CNN's inaugural Best Towns to Visit list was released recently, just in time for the busy summer travel season. The destinations on the list offer plenty to see and do for a few days or more – without the crowds of many larger US tourist cities.
We caught up with CNN Travel's Marnie Hunter to hear more about the top spots to check out in 2024.
The places on this list aren't the usual suspects – New York, Las Vegas, Charleston, Santa Fe. What were you looking for in a destination?
We really wanted to feature smaller cities that are often overlooked by tourists. We picked places with fascinating attractions and other selling points like a great food scene or spectacular scenery. So our No. 1 destination is a state capital that's not far from the nation's capital where interesting things are happening. I'll let readers find out for themselves where it is.
You mentioned great food. Which destination stands out there?
That would be Portland, Maine, which really has a next-level food scene, driven by its location right on the water. So there's great seafood, but there's also a delicious pizza truck that's open seasonally on one of the islands that you can get to by ferry. And the city just picked up two James Beard Awards for bakeries, so you'll want to save room for baked goods.
What are some of the other standout attractions?
Well, the Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, Arizona, is set to open a new Astronomy Discovery Center later this year. And Flagstaff was the world's first International Dark Sky City, so the stargazing is pretty spectacular. In California, San Luis Obispo makes the list for its prime spot near wine country and Pacific beaches, and it's got some fun retro history with a quirky hotel and a local drive-in theater.
Which towns are you looking at for the 2025 edition of this list?
We're actually hoping readers will weigh in on that and tell us which places they think deserve some tourist attention. They can submit their ideas and we'll look into those spots for possible inclusion next year.
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