One of Missouri's cities has been getting a lot of attention lately, with the latest attention-grabbing headlines focusing on a world-famous pop star and her football-playing boyfriend.  Yet, that's really not the reason why you should visit this world-class city.

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Lonely Planet recently published its list of the top places to travel in 2024 and Kansas City has made the list. If you're not familiar, Lonely Planet is a travel guidebook publisher that showcases travel destinations around the world.

So what does Lonely Planet like about Kansas City? Quite a bit actually, so much that I couldn't find that perfect quote that encapsulates what Lonely Planet likes about it. So I'll just have to paraphrase.

In a word Lonely Planet is jazzed about Kansas City's ever-evolving culinary scene which they call top tier. They're also jazzed about the historic Rock Island Railroad Bridge being redeveloped as a dining and entertainment destination all 40 feet over the Kansas River.

They also like Kansas City's new airport terminal as well as the free streetcar line through the city's urban center. Not to mention that Kansas City will be the home of the first stadium dedicated to a women's sports team, the Kansas City Current.

Don't miss highlights according to Lonely Planet include enjoying Kansas City's BBQ scene. They say to try Joes, Arthur Bryant's, Gates, and Jack Stack. In fact, they say to try them all. Then they double down on KC's food scene generally and recommend the Palestinian food at Baba's Pantry and Mexican drinks at Cafe Ollama. They also suggest enjoying the spirits at J. Rieger and Tom's Town. After all, even prohibition didn't stop the flow of alcohol.

The best part of it for those of us who live in Missouri, it's a relatively short drive to experience all the town has to offer. Heck, even if you live in Kansas, Nebraska, or Illinois, you can have a great experience and not have to mortgage the house to do it. That's pretty cool.

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