Here are the most fun cities in America
FILE-A wave in the Pacific Ocean breaks along the shore of La Jolla's Windansea Beach on a hot summer day on June 29, 2023 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Kevin Carter/Getty Images)
Fun can come in many different forms depending on your preference and some places have a lot more to offer related to entertainment.
In a new study by WalletHub, the personal finance website conducted a ranking of the cities with the most fun and cost-effective activities.
The team compared over 180 cities in the U.S. based on key categories like entertainment and recreation, nightlife and parties, and costs.
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WalletHub then assessed those categories using 65 metrics, including fitness centers per capita, movie costs, and the average business hours of breweries.
Each metric was graded on a 100-point scale, with a score of 100 representing the greatest number and variety of fun and cost-effective activities. The city’s weighted average across these metrics were used to calculate the overall score to create the rankings.
Top 20 most fun cities in the U.S.
- Las Vegas
- Orlando
- Miami
- Atlanta
- New Orleans
- Austin, Texas
- San Francisco
- Chicago
- Houston
- New York City
- Fort Lauderdale, Florida
- St. Louis
- Denver
- Portland, Oregon
- Cincinnati
- Honolulu, Hawaii
- Tampa
- Los Angeles
- Seattle
- Washington, D.C.
What to know about the rankings for the top three cities for fun activities
Las Vegas
Las Vegas ranked first on the list based on the number of attractions and restaurants rated at least 4.5 starts.
WalletHub noted that some of the popular venues are spas, shopping centers, sports stadiums, festivals, and arcades. The city also boasts an array of options to get exercise with bowling alleys, basketball courts and hiking trails per capita.
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The city is known for its entertainers related to music. Las Vegas has a bunch of music festivals, music venues, dance clubs and comedy clubs.
Orlando
Orlando leads the country in amusement parks, including Disney World and Universal Studios. WalletHub noted that the city has the seventh-lowest nightly rate for a three-star hotel room, the 22nd lowest average pizza price, and the 24th-lowerst average wine price compared to over 180 cities in the rankings.
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The city also ranks as one of the best cities for soccer fans (5th), and it has a large number of sports stadiums per capita as well as a high number of fitness centers per capita.
Meanwhile, Orlando is one of the top cities for spas, performing arts theaters, arcades, pool halls and lounges.
Miami
Miami is well-known for its beaches and is a fun destination for spring break. The Florida city leads the U.S.in the number of fishing facilities, marinas, boat tours and water sports activities per capita, and it has the 31st-most miles of shoreline per capita compared to the other cities ranked.
For exercising activities, Miami has a lot of parks and has the fourth-most fitness centers per capita. The city is also known for its professional sports teams, including the Miami Dolphins and Miami Heat, which bolsters the city’s ranking as the sixth-best for football fans and basketball fans, and the 11th best city for soccer fans, according to WalletHub.
To see the complete list of fun cities, click here.