America’s best town to visit revealed - but rich hotspot has a complicated history

Richmond, Virginia, has been named the best town to visit in America - despite its somewhat complicated history.

The East Coast town - which was once a historic slave trading hub - took first place in a ranking of the top tourist hotspots compiled by CNN.

Researchers cited its relative affordability, vibrant arts scene and burgeoning restaurants as a huge pull for tourists - with the town enjoying a remarkable post-pandemic bounce-back.

Rounding out the top five on the list were Providence, Rhode Island, Tacoma, Washington, Portland, Maine, and San Luis Obispo, California.

CNN researchers evaluated each town by examining their attractions, food and beverage offerings. Nightlife and cultural scene were also factors, as was a sense of identity and the cities' proximity to other interesting spots.

Each town's 'wow factor' was considered too, as were travel essentials such as lodging and the ease of getting around.

The areas to feature ranged in size from 50,000 residents to around 225,000.

Richmond's top ranking marks a reversal of fortune for the town after it hit headlines in 2020 when it became the center of a statue-toppling craze which saw protestors tear down monuments of controversial historical figures.

Richmond was the capital of the Confederacy during the Civil War and a slave trading hub.

'Their removal has been part of a broader effort to engage with the city's complex history,' Carla Murray, director of marketing communications for Richmond's tourism, told CNN.

'The history is controversial, but we are committed to telling the full story.'

Figures of Jefferson Davis and Robert E. Lee once stood tall in center, comprised of several lively neighbourhoods that contribute to its character.

Cobblestone streets pave the way to a variety of bars and entertainment venues - not to mention historical sites associated with the Civil War and the city's more famous residents.

Edgar Allan Poe, for instance, was brought up on the city's streets in the early part of the 19th Century, decades before the city became a haven for the rebelling Confederate Army.

A museum was erected in his honour - one that can be found in the Shockoe Bottom neighbourhood of the city and is more than 100 years old.

It holds one of the world's largest collections of original manuscripts, letters, first editions, memorabilia and personal belongings, and the building where it's found is even older, at nearly 300 years

Richmond was the capital of the Confederacy during the Civil War, and a historic slave trading hub. It boasts an abundance of museums and attractions that speak to this rich history

Though Poe never lived there, it serves to commemorate his time living in Richmond.

Aside from the Civil War, Richmond also played a crucial role in the American Revolution, during which Founding Father Patrick Henry gave his famous 'Give me liberty... or give me death' speech.

Downtown, the American Civil War Museum at Historic Tredegar features an exhibit that seeks to tell the story of the period that followed called 'The Impending Crisis,' where the division of the United States on the verge of the Civil War is put on display.

Staffers there offer guided tours of the actual 1818 White House of the Confederacy, billed as another part of the museum a few blocks away.

Contributors enlisted by CNN to take part in the study cited the city's impressive allotment of museums and vibrant neighbourhoods.

Also mentioned was Richmond's burgeoning chef-driven food scene, of which several notable restaurants and breweries have been birthed.

Take Triple Crossing Beer for instance, which has been part of the area's recent rise as a beer scene since 2014. It is one of more than 30 craft facilities that's sprouted up as part of the city's sprawling Beer Trail.

'The food scene, the arts scene, music and beer - they have a symbiotic relationship,' Scott Jones, co-owner of the establishment, said.

'Over the years they have melded together and blossomed to help make Richmond a place for people to come visit.'

Local beer columnist Annie Tobey, author of '100 Things to Do in Richmond Before You Die, also told CNN how such facilities have helped the town draw in tourists.

'We set a high standard for breweries,' she said.

'RVA [an acronym for Richmond, Virginia] has so many quality breweries that represent a wide range of styles.'

Napa and its surrounding landscape is home to numerous wineries, as well as a new tearoom at the already renowned Virginia Museum of Fine Arts.

Across the river away from downtown sits up-and-coming Manchester, a place today known for its art studios and seminal downtown skyline.

But down by the docks also sits the site of the start of the Richmond Slave Trail, a walking trail that chronicles the history of the trade of enslaved Africans from Africa to Virginia until 1775 and to other locations like Richmond until 1865.

It begins at the docks - the port that once made the city the largest source of enslaved Africans on the east coast of the US from 1830 to 1860 - and continues through a stream of slave markets associated with pre-Civil War Richmond.

There, you will find the Reconciliation Statue commemorating the international triangular slave trade, as well as Lumpkin's Slave Jail and the Negro Burial Ground to First African Baptist Church.

All played a large part in African-American life at the time, and are not forgotten thanks to the installments.

Kelli Lemon, co-owner of the Richmond Black Restaurant Experience, told CNN how businesses like hers help spur this dynamic, after opening her café six years ago as a community gathering and networking space.

The company is aimed at supporting black-owned culinary brands, and Lemon also enjoys a position on the board of Virginia Tourism Corporation.

'I truly want people to visit this area, but you’re going to have to take the old way of thinking out if you want to enjoy this city,' she told the station

'In the years since "RVA" became an official brand … the community has worked to change the narrative,' she went on, citing the rebranding seen under the relatively new acronym that surfaced more than a dozen years ago.

She added how she hopes that such vantages into the city's past help visitors realize how Richmond has become a center of diversity and creativity in recent years, as opposed to racism.

A rapidly growing AI job landscape worth 21.5 new AI jobs per 100,000 residents also bolsters Richmond even further, helping its reputation along with its rising food scene and tourism industry.

Moreover, the region's surprisingly lucrative amateur sports tourism industry generated $88.7 million in hospitality-related revenue in fiscal 2023, following $ 76 million the year before.

Helping to achieve this is the city's beloved Minor League Baseball team, the Flying Squirrels who will play in a new 10,000-seat stadium come 2026.

Tourists, meanwhile, spent an astounding $4 billion in 2022 while visiting Richmond, up big - more than 20 percent - from 2021.

For the 2023 fiscal year, the region's hotels generated more than $ 35 million from lodging taxes alone - a 16.36 percent increase from last year, according to a press release.

Total hotel revenue that year topped $437 million - a huge slice of the money spent by visitors.

Each year, more than 16 million from all over the world visit the Richmond region, contributing billions to the local economy and creating nearly 24,000 jobs.

If it were not for tourism, residents would be forced to fork over an additional $585 a year in taxes, officials from the tourism board write on their website.

Such numbers show how Richmond is one of the many cities to experience a remarkable bounce-back in the wake of the pandemic, propelled not only by its current attractions but impressive history.