These 4 Arizona cities were rated among best in US for recreation. We're not sure we agree
Four Arizona cities have been ranked among the 25 best cities in the nation when it comes to recreation, with Scottsdale placing in the Top 10.
That’s according to 2023's Best & Worst Cities for Recreation, a study conducted by WalletHub.
The personal finance website ranked the 100 largest U.S. cities across 48 key metrics grouped into four major categories: the accessibility of entertainment and recreational facilities, cost of living, quality of parks and weather.
As WalletHub financial writer Adam McCann explains it, “The best cities have a wide range of leisure activities, both indoor and outdoor. Those activities require varying levels of exercise and contribute to a city’s overall well-being and economy.”
Some Arizona cities didn’t fare as well.
Gilbert finished 90th out of 100 cities.
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How all 7 Arizona cities ranked on Best & Worst Cities list
Here’s where our cities fell in the rankings.
6th – Scottsdale
12th – Tucson
18th– Phoenix
22nd – Glendale
35th– Chandler
43rd– Mesa
90th– Gilbert
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Did WalletHub just make these numbers up?
You may be wondering if WalletHub just made the numbers up, especially if you live in Gilbert.
But there’s actually a methodology behind these rankings.
The four categories are not weighted equally.
Entertainment & Recreational Facilities had a total of 40 available points, with number of attractions offering the most potential points, so doing well there helped a lot. On this metric, Phoenix finished 27th, just ahead of Tucson (No. 29) and Scottsdale (No. 30).
Cost of living had 30 available points. Glendale absolutely crushed the competition there, topping the list with the cheapest cost of living in the nation. (This clearly did not take into account how much I paid for that Coke Zero at the Cure show.) Four other Arizona cities placed in the Top 30 here as well: Chandler (18), Mesa (19), Tucson (28) and Scottsdale (29).
Quality of parks had 20 available points. And Scottsdale was our highest-rated city on that list at No. 30. That’s just sad. Chandler was our second best at No. 57.
The last of those main categories, weather, was worth 10 points. And although it’s hard to hear this during an excessive heat advisory, we did all right, with 7 of the Top 20 cities.
If it's hard to wrap your head around the thought of the weather in Scottsdale somehow being so much better than the weather in nearby Mesa that Scottsdale finished third and Mesa finished 20th? Well, it should be.
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Cheap bowling, not enough tennis and other determining factors
The WalletHub site did breakouts on a few key metrics that offered insights into how our cities fared in those specific points of interest.
Tucson, for examples, crushed the competition when it comes to cost of bowling. Tucson has the cheapest bowling allies in the nation. I’m actually thinking of driving to Tucson to bowl. I paid $8 a game here in Phoenix just last week.
Two Arizona cities have the fewest tennis courts per capita, and paid the price in this WalletHub ranking: Mesa finished 95th with just enough courts to edge out Gilbert, which finished 96th.
Scottsdale fared well on percentage of parkland. Of those 100 cities, Scottsdale finished 4th while Mesa finished 94th.
10 best cities for recreation in the U.S., according to WalletHub
Las Vegas
Tampa
Orlando
Cincinnati
Atlanta
Scottsdale
San Diego
Honolulu
St. Louis
Chicago
Reach the reporter at ed.masley@arizonarepublic.com or 602-444-4495. Follow him on Twitter @EdMasley.
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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: These Arizona cities were named best and worst in US for recreation
