Scottsdale is the fourth best city to celebrate Thanksgiving, according to experts at the personal finance website Wallethub, who have ranked the best places to spend Thanksgiving in 2023
Though the holiday is about being grateful and spending time with loved ones, it’s become more than that over time. As Thanksgiving gets more commercialized with Black Friday and Cyber Monday, the holiday can now be a costly ordeal.
According to the National Retail Federation, almost 200 million Americans shop in person and online between Thanksgiving and Cyber Monday, spending an average of $325 per person over the holiday weekend. With costs rising, it’s important to keep affordability and other factors in mind over the holidays.
Wallethub used 18 different metrics to rank the 100 largest cities in the U.S. Using data including the cost of dinner, weather, flight delays and more, these 100 cities were scored in four main categories, plus their overall rank.
Scottsdale ranked fourth with an overall score of 61.97. The only cities that ranked above Scottsdale were San Francisco at number one with a score of 65.11, followed by San Jose and San Diego with scores hovering around 64 each.
Scottsdale received 23 points in the Thanksgiving Celebrations and Traditions category, measured by the amount of holiday shops, pumpkin patches and Google search interest for Thanksgiving in the area. The city ranked first in the nation for the amount of holiday shops.
Scottsdale received an affordability score of 63, meaning the city has plenty of affordable restaurants and hotels. It was 52nd in cost of Thanksgiving dinner, on par with other cities.
From a safety and accessibility standpoint, Scottsdale earned a 5, based on crime statistics, traffic crimes, and flight and traffic delays. Though the city is the tenth safest in the country, the score was brought down by airport and traffic delays.
The giving thanks category is measured by volunteer opportunities and hours, charity organizations and amount of income given to charity. Scottsdale received a 6 in this category.
Other Arizona cities also made the top of the list, with Phoenix at number 7, Mesa at 11, Gilbert at 12 and Tucson at 20. Also further down are Chandler at 34 and Glendale at 70.
Read the full report here.
