Louisville, Ky. – On the heels of the Supreme Court ruling on marriage equality in June 2015, Louisville launched its inaugural LGBT tourism initiative. Say I Do In Lou welcomed LGBT couples to get married in Louisville and culminated with an all-expenses-paid wedding and weekend getaway to the city for one lucky couple. The national media took notice and recognized the city for being a welcoming and inclusive destination.
Conde Nast Traveler dubbed Louisville One of “Nine Perfect Places for Your LGBT Destination Wedding,” and the Campus Pride Index ranked the University of Louisville one of the “Most LGBT-Friendly Campuses in the South.”
Most recently, Louisville received a perfect score of 100 for LGBT Non-Discrimination Policies in the Human Rights Campaign’s annual Municipal Equality Index, which was released in December and analyzes the laws cities have to protect and support LGBT residents. Louisville is one of the only Southern cities in the U.S. to receive a perfect score.
In addition, Louisville also landed in the national spotlight for being a top destination to eat, drink and make merry. Zagat labeled Louisville one of “America’s Next Hot Food Cities,” and Travel + Leisure branded Louisville one of “America’s Best Cities for Foodies.”
And the list goes on… Travel + Leisure applauded Louisville for being one of the “Friendliest Cities in America,” and the London Times identified the city as being the “New Hipster Capital.”
Here’s a look back at some of the accolades Louisville racked up in 2015 from the national media:
Eat
- “Best Up-and-Coming Food City” – Thrillist
- “America’s Best Cities for Foodies” – Travel + Leisure
- “10 Best New Food Cities” – Jetsetter
- “Best Cities for Barbecue” – Travel + Leisure
- “Nation’s Best Local Food Scenes” – USA Today (as chosen by USA Today Readers and 10Best)
- “The South’s Best Restaurants (MilkWood)” – Southern Living
- “Eater Young Guns Class of 2015 (Ryan Rogers)” – Eater National
- “America’s Next Hot Food Cities” – Zagat
- “13 Best Restaurants in the South (Proof on Main)” – Thrillist
Drink
- “Top 100 Brewers in the World (Against the Grain)” – Ratebeer.com
- “7 Best Cocktail Festivals (Bourbon Classic)” – Travel + Leisure
- “Best Bourbon Bars in the South (Haymarket Whiskey Bar)”– Garden & Gun
- “The Greatest Bars in the World (Nachbar)” – Conde Nast Traveler
- “7 Most Underrated Cocktail Cities in America” – Thrillist
- The 33 Best Beer Bars in America (Holy Grale)” – Thrillist
- “America’s 20 Best Beer Cities” – Travel + Leisure
- “Best Whiskey Bars in America (Haymarket Whiskey Bar)” – Travel + Leisure
- “Best Southern Distilleries (Copper & Kings)” – Travel + Leisure
Stay
- “Top Cities to Stay for 2015” – Trivago.com
- “Best Hotels in the US (21c Museum Hotel)” – Conde Nast Traveler
- “Top 30 Hotels in the South (The Brown Hotel & 21c Museum Hotel)” – Conde Nast Traveler
- “Nine Perfect Places for your LGBT Destination Wedding” – Travel + Leisure
- “5 Perfect Weekend Getaways in the U.S.” – Conde Nast Traveler
- “Friendliest Cities in America” – Citi IO
- “20 Greenest Cities in America” – Travel + Leisure
- “Friendliest Cities in America” – Travel + Leisure
Play
- “Best Cities for 2015” – AARP
- “New Hipster Capital” – The London Times
- “The 20 Quirkiest Cities in America” – Travel + Leisure
- “America’s Best Cities for Music Scenes” – Travel + Leisure
- “15 Affordable Cities to Add to Your Bucket List” – Refinery 29
- One of the “Most LGBT-Friendly Campuses in the South (University of Louisville)” – Campus Pride Index
- “Top World Festival & Events City” – International Festival & Events Association
- “8 Southern Cities for Your Bucket List” – VisitSouth.com
- “America’s Best Cities for Festivals” – Travel + Leisure
- “America’s 20 Most Cultured Cities” – Travel + Leisure
Add Comment