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The Hottest Summer Travel Destinations in the US
Three young people carrying suitcases for a summer trip load the trunk of a car.
With the pandemic clearly behind us, Americans are getting out and exploring their cities and their country. To help you make the most of your summer, Lyft researched two years of travel data to find the hottest cities to eat, party, play, play sports or explore nature.
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Hottest food city: Las Vegas
Chart showing trips to non-chain restaurants in Las Vegas
Sin City has been honing its reputation as a foodie paradise since Wolfgang Puck opened a Spago near Caesars Palace in 1992. Soon, casinos began competing for customers as well as gamblers, setting off an arms race that resulted in nine Michelin stars . profitable restaurants, at least 38 restaurants by famous chefs and frequent mentions among the rankings of the best gastronomic cities in the country. As Las Vegas’ tourism industry recovered from the pandemic, so did its restaurant business, with restaurant travel increasing 12% last year.
Las Vegas’ culinary offerings are so vast and varied that no single restaurant or cuisine can claim credit for the increase. Diners flocked to casual restaurants like Nacho Daddy and swanky newcomers like Todd English’s The Pepper Club. They visited celebrity chef restaurants like Gordon Ramsay’s and 888 Japanese BBQ, made by some lesser-known geniuses. Best of all, many of them hopped in a car to explore the food scene off the Strip—including the highly regarded Esther’s Kitchen in the Arts District and the Bavarian Hofbrauhaus Las Vegas near the airport, which proudly offers to bludgeon visitors with a wooden oar, if they so request. Hey, you know what they say about what happens in Vegas!
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Hottest city for nightlife: Detroit
Chart showing trips to nighttime destinations in Detroit.
Since declaring bankruptcy in 2013, Detroit – the birthplace of Motown as well as (arguably) early punk rock and techno – has leveraged and promoted its musical legacy to attract visitors. And it’s paying off. Last year, trips after midnight to hotels, bars and clubs increased by 30%. Late-night revelers were drawn to last May’s Movement Festival, which featured electronic music legends like Carl Craig and Moodymann. They also visited venues like the Leland City Club and the “intimate disco oasis” Marble Bar, which saw its nighttime activity nearly double.
The Motor City shows no signs of taking its foot off the accelerator. Detroit launched three swanky new hotels last year ahead of April’s NFL draft (which drew hundreds of thousands of visitors) — and economists predict the hotel industry will continue to grow next year. So if you want to spend your summer dancing until the wee hours of the morning, you know where to go.
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Hottest city for outdoor activities: Milwaukee
Graphic showing trips to outdoor activities in Milwaukee.
Last year, National Geographic declared 25 places “the world’s best” travel destinations. The list was full of exotic locales – Laos, Botswana – but also included a surprising entry: Milwaukee.
Well, maybe it’s not that surprising for American travelers, who have been visiting the city in record numbers in recent years. They especially flocked to attractions and outdoor locations. Summer Lyft riders were more likely to visit seaside destinations like Veterans Park, located on a peninsula in Lake Michigan, and Bradford Beach, a sandy strip just 1.5 miles to the north. But it wasn’t just the lake that attracted the crowd. In the summer of 2023, Milwaukee has earned its nickname as a festival city: Veterans Park hosted the Independence Day fireworks and Harley-Davidson Homecoming, a four-day festival featuring motorcycle parades and music (last year, Green Day and Foo Fighters were the main attractions); Bradford Beach held The Playa Fest, Milwaukee’s first Latin Beach festival; and the Wisconsin State Fair (Lyft riders’ third destination in the Milwaukee area) drew people from across the region. Overall, Lyft trips to outdoor activities in the city increased 43% last year.
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Hottest Sports City: Philadelphia
Graphic showing tours of summer sports facilities in Philadelphia.
In 2023, MLB saw a 9.1% increase in attendance, the highest in 30 years, after instituting new rules aimed at streamlining the game. One team in particular reaped the benefits: the Philadelphia Phillies, who saw a 34% increase in trips to their home ground, Citizens Bank Park. (His against-all-odds appearance in the 2022 World Series probably didn’t hurt, either.)
But Philadelphia fans didn’t just show up to play baseball. The 76ers have sold out every home basketball game for the past six years. A large crowd attended the WrestleMania Week event at the Wells Fargo Center this spring. And last July’s surge in sporting attractions coincided with the Premier League Summer Series, where teams like Chelsea, Newcastle United and other English soccer teams took to Lincoln Financial Field, attracting nearly 150,000 fans over two days. So if you want to be where the fans are this summer, Philadelphia is screaming your name.
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Hottest Gambling City: Chicago
Chart showing trips to casinos in Chicago.
Chicago has been associated with gambling since the days of Al Capone, but until recently, the only legal casinos could be found on riverboats – or on the city border in Des Plaines or Peoria. That all changed in September, when a long-awaited Bally’s opened in a temporary location within city limits and caused casino withdrawals to soar 60% last year. (Need more evidence that Chicago is the latest gambling hotspot? The American Gaming Association now ranks it as the third-largest gambling market in the U.S., behind only Las Vegas and Atlantic City.)
It’s unclear whether Chicago will maintain its status. Critics say the casino contributed less tax revenue than expected, and the plan to build a permanent complex in River West reportedly faced some obstacles. Then again, what would a new gaming mecca be without a little risk?
This story was produced by Lyft and reviewed and distributed by Stacker Media.
