100 Best Midwest Small-Town Getaways

The Midwest has about 8,500 towns with populations less than 20,000. Midwest Living® writers and editors have been looking for the best ones since the magazine's first issue in 1987. For this list of the best small-town getaways, we added another layer of research that spanned several months and ranked towns in terms of attractions, vibe, scenery, walkability, shopping, dining, lodging, arts scene, outdoor activities, proximity to major cities, multiday potential and special events.

We excluded suburbs, and we didn't consider livability factors such as education or employment. It took us years to compile this list of the best places to visit, but you'll only need a weekend in any of these to see why we did. (Pictured at left: Marshall, Michigan.)