weight (~2.30 Points)
- Shopping Centers per Capita*: (~2.30 Points)
- Water & Amusement Parks per Capita*: Full Weight (~2.30 Points)
- Boat Tours & Water Sports per Capita*: Full Weight (~2.30 Points)
- Miles of Bicycle Lanes, Paths & Routes per Square Mile: Half Weight (~1.15 Points)
Food & Entertainment – Total Points: 33.33
- Movie Costs: Full Weight (~1.63 Points)
- Average Price for Two Tickets to the Theater: Full Weight (~1.63 Points)
- Bowling Costs: Full Weight (~1.63 Points)
- Average Price of Party Ticket: Full Weight (~1.63 Points)
- Average Cocktail Price: Full Weight (~1.63 Points)
- Nightlife Options per Capita*: Full Weight (~1.63 Points)
- Casinos per Capita*: Half Weight (~0.81 Points)
- Festivals per Capita*: Full Weight (~1.63 Points)
- Museums per Capita*: Full Weight (~1.63 Points)
- Zoos & Aquariums per Capita*: Full Weight (~1.63 Points)
- Paintball Fields per Capita*: Full Weight (~1.63 Points)
- Arcades per Capita*: Full Weight (~1.63 Points)
- Presence on TripAdvisor’s “Top 25 Amusement Parks” List: Full Weight (~1.63 Points)
Note: This metric measures the presence and prevalence of a city in TripAdvisor’s “Top 25 Amusement Parks” List. - Theaters & Concert Halls per Capita*: Full Weight (~1.63 Points)
- Coffee & Tea Shops per Capita*: Full Weight (~1.63 Points)
- Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Shops per Capita*: Full Weight (~1.63 Points)
- Beer Gardens per Capita*: Full Weight (~1.63 Points)
- Restaurants per Capita*: Full Weight (~1.63 Points)
- Restaurant-Meal Costs: Full Weight (~1.63 Points)
- Prevalence of Affordable Restaurants with 4.5+ Stars: Full Weight (~1.63 Points)
- Diversity of Restaurants: Full Weight (~1.63 Points)
Rest & Relaxation – Total Points: 33.33
- Cost of House-Cleaning Service: Full Weight (~3.70 Points)
- Spas & Wellness Centers per Capita*: Full Weight (~3.70 Points)
- Massage Costs: Full Weight (~3.70 Points)
- Beauty-Salon Costs: Full Weight (~3.70 Points)
- Public Beaches per Capita*: Full Weight (~3.70 Points)
- Presence on TripAdvisor’s “Top 25 Beaches” List: Full Weight (~3.70 Points)
Note: This metric measures the presence and prevalence of a city in TripAdvisor’s “Top 25 Beaches” List. - Idealness of Summer Weather: Full Weight (~3.70 Points)
Note: This metric is based on WalletHub’s “Cities with the Best & Worst Weather” ranking. - Percentage of Residents Who Are Fully Vaccinated: Double Weight (~7.41 Points)
