We Asked 10 Travel Editors the One U.S. Destination They’d Visit This Summer — Here’s What They Said

Around the end of March, travel editors experience a specific type of professional exhaustion. Inspired by PR firms and seasonal ad cycles, they have spent months crafting meticulously worded guides to places they may or may not have visited recently. When you remove all of that and ask them where they would really go if they had their own budget and no deadline, they quickly become honest.

That’s precisely what we did. One question was posed to ten travel editors: one U.S. destination this summer, no exceptions. Not a hedge. No, “it depends on your travel style.” Just an honest response. There were a number of responses that subtly questioned the notion that domestic travel is somehow the consolation prize, as well as a mixture of the expected and the truly unexpected.

Charleston, South Carolina was mentioned multiple times. It’s difficult to ignore the reason. With its cobblestone streets, the smell of salt air wafting from the harbor, and restaurants serving lowcountry cuisine that seems more ambitious every year, the city has a way of feeling both lived-in and slightly theatrical at the same time. It sounded more like a memory she was reluctant to let go of than a travel pitch when one editor talked about strolling through the French Quarter early on a Tuesday morning before the heat started to build. When someone is merely filling column inches, that level of specificity doesn’t occur.

Colorado kept coming up, but not always for the same reason. The mountains are a source of relief rather than romance for editors who work in hotter climates, particularly Texas. Telluride received two votes because of its film festival vibe and truly breathtaking views of the box canyon. Another editor said that sometimes the road is the point, so just drive Highway 82 toward Aspen without even stopping.

For good reason, New Orleans consistently appears on lists like this, which is also a little annoying because it’s so obvious that it almost seems like a cheat. However, the editors who gave it that name weren’t being indolent. In a way that few American travel destinations do, the city seems to reward repeat visits. It subtly shifts. The once-closed restaurant transforms into something new and improved. A block you completely missed is revealed by the neighborhood you believed you understood.

Once, Big Sur was mentioned by an editor who appeared hesitant to include it. “I know everyone says Big Sur,” she said, “but I genuinely can’t think of anywhere else that does what it does to you.” Whether that type of place-loyalty is journalism or something more akin to devotion is still up for debate. In any case, it is genuine.

It’s interesting to observe how these editors consistently shifted away from the mega-destinations across ten different inboxes. Even though it has been at the top of corporate travel indices for years, Las Vegas only made one appearance and offered a mild apology. Orlando was not chosen. Jackson Hole arrived with the quiet assurance of someone who doesn’t require an explanation.

That pattern has something worthwhile. It’s possible that the frequent exposure to new locations that comes with professional travel eventually recalibrates what feels meaningful. The crowds cease to be enjoyable. A large resort city’s predictability begins to feel like sameness rather than comfort. If this small sample is any indication, editors appear to be interested in texture. locations that seem to have inner lives.

That may be the most practical lesson to be learned from this. It’s not a checklist or a ranked list, but it serves as a reminder that the ideal summer vacation isn’t always the best one. It’s the one where, on a Tuesday, something minor and unforeseen occurs, and by Thursday, you’re still thinking about it.