Sports Illustrated recently published a ranking of the best cities for taking in the World Cup. They looked at the quality of the games, the cities themselves, the stadiums, and the locations of the stadiums to come up with a list of the best cities of the 16 that are hosting games. Here are the results, along with some of the reasoning. 16. SAN FRANCISCO – not the best games, and too far from downtown S.F. 15. KANSAS CITY – Again, stadium too far from downtown. 14. NEW YORK NEW JERSEY – The Meadowlands stadium is “a nightmare” to Read more
U.S.A.
The folks at Resonance Consultancy, one of the most respected research firms in the world, have published their 2026 America’s Best Cities report and ranking. It’s their most comprehensive study ever, with all 393 U.S. metropolitan areas ranked for the first time. THE 2026 TOP 25 1. New York 2. Los Angeles 3. Chicago 4. Miami 5. San Francisco 6. Seattle 7. Las Vegas 8. Dallas 9. Houston 10. Boston 11. Austin 12. San Diego 13. Atlanta 14. Washington D.C. 15. Orlando 16. Denver 17. Nashville 18. Portland 19. Phoenix 20. Philadelphia 21. Tampa 22. Charlotte 23. New Orleans 24. Read more
Is the Canadian Elbows Up Movement losing steam? Statistics Canada this week reports that Canadian visits to the United States rose to 1.9 million last month. That’s up 9.5% from the same month in 2025. This marks the second month in a row that Canadian visits to the U.S. have gone up. Overall numbers are still well below 2024 levels, but the steady increase in Canadian visitors to the States is encouraging news for U.S. travel and tourism. “Canada remains a vitally important market for the U.S. and we warmly welcome our Canadian neighbors to our 50 states, five territories Read more
The folks at Time Out have a nice, new list of the world’s top food cities. I’m quite shocked that Japan didn’t place any city in the top 10, and that only one Japanese city (Osaka) made the top 20. I’m also surprised that only two cities in North America (only one in the U.S.) cracked the top 20. Still, it’s an interesting, tasty list that includes a few cities you might not expect to see. Here’s their full top 20. Lima, Perun (I’ve never been to Peru, but Peruvian cuisine is excellent) Bangkok, Thailand (fabulous street food and very Read more
A pair of luxury hotels in Toronto and New York City are the newest properties to receive the AAA Diamond Program’s highest designation. The Hazelton Hotel in Toronto and Waldorf Astoria in New York City have earned AAA Five Diamonds for their stunning surroundings, thoughtful amenities, and unparalleled service, the Canadian Automobile Association and the American Automobile Association announced. I haven’t been to the recently renovated Waldorf in Manhattan, but I’ve stayed at the Hazelton Hotel in Toronto’s trendy Yorkville district a couple of times, and dined there on several occasions. It’s an elegant property that definitely worthy of Five-Diamond Read more
