Top Columbus Accolades

Columbus continues to make headlines, from being named one of the best big cities in the U.S. by Condé Nast Traveler to a favorite destination for family travel by Afar to one of the best solo trips for women in the U.S. and around the world by Glamour. Keep reading to learn about the latest accolades.

2025

• Travel + Leisure: 20 Best Places to Travel in June (Columbus)
• Food & Wine: The 10 Top Bars in the US, According to the Experts (Law Bird #10)
• USA Today 10Best: Best Half Marathon (OhioHealth Capital City Half Marathon #2) 
• USA Today 10Best: Best Minor League Ballpark (Huntington Park #8)
• AFAR: 10 Best Places in the U.S. for Summer Travel (Columbus #3) 
• Midwest Living: One of the Best Places in the Midwest to See Cherry Blossoms 
• USA Today 10Best: Best Zoo (Columbus Zoo and Aquarium #3) 
• USA Today 10Best: Best City Food Festival (Columbus Food Truck Festival #4)
• USA Today 10Best: Best Art Festival (Columbus Arts Festival #2)
• USA Today 10Best: Best Film Festival (Cinema Columbus Film Festival #1)
• USA Today 10Best: Best Cultural Festival (Dublin Irish Festival #1)
• USA Today 10Best: Best Immersive Art Experience (Otherworld #6)
• USA Today 10Best: Best Beer Bar in the U.S. (The Ohio Taproom #2)
• USA Today 10Best: Best Beer City in the U.S. (Columbus #5) 
• Eat This, Not That: The Best Pizza in Every State (featuring Gatto's and the Columbus-Style Pizza Trail)
• Business Traveler: The Best U.S. and Global Business Travel Cities of the Year
• Eat This, Not That: The Best Ice Cream Shop in Every State (featuring Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams)
• Condé Nast Traveler: 10 Best Zoos in the United States (featuring the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium)
• USA Today 10Best: 10 Best Immersive Art Experiences in the U.S. (Otherworld #6)
• USA Today 10Best: Best Science Museums in the Nation (COSI #1) 2025, 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020
• USA Today 10Best: Best Planetariums in the U.S. (COSI #3) 2025
• USA Today: Agni named one of USA Today's 2025 Restaurants of the Year
• Lonely Planet: The 8 Best Offbeat Winter Trips in the USA (Columbus #7)

2024

• Smart Meetings: Platinum Choice Award Winner 2024 (Greater Columbus Convention Center)
• AFAR: Where to Go in 2025
• Thrillist: The Best Midwest Cities to Visit in the Winter
• Condé Nast Traveler: One of the Friendliest Cities in the U.S
• Thrillist: 10 Surprising Family-Friendly Vacation Ideas in the U.S.
• USA Today 10Best: 10 Best Colleges for Sports Fans (The Ohio State University #6)
• USA Today 10Best: 10 Best College Sports Traditions (Script Ohio - The Ohio State University #8)
• Condé Nast Traveler: 10 Best Food Cities in the U.S. (Columbus #8)
• USA Today 10Best: 10 Best Botanical Gardens and Arboretums Bursting with Fall Color
• Condé Nast Traveler: 10 Best Big City in U.S. (Columbus #9)
• USA Today 10Best: 10 Best Spots in the U.S. to Visit this Fall (Columbus #8)
• USA Today 10Best: 10 Best Oktoberfest Celebrations in the U.S. (Schmidt's Columbus Oktoberfest #7)
• Thrillist: The Best College Towns in the U.S. (Columbus)
• Bon Appétit: The 20 Best New Restaurants of 2024 (Agni)
• Glamour: 25 Best Solo Trips for Women in the US and Around the World (Columbus)
• USA Today: Law Bird named one of USA Today's 2024 Best Bars of the Year
• New York Times: Best Cities for New College Graduates (Columbus #5)
• The Points Guy: 12 Underrated Summer Travel Destinations for 2024
• USA Today 10Best: 10 Best Food Tours in the U.S. (Columbus Food Adventures #1)
• USA Today 10Best: 10 Best Farmers Markets Across the Nation (Worthington Farmers Market #1)
• USA Today 10Best: 10 Best Food Halls in the U.S. (Budd Dairy Food Hall #3)
• USA Today 10Best: 10 Best Public Markets Across the U.S. (North Market #8)
• USA Today 10Best: 10 Best Riverwalks Across the U.S. (Scioto Mile #10)
• AFAR: Our Favorite Family Destinations Across the U.S. for 2024 (Columbus)
• Midwest Living: Best of the Midwest 2024 Award Winners, Lodging (The Junto)
• Food & Wine: One of the Top U.S. Cities for Bakeries
• USA Today 10Best: Best Half Marathons Across the Nation (Columbus #2) 2024
• USA Today 10Best: Best Beer City in the U.S. (Columbus #3) 2024
• USA Today 10Best: Best Immersive Art Experience in the U.S. (Otherworld #6) 2024
• USA Today 10Best: Best Science Museums in the Nation (COSI #2) 2024
• USA Today: FYR named one of USA Today's 2024 Restaurants of the Year
• Bloomberg: Columbus has the most population growth out of any metropolitan in the U.S.
• USA Today 10Best: Best New Restaurants in the U.S. that You Need to Try in 2024 (Cut 132 #7)
• Zillow: Columbus has the third hottest housing market
• USA Today 10Best: Best Hotels that Opened Last Year (The Junto named the best new independent lifestyle hotel and #2 overall)
• TravelPulse: Affordable US Travel Destinations for 2024 (Columbus #3)

2023

• Essence: One of the Best Destinations for Culinary Travel in 2024
• Human Rights Campaign: Columbus scored a 100/100 on the 2023 Municipal Equality Index
• Time Out: Top 10 Best College Towns (Columbus #3)
• Northstar Meetings Group: Best Midwest Convention Center (Gold Star: GCCC)
• Meetings Today: Best mid-America CVBs/DMO
• Wall Street Journal: The Best Convention Centers in the U.S. (Columbus #11)
• Travel + Leisure: One of the Best Weekend Getaways in Ohio
• Forbes: Top 10 Places for Young Professionals to Live (Columbus #4)
• USA Today 10Best: Best Food Halls in the U.S. (Budd Dairy Food Hall #4)
• Midwest Living: 25 Perfect Weekend Getaways
• Yelp and Entrepreneur Magazine: America’s 15 Most Beloved Mom and Pop Shops (The Book Loft #11)
• OpenTable: Most Popular Restaurants for Outdoor Dining in America (Featuring Lindey’s)
• Architectural Digest: Most Climate-Resilient Cities (Columbus #8)
• Bon Appétit: The Very Best Bagels in the U.S. (Featuring The Lox Bagel Shop)
• USA Today 10Best: Best Aerial Adventure Park in the U.S. (ZipZone Outdoor Adventures #2)
• USA Today 10Best: 10 Best Public Markets Across the U.S. (North Market #7)
• U.S. News & World Report: 21 Top Pride Parades and Celebrations in the U.S.
• Travel + Leisure: 11 Best Places to Travel in July
• Buzzfeed: Most Underrated Cities In The United States
• Men’s Journal: 7 Wild New Mountain Bike Trails and Destinations, (Columbus #6)
• Tasting Table: 13 Underrated Food Cities in the US You Need to Visit In 2023
• Men's Journal: 8 Craft Breweries With the Coolest On-site Games (Land-Grant Brewing Company #1)
• Forbes: 77 New Springtime Hotel Openings Worth Visiting This Year (Featuring The Junto)
• AARP: 10 Affordable Spring Vacations
• USA Today 10Best: Best Science Museums in the Nation (COSI #1) 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020
• James Beard Awards: Best Chef: Great Lakes Semifinalist (BJ Lieberman, Chapman’s Eat Market)
• Good Housekeeping: 20 Best Cheap Places to Travel in 2023 (Columbus #15)
   

2022

• Food & Wine: The Best Places to Eat Filipino Food in Every State (Bonifacio: Modern Filipino)
• USA Today 10Best: Best Immersive Art Experiences in the U.S. (Otherworld #9)
• Best Life: The 10 U.S. Cities with the Best Christmas Light Displays (Columbus #4)
• Best Life: The 10 Best U.S. Cities to Visit for Bicyclists (Columbus #7)
• The New York Times: Best Cities for Gen Z (Columbus #6)
• USA Today 10Best: Best Science Museum in the Nation (COSI #1) 2022, 2021, 2020
• Fodor’s: 11 Most Beautiful Libraries in the United States (Columbus Metropolitan Library #10)
• Bankrate: America’s Best Places to Live (Columbus #11)
• MeetingSource.com: Top 25 Convention Cities
• MSN: 18 Road Trip Destinations Within a One Day’s Drive for 50% or More of Americans (Columbus #5)
• The Ascent: Best Midwest Cities for Millennials (Columbus #7)
• Human Rights Campaign: Columbus scored a 100/100 on the 2022 Municipal Equality Index
• Apartment Advisor: Top 10 Best Foodie Cities for Renters (Columbus #5)
• Reader’s Digest: 52 Mini Vacations That Won’t Break the Bank
• Men's Journal: Best Urban Parks and Trails for City-Dwellers Seeking Green Spaces (Scioto Mile #12)
• Best Life: 10 Best U.S. Gardens To Stroll Through—Even in Cold Weather (Franklin Park Conservatory & Botanical Gardens #4)
• Clever: Best Music Cities in the U.S. (Columbus #13)
• Best Life: Best Cities to Visit If You Love Old Houses (Columbus #8)

2021

• SmartAsset: Top 10 Cities for Conferences (Columbus #7)
• U.S. News & World Report: Best Weekend Getaways in the Midwest (Columbus #22)
• Human Rights Campaign: Columbus scored a 100/100 on the 2021 Municipal Equality Index
• Fodor’s: 10 Best New Food Halls Across the U.S. (Budd Dairy Food Hall #8)
• Matador Network: 9 Best Gay-Friendly Cities in the U.S. (Columbus #7)
• Food & Wine: The Best Bagels in America (featuring The Lox Bagel Shop)
• The New York Times: 50 Best Restaurants in America (Featuring Chapman’s East Market)
• U.S. News & World Report: 30 Most Fun Places to Live in the U.S. (Columbus #27)
• Airport Service Quality (ASQ) Award: One of the Best Airports for Passenger Experience (2020)

2020

• The New York Times: Best Places for Millennials to Live & Work (Columbus #6)
• Travel Channel: Top 10 Domestic Destinations (Columbus #10)
• Livability: Top 100 Best Places to Live in America (Columbus #11)
• Entrepreneur: 8 Heartland Cities Essential to the Future of American Innovation (Columbus #4)
• LinkedIn News: Top 15 U.S. Cities to Launch Your Career (Columbus #9)

2019

• The New York Times: 52 Places to Go in 2019