America’s Finest Small Cities of 2024

I brake for small cities. In my travels documenting roadside Americana throughout the land, I go to a whole bunch of small cities a 12 months and commit a lot of my free time, together with each trip, to exploring them.

They’re, indisputably, the spine of America, and I say this as a proud resident of New York Metropolis and an admirer of city areas. The American small city is one in every of our most interesting innovations, an incubator of expertise and sweetness, and an intergenerational reward that shapes our collective id.  

Few issues in life are extra thrilling than approaching and eventually coming into a small city that’s new to me. I get butterflies in my abdomen, and my fingers clam up a bit on the wheel. It’s like Christmas morning, with the wrapped presents concealing a joyous thriller.  

As I spot the primary drag, my eyes dart, and my thoughts asks so many questions. Is the downtown thriving, or do the storefronts provide mute testomony to a extra affluent previous? Are there basic eating places or diners? Are there any good neon indicators or quaint classic storefronts? What (and who) are they most pleased with right here? What are the best — and most modest — houses like? Is there a unusual attraction right here — the world’s first or greatest one thing or different? What trade is, or, within the case of the forlorn city, was, the massive deal right here? Is entry to nature the trade? What would the sunshine — and the timber — be like on a crisp October afternoon?   

Briefly, what offers this city its sense of place?  

The questions are countless, and even the smallest city can intrigue me for hours. If I prefer it sufficient, and I typically do, I resolve to return, and in time, I really feel a twinge of eager for it.

Pulling right into a small city is the best factor I do on a highway journey. The toughest is passing one by with out stopping, normally as a result of I’m pressed for time as a result of I’ve a “extra necessary” place to go.

That’s nonsense, in fact. That small city off the exit is an important factor on the journey. I can’t let you know how typically I’ve pushed previous that beckoning billboard or disregarded the trace of intrigue supplied by the phrases “historic downtown this exit.” I invariably remorse it and switch round, no less than for a fast look. 

Virtually at all times, there’s one thing exceptional or no less than thought-provoking to be discovered, one thing I’m higher for having skilled. Possibly there’s a passing dialog at an vintage store or a diner with an individual who, I’d prefer to suppose, may change into a pal had been I to dwell there sooner or later. I depart excited and eager for what different wonders could exist just a few exits down the freeway. 

And certain sufficient, there will probably be one other small city, one other pal to make, one other place to name residence — no less than for now — and one other reminiscence to cherish.

It’s simple to fall for small cities for all these causes and extra. We crave them, we’d like them, they’re a part of us, and they’re extensions of residence.

I think you’ll really feel that manner concerning the ones Journey + Leisure is sharing with you, too. 

— Rolando Pujol, The Retrologist

Finest Small Seashore City

Winner

Paia, Maui

Excellent year-round temperatures. Heat waters. Rainbow-splashed skies. Infinite stretches of sand in each conceivable shade. Hawaii could also be far (2,400 miles from the mainland U.S.), however when you go to its seashores, it’s arduous to withstand the pull again. Of the eight main islands, Maui stands aside with its mixture of ritzy, resort-lined, sugary shores and historic seashore cities imbued with real aloha spirit. The previous city of Lahaina, Maui’s tourism beacon, was decreased to ash by wildfires in 2023. As its waterfront rebuilds, the highlight has shifted to Paia, a former plantation city on Maui’s North Shore only a 10-minute drive from the airport.

Barely 7.5 sq. miles, the Bohemian city is hugged by a string of golden, crescent seashores fringed by swaying palms and virtually at all times dotted with lazing sea turtles. Households love the calm, protected lagoon at Child Seashore, tucked away on the western finish of Baldwin Seashore Park, exhibitionists bask within the solar on clothes non-compulsory Secret Seashore, and the sporty set come right here from across the globe to surf, kitesurf, windsurf, and wingfoil at seashores like Tavares and Ho’okipa. Even in the event you don’t surf, the bluff above Ho’okipa Seashore provides the island’s finest seat to observe the solar soften into the craggy ridges of the West Maui Mountains.

— Jen Murphy

Finest Small Mountain City

Winner

Island Park, Idaho

Ask any avid angler about fly fishing locations out West, and there’s an excellent likelihood they’ll let you know all concerning the famend waters of Henry’s Fork — a tributary of the Snake River and one of many biggest trout fisheries in america. Whereas the river is over 110 miles lengthy, working from Massive Springs to the place it meets the South Fork of the Snake River, a number of of the preferred sections are present in Island Park, Idaho. 

Though I’m at all times tempted by the potential of catching a brown or rainbow trout, there was one more reason I deliberate a visit to Island Park in June 2024: Yellowstone Peaks Lodge. A boutique property with 21 freestanding cabins, wood-fired soaking tubs, a dry sauna, and communal chilly plunges, the distinctive lodge idea was dreamed up by part-time Island Park residents and proprietors Mara and Blake Hansen. Their new enterprise, which welcomed its first visitors in Might, is positioned proper off Island Park’s well-known 33-mile-long Major Road, a stretch of Freeway 20 that goes straight via city and north towards West Yellowstone; the highway can also be generally known as the longest Major Road in america.

— Lydia Mansel

Finest Small Lake City

Winner

Harbor Springs, Michigan

Measuring simply 1.3 sq. miles on the furthest reaches of Lake Michigan, the city of Harbor Springs barely qualifies as a radar blip, even for lifelong Midwesterners. Realizing that the most effective of something is usually missed, the fortunate lakesiders — together with titans of American trade and their households — who’ve frolicked on this historic Nineteenth-century hub of fur and lumber buying and selling are drawn as a lot to its hush-hush seclusion (bereft, as it’s, of any indicators of big-city commerce) as they’re to its surrounding surroundings, unspoiled and ripe for recreation: The turquoise seashores and bays are sometimes likened to the Caribbean, however in shade solely — the summer time temperature of the water tops out at 69 levels Fahrenheit, making swimming a piercing, however well-liked, pursuit.

Lakeview bluffs, windblown sand dunes, and jaunty ski hills are simple elevations with sporting payoffs. Enchanting roads via forests of birch, maple, and cedar will be embraced by leafy canopies, just like the 20-mile Tunnel of Bushes alongside the M-119 freeway. On the southern terminus of this specific scenic byway, simply past Harbor Springs’ stately neighborhoods of heritage lake cottages that appear to be architectural layer truffles, an previous roadside lodge has been not too long ago resurrected into a trendy inn with sturdy ties to Michigan’s midcentury-design heritage, simply in time to welcome a brand new era of vacationers to the world.

— Leilani Marie Labong

Finest Small Desert City

Winner

Bisbee, Arizona

With a downtown that appears straight out of a storybook, Bisbee, Arizona, is a type of splendidly walkable cities that makes you content to go away the automobile on the lodge. Native outlets and historic motels line the highway, and because the city climbs into the Mule Mountains, slender stairways — together with some which have been remodeled into alfresco artwork galleries — present European-style foot entry. 

Bisbee is residence to fewer than 5,000 individuals, together with artists and creatives. It bought its begin as a copper mining city, a historical past that continues to be on the forefront of the city’s id. Previous miners’ cabins nonetheless stand in Tombstone Canyon, and the Queen Mine provides excursions of its expansive underground chambers. These historic websites are enhanced by a energetic, creative group that gives the group with artistic delicacies, galleries, and near-constant dwell music.

— Evie Carrick

Finest Small Arts + Tradition City

Winner

New Hope, Pennsylvania

For a small city with only a few thousand residents, New Hope has an outsize fame. The Bucks County borough on the sting of the Delaware River is the birthplace of early-Twentieth-century Pennsylvania Impressionism; the placement the place numerous stars of the stage, from Liza Minnelli to Robert Redford, bought their begin; one of the LGBTQ+-friendly locations within the U.S.; and the muse of George Nakashima, a founding father of the American Studio Craft motion whose workshop nonetheless operates on the outskirts of city to today.

Whereas most of the most recognizable names in artwork and theater have put New Hope on the worldwide stage, a brand new era of tastemakers is continuous to present guests the curtain-up therapy. New Hope is packed finish to finish with idiosyncratic and mental attract, all crammed into simply 1.4 completely charming sq. miles. Add to that its location, about an hour from each New York Metropolis and Philadelphia, and it’s no shock that modern-day creatives proceed to collect right here, injecting their very own aptitude to its enduring pure magnificence, long-established creative tradition, and quirky appeal.

— Jackie Caradonio

Finest Small Meals + Wine City

Winner

Elk, California

On a bluff overlooking the Pacific Ocean, you’ll discover the tiny city of Elk, California, residence to simply about 275 residents. This string of homes and motels straddling the Pacific Coast Freeway is usually missed by vacationers en path to Mendocino. However Elk, which lies near the wineries of Anderson Valley, is making a reputation for itself within the meals and wine world.

Foodies make the trek to Elk from San Francisco to dine at Harbor Home Inn’s two-Michelin-starred restaurant, which sits above the Pacific shoreline. The Michelin Information calls the cooking right here “extremely unique,” touting chef Matthew Kammerer’s use of “hyperlocal and foraged substances, elevating not solely delicacies like sea urchin but additionally extra humble objects like seaweed harvested from the close by shoreline or lace lichen plucked from overhanging timber.”

— Evie Carrick

Finest Small Spa + Wellness City

Winner

Ouray, Colorado

Scorching springs are Mom Nature’s spa. And the world round Ouray is riddled with pockets of steamy, mineral-rich waters. The Ute Indians that settled southwest Colorado’s Uncompahgre Valley known as these springs miracle waters and used them for therapeutic ceremonies. Through the mining increase of the 1870s, prospectors and miners soaked within the restorative swimming pools to ease the aches of back-breaking work. Immediately, the world’s half-dozen scorching springs soothe the weary muscular tissues of climbers, skiers, and hikers who come to play within the self-proclaimed “Outside Recreation Capital of Colorado.” I like therapeutic massage simply as a lot as I like soak, and the January debut of the Grotto Spa, positioned inside the not too long ago revamped Western Lodge, is the right respite for critical pampering.

Ouray’s location, nestled in a picturesque field canyon surrounded by the snow-capped San Juan Mountains, has additionally earned it the nickname the “Switzerland of America.” “You are feeling such as you’re spooning with the mountains,” says DeLinda Austin, common supervisor of Wiesbaden Scorching Springs Spa and Lodgings. “You’re completely immersed in nature. Individuals arrive pressured and also you see the change instantly. The panorama lulls you right into a extra tranquil state.”

— Jen Murphy

Finest Small Retirement City

Winner

Stuart, Florida

Stuart is a spot you encounter. It isn’t at all times up there in probably the most looked for spots in Florida, however actually, that is a part of its magic. It is a uncommon, true, hidden gem. It is residence to all the same old suspects in the case of incredible Floridian locations, together with pristine seashores that are perfect for spending a day (and plenty of are dog-friendly as well, as long as your pup is leashed), and it has swaying palm timber that information the light and heat breezes proper to your cheek, together with a downtown space that is the best mixture of purchasing, historic websites, and oh-so-delicious eating.

However in Stuart, you will discover one thing particular you do not get to expertise in most of the state’s bigger cities: a real sense of group. Right here, everybody says whats up to their neighbors. Count on to spend a bit of additional time on the espresso store as you chat up the barista, the individual behind you in line, and the couple sitting on the bistro desk on the exit. Be prepared to listen to about grandkids and new boats, arrange tee occasions with individuals you’ve got simply met, and at all times be ready for a bonfire on the seashore. The individuals of Stuart are actually into that type of factor, and they’re utter specialists at making you are feeling welcome.

— Stacey Leasca

Finest Small Faculty City

Winner

Clemson, South Carolina

Tucked within the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains alongside the shore of Lake Hartwell, Clemson is positioned in South Carolina’s rural Upstate area. The quaint downtown is lined with outlets promoting purple-and-orange merch, student-filled sports activities bars, and a crop of latest native companies. I graduated from Clemson College in 2018, totally indoctrinated into Tigers fandom. I grew up on the opposite aspect of the state’s greatest rivalry, raised in a College of South Carolina household, however I used to be drawn to the college’s small-town setting; it felt like a Clemson bubble, the place all the pieces was all Clemson, on a regular basis. 

“Clemson is an distinctive school city as a result of it seamlessly blends educational excellence with an inclusive, welcoming group. Our stunning environment, vibrant native economic system, and powerful faculty spirit create an surroundings the place everybody can thrive,” Clemson mayor Robert Halfacre says. 

— Elizabeth Rhodes

Finest Small Purchasing City

Winner

Spherical Prime, Texas

Pulling into Spherical Prime, Texas, for the primary time looks like discovering a hidden gem. It seems virtually all of a sudden after miles of nation roads, a drive accented by white fences and sightings of longhorn cattle. Barely a sq. mile in measurement, the 87-person city is made up of a group of historic buildings that home vintage and classic purchasing, clothes boutiques, and even a cheese store, a sweet retailer, and a Hallmark-esque espresso and pie place. 

The New York Instances deemed Spherical Prime “the Cotswolds of Texas,” and a neighborhood was quoted in CultureMap San Antonio calling it “the following Jackson Gap.” Texas Month-to-month even gave it the title of “the Aspen of Texas.” However whereas there are touches of every well-to-do vacation spot all through Spherical Prime — the place the appeal of the English countryside meets the Western aptitude and sky-high actual property costs discovered within the high U.S. mountain cities — it has a definite persona and attraction that’s tied to the famed Unique Spherical Prime Antiques Honest.

— Lydia Mansel