Travelers who prefer hidden gems to over-hyped hotspots should start packing their bags for Baltimore, Louisville, and Sacramento.
The three oft-overlooked destinations have been ranked among the top ten underrated cities in the United States, according to the editors of ShermansTravel.com , the web’s leading source for travel deals and destinations advice.
“One trend shaping our survey is the recent revitalization of many of America’s abandoned industrial centers, downtowns, and waterfronts that has brought new life to many of the cities on our list,” said Arabella Bowen, editorial director of ShermansTravel.com. “Other spots that we consider ‘must-sees’ have tended to be overshadowed by larger nearby cities.”
ShermansTravel.com’s Top Ten Underrated U.S. Cities are:
- Baltimore – Boasts a revitalized Inner Harbor area, plus the backdrops for such John Waters film classics as Hairspray, Pink Flamingos, and Female Trouble.
- Fort Lauderdale - Goodbye spring break, hello swanky new hotels. The latest up-and-comer in beach chic.
- Houston – Top-notch arts institutions, great shopping… and NASA.
- Kansas City – A multi-billion-dollar face-lift, a thriving jazz scene, some of the country’s best barbecue . . . and more fountains than any city outside of Rome.
- Louisville – Old small-town charm meets a new cosmopolitan riverfront district, and the two bond perfectly over mint juleps at the Kentucky Derby.
- Minneapolis - A burst of new buildings from some of the world's top architects and the revitalized Mill District reinforces the city’s cultural cachet.
- Pittsburgh – Native son Andy Warhol might have skipped New York if he’d had a taste of steel-town’s newly sizzling nightlife.
- Portland - More breweries per capita than any other city in the U.S., plus the monthly "First Thursdays" tour, when art galleries stay open late.
- Providence – Visitors can take gondola rides through downtown or enjoy the light of 100 riverside bonfires as part of the city’s annual WaterFires events.
- Sacramento - An increasingly sophisticated food scene, plus quick access to the Sierra Foothill wineries in the Shenandoah Valley.
To learn more about ShermansTravel.com’s Top Ten Underrated U.S. Cities, visit http://www.shermanstravel.com/Underrated.
Readers can also sign up for Sherman’s Top 25, a free weekly e-newsletter surveying the week’s best 25 deals at http://www.shermanstravel.com/top25.
About ShermansTravel Media
ShermansTravel Media is a leading travel media company that publishes ShermansTravel.com and Sherman’s Travel magazine. Founded by James Sherman in 2002 to help travelers makes sense of the overwhelming number of online travel specials, ShermansTravel.com is now the web’s most trusted source for editor-screened travel deals and destination advice. Sherman’s Top 25, a free weekly e-newsletter published every Wednesday, recently surpassed 4 million subscribers. The company also has syndication partnerships with leading web sites, including MSNBC.com, MSN.com, USAToday.com, and Yahoo!. Building on its trusted online brand, ShermansTravel Media launched Sherman’s Travel, the first magazine serving sophisticated, value-conscious travelers, in October 2006.
