1. Best Times to Visit
There were some interesting relationships between political affiliation and the various subcategories for ‘Best Times to Visit.’ Namely, the more conservative a city was, the higher the score it received for ‘Winter/Christmas,’ ‘New Year’s Eve,’ and ‘Spring Break.’ In particular, conservative Salt Lake City was the highest-rated city for winter/Christmas, whereas leftist Seattle came in dead last. Relatively conservative New Orleans was number one for New Year’s Eve, but relatively leftist Minneapolis/St. Paul was at the bottom of the list. Right-wing Charleston and Savannah were in the top 5 for spring break, whereas left-wing Minneapolis, Boston, and Philadelphia were all in the bottom five.
In contrast, the more leftist a city was, the higher the score it received for ‘Summer.’ For example, Portland, OR and Seattle made the top five, whereas Phoenix/Scottsdale, Houston, Dallas/Fort Worth, New Orleans, and Las Vegas constituted the bottom five.
I could speculate about how conservative cities are more likely to publicly display Christmas in a festive way than leftist cities. But I think the overall explanation for these findings is simpler: conservative cities tend to be located in warmer climates, such as the South and Southwest, whereas leftist cities tend to be located in colder climates, such as the Northeast. Thus, conservative cities are better getaways for cooler times of the year (winter, New Year’s Eve, spring break), and leftist cities are better getaways for warmer times of the year (summer.)
Next: Culture…
