Travel + Leisure magazine released the results of voting in its annual Best Islands in the U.S. survey, and for the first time in the last 5 years Hilton Head Island was not named #1 best by the popular magazine’s voters.
This year, the island was voted #3. The travel magazine released its popular Best Islands In the Continental U.S. list on Wednesday morning, a part of its World’s Best Awards, and we admit we assumed the mega-popular southern Beaufort County mecca was going to be #1 yet again.
Boy, were we surprised.
According to voters, #1 is now the Golden Isles of Georgia, a beautiful stretch of islands along the Georgia coast that includes Jekyll Island, Little St. Simons Island, Sea Island and St. Simons Island.
The top 10 islands in the U.S. are:
1. Golden Isles of Georgia
2. San Juan Islands, Washington
3. Hilton Head South Carolina
4. Mt. Desert Island, Maine
5. Kiawah Island, South Carolina
6. Amelia Island, Florida
7. Mackinac Island, Michigan
8. The Florida Keys, Florida
9. Captiva Island, Florida
10. Block Island, Rhode Island
In a couple of the other categories, South Carolina fared quite well.
Charleston was again named the #1 Best City in the U.S. with the magazine pouring on the love for the Holy City. “Charleston has history, architecture, culture, pleasant weather, gracious locals, and even proximity to the beach,” T+L said. “Still, we’d be remiss not to mention how much readers appreciate the city’s hospitality.”
Charleston was also voted the #18 Best City in the World.
Nearby Savannah, GA made the list as the #4 Best City in the U.S. Our neighbor to the south has a lot going for it.
You win some and you lose some, but all in all, Hilton Head will still be the #1 best to a lot of people, locals and visitors alike.
You can check out all of the winners in Travel+Leisure’s World’s Best Awards here.
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