How Does Philly Rank in America's Favorites?

According to Travel+Leisure Magazine's "America's Favorite Cities" reader poll, Philadelphia does not seem to be one of America's favorites in many categories. The best rankings for Philly came in the categories of pizza, historical sites/monuments, and museums/galleries. The worst rankings came in the categories of cleanliness, barbeque, and relaxing retreat. A notably negative result from the survey was Philly's ranking as the third rudest city in America, following New York and Los Angeles.

A Philly.com article suggests the reputation of Philly sports fans may have contributed to the city's high ranking on the rudeness scale. The tales of rowdy and highly intoxicated spectators at Philly sporting events, especially those which gained significant media coverage this past year, may have reflected poorly on the demeanor of the city as a whole.

To some, the results of this type of survey come as nothing more than entertainment. To others, such as those in the tourism and hospitality industry, these rankings may be more important. The economic structure and job market in cities such as Philadelphia thrive on tourism, so it is important to keep the visitors coming. From the PR perspective, the city may need to take the low ranking categories into consideration for making improvements and emphasize the high ranking categories to visitors.

The accuracy of this type of survey is questionable, as it is based purely on reader responses. However, the results are interesting and could be beneficial to the city's tourism and hospitality industry. What do you think about the rankings? Would any of them affect your decision about whether or not to visit a city?