North, east, south or west, there’s an affordable cold-weather winter vacation destination just right for your wallet, according to WalletHub, the personal finance website.
To help Americans make their travel plans when the mercury drops, WalletHub developed a ranking of the cheapest U.S. destinations that are also the easiest to reach. The personal finance website analyzed 69 metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) with populations of 500,000 or greater, based on 37 key metrics across six key criteria: travel costs and hassles, costs in destination, attractions, weather, activities and safety.
Here, in ascending order, are WalletHub’s top 10 best cold weather winter vacation destinations.
10. Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, Ore.-Wash. MSA
Greater Portland is hip and happening, with microbreweries and coffeehouses to tempt your taste buds, and challenging bike paths to work off all those calories. The Portland MSA ranks second in attractions and fifth in cold weather activities. Total Score: 59.87.
9. New York-Newark-Jersey City, N.Y.-N.J.-Pa. MSA
Enjoy open-air ice-skating and hot cocoa at Rockefeller Center, then take the water taxi to Jersey City for interactive family fun at Liberty Science Center. Metro New York, the largest MSA in the U.S., ranks second in cold weather activities, fifth in attractions, but 32nd in lowest local costs. Total Score: 61.85.
8. Cincinnati-OH-KY-IN MSA
If you love model train sets, visit the world’s largest indoor train display at EnterTRAINment Junction in the Cincinnati MSA, then take a tour of Krohn Conservatory, where thousands of colorful butterflies make their home. Greater Cincinnati ranks fourth in lowest local costs. Total Score: 62.07.
7. St. Louis-MO-IL MSA
St. Louis has more free major tourist attractions than any other U.S. city outside of Washington, D.C. Don’t miss one of the most popular, the march of the penguins at the St. Louis Zoo. The St. Louis MSA ranks seventh in both lowest local costs and weather, but 22nd in safety. Total Score: 63.07.
6. Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH MSA
There’s something for everyone at Faneuil Hall Marketplace, a shopping center in Boston just a five-minute walk away from Paul Revere’s home and other major attractions. The Boston MSA ranks first in safety, third in attractions, but 30th in lowest local costs. Total Score: 63.47.
5. Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO MSA
Learn how to make cents at the U.S. Mint in Denver, then visit the Money Museum, where you can take home a bag of shredded money as a souvenir. The Denver MSA ranks eighth in attractions and ninth in weather, but 23rd in safety. Total Score: 64.28.
4. Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD MSA
During the winter, Walt Whitman’s home in Camden, N.J., is open to visitors, and so is Adventure Aquarium, where denizens of the deep are always on display. Known as the Delaware Valley, this MSA ranks sixth in both attractions and weather, but 24th in lowest local costs. Total Score: 64.58.
3. Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA MSA
Georgia may not get much snow, but outdoor enthusiasts can still go tubing on artificial snow at Stone Mountain Park near Atlanta, then chill with a bourbon and brandy hot chocolate at Hampton + Hudson. The Atlanta MSA ranks third in cold weather activities, but 25th in safety. Total Score: 68.1.
2. Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV MSA
Washington, D.C., lives up to its billing as land of the free, with plenty of no-charge winter activities. Admire views of the Potomac River from Washington Harbor in Georgetown, then lay a wreath at Arlington National Cemetery. The D.C. MSA ranks 7th in attractions. Total Score: 68.19.
1. Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI MSA
Let Chicago’s Field Museum take you back in time to an age when dinosaurs roamed the Earth, thanks to an enhanced exhibit allowing visitors to smell, as well as see “Sue,” the largest T. rex ever discovered. Chicago ranks first in cold weather activities, but 23rd in weather. Total Score: 68.32.
