In this article, we will be covering 14 most European cities in North America. If you want to skip our detailed analysis of the North America travel and tourism market, you can go directly to 5 Most European Cities in North America.
Traveling for a European vacation can be expensive and not always within the budget. There are cities in North America that can offer a taste of Europe. Before we look at the 14 most European cities in North America, let’s first take a look at the thriving travel and tourism market in North America.
In one of our previous articles about most luxurious hotels, we briefly discussed how the hotel industry was one of the hardest hit during the peak of COVID-19 crisis. Similarly, the travel and tourism market also faced an unprecedented challenge when travel options were shut down and countries around the world imposed lockdowns during the outbreak of the virus. However, the post pandemic travel boom is now in full swing.
North America’s Growing Travel Market and Key Players
According to a report by Research and Markets, the North American travel and tourism market was valued at around $1.96 trillion in 2022. The market is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 5.1% during 2022-2027, pushing the market to reach above $2.5 trillion by the end of the forecasted period. The travel and tourism industry in North America consists of revenues generated by hotels, motels, food service and restaurants, as well as passenger airlines and passenger rail. The growing trend of transformational travel, which focuses on wellness, is expected to fuel market growth in North America. In recent years, a growing number of people have started traveling with the goal of healing, balancing, and transforming their mind, body, and spirit. In search of special and unique experiences of their own, travelers are planning their own journeys that mix entertainment and relaxation.
To meet the growing travel demand and increase their profitability as well as market presence, major players in the travel and tourism market are innovating to offer more convenient and affordable options to travelers. On June 27, Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) announced that Booking.com, which is a subsidiary of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) and one of the largest online travel agencies, will be launching a new AI Trip Planner in beta to a number of US travelers on its app. The AI trip planner will allow travelers to easily chat and ask travel-related questions to help them with any stage of their trip planning process. Users can get travel inspiration and create itineraries based on their needs and requirements, as well as check out potential destinations and accommodation options.
Here are some comments from Booking Holdings Inc.’s (NASDAQ:BKNG) Q2 2023 earnings call:
“Built upon the foundation of Booking.com’s existing machine learning models that recommend accommodation options to millions of travelers on the platform every day the AI trip planner is also partially powered by large language model technology to create a conversational experience for people to start their planning processes. The AI trip planner advances planning by providing travelers with a rich visual list of destinations and properties including Booking.com’s live pricing information with deep links to view more details on the options. From the chat interface of the AI trip planner bookers can tap on any recommended accommodation they’re interested in and then complete the reservation. Accretive to our approach here is to marry our own proprietary data and machine learning models with degenerative AI technology. This allows us to provide a conversational interface with the traveler while leveraging our own recommendation engine to provide accurate detail and real-time information on the property recommendations.”
On August 3, Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) reported strong earnings for the fiscal second quarter of 2023, reflecting strong demand for travel despite high inflation. The company reported earnings per share (EPS) of $37.62, surpassing EPS estimates by $8.46. The company reported a revenue of $5.46 billion and outperformed revenue estimates by $287.36 million.
Similarly, the American travel technology company Expedia Group Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE) is also offering new AI tools to help users make their travel experience better. On September 21, Forbes reported that Expedia Group Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE), which owns and operates travel fare aggregators and travel metasearch engines like Expedia, Hotels.com, and Vrbo, is offering users a new way to collaborate on their travels. With Trip Planner, exciting new tools and features will allow users to save and share their bookings and travel destinations with others. Introduction of Trip Planner is expected to help minimize the stress that comes with planning group traveling, while also allowing the users to get the most out of their booking experience. Users can discover destinations and get access to better deals. The post also mentions that it is expected that Expedia Group Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE) will be rolling out more tools and features by the end of the year.
The growth of technology and digitization has led to a surge in online bookings as customers prefer and enjoy the convenience that mobile apps, travel websites, and online booking platforms are offering. This is expected to positively influence the travel market in the coming years.
On the other hand, high inflation and political instability can hamper market growth. Severe weather conditions can also negatively influence the market. Some of the key players in the travel and tourism market include airlines, who may be forced to delay or cancel their flights. On September 14, Reuters reported that the CEO of Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV), Robert Jordan said at an investor conference that the company is prepared to deal with upcoming winter weather with “big investments” in de-icing capacity and new technology that helps understand weather conditions. The report also mentions that a massive winter storm in December last year crippled operations and forced Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) to cancel thousands of flights. This year, Robert Jordan believes that the company is very well prepared for the winters.
Now that we have discussed some of the latest trends in the travel and tourism market as well as what some of the key market players are up to, let’s take a look at the 14 most European cities in North America.
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Methodology
For this article, we compiled a list of the 14 most European cities in North America using a consensus approach. We analyzed rankings of most European cities in North America on 4 different travel websites – Trip.com, Delusional Bubble, DuVine, and The Purposely Lost. We counted the number of times each city is listed in these sources. We also calculated the average ranking of each of these cities by adding up their rankings in each of the sources and then dividing that figure by the number of times each city’s name came up. We then ranked the 14 most European cities in North America based on how many times their name came up in the sources as well as their average rankings. 14 most European cities in North America are listed below in ascending order.
Please note, the number of mentions is our primary metric and the average ranking is our secondary metric. A lower average ranking is better since it means the city was ranked at the top among our sources. For cities with the same number of appearances across our sources, we used the average ranking as the tie-breaker.
14 Most European Cities in North America
14. Frankenmuth – Michigan
Number of Mentions: 2
Average Ranking: 17
First up on our list of 14 most European cities in North America is Frankenmuth, which is a city in the US state of Michigan and home to Franconian-style timber-framed buildings. Fighting for the title of Little Bavaria in the Midwest, Frankenmuth is big on charm and German heritage as well as culture. You can attend a few German festivals here including Frankenmuth’s bustling Bavarian Fest, Oktoberfest, or their week-long summer polka fest.
Some of the best travel and tourism stocks to consider investing in include Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV), Expedia Group Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE), and Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG).
13. Victoria – Canada
Number of Mentions: 2
Average Ranking: 11.5
Victoria is the capital city of the Canadian province of British Columbia, and the first Canadian city in our list of most European cities in North America. Named for the British monarch Queen Victoria, the city itself was planned out like many old European cities and the hotels, buildings, as well as the city hall can make anyone feel like they’re somewhere in England.
12. Morelia – Mexico
Number of Mentions: 2
Average Ranking: 10
Morelia is the capital city of the Mexican state of Michoacán. It is the first city from Mexico in our list of most European cities in North America, and ranks at the number 12 spot. Morelia is home to magnificent examples of Spanish colonial architecture.
11. Montpelier – Vermont
Number of Mentions: 2
Average Ranking: 6.5
Montpelier is the capital city of the US state of Vermont and named for the city of Montpellier in France. Montpellier is heavily influenced by European culture and one of the city’s most impressive attractions is the Vermont State House, which is a beautiful building with a golden dome.
10. Puebla – Mexico
Number of Mentions: 2
Average Ranking: 6
Pueblo is the capital city of the state of Puebla in Mexico. Famous for its Spanish colonial buildings such as Capilla del Rosario and the Puebla Cathedral, the city of Puebla ranks among the top 10 most European cities in North America.
9. St. Augustine – Florida
Number of Mentions: 2
Average Ranking: 2
St. Augustine is a city in the US state of Florida and it lays claim to being the oldest continuously occupied European-established settlement in the continental United States. With Spanish colonial architecture, hidden courtyards, charming cobblestone streets, and restaurants that reflect the city’s multicultural heritage, St. Augustine has true Spanish flavor.
8. Leavenworth – Washington
Number of Mentions: 3
Average Ranking: 11.6
Leavenworth is a Bavarian-styled city in the US state of Washington. With Alpine-style buildings and restaurants serving German beer and food, Leavenworth ranks among some of the top most European cities in North America. The city also holds an Oktoberfest every year.
7. Holland – Michigan
Number of Mentions: 3
Average Ranking: 9
Holland is a city in the US state of Michigan with a dash of European flair. Several attractions in Holland feature the city’s Dutch Heritage. The annual Tulip Time Festival, which pays tribute to the city’s vibrant tulip fields as well as Dutch heritage, attracts thousands of visitors each year.
6. Solvang – California
Number of Mentions: 3
Average Ranking: 8.6
Solvang is a city in the US state of California and the perfect destination for a taste of Denmark away from Europe. The city of Solvang is home to Danish bakeries, pancake houses, beer gardens, and wooden windmills, beer gardens, pancake houses, and Danish bakeries. Known for its Danish-style architecture, Solvang ranks among some of the most European cities in North America.
Companies that are expected to benefit from the thriving travel and tourism market include Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV), Expedia Group Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE), and Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG).
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Disclosure: None. 14 Most European Cities in North America is published on Insider Monkey.