Walk Score Helps You Hoof It

                

Can you walk to the drugstore from your house? Your hotel? We stumbled upon a nifty site called Walk Score that will tell you in seconds flat.

The site plugs itself as a resource for real estate buyers, but we think it’s also invaluable for travelers when picking a hotel or getting an idea of the distance between attractions. Who wants to stay in a hotel miles from nowhere? A cute café, restaurant, or shopping district within walking distance can mean the difference between a crummy vacation and one filled with local charm. It can also alert you ahead of time if you’ll need to rent a car. Scores range between "Walker's Paradise" (90 - 100) and "Driving Only" (0 - 25).

The project was inspired by the Sightline Institute, a Seattle think tank which works toward sustainable projects "grounded in place," with a focus on the Northwest. They created a map to illustrate the difference  in walkability in neighborhoods (a compact community versus a suburban community).

Just for kicks, we picked two hotels at random that were recently highlighted in National Geographic Traveler's “Hotel Central” section. The Ambassador Hotel in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, got a score of 71 out of 100. This is what Walk Score calls a "Very Walkable" place where you can get by without a car. The hotel is a stone's throw from a bookstore, movie theater, coffee shop, grocery store, bar, and more. Sounds like a pedestrian mecca!

The Inn at East Beach in Santa Barbara, California, got a less appealing score of 51. This means there were some walkable locations, "but many everyday trips still require a bike, public transportation, or car."

While Walk Score admits it isn't perfect—it calculates distances "as the crow flies"—it's still a great tool for travelers and homeowners alike.

How walkable is your community?

Comments

[Harry]

My walkscore is 97. I believe that walk score is cool, but nowadays more and more people prefer to drive cars. Homes are often located in an area where some establishments are easier to get to by car than on foot. I've recently found a type of service on Fizber which is called Drive Score. It shows a map of what establishments are in your neighborhood and calculates a Drive Score based on the number of places within a convenient driving distance.

[Artes]

I think that we need to take both into consideration - walkscore and drivescore. It will show the whole picture...