(USA Today) - National Geographic and Resonance Consultancy have released a list of the top 25 small cities, and Louisville made the cut.
The results are based on number of green spaces, galleries, coffee shops, breweries, music venues, Instagrammable moments, and more—what National Geographic described as “unconventional metrics” that lead to “travel surprises” found in small cities.
Additionally, this survey considered trendability of a city, as well, meaning the likeliness of their popularity growing in the next year based on the rise of social mentions over the previous year.
Pittsburgh, Penn.
The Burgh is home to more than 30 craft breweries, many of which are housed in rehabbed historic buildings, such as a decommissioned 1902 Catholic Church (Church Brew Works) and a 19th-century school (11th Hour Brewing Co.).
Boulder, Colo.
Boulder leads with music venues, vintage clothing boutiques, and craft breweries. There seem to be as many coffee shops as cyclists there, so it’s no surprise that several combo java joint/bike shops have opened recently. On downtown’s main Pearl Street drag, At Full Cycle sells wheels and gear as well as lattes and local beers. Cycling clubs crowd the minimalist café/bike shop Rapha for espresso, pre-ride waffles, and post-ride pastries.
Greenville, S.C.
Greenville is known for its number of butchers, delis, and steakhouses. Savor a steak at Halls Chophouse, then head to Falls Park, where a nearly 40-foot natural waterfall churns just off Main Street, and a pedestrian-only bridge curves gracefully overhead.
Anchorage, Ala.
With 5.98 coffee shops for every 10,000 residents, Alaska’s largest city (and cruise ship port) percolates with caffeine culture. Drive-up espresso shacks keep company with brick-and-mortar java shops like SteamDot, for pour-over brews, and the Kaladi Brothers, which toasts beans with a Sivetz Fluid Bed Roaster, a contraption that uses fresh, hot air to produce smooth blends.
Annapolis, Md.
The dog-friendly streets of Maryland’s brick-lined capital scream colonial charm—after all, the domed statehouse, which dates to 1772, is the country’s oldest in continuous use. Many of the city’s lively harbor-front restaurants allow dogs on their patios, including the Middleton Tavern, where George Washington and other Founding Fathers once slurped oysters.
New Orleans, La.
Celebrating the 300th anniversary of its founding by the French in 1718, New Orleans still brims with authentic charm but is especially of-the-moment in the Warehouse District around Lafayette Square. Onetime grain and coffee storehouses have been converted into trendy bars, music clubs, and restaurants. At Sac-a-Lait, local bistro fare like alligator in pickled mustard sauce is served in a restored cotton mill.
Madison, Wis.
The compact downtown and imposing statehouse of Wisconsin’s capital city crown a strip of land between Lakes Mendota and Monona. This means its many parks (11.6 per 10,000 residents) and trails come with stellar water views. You can walk or pedal (Madison BCycle has wheels for rent) to green spots such as the University of Wisconsin Arboretum.
Reno, Nev.
A large total of butchers, delis, and steak restaurants per capita helps make this mountain city among the meatiest in the U.S. Take Harrah’s Steak House, where they’ve been serving fillets and T-bones since 1937. While the red-meat palace (in Harrah’s casino) has had modern renovations, tuxedoed waiters and retro dishes (baked Alaska, oysters Rockefeller) keep the place feeling decidedly nostalgic. A forward-looking food-and-drink scene stakes its claim with Nothing to It!, a cooking school/gourmet deli, and the Eddy, a popular new outdoor hangout and beer garden with a synthetic-turf lawn and recycled shipping containers.
Healdsburg, Calif.
Though last summer’s wildfires devastated acres of Sonoma County, thanks to ample irrigation and spaced out grape plantings, Healdsburg’s vineyards were mostly spared. Neighbors banded together to put out blazes, and the inns, shops, and tasting rooms of this walkable town are open for business.
Santa Cruz, Calif.
Thanks to a clutch of music and record stores and live music venues, the beach town of Santa Cruz rates grooviest for rock and folk fans. At Streetlight Records, new and used CDs and LPs fill a warehouse-like space where local bands frequently perform. The Starving Musician sells African drums and electric guitars. The new Abbott Square restaurant-and-market zone downtown offers free Saturday night concerts, and the long-running Catalyst Club hosts big-name bands on the site of a former bowling alley.
Charleston, S.C.
Art by local artists will fill the rooms and public spaces of the new Hotel Bennett, opening this summer on a chunk of prime real estate overlooking Marion Square. It’s a great crash pad for checking out Charleston’s booming arts scene, which is growing because of a large number of schools and galleries, like the Art Institute of Charleston and Helena Fox Fine Art. Performing arts shine at the grand, three-year-old Gaillard Center, which hosts concerts and dance shows and serves as one of the venues for the city’s celebrated Spoleto Festival, taking place May 25 to June 10 in 2018.
Olympia, Wash.
Washington’s state capital boasts an eye-opening number of coffee shops per capita, from Olympia Coffee (three locations in town) to the skull-art-decorated Burial Grounds. Once suitably caffeinated, head out to one of Olympia’s many green spaces, including 314-acre waterfront Priest Point Park.
Charlottesville, Va.
In the sunny library at Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello, it’s easy to imagine the third U.S. president (and renowned bibliophile) pouring over books at the ingenious adjustable reading table. Jefferson put his ideas to work down the hill in Charlottesville, too, where the University of Virginia’s Academical Village includes a domed Rotunda and dorms surrounding a bucolic lawn.
Spokane, Wash.
Spokane boasts a high count of record stores, tattoo parlors, vintage clothing boutiques, and coffee shops per capita. Locals often show up at Garageland, a gastropub/vinyl store downtown (note the dugout canoe hanging over the bar). Summertime outdoor music festivals bring bands and local brews to Riverfront Park, a 100-acre playground along the Spokane River.
Albuquerque, N.M.
New Mexico’s sunny city gets top nods for its abundance of craft brewpubs, such as downtown’s Marble Brewery and Bow & Arrow Brewery Co. The latter serves its unusual sour and aged ales in a cavernous hall lit with iron chandeliers. Local breweries also often partner with food trucks that park outside to cook up lamb burgers, green-chili-topped hot dogs, and spicy Southwestern-style pizza.
Rapid City, S.D.
George Washington and Ronald Reagan stand across the street from each other in this South Dakota city near Mount Rushmore—or rather, their bronze, life-size statues do, just begging to be posed with. The ongoing public art/history project called City of Presidents has been erecting likenesses of each commander in chief on downtown corners since 2000. Topping a hill nearby, the Dinosaur Park lures families with its whimsical (if biologically inaccurate) concrete models of T. rex and other dinos, plus dazzling views of the Black Hills and Badlands beyond.
Ann Arbor, Mich.
Nicknamed “Tree Town,” Ann Arbor lives up to its name with a recently funded plan to plant more than 1,000 trees every year and train volunteers to help maintain them. Central to the town is the University of Michigan, which hosts a botanical garden and arboretum and is a leader in sustainability research. Two of Ann Arbor’s 159 parks rent canoes for paddling the Huron River as it flows through town.
Asheville, N.C.
More than three dozen craft breweries and brewpubs (the most per capita of any U.S. city) work magic in and around this North Carolina town. Many cluster in the South Slope, a former automotive zone where you can now walk between spots like Wicked Weed’s Funkatorium and Catawba Brewing Co., with a spacious deck boasting views of Mount Pisgah. The historic Grovewood Village, with its artisan studios, art galleries, and sculpture garden, offers a beautiful way to spend the afternoon.
Baton Rouge, La.
Black-and-red linoleum floors and vintage swivel chairs summon up the 1920s founding of the historically African-American Webb’s Barber Shop in Louisiana’s capital city. It’s one of an unusually high number of hair salons and grooming spots that let the good-looking times roll in this relaxed town sprawled along the Mississippi River. Louisiana State University students—a well-dressed lot known for donning frocks and cowboy boots or ironed polos for football games—often get shaves and haircuts at Mercer Supply Co.
Honolulu, Hawaii
The Aloha State’s largest city also goes big when it comes to music venues, Instagrammable moments, and art galleries and art stores. An experience that encapsulates all of Honolulu’s chart-topping attributes is the artfully photogenic Surfjack Hotel and Swim Club. They recently launched a Sunday brunch that grooves with music sets curated by Oahu-based record label Aloha Got Soul.
Kansas City, Mo.
Depression-era painter Thomas Hart Benton called this midsize Missouri city home, perhaps igniting the town’s artistic fervor. Visit his home/studio (with coffee cans full of paintbrushes) or view his romanticized images of local people and landscapes at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art.
Lakeland, Fla.
Frank Lloyd Wright fans flock to this central Florida city to experience more than ten of his buildings gathered at Florida South College, the world’s largest single site of the architect’s work. But Lakeland makes it onto our list for its number of pet stores and dog-friendly restaurants per capita. Four-legged friends find a welcome on outdoor patios at places such as Red Door wine bar and Cozy Oaks Restaurant.
Newport, R.I.
Antique carriages, fine horses, and dandily dressed carriage attendants in top hats bring a rakish, raffish charm to the Weekend of Coaching, a triennial festival to be held August 16 through 19, 2018. The coaches, some dating to the early 19th century, roll through the city and stop at mansion museums, including the Vanderbilts’ lavish, cliff-top The Breakers.
Portland, Maine
Red lobsters on the plate, painted fishing boats in the harbor, and salty lighthouses on rugged shores make Maine’s photogenic biggest city top the list in number of Instagram hashtags. Possible photo-shoot settings: nearby Fort Williams Park, home to the 80-foot-tall, circa-1791 Portland Head Light, especially as waves break on the rocks beneath; or the Old Port neighborhood, with its cobblestoned streets, 19th-century brick buildings, and picturesque wharves.
Louisville, Ky.
The Hot Brown, an open-faced turkey and bacon sandwich smothered in Mornay sauce, is as synonymous with Louisville as bluegrass and bourbon. (Bite into one where it was invented: the restored 1923 Brown Hotel.) But recently, country ham, aka “hillbilly prosciutto,” has been captivating Kentucky chefs. Sample a flight of the salty, sweet stuff at the Garage Bar. “Eat it with bourbon to cut through the marbled fat,” says local food writer Steve Coomes, who penned a book on country ham.
