Each year since 2000, the National Trust for Historic Preservation has been coming out with a list of ‘dozen distinctive destinations’ which, in their own words, “offer an authentic visitor experience by combining dynamic downtowns, cultural diversity, attractive architecture, cultural landscapes and a strong commitment to historic preservation and revitalization.”

Their 2009 list of 12 destinations includes Santa Barbara, California; Athens, Georgia; Saugatuck-Douglas, Michigan; Virginia City, Nevada; Santa Fe, New Mexico; Buffalo, New York; Lititz, Pennsylvania; Bristol, Rhode Island; Hot Springs, South Dakota; Franklin, Tennessee; Fort Worth, Texas; and Lake Geneva, Wisconsin.

The one place which stands out immediately is Buffalo, NY. If you read the post about the 44 places to go in 2009 from the New York Times, you’ll know that Buffalo was one of the places included in that list.

When two highly reputed sources like the New York Times and the National Trust for Historic Preservation both list Buffalo as one of the must visit destinations in 2009, and that too within the space of a week, you have to wonder why vacations in Buffalo have suddenly popped up on everyone’s radar?

Is the American side of the Niagara Falls looking better than the Canadian side? Have Buffalo hotels stopped taking subsidies from City Hall? Is the Seneca Niagara Casino letting people win for a change? No such miracles, but the art scene in Buffalo seems to have become something of a hot ticket. Both the NYT and the NTHP cite the Albright-Knox Art Gallery (www.albrightknox.org/).

Posted on January 14th, 2009 by PLing
Filed under: Travel News