Looking for your next escape? So is everyone else. The ‘Euro summer’ aesthetic – with stylish Mediterranean escapes and sun-drenched coastlines – has skyrocketed in popularity among Americans, with Google searches surging by over 133% in the past year alone. However, international travel isn’t cheap, and costs are only going up. Therefore, many travelers are swapping overseas flights for domestic road trips.
San Diego is the premier alternative to Lisbon for a Euro summer
According to new data from SIXT+, you don’t need a passport to experience the endless charm of Portugal’s capital. In their recent ranking of the ‘Top 25 U.S. Euro Summer Dupes,’ San Diego secured the 16th spot as the premier domestic alternative to Lisbon. And honestly… it’s easy to see why the comparison works so well. Both cities are celebrated for their vibrant surf cultures, historic coastal architecture, and incredible seafood.
What’s the data?
To identify the most authentic stateside getaways for a Euro summer, SIXT+ analyzed environmental and demand-based data, like climate similarity, search trends, and social media popularity. San Diego’s pairing with Lisbon earned a solid climate match score of 70.0 out of 100, proving that SoCal’s breezy, sunny weather reliably mirrors the Iberian Peninsula.
The data also shows that travelers are quickly catching on to this coastal parallel. The Lisbon-San Diego pairing seeing a 29% increase in overall search demand! The West Coast haven also dominates social media as a highly aesthetic getaway (you’re telling us?!), gathering an impressive 48.7 million hashtags on Instagram and 3.5 million on TikTok.
So for anyone craving the laid-back energy of Lisbon this year but wants to skip the transatlantic flight, San Diego is the perfect destination.
