Tag: Conde Nast Traveler

Charleston, SC Voted #1 by Conde Nast Traveler Readers for the 3rd year in a row!

On By Barbara StroudIn HOME, THOUGHTS3 Comments

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Woohoo! This is exciting news for Charleston, SC! Conde Nast Traveler readers have voted our city NUMBER ONE in the United States for the third year in a row! No easy task!

So thank you to all who voted, and thank you Conde Nast Traveler!!

From Conde Nast Traveler’s website:

CHARLESTON

Readers’ Choice Rating: 83.2

Culture: 84.5
Friendliness: 84.3
Atmosphere: 86.4
Restaurants: 86
Lodging: 82.1
Shopping: 75.1With “sand, sun, history, good food, and friendly people,” Charleston is a consistent hit with the travelers who venture to this “gracious and beautiful” city (in fact, it’s taken first place our list of Top 10 Cities in the United States for three years now and been rated as the friendliest). Nearby beaches and impressive architecture draw visitors, but it’s the “insanely nice” locals who enhance “magnificent” bed and breakfasts and “amazing shopping.” “The charm of this city brings me back every year,” praised one devoted fan. “The food, history, architecture and people are wonderful,” said one reader. “A bucket list city!”

F L A S H B A C K

O N E   Y E A R   A G O…       Featured Artist… John Cook!

T W O   Y E A R S   A G O…   Harvest Festival at the Ferry Building, San Francisco, CA Oct 22-23, 2011!

Catch you back here tomorrow!

Charleston, SC voted #1 tourist destination in the WORLD as well as the United States!

On By Barbara StroudIn HOMELeave a comment

Readers of Condé Nast Traveler magazine have awarded Charleston, SC the number one tourist destination in the world as well as in the United States… Here’s a blip from an article written by Warren Wise in our local Post & Courier newspaper, click HERE to read the entire article:

Charleston on top of the world in tourist ranking

Last year, Charleston was flattered. This year, it’s on top of the world.

Readers of Conde Nast Traveler not only named the Holy City the No. 1 tourist destination in the U.S. for the second year in a row, but also the top travel city on the planet.

“It was a giant surprise for us,” said Helen Hill, executive director of the Charleston Area Convention and Visitors Bureau. “It’s an honor to be in the Top 3, but to be No. 1 twice in the U.S. is unbelievable and to be named No. 1 city in the world, you can’t do any better than that.”

Last year, Charleston came in third in the world, behind Sydney, Australia and Florence, Italy.

KUDOS Charleston! This is a great place to live, with plenty of restaurants, art galleries, beaches, shops, you name it, we have it! If you’re looking for a vacation destination, look no further!

Catch you back here tomorrow!

Image: CondéNastTraveler.com

The Art of the Staycation…

On By Barbara StroudIn HOME, THOUGHTS2 Comments

Charleston was voted #1 City in America by Conde Nast Traveler magazine… It’s been on the list for years, but this year it beat San Francisco! Whoa! I have to say, that’s another place that is near and dear to my heart! But since we live in Charleston, SC, I think a staycation is in order!

You’ve heard of it… a STAYCATION. Taking a vacation and staying at home all in one nice little package. A brilliant idea actually! However, the ART of a staycation may take some practice. It’s tricky to be “on vacation” while you’re at home. There are projects to be done, grass to cut, dishes to wash, and all of lifes everyday moments. BUT, life is short and you have to enjoy it while you can! So if you “take” a staycation, give yourself a break, you’ve worked hard, you need some R&R, no guilt!

A staycation has some nice benefits… No packing, no spending money on flights, no hotels, none of the other headaches that come with traveling. You can still get out and see some sites and still save money! (And what better place than Charleston, SC??) It gives you time to be a tourist in your own city. We don’t seem to get to many of the tourist attractions in Charleston and this is a perfect opportunity. So as of today, we are officially on STAYCATION. I guess I can’t say we’re “going” on staycation… we’re “staying” on staycation!

We have some ideas of places we want to go, for instance to the Gibbe’s Museum of Art to see the Mary Whyte: Working South exhibition! We’ve got so many great restaurants in Charleston, SC, that we’ll have to mull the options over a bit more!

I haven’t decided if I’m going to post photos from each days staycation or have a post scheduled for each day, but I guess you’ll figure it out. I will be posting every day regardless… haven’t missed a day since 1/1/2011, I’m heading into year two and I’m on a roll!

So stick with me! Have you been staycationing? Where do you go? What do you do? I was reading an article, it said when you staycation, you should do things differently, turn off your phone (eek), turn off your computer (double eek), plan different places to go (yay), etc. So we’re going to play it by ear. Maybe just cut down on computer time? Hee hee…

Catch you back here tomorrow… promise!

CHARLESTON image via CNTraveler.com

STAYCATION definition via Merriam-Webster.com