Williamsburg named # 3 Best Small Towns to Visit in 2014

Smithsonian magazine has named  Williamsburg, Virginia best known for its namesake lake and summer-long institution, No. 3 on its latest list of the best small towns in America to visit.

For the third year in a row, Smithsonian Magazine put together its list of the 20 best small towns across America worth visiting. It enlisted the help of geographic information company Esri to search for towns with populations less than 15,000 with a strong cultural bent, i.e. high numbers of museums, art galleries, theaters, and historic sites and the like. (Last year’s list looked for towns with populations under 25,000.)

Chautauqua NY beat out Williamsburg, Va.; Steamboat Springs, Colo.; Sedona, Ariz. and other popular destinations for top honors in the magazine’s third annual list, which emphasized places that offer “enrichment” to travelers.

Here are the 10 best small towns with populations under 15,000, according to the Smithsonian.

Smithsonian Magazine’s Best Small Towns To Visit
1). Chautauqua, NY
2). Healdsburg, CA
3). Williamsburg, VA
4). Steamboat Springs, CO
5). Woods Hole, MA
6). Marietta, OH
7). Beaufort, SC
8). Sedona, AZ
9). Nebraska City, NE
10). Lanesboro, MN