We've visited numerous RV parks in our year long journey and always enjoy checking out the nearby towns - the shops, restaurants and the general feel and ambiance.
The list of favorite downtown areas:
Small Towns~
Jerome, Arizona - pop. 474 - On the side of a mountain and just one of a kind. Very cool shops and art galleries.
Sedona, Arizona - pop. 10,400 - Beautiful scenery, of course, and nice shops and restaurants. Traffic can be rough during tourist season.
Midway, Utah - pop. 5,035 - This tiny downtown is cozy and scenic and has some very nice restaurants.
Taos, New Mexico - pop.5,900 - The art galleries are amazing.
Alpine, Texas - pop. 5,800 - Historic with amazing murals and nice little shops.
Mid Size Towns~
Palm Springs, California - pop. 47,900 - In season there are many tourists and snowbirds. The downtown is vibrant, especially on Thursday nights when Palm Canyon Drive is closed for the weekly festival of food, wares and live music. It's packed with humans for a reason. Very fun.
Santa Fe, New Mexico - pop. 86,100 - Amazing original architecture, the historic town square is busy, there are great shops and restaurants and dozens of art galleries.
Hot Springs, Arkansas - pop. 39,000 - The original bath houses line the Main Street, the town is attached to the national park. We dined at a great restaurant in an old bank building named "The Vault".
Durango, Colorado - pop. 18,600 - Surrounded by mountains with many options for hiking. A cozy Main Street with shops and restaurants. Our favorite restaurant is named "Ken & Sue's".
Cities~
Salt Lake City, Utah - pop. 201,000 - The Mormon buildings are amazing, there is a huge downtown open air mall, also nice restaurants and vibrant night life.
San Antonio, Texas - pop. 1,600,000 - The Riverwalk on a Saturday night is a must see, along with the Alamo and other missions. The city is surrounded by bike/pedestrian trails. Traveling is challenging with very fast, scary beltways.
The blog now has categories along the top by state in case anyone would like to review any of these locations!
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