Chicago-Elgin Area Named Nation’s Best Cold-Weather Travel Destination
There’s some good news for Kane County tourism embedded in the recent news that Chicago, IL, is rated as the best cold destination for winter travel.
The ranking comes from WalletHub, which compared nearly 70 of the largest U.S. metro areas grouped by warm and cold weather.
Probably the best local angle is that WalletHub describes our area as “Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI.” How Elgin got that billing we’re not sure, but the key each destination was analyzed based on 36 key metrics — primarily the expense and hassle of traveling to each location but also on other indicators, such as weather forecasts, safety and variety of activities.
The Chicago-Naperville-Elgin area was No. 1 in cold-weather activities and No. 2 in “attractions.” We came in No. 5 in the “Travel Costs & Hassles” ranking.
Here’s a quick glimpse at some of the report’s most interesting findings:
| Best Cold Destinations for Winter Travel | Best Warm Destinations for Winter Travel | |||
| 1 | Chicago, IL | 1 | Las Vegas, NV | |
| 2 | Washington, DC | 2 | Orlando, FL | |
| 3 | Atlanta, GA | 3 | Los Angeles, CA | |
| 4 | Cincinnati, OH | 4 | San Diego, CA | |
| 5 | New York, NY | 5 | Dallas, TX | |
| 6 | Boston, MA | 6 | Austin, TX | |
| 7 | Portland, OR | 7 | Houston, TX | |
| 8 | Denver, CO | 8 | San Francisco, CA | |
| 9 | Philadelphia, PA | 9 | Tampa, FL | |
| 10 | Pittsburgh, PA | 10 | San Antonio, TX | |
Best vs. Worst
- The average flight to a popular cold winter destination costs $279.09, lasts three hours and 32 minutes and has 0.27 connections. In comparison, the average flight to a popular warm winter destination costs $416.61, lasts five hours and has 0.53 connections.
- Among cold destinations, Chicago and Columbus, OH, have the lowest price for a three-star hotel room: $42, which is three times lower than Worcester, MA, the city with the highest at $126.
- Among warm destinations, Dallas has the lowest price for a three-star hotel room: $49, which is 4.7 times lower than Honolulu, the city with the highest at $230.
- Among cold destinations, New York has the most restaurants (per square root of population): 7.42, which is 7.1 times more than in Bridgeport, CT, the city with the fewest at 1.05.
- Among warm destinations, San Francisco has the most restaurants (per square root of population): 4.91, which is 18.2 times more than in North Port, FL, the city with the fewest at 0.27.
To view the full report and your metro area’s rank, please visit:
https://wallethub.com/edu/
Best Winter Vacation Destinations for Cold-Weather Lovers
| Rank (1=Best) |
Cold Destination (MSA) |
Total Score | ‘Travel Costs & Hassles’ Rank | ‘Local Costs’ Rank | ‘Attractions’ Rank | ‘Weather’ Rank | ‘Cold-Weather Activities’ Rank | ‘Safety’ Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI | 79.34 | 5 | 12 | 2 | 23 | 1 | 16 |
| 2 | Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | 74.84 | 6 | 24 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 8 |
| 3 | Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA | 72.87 | 2 | 9 | 8 | 2 | 2 | 22 |
| 4 | Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN | 69.85 | 4 | 1 | 15 | 14 | 14 | 15 |
| 5 | New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA | 68.76 | 22 | 32 | 1 | 10 | 3 | 3 |
| 6 | Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH | 68.60 | 15 | 28 | 7 | 12 | 12 | 2 |
| 7 | Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA | 67.89 | 26 | 20 | 5 | 16 | 5 | 14 |
| 8 | Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO | 67.32 | 12 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 7 | 24 |
| 9 | Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD | 66.98 | 20 | 25 | 6 | 6 | 10 | 17 |
| 10 | Pittsburgh, PA | 66.25 | 13 | 18 | 18 | 21 |
FEATURE PHOTO CREDIT: http://www.dreamtown.com
SOURCE: WalletHub
