April 10, 2024 – Solvang, CA – Solvang, California (www.SolvangUSA.com), affectionately known as “The Danish Capital of America,” has been voted as second “Best Small Town in the West” in the 2024 USA TODAY 10Best Readers’ Choice Travel Awards, the results for which were publicly announced on April 10. The unique Southern California destination joins category winner Seward, Alaska, and third place holder, Grants, New Mexico, in the top three spots.
In 2024, Solvang was nominated by a panel of experts and the 10Best editorial team for the USA TODAY 10Best Readers’ Choice Awards in two different travel categories: “Best Small Town in the West” and “Best Main Street.” The travel awards contest and online voting launched for the “Best Small Town in the West” category on Monday, March 4, 2024 at 12 Noon EST, and online, public voting ran through Monday, April 1, 2024 at 11:59 AM EDT. (Results for the “Best Main Street” awards category have not yet been announced.)
No stranger to the USA TODAY 10Best Readers’ Choice Awards, Solvang, the Danish-rooted, California Central Coast getaway spot with a resident population hovering around 6,000, was one of the 10 Best Historic Small Town winners in the 2018 travel contest. Solvang was also one of the 10 Best winners for the same award category in 2016. In 2017, USA TODAY named Solvang as one of “10 great places to enjoy global Christmas traditions in the USA.” More recently, Solvang was nominated for the 2022 USA TODAY 10Best Readers’ Choice Awards in two different categories, “Best Historic Small Town” and “Best Small Town Cultural Scene,” and secured seventh place in the 2022 winners’ listing for the latter category.
Solvang is the only California town represented in the top 10 winners’ list for 2024’s “Best Small Town in the West,” and jostled for first place among the top finishers throughout the voting period. The fourth through tenth place winners in the category are: Cody, Wyoming; Manitou Springs, Colorado; Gig Harbor, Washington; Bainbridge Island, Washington; Williams, Arizona; Durango, Colorado; and Ashland, Oregon.
The annual USA TODAY 10Best Readers’ Choice awards feature the top 20 nominees in contests covering travel and lifestyle topics such as food, lodging, destinations, travel gear, things to do, seasonal family fun, and more. The 10Best Readers’ Choice Award contest launches new categories every other Monday at 12 Noon, revealing each category’s 20 nominees. After four weeks of digital voting, the contest closes on the 28th day at 12 Noon. Rules allow the public the right to vote online for one nominee per category, per day. More information about the USA TODAY 10Best Readers’ Choice Awards may be found here.
Dog-friendly and ideal for kids, Solvang, known for its Danish-American vibe, architecture and design details, pastries and bakeries, and array of wine tasting options, also boasts dozens of unique boutiques, restaurants and gourmet food purveyors. Carefully-curated indie booksellers and high-end home goods suppliers mingle with fairy tale-like children’s stores and museum gift shops. Solvang’s foodie destinations offer everything from elevated street cuisine – like locally-sourced fish tacos on hand-made tortillas, and comforting ramen noodles – to European-style pretzels and sausages, to Italian standbys or iconic Danish dishes, to elevated new-Californian fare in the form of MICHELIN-honored menus. Solvang visitors sip small-batch, locally-roasted coffee, shop for exotic, hand-bottled spice blends, or enjoy Tiki cocktails and craft beer, all part of an indulgent and one-of-a-kind, year ‘round shopping and playing escape.
Questions, media requests for interviews and/or photos related to this announcement may be directed to Anna Ferguson-Sparks, Stiletto Marketing, at 1-877-327-2656 or solvang@stilettomarketing.com.
About the City of Solvang
Referred to as “The Danish Capital of America,” the City of Solvang is located in the Santa Ynez Valley in Santa Barbara County, California. Founded by a group of Danish-Americans in 1911 and incorporated in 1985, Solvang offers a taste of Denmark in Southern California. Danish design and Old World charm fill Solvang’s numerous interior courtyards, cozy communal spaces, and open-air venues, where vacation itineraries for all unfold. The walkable town features plentiful free parking options for locals and day-trippers, and more than 20 lodging options for staycation-ers, weekenders and midweek travelers, at all vacation budget levels. The Solvang Visitor Center, located at 1639 Copenhagen Drive, is open daily, 9:30 AM-5:30 PM (closed briefly for lunch). For more information, including travel itinerary ideas and inspiration for things to do (even on rainy days), where to eat and drink, and places to stay, follow our adventures on Instagram and Facebook: @SolvangUSA and facebook.com/VisitSolvangUSA.
