Earlier this year, Travelandleisure.com and CNN Headline News polled travelers and residents on what they like (and don't like) about 25 top urban destinations in the U.S. Turns out that people have some pretty strong feelings about New York, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Miami, and other hot spots.

http://www.travelandleisure.com/afc/...essrelease.cfm

NEW ORLEANS, NEW YORK, PORTLAND (OR) AND CHARLESTON (SC) ARE AMONG "AMERICA’S FAVORITE CITIES,” ACCORDING TO A TRAVEL + LEISURE / CNN POLL

NEARLY 60,000 RESPONSES FROM TRAVELERS

New Orleans Rated as Highest for Live Music, Cocktails, and Cheap Eats
Portland Rated Most Environmentally Friendly

NEW YORK, NY / ATLANTA, GA (October 10, 2007) – Whether you're a culture seeker or a night crawler, a farmer's market aficionado or flea-market connoisseur, America's favorite cities have what you're looking for. Travel + Leisure magazine (www.travelandleisure.com) and CNN Headline News (www.cnn.com) teamed up to poll travelers across the country on what they like and dislike about America's top 25 urban destinations: Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Charleston (SC), Chicago, Dallas/Fort Worth, Denver, Honolulu, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, Minneapolis/St. Paul, Nashville, New Orleans, New York, Orlando, Philadelphia, Phoenix/Scottsdale, Portland (OR), San Antonio, San Diego, San Francisco, Santa Fe, Seattle, and Washington, D.C.

New Orleans, New York, Portland (OR) and Charleston (SC) grabbed top billing in a number of categories, proving they’re among respondents’ favorite destinations nationwide.

New Orleans was ranked No. 1 in various categories that reinforce its legendary reputation for nightlife and music: Cocktail Hour, Live Music and Night Out, as well as Cheap Eats.

New York was ranked No. 1 in more categories (14 in all) than any other city in the poll, garnering the top scores for Big-Name Restaurants, Ethnic Food, Theater, Classical Music, Underground Arts Scene, Luxury Boutiques, Shopping for Jewelry and Shoes. Plus, it was ranked No. 1. in the Stylish People and Diversity categories. The Big Apple’s Museums/Galleries ranked No. 2 overall. In a special question asking respondents to vote on the most over- and underrated cities in the survey, New York also earned the title of the most overrated city in America.

Portland (OR) received high marks in the environmental categories, coming in at No. 1 for its Environmental Awareness, Access to the Outdoors, Ease of Getting Around & Public Transportation, Public Parks & Spaces, and Overall Cityscape.

Charleston (SC) also scored well, grabbing the No. 1 spot in the Friendly People category. The city was ranked No. 2 for its Architecture & Notable Buildings, Antiques, Flea Markets, Home Design stores, and Pedestrian Friendliness. Plus, Charlestonians were rated No. 3 in the Attractive People category.

For the highest-ranked cities for culture, shopping, people, food & dining, and cityscape, please see below.

We asked travelers to rate the top 25 urban destinations across the country in nearly 60 different categories. They voted on everything from where you’ll find the friendliest and most attractive residents to which cities have the best restaurants, museums, historic sites, shops, and more.

The survey generated nearly 60,000 responses.

For the complete survey results (good and bad) and methodology, go to www.travelandleisure.com/afc.

Online visitors can also access the following items:

Resident Rankings: How residents, not just visitors, rate their own hometown cities. For instance, which citizens rate themselves least attractive or most intelligent—and do residents think their hometowns have notable neighborhoods, good cultural offerings, and top-notch dining?

Vacation Finder: An online tool that will provide users with personalized information to help them plan their trips around such interests as culture, food and dining, shopping, and more.

Comparison Tools: Users can compare two cities and how they stack up in the 60 categories that were part of the survey.

Highest-Ranked Cities

FOR CULTURE, SHOPPING, PEOPLE, FOOD & DINING, AND CITYSCAPE

Culture

ARCHITECTURE & NOTABLE BUILDINGS
1) Washington, D.C.
2) Charleston
3) Chicago

CLASSICAL MUSIC
1) New York
2) Boston
3) Chicago

HISTORICAL SITES & MONUMENTS
1) Washington, D.C.
2) Philadelphia
3) Boston

MUSEUMS & GALLERIES
1) Washington, D.C.
2) New York
3) Chicago

THEATER
1) New York
2) Minneapolis/St. Paul
3) Chicago

UNDERGROUND ARTS SCENE
1) New York
2) San Francisco
3) Austin

Shopping

ANTIQUES
1) New Orleans
2) Charleston
3) Boston

FLEA MARKETS
1) New Orleans
2) Charleston
3) Portland, Oregon

HOME DESIGN
1) Chicago
2) Charleston
3) San Francisco

JEWELRY
1) New York
2) Santa Fe
3) Los Angeles

LUXURY BOUTIQUES
1) New York
2) Los Angeles
3) Las Vegas

SHOES
1) New York
2) Los Angeles
3) Chicago

VINTAGE (CLOTHING AND JEWELRY)
1) New York
2) New Orleans
3) San Francisco

People

ATHLETIC/ACTIVE
1) Denver
2) San Diego
3) Portland, Oregon

ATTRACTIVE PEOPLE
1) Miami
2) San Diego
3) Charleston

DIVERSE
1) New York
2) San Francisco
3) New Orleans

FRIENDLIEST PEOPLE
1) Charleston
2) New Orleans
3) Minneapolis/St. Paul

FUN
1) New Orleans
2) Austin
3) Honolulu

INTELLIGENT
1) Seattle
2) Minneapolis/St. Paul
3) Boston

STYLISH
1) New York
2) Miami
3) San Francisco

WORLDLY
1) Washington, D.C.
2) San Francisco
3) New York

Food / Dining

BARBECUE
1) Austin
2) San Antonio
3) Nashville

BIG-NAME RESTAURANTS
1) New York
2) New Orleans
3) Chicago

CHEAP EATS
1) New Orleans
2) Austin
3) Philadelphia

COFFEE
1) Seattle
2) Portland, Oregon
3) New Orleans

ETHNIC FOOD
1) New York
2) San Francisco
3) New Orleans

FARMERS’ MARKETS
1) Seattle
2) Portland, Oregon
3) Philadelphia

PIZZA
1) Chicago
2) New York
3) Philadelphia

Cityscape

ACCESS TO OUTDOORS
1) Portland, Oregon
2) Denver
3) Honolulu

CLEANLINESS
1) Minneapolis/St. Paul
2) Portland, Oregon
3) San Diego

NOTABLE NEIGHBORHOODS
1) San Francisco
2) New York
3) Boston

PEDESTRIAN FRIENDLINESS
1) Portland, Oregon
2) Charleston
3) Santa Fe

PUBLIC PARKS & SPACES
1) Portland, Oregon
2) Minneapolis/St. Paul
3) Chicago

SKYLINE & VIEWS
1) Chicago
2) New York
3) San Francisco

Methodology
An online survey appeared on travelandleisure.com and cnn.com from April 30, 2007 to July 15, 2007. Respondents were asked to rate their choice of one or more cities (among 25 previously selected cities) in 55 different subject categories. Respondents were asked to identify whether or not they were residents of each city they rated. Responses were collected and tabulated by travelandleisure.com.

About Travel + Leisure
Travel + Leisure, published monthly by American Express Publishing Corporation, is the world's leading travel lifestyle magazine with a circulation of almost one million. A global brand, Travel + Leisure currently publishes Travel + Leisure En Español, Travel + Leisure Russia, Travel + Leisure Turkey, Travel + Leisure China, Travel + Leisure Australia and Travel + Leisure South Asia.