Oklahomans don’t need a national publication to tell us Oklahoma City is a pretty great place to visit, but a little validation never hurts.

A study by Money, a print and online publication based in New York City, determined Oklahoma City as a top-10 travel destination in the United States for 2018. The research examined which cities in the U.S. provided travelers the most value for their dollar.

The article highlighted popular destinations including the Oklahoma City Museum of Art, Stockyards City, Chesapeake Arena and the hometown Thunder as some of the reasons to pay Oklahoma City a visit. The recognition was welcome news for OKC Museum of Art CEO E. Michael Whittington.

“It’s wonderful to have the kind of national recognition that reinforces everything we already know we have in Oklahoma City,” Whittington said. “We have a world-class city.”

Money reporter Kerri Anne Renzulli worked with Megan Leonhardt to collect, organize and analyze more than 32,000 data points from 350 cities across the country before writing the article. Every state had multiple cities analyzed, and of the 350 examined, Oklahoma City finished ninth overall.

“We loved Oklahoma City,” Renzulli said. “It was a bit of a more unexpected pick. We loved that it was something in the heartland.”

Oklahoma City was included along with the likes of Philadelphia; Alexandria, Virginia; Anaheim, California; Chicago, Illinois, and more. The publication also included a list of international destinations including Tokyo, Rome, London and Singapore.

Hotels and amenities

Back in the Sooner State, Oklahoma City excelled in part because of relatively cheap hotels available and reduced costs from 2017 in other categories.

“(Average) Hotel fares are $99 a night, which is great” Renzulli said. “You guys also did well in year-over-year change.”

Year-over-year changes are the difference in prices for certain travel costs from one year to the next. Oklahoma City saw reduced costs for hotels, vacation rentals and airfare, Renzulli said

Another factor considered is the number and quality of amenities and attractions within the area. In addition to the attractions mentioned in the article, the survey include local items such as amusement parks, museums, breweries, campgrounds, orchestras, historic landmarks and attractions, beaches, restaurants, bars, hotels and more.

“We take into account quality of amenities, but also counts of amenities,” Renzulli said. “Anything that would be a reason someone would come see your place … we take into account.”

This count of amenities was considered alongside population, so as to not give an unfair edge to the largest of cities. The journalists worked with travel experts for recommendations about which attractions, such as the Oklahoma City Museum of Art, would be included in the article.

The research took months to complete. Renzulli and Leonhardt began work in November, and didn’t make final selections until February. This is the second year the pair have worked on the project, and they were able to build on last year’s model to add data for consideration.

For those who live here, the ranking may not come as a surprise. Whittington believes anyone visiting Oklahoma City will quickly realize it’s deserving of its top-10 ranking.

“If people don’t think of Oklahoma as a top destination in the country, it’s because they’ve never visited Oklahoma City,” Whittington said. “Once they do, that perception will change.”