A getaway to a cozy winter destination could mean ice skating on a rink while admiring Christmas lights, having a cup of hot chocolate by a firepit, enjoying views of snowcapped mountains and Christmas shopping at quaint stores.
There’s a lot to do during winter in America’s small towns, but which are the coziest winter towns?
A recent study by travel experts at New York Travel Guides, a travel website, ranked the 110 coziest winter towns in the U.S. for a magical getaway. They collected data to compare 575 small towns across three categories: popularity during winter with the general public and photographers, cozy weather and cozy activities and atmosphere.
Popularity during winter with the general public and photographers, assigned a weight of 25%, was calculated by the search interest in each small town during the months of December, January and February, and the number of posts shared by photographers on Flickr during the months of December, January and February in comparison to other months of the year. The score for cozy weather, 15%, was calculated based on the average high temperature, the total snowfall in inches and the number of days with snow during the months of December, January and February. The cozy activities and atmosphere score, 60%, was determined by the presence of Christmas and winter festivals, the number of historic performing arts theaters, the number of cozy restaurants according to reviews, the number of cozy coffee shops, an assessment of each town’s cozy appearance and the number of cozy places to stay according to reviews.
Which Texas cities made the list of coziest winter towns?
Two Texas cities, Marble Falls and Fredericksburg, made the list of coziest winter towns in America for a magical getaway.
Marble Falls, at No. 40, is one of the country’s coziest winter towns. There are plenty of things to do in the town during the winter, including ice skating at the Winter Ice Skating Rink and attending the town’s Christmas events. One of those events that takes place in Marble Falls is The Walkway of Lights, during which you can see beautiful Christmas lights. The Light Up Parade, where you can see lighted floats, also takes place in Marble Falls.
The city received a 96 winter popularity score with the public and photographers, a 64 cozy weather score and an 81 cozy activities and atmosphere score.
The town of Fredericksburg founded in 1846, at No. 96, is perfect for a cozy winter getaway. There are a lot of things to do there during the Christmas season. Watch the Light the Night Christmas Parade, ice skate at the Eisbahn Ice Skating Rink and view the nightly lighting of the authentic German Christmas pyramid and Christmas tree. The town’s many locally owned shops on Main Street are perfect for holiday shopping while seeing festive Christmas decorations.
Fredericksburg received a 73 winter popularity score with the public and photographers, a 64 cozy weather score and an 80 cozy activities and atmosphere score.
Top 20 coziest winter towns
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Leavenworth, Washington
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Breckenridge, Colorado
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Stowe, Vermont
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Vail, Colorado
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Aspen, Colorado
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Lake Placid, New York
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Portsmouth, New Hampshire
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Frankenmuth, Michigan
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Petoskey, Michigan
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Stillwater, Minnesota
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Ketchum, Idaho
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Helen, Georgia
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Frisco, Colorado
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Gatlinburg, Tennessee
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Lititz, Pennsylvania
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Big Sky, Montana
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Crested Butte, Colorado
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Deadwood, South Dakota
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Bayfield, Wisconsin
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Galena, Illinois