This South Carolina City Was Named The Top City In The U.S., Again

Locals and visitors know there’s no shortage of welcoming cities in South Carolina. From Greenville to Charleston, each city in South Carolina has its own unique characteristics that have people pouring in to our state to visit and to live. However, there’s one South Carolina city that Condé Nast readers are simply in love with.

For the ninth year in a row, Charleston made the top of the list of small cities in the United States. A year shy of a decade, Condé Nast Traveler recently awarded the Holy City with the title as #1 Small City in the United States.

For 32 years, Condé Nast has done its annual Readers’ Choice Awards, where well-traveled readers cast their votes for the best places they visited around the world. In years past, the vote was a single category of best cities, but with a record-breaking 300,000+ registered voters this year, the vote was broken up into two categories: cities with 350,000 people or less and cities with more.

As the ranking states, “When you consider everything it has to offer—history, culture, food, charm—it’s no wonder the so-called Holy City has topped our list of the best small cities in the U.S. for nine years running.” From the architecture to the world-class restaurants, Charleston cannot be beat, as the past nine years have clearly shown.

With the immense popularity Charleston has gained over the years, Condé Nast even included a separate ranking for the 10 best hotels in Charleston for the Readers’ Choice Awards. The French Quarter Inn topped the list, making it the best place to stay in the best city in the nation!

As the numbers have grown to over 7 million visitors in the Charleston area, so has the yearly economic boost that the area receives from the tourism industry. Currently, at over $8 billion pumped into the region’s economy, that number is bound to grow even more with this year’s rankings.

With number one rankings from Southern Living, Afar and even seven years straight in Travel + Leisure, it’s clear that Charleston, SC is a great place to visit and an even greater place to live!