Top 10 Best Cities in America

Businessweek issued their 2011 list of America’s Best Cities this week and the West and East coasts seem to have a lock on the top ten, with not one Midwest city represented in the bunch.

From Alaska to Washington, D.C., America’s best cities have a lot to offer and rankings were gauged by quality of life, the evaluation of school scores, number of higher education institutions, cultural amenities, amount of green space, and the presence of professional sports teams.

No bucolic townships on this list, which is not surprising given the criteria. All the cities were medium to large, with populations ranging from 206,405 to 1,297,618.

Waterfront cities dominated—Honolulu, San Diego, Virginia beach, San Francisco, and Anchorage, with California taking home 30 percent of the slots on the Top 10 list.

Taking the #1 spot is Raleigh, North Carolina. In addition to its prestigious universities, Businessweek tallied 867 restaurants, 51 museums, good schools, and 12,512 park acres. College sports and the Carolina Hurricanes are the main sports attractions, and you can opt for opera, concerts, and a multitude of cultural activities, any day of the week.

Here is the full line-up:

1. Raleigh, North Carolina
2. Arlington, Virginia
3. Honolulu, Hawaii
4. Scottsdale, Arizona
5. Irvine, California
6. Washington, D.C.
7. San Diego, California
8. Virginia Beach, Virginia
9. San Francisco, California
10. Anchorage, Alaska