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March 3, 2025 – Solvang, CA – Solvang, California (www.SolvangUSA.com), affectionately known as “The Danish Capital of America,” has been nominated once again for the USA TODAY 10Best Readers’ Choice Awards – in 2025, in two different categories: “Best Small Town in the West” and “Best Small Town Food Scene.” The travel awards contests and online voting launched for both categories on Monday, March 3, 2025, at 12 Noon EST, on the USA TODAY 10Best site: 10best.usatoday.com/awards/travel. Voting is open to the public and all official contest rules may be found here (limit one vote per person, per category, per day). Online voting for both categories runs through Monday, March 31, 2025, at 11:59 AM EDT, and the top ten (10) winners, as ranked by USA TODAY 10Best readers, will be announced on Wednesday, April 9, 2025, at 12:00 Noon EDT.
The annual USA TODAY 10Best Readers’ Choice awards feature the top 20 or so nominees in contests covering travel and lifestyle topics such as food, lodging, destinations, travel gear, things to do, seasonal family fun, and more. All nominees are selected by a panel of experts and the 10Best editorial team. The 10Best Readers’ Choice Award contest launches new categories every week, revealing each category’s approximately 20 nominees. After 28 days of digital voting, the contest closes and the nominated businesses that have received the most eligible votes will be designated as the Readers’ Choice for their respective categories and be awarded a badge of recognition as the 10Best Readers’ Choice. Rules allow the public the right to vote online for one nominee per category, per day. More information about the USA TODAY 10Best Readers’ Choice Awards may be found here.
No stranger to the USA TODAY 10Best Readers’ Choice Awards, Solvang, the Danish-rooted, California Central Coast getaway destination with a resident population hovering around 6,000, was voted as second “Best Small Town in the West” in the 2024 USA TODAY 10Best Readers’ Choice Travel Awards. In 2022, Solvang was also nominated in two different categories, “Best Historic Small Town” and “Best Small Town Cultural Scene,” securing seventh place in the 2022 winners’ listing for the latter category. Solvang was also voted as one of the 10 Best Historic Small Town winners in the 2018 travel contest, and was one of the 10 Best winners for the same award category in 2016. In 2017, USA TODAY named Solvang as one of “10 great places to enjoy global Christmas traditions in the USA.”
Dog-friendly and ideal for kids, Solvang, known for its Danish-American vibe, architecture and design details, pastries and bakeries, and array of wine tasting options, also boasts dozens of unique boutiques, restaurants and gourmet food purveyors. Carefully-curated indie booksellers and high-end home goods suppliers mingle with fairy tale-like children’s stores and museum gift shops. Solvang’s foodie destinations offer everything from elevated street cuisine – like locally-sourced fish tacos on hand-made tortillas, and comforting ramen noodles – to European-style pretzels and sausages, to Italian standbys or iconic Danish dishes, to elevated new-Californian fare in the form of MICHELIN-honored menus. Solvang visitors sip small-batch, locally-roasted coffee, shop for exotic, hand-bottled spice blends, or enjoy Tiki cocktails and craft beer, all part of a playful, indulgent, and one-of-a-kind, year ‘round shopping and playing escape.
Questions, media requests for interviews and/or photos related to this announcement may be directed to Anna Ferguson-Sparks, Stiletto Marketing, at 1-877-327-2656 or solvang@stilettomarketing.com.
About the City of Solvang:
Referred to as “The Danish Capital of America,” the City of Solvang is located in the Santa Ynez Valley in Santa Barbara County, California. Founded by a group of Danish-Americans in 1911 and incorporated in 1985, Solvang offers a taste of Denmark in Southern California. Danish design and Old World charm fill Solvang’s numerous interior courtyards, cozy communal spaces, and open-air venues, where vacation itineraries for all unfold. The walkable town features plentiful free parking options for locals and visitors, and more than 20 lodging options for staycation-ers, weekenders and midweek travelers, from classic comfort to luxury-level. The Solvang Visitor Center, located at 1639 Copenhagen Drive, is open daily, 9:30 AM-5:30 PM (closed briefly for lunch). For more information, including travel itinerary ideas and inspiration for things to do, where to eat and drink, and places to stay, follow our adventures on Instagram and Facebook: @SolvangUSA and facebook.com/VisitSolvangUSA.
