Travel + Leisure readers have voted in their annual “America’s Favorite Cities” list, and Charleston took the #1 spot in a few categories and made the top 5 in several other categories. Overall, Charleston ranked #1 for holiday travel, #2 for trips and #5 for hotels!

Other cities competing for these rankings include: Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Chicago, Cleveland, Dallas/Fort Worth, Denver, Honolulu, Houston, Kansas City, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, Minneapolis/St. Paul, Nashville, New Orleans, New York, Orlando, Philadelphia, Phoenix/Scottsdale, Portland, Providence, San Antonio, San Diego, San Francisco, Santa Fe, Seattle, St. Louis and Washington, D.C.

According to visitors, Charleston ranked #1 in B&Bs/Inns and Thanksgiving travel. On the other hand, residents ranked Charleston people #1 in attractiveness and friendliness, as well as #1 for a romanic escape, #1 for historic monuments/sites, #1 for Thanksgiving travel and #1 for B&Bs/Inns. I guess there’s no dispute that Charleston has the nation’s best B&Bs and Inns!

Charleston also ranked in the top 5 in several categories in the visitors survey, including:

• People– attractive #3, friendly #3 and stylish #5
• Type of trip– romantic escape #2 and relaxing retreat #3
• Hotels– B&Bs/Inns #1 and  stylish boutique hotels #4
• Culture– historic sites/monuments #4
• Shopping– antique/vintage shops #2
• Food and Dining– farmers market #5
• Quality of life & visitor experience– noteworthy neighborhoods #2, peace and quiet #2 and safety #3
• Holiday travel– Thanksgiving travel #1 and Spring break #4

There were quite a few differences between what visitors and residents thought about Charleston. Here are the top 5 winners according to residents:

• People– attractive #1, friendly #1 and stylish #3
• Type of trip– romantic escape #1, relaxing retreat #2, family vacation#5 and cultural getaway #5
• Hotels– B&Bs/Inns #1 and  stylish boutique hotels #5
• Nightlife– cocktail hour #2
• Culture– historic sites/monuments #1
• Shopping– antique/vintage shops#2 and independent boutiques #3
• Food and Dining– farmers market #3
• Quality of life & visitor experience– noteworthy neighborhoods #2, peace and quiet #2, safety #3, cleanliness #4 and people-watching #5
• Holiday travel– Thanksgiving travel #1, Summer vacation #3 and Spring break #5