The new year is shaping up to be a big one for Birmingham, and national media are picking up the scent.
Already, Birmingham has been mentioned on the hot lists of two major magazines as a place to see, and be seen, in 2022.
The editors of Condé Nast Traveler magazine say Birmingham is among the “22 Best Places to Go in 2022.” And Newsweek magazine lists The World Games 2022 in Birmingham among the international happenings deserving of attention in a story about “22 Things to Look Forward to in 2022.”
Birmingham makes the list of Condé Nast’s top 22 destinations for 2022 primarily because of its booming restaurant scene. Recently opened Southern grill Helen and The Essential are highlighted as some of the city’s best culinary offerings, among many.
The revitalization of downtown Birmingham paired with its historic buildings is another draw, according to the editors. The magazine and its digital site also cite the new Urban Supply development in Parkside and City Walk BHAM, which will add markets, recreation and greenspace, and food trucks to 10 city blocks beneath the newly reconstructed downtown section of Interstate 59/20.
Newsweek heralds Birmingham in a section of its cover story called “Let the Games Begin — and Keep Going.” It notes the XXIV Winter Olympic Games kicking off in Beijing in February, followed by the XIII Paralympic Games in Beijing in March. “If that’s still not enough global play for you, the World Games will take place starting July 7 in Birmingham,” the magazine proclaims, describing the spectrum of non-Olympic sports that will be featured during the event, ranging “from the familiar (lacrosse, rugby) to the frankly bizarre, including ‘korfball,’ a distant cousin of basketball in which mixed teams battle to toss a ball through a raised goal called a ‘korf’ (Dutch for ‘basket’).”
The Condé Nast list also highlights Birmingham’s role as host of The World Games, which are expected to draw 500,000 spectators from across the globe to the city. An anticipated 3,600 athletes will compete in more than 30 sports.
“This is going to be a huge deal for the city of Birmingham,” said Jonathan Porter, senior vice president of Customer Operations for Alabama Power and chairman of the board of directors for the 2022 World Games Foundation. “It’s a great opportunity to put Birmingham and Alabama on the world stage and continue to change the narrative that people who have never been here have about our city and state.”
Birmingham is in exotic company on the Condé Nast list of global food hotspots, with Serbia and Trøndelag County, Norway, also on the roster. Among other recommended destinations are Charleston, South Carolina, and Istanbul for arts and culture; London and Querétaro, Mexico, for history; the Great Lakes and Kyushu, Japan, for transportation; Sicily and Singapore for sustainability; and Malta and West Virginia for the best outdoors and beach destinations. Visit Condé Nast Traveler to see the complete list.
As for Newsweek’s list of “22 Great Things in 2022,” it includes a much broader array of items, from cultural events to health and technological advances. Among them are: Pfizer’s new antiviral pill; the impending rollout of the 5G cellular network; the Floriade Expo 2022, a once-a-decade international horticulture exhibition taking place in the Netherlands; the just-launched James Webb Space Telescope; and singer Adele’s scheduled residency in Las Vegas. Add to that, Newsweek says, multiple Blockbuster art shows around the globe in 2022, a special Harry Potter retrospective on HBO Max, Dolly Parton’s first novel and a new Girl Scouts cookie. See the full list here.
