- Rent Cafe found the top ten US cities for a working vacation this summer.
- The ranking looked at places with an under-600,000 population size.
- COVID-19 infection rates and internet speed were among the criteria considered.
- Visit Business Insider’s homepage for more stories.
Sometimes big city life can be overwhelming – especially when there’s a pandemic. Luckily, if you have the ability and the means to travel (preferably by car), there are some quaint and less-populated places throughout the US that make for a good break from city life.
And traveling doesn’t necessarily mean you need to take time off work. Given social distancing and lockdown measures in place to slow the spread of the coronavirus, many workers are still remote this summer, making for a good working-vacation opportunity.
To find the top places to for a change of scenery this summer in between Zoom calls and Slack messages, Rent Cafe consulted Google to find out what the most searched US vacation destinations were. This ranking focused specifically on those places with fewer than 600,000 people (sourced from the US Census Bureau) to determine a list of the top US cities for remote work this summer.
In addition to considering whether the city makes for a good vacation destination, Rent Cafe also looked at the internet speed (from a report by Broadband Now) and COVID-19 rate (the number of new cases reported between June 28 and July 5, per 100,000 people) of each city.
Here are the best US cities for remote work this summer, according to Rent Cafe.
10. Virginia Beach, Virginia
Population: 450,135
Internet speed: 193.10
COVID rate: 7.21
According to the Virginia Beach website, the Guinness Book of World Records states that Virginia Beach has the "longest pleasure beach on the planet."
9. Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Population: 596,886
Internet speed: 126.00
COVID rate: 7.98
As reported by Scott Anderson at Patch, the Milwaukee Common Council passed an ordinance on July 13 that said anyone over the age of three must wear a mask in public. However, there is an exemption for those who are out eating or drinking.
8. Santa Cruz, California
Population: 64,273
Internet speed: 92.60
COVID rate: 5.65
There's no shortage of tourist destinations in Santa Cruz. According to its official website, Santa Cruz county has 14 state parks and beaches, including Big Basin Redwoods State Park, the oldest state park in California.
7. Tulsa, Oklahoma
Population: 402,223
Internet speed: 168.80
COVID rate: 8.19
Tulsa made headlines recently because it was the location of Donald Trump's June 20 rally, his first since the US was shut down because of the pandemic, as previously reported by Business Insider.
6. St. Louis, Missouri
Population: 311,273
Internet speed: 108.40
COVID rate: 7.79
Chicago isn't the only worthy destination in the Midwest. St. Louis made Jetsetter's list of the best underrated US cities perfect for a passport-free vacation in 2018.
5. Honolulu, Hawaii
Population: 350,003
Internet speed: 102.60
COVID rate: 1.58
Honolulu has the lowest COVID rate out of any of the top 10 cities on this list. The entire state of Hawaii has recorded just 1,264 cases of coronavirus as of July 14, local station KHON2 reports.
4. Asheville, North Carolina
Population: 90,531
Internet speed: 115.50
COVID rate: 7.00
Asheville is among the cities that have directly responded to recent civil unrest sparked by the death of George Floyd. On July 15, the Asheville City Council approved reparations for Black residents and their descendants, Joel Burgess for the Asheville Citizen Times reported.
3. Vancouver, Washington
Population: 178,413
Internet speed: 149.00
COVID rate: 6.58
In 2016, Niche included Vancouver on its list of the best US cities to live in if you love spending time outdoors. It also topped a 2018 list of the most hipster cities in America.
2. Colorado Springs, Colorado
Population: 457,502
Internet speed: 168.50
COVID rate: 5.57
According to Visit Cos, Colorado Springs is the second-largest city in Colorado and is nicknamed Olympic City, USA.
1. Santa Fe, New Mexico
Population: 83,847
Internet speed: 93.10
COVID rate: 3.71
On top of its extremely low COVID infection rate, Santa Fe is also a noted destination for lovers of the arts. According to the travel blog Santa Fe, the city was the first in the US to become a UNESCO Creative City, a network that includes "cities that have identified creativity as a strategic factor for sustainable urban development."