News DC Viewed as More Appealing Leisure Travel Destination Than Baltimore or Philadelphia, but Baltimore Has Its Charm

Posted by WBA Research    Dec 10, 2011   0 comments
 
Residents of South Central Pennsylvania—Dauphin County (Harrisburg) as well as Lancaster, Lebanon and York Counties—rated Washington, DC as a more appealing leisure travel destination than Baltimore or Philadelphia. 
  
Respondents were asked to rate each destination for overall appeal, on a ten-point scale.  Washington, DC was viewed as most appealing with a mean rating of 7.1 compared to Baltimore at 6.6 and Philadelphia at 6.2.
 
Respondents also rated each city on a series of attributes using a ten-point scale. Washington, DC rated the highest on six of the seven attributes, including “offers a lot to do”, “unique city”, “great for a family getaway”, “great for a weekend getaway”, “fun and exciting”, and “safe”, while Baltimore rated the highest among the three cities for being a “friendly city”. Philadelphia ranked even with Baltimore for “offers a lot to do” and higher than Baltimore for “unique city”.  Baltimore ranked higher than Philadelphia on the remaining five attributes.
 
Even though Washington, DC had the highest overall appeal and ranked highest on almost every attribute, Baltimore has been the most commonly visited destination within the past five years with 59% of respondents having visited, while just under half (49%) have visited Philadelphia and 31% have visited Washington, DC. In addition, respondents were asked how likely they are to visit each city in the near future. About two-thirds (67%) said they are likely to visit Baltimore, while only about one-half are likely to visit Philadelphia (54%) or Washington, DC (51%).
 
The survey, part of the MarkeTrak® quarterly consumer study, was conducted by WB&A Market Research in July 2011 via telephone interviews with a geographically balanced sample of residents in the Pennsylvania counties of Dauphin (Harrisburg), Lancaster, Lebanon and York.