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Accolades & Awards
National accolades keep coming for Cincinnati USA as a premier destination for conventions, meetings and leisure travel. With recognition in publications such as USA Today, CNN.com and Esquire magazine, Cincinnati is recognized not only as a top destination for all ages, but also a community that strives for innovation, quality of life and regional growth. |
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Accolades & Awards By Category
Below is a sample of Cincinnati USA's most recent designations:
Best Regional Airport
The Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport (CVG) was named the best regional airport in North America and is the top-ranked airport for its "Staff Service Excellence" by Skytrax. Results were determined by more than 11 million completed surveys completed by passengers representing 100 different nationalities in more than 240 international airports in the last year.
Most Affordable
Forbes magazine declared Cincinnati the fifth most affordable metropolitan area to live in the United States. Forty-nine other metropolitan areas were compared and figures such as median asking price of homes on the market and median salary pay were considered.
Best for New Business
Site Selection magazine ranked Cincinnati among the top 10 metro areas for new and expanding businesses for 8 consecutive years. Coming in at No. 6 in the nation, Cincinnati had 247 businesses that met the magazine's ranking criteria of growth. Cincinnati also earned marks from Expansion magazine, which ranked it among the hottest 50 cities according to site location consultants
Another study by Business Week named Cincinnati the No. 3 city for Biggest Growth in Tech Jobs naming companies such as IBM, Technology Solutions, Cincinnati Bell and General Electric.
Best City for Seniors
With low cost of living and affordable housing, coupled with a variety of cultural attractions, Sperling's BestPlaces named Cincinnati USA the twenty-first best city for senior citizens. The study analyzed nearly 50 categories such as various senior living facilities, comprehensive medical care, specialized transportation services, and a significant senior population.
Healthiest City
Men's Health magazine named Cincinnati among the fittest cities in the country for children (Ranked No. 3, only Seattle and New York rank higher than Cincinnati). Rankings included how frequently adults are physically active; the percentage of overweight of obese adults; the number of children's sport camps; and the number of fast-food restaurants per capita.
Best City for Nightlife
Forbes Magazine announced its latest line-up of the Best Cities for Singles 2006. Out of the 40 largest continental U.S. metropolitan centers, Cincinnati USA ranked No. 1 for its nightlife based on the number of restaurants, bars and nightclubs per capita in the region.
Most Livable Communities
Bestowed by the non-profit organization Partners for Livable Communities, Cincinnati was listed as one of 30 cities across the nation whose innovations have brought vitality and growth to their regions and improved quality of life. Cincinnati is the only Midwestern city and one of the nine large markets nationwide to be named to the list.
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Safest City
Forbes magazine conducted a statistical analysis of the 40 largest metropolitan areas and ranked them based on four categories of danger: violent crime rates, workplace deaths, traffic deaths and natural disaster risk. Cincinnati ranked ninth overall for safest cities.
Best Walking City
Cincinnati USA was named the Best Walking City in Ohio and ranked 20th in the nation, according to Prevention magazine and the American Podiatric Medical Association. The study ranked 100 cities in the United States on a list of criteria ranging from the number of walking commuters and low crime rates to the number of cultural attractions and pet owners.
Cities that Rock
Esquire magazine ranks Cincinnati as seventh on its top 10 list of "Cities that Rock". Cities were chosen based on the talent in their music scenes, venues and record stores.
Cincinnati's musical history includes Syd Nathan's King Records, which produced tracks from James Brown, John Lee Hooker, the Stanley Brothers and Hank Ballard in the 1940s and '50s to Bootsy Collins, Greg Dulli (Afghan Whigs) and Peter Frampton.
Top Fun City
In a list compiled by Bert Sperling, creator of Money magazine’s annual “Best Places to Live” placed Cincinnati among the top 20 fun cities in the United States. The list based the ranking by reviewing “fun” characteristics of top U.S. cities such as the number of sports teams, restaurants, types of retail, arts performances, and city budget spent on recreation.
Brewing Heritage
USA Today listed Cincinnati as one of the “10 great beer festivals” in the summer, Okotberfest-Zinzinnati is recognized as the world’s second-largest authentic Oktoberfest. In fact, the mayor of Munich annually decrees Oktoberfest-Zinzinnati as the largest in the world outside of his domain.
Fodor's Travel Blogger named Cincinnati's Mecklenburg Gardens one of the Best Beer Gardens in the United Staes. At almost 150 years old, it is Cincinnati's oldest functioning restaunt as well as one of the oldest beer gardens still in operation.
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The Cincinnati USA Convention & Visitors Bureau, Greater Cincinnati hotels and attractions are consistently honored with awards for outstanding customer service and other honors. Please take a glance at our accomplishments.
Cincinnati USA Convention & Visitors Bureau
Most recently, the Cincinnati USA CVB has received the following awards, all based on receiving top votes of meeting planners:
- 2012 Gold Service Award by Meetings and Conventions magazine (1986-1987, 1990-1991, 1994, 1996-1997, 2002-2012). In addition, the CVB was awarded the 2006 Gold Awards Hall of Fame.
- 19th Successful Meetings Pinnacle Award in 2012 (1991-1995, 1997-2005, 2008-2012)
- 2003 "Award of Excellence" from Corporate & Incentive Travel
- 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 Middy Awards from Ohio Association of Convention and Visitors Bureaus (OACVB)
- 2004, 2005, 2006 Ruby Awards from Ohio Travel Association (OTA)
- 2007 Public Relations Society America Blacksmith Award Finalist
Hotel Accolades
The Cincinnatian Hotel (Downtown Cincinnati)
- 4 Diamond Rating from AAA for 26 consecutive years
- Mobil Travel Guide four-star rating for 22 consecutive years
- Travel + Leisure 2002 & 2006 "World's Best Business Hotels"
- Cincinnati Enquirer 2006 5 Star Rating for The Palace Restaurant
- Conde Nast Traveler 2004 and 2001 Gold List "World's Best Places to Stay"
- Travel + Leisure 2001 "25 Stylish Hotels in America for Under $200"
- USA Today 2002 Top Ten Places to have "Afternoon Tea"
Hilton Cincinnati Netherland Plaza (Downtown)
- 4 Diamond Rating from AAA for 9 consecutive years
- American Culinary Federation's USA Chef of the Year – 2011
- Hilton Hotel's #1 Food & Beverage Hotel in the USA – 2012, 2011, 2010
- Hilton Hotel's Brand of Excellence Winner (awarded to top 5 hotels in USA) - 2011
- Hilton Hotel's Hhonors Guest Recognition Award – Four time winner
- Hilton Hotel's Guest Loyalty Award Winner
- Meetings East's "Best of the East" for 6 consecutive years
- American Culinary Federation's Student of the Year – Northeast Region – 2012
- Named one of National Geographic Traveler's "Discover the Unique. 50 hotels we love"
Millennium Hotel (Downtown Cincinnati)
- Pinnacle Award for Meeting Excellence
- MPI Silver Plate Award for Best Meeting
- "Excellence in the East" award from Meetings East magazine
The Residence Inn at the Phelps (Downtown Cincinnati)
- Named the No. 1 hotel in the Residence Inn brand for guest satisfaction, scoring the highest of 621 Residence Inns in the U.S. The survey is done by its parent Marriott International
- Ranked No. 19 out of 650,000 hotels in the U.S. for service in the TripAdvisor 2013 Traveler’s Choice Awards
The Westin Cincinnati (Downtown Cincinnati)
- 4 Diamond Rating from AAA for 9 consecutive years
- Hotel Team Convention Services Award, from Starwood Hotels and Resorts
- World's Best Frequent Guest Program; Starwood Preferred Guest Program, voted on by 222,000 frequent travelers from around the world
Restaurant Accolades
Boca Restaurant
Graeter's Ice Cream
Nicola's Restaurant
Orchid's at Palm Court (at the Hilton Cincinnati Netherland Plaza)
- Four Diamond Rating from AAA for 9 consecutive years.
- Cincinnati Magazine's #1 Restaurant – 2012, 2011, 2010, 2009
- Zagat's Top Restaurant in Cincinnati – 2012 & 2012
- OpenTable's "One of the Top 100 Restaurants in USA" - 2012, 2011
- American Culinary Federation’s “Award of Excellence” winner
- Wine Spectator Award Winner
Palace Restaurant (at The Cincinnatian Hotel)
- Four Diamond Rating from AAA for 25 consecutive years.
- Has been a Dirona Member since 1997 with the 'Award for Excellence in Dining'
- Wine Spectator's 'Award of Excellence' 1999-2008.
Attraction Accolades
Cincinnati Art Museum
- Tied with four museums, including the Metropolitan Art Museum in New York and the Art Institute in Chicago for best art museum, Zagat Survey's U.S. Family Travel Guide
Cincinnati Museum Center at Union Terminal
- USA Today listed the Cincinnati Museum Center at Union Terminal as one of the "10 great places to cherish choo-choo heritage." Completed in 1933 as a busy Midwestern rail hub and later restored in 1991, the 10-story art deco structure continues to amaze visitors to this day.
Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden
- Ranked 13th of 50 national attractions, Zagat Survey's U.S. Family Travel Guide
Kings Island
- Best Kids' Area in the World, Amusement Today newspaper
- The Beast roller coasters finished first in the Discovery Channel's online survey of top wooden roller coasters. The ride is featured in the show Top 10 Coasters.
- Ranked 4th overall attraction in "child appeal' category, Zagat Survey's U.S. Family Travel Guide
Newport Aquarium
- No. 1 Aquarium in the Midwest and one of the 25 top rated attractions in the country, Zagat Survey's U.S. Family Travel Guide
Newport on the Levee
- Zagat Survey selected Newport on the Levee as the #1 Shopping/Mall Attraction for Families in the United States
Playhouse in the Park
- One of the most coveted awards in the entertainment industry, the Regional Theatre Tony Award has recognized Cincinnati’s Playhouse in the Park for its continued artistic achievement in 2004 and 2007.

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