What makes a city great? Cost of living? Education opportunities? Jobs? Weather? The truth: No one really knows. But Americans are obsessed with making lists, so let's indulge in a game of comparison.
We've all seen the lists before that claim to know the best places to live. I love the Best Towns 2009 in Outside magazine that ranks the top 10 cities in the 100 most populated cities in the US. Maybe I'm a tad biased. Colorado Springs won this year, Seattle came in second, with Atlanta in third place. A bonus feature, this magazine also ranks the best small towns near the big cities.
Of course many other magazines rank their favorite cities too. Travel + Leisure asked readers to rank their favorite cities and the results are revealed in T+L's America's Favorite Cities 2009. I love this interactive listing. You can even choose two cities to go head-to-head and see how they compare in the category of your choice using the City Face-Off.
If you aren't ready to move to the perfect city just now, then try out the interactive Vacation Finder. You choose the criteria and T+L finds your perfect vacation city. I'm thinking this might be a good way to end the squabbles over where to go on vacation next time.
