Best and Worst Cities for Recreation in 2017

    Staying active and being healthy provides a happy life but also helps you save money. Some cities are more conducive to being active and living a healthy lifestyle, while making it a bit more difficult (relative to other cities).

    One factor is te number neighborhood parks as they build community, increase property values and can reduce pollution.
    There is also a direct correlation between overall health and your wallet. “A regular vigorous run can cut medical costs by an average of $250 a year” per person according to The Trust for Public Land. Understanding these benefits over a hundred large U.S. cities invested more than $7 billion in parks and recreation in 2016 alone.

    Check out this interactive chart to see where your city ranks:

    Source: WalletHub

    Best Cities for Recreation

    Overall Rank
    (1=Best)
    City Total Score ‘Entertainment & Recreational Facilities’ Rank ‘Costs’ Rank ‘Quality of Parks’ Rank ‘Weather’ Rank
    1 Orlando, FL 59.10 3 17 41 28
    2 San Diego, CA 56.68 2 71 15 34
    3 Las Vegas, NV 55.55 9 31 35 18
    4 Tampa, FL 52.97 17 24 74 13
    5 Atlanta, GA 51.63 10 62 24 41
    6 Cincinnati, OH 51.41 18 6 19 58
    7 Tucson, AZ 49.68 31 9 66 16
    8 Denver, CO 49.67 12 36 18 64
    9 San Francisco, CA 49.46 1 99 11 49
    10 Chicago, IL 49.12 4 88 3 92
    11 Portland, OR 49.10 8 61 27 78
    12 Seattle, WA 49.07 6 83 6 70
    13 Boise, ID 49.04 48 2 62 26
    14 Honolulu, HI 48.59 11 79 33 43
    15 Sacramento, CA 48.55 25 67 31 9
    16 Scottsdale, AZ 48.37 35 39 67 3
    17 Los Angeles, CA 47.96 13 92 55 7
    18 New York, NY 47.79 5 100 1 55
    19 Philadelphia, PA 47.78 15 69 25 52
    20 Minneapolis, MN 47.78 22 26 7 77
    21 St. Louis, MO 47.78 23 5 12 94
    22 New Orleans, LA 47.11 20 57 13 53
    23 Phoenix, AZ 46.66 43 22 73 17
    24 St. Petersburg, FL 46.33 33 25 44 40
    25 El Paso, TX 46.22 83 1 65 25
    26 Pittsburgh, PA 46.19 24 28 9 84
    27 Omaha, NE 45.51 36 13 5 75
    28 Austin, TX 45.01 14 43 76 81
    29 Lincoln, NE 44.68 45 50 16 46
    30 Henderson, NV 44.66 72 20 79 4
    31 Madison, WI 44.17 27 38 10 73
    32 Albuquerque, NM 43.43 58 49 23 37
    33 Colorado Springs, CO 43.36 54 29 52 42
    34 Houston, TX 43.32 19 58 45 86
    35 Long Beach, CA 43.20 47 81 32 12
    36 Reno, NV 43.13 46 42 88 27
    37 Washington, DC 43.09 7 96 17 93
    38 Chandler, AZ 42.88 80 32 64 14
    39 Stockton, CA 42.45 86 63 30 10
    40 Columbus, OH 42.44 57 3 58 61
    41 Bakersfield, CA 42.43 95 12 93 2
    42 Glendale, AZ 42.39 62 66 53 11
    43 Kansas City, MO 42.15 68 19 56 44
    44 Oklahoma City, OK 42.02 79 8 81 35
    45 Buffalo, NY 41.96 34 15 26 100
    46 Miami, FL 41.73 16 85 61 68
    47 Jacksonville, FL 41.71 32 35 48 67
    48 Tulsa, OK 41.69 63 30 78 30
    49 Baton Rouge, LA 41.67 42 48 50 54
    50 Mesa, AZ 41.43 71 40 70 20
    51 Virginia Beach, VA 41.42 26 34 38 90
    52 San Antonio, TX 41.39 28 16 84 74
    53 Detroit, MI 41.31 70 41 4 60
    54 Milwaukee, WI 40.84 40 23 34 95
    55 Birmingham, AL 40.54 75 11 99 59
    56 Laredo, TX 40.51 99 4 72 31
    57 Dallas, TX 40.44 30 54 57 72
    58 St. Paul, MN 40.38 52 45 29 69
    59 Norfolk, VA 40.21 49 68 22 62
    60 Irvine, CA 39.83 50 90 40 21
    61 Cleveland, OH 39.78 37 51 39 83
    62 Fort Worth, TX 39.24 65 72 46 32
    63 Anaheim, CA 39.00 55 86 94 6
    64 Nashville, TN 38.86 29 46 83 88
    65 Plano, TX 38.47 66 70 42 45
    66 Chesapeake, VA 38.44 90 59 21 47
    67 North Las Vegas, NV 38.37 97 76 49 5
    68 Winston-Salem, NC 38.22 77 65 71 39
    69 Raleigh, NC 38.16 41 52 75 79
    70 Charlotte, NC 37.98 39 37 96 71
    71 Fresno, CA 37.89 94 47 82 19
    72 Boston, MA 37.57 21 98 8 98
    73 Lexington-Fayette, KY 37.50 73 14 86 62
    74 Louisville, KY 37.42 53 27 89 91
    75 San Bernardino, CA 37.24 100 84 99 8
    76 Indianapolis, IN 37.18 51 18 92 99
    77 Arlington, TX 37.18 60 75 91 36
    78 Lubbock, TX 37.15 81 60 63 48
    79 Baltimore, MD 37.10 38 82 14 89
    80 San Jose, CA 37.05 59 94 43 23
    81 Greensboro, NC 36.63 82 55 37 57
    82 Memphis, TN 36.59 67 7 95 87
    83 Wichita, KS 36.41 88 10 77 85
    84 Aurora, CO 36.37 74 33 54 65
    85 Anchorage, AK 36.33 56 91 2 82
    86 Corpus Christi, TX 36.05 69 64 36 66
    87 Garland, TX 35.88 85 77 80 33
    88 Riverside, CA 35.88 78 87 97 1
    89 Fort Wayne, IN 35.82 64 21 87 96
    90 Durham, NC 35.47 61 44 85 79
    91 Toledo, OH 35.46 96 53 51 50
    92 Fremont, CA 35.44 93 97 20 24
    93 Gilbert, AZ 35.31 91 56 98 14
    94 Santa Ana, CA 34.73 76 93 69 21
    95 Oakland, CA 34.62 44 95 60 51
    96 Jersey City, NJ 34.20 87 73 59 55
    97 Chula Vista, CA 33.21 98 78 90 29
    98 Hialeah, FL 32.96 92 89 68 38
    99 Newark, NJ 32.33 84 74 28 97
    100 Irving, TX 31.69 89 80 47 76

     

    Source: https://wallethub.com/edu/best-worst-cities-for-recreation/5144/

    • Tom La Vecchia

      Founder of New Theory & X Factor Media

      Founder and Publisher of New Theory Magazine and Podcast. Serial Entrepreneur who loves wine, cigars and anything that allows to people to connect and share experiences.

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