Believe it or not, celebrating St. Patrick’s Day with parades didn’t originate in Ireland, but instead started and became popular in North American colonies centuries ago. What began as a Catholic feast day and gained more recognition with these colonial celebrations is today one of America’s biggest cultural holiday. More than 31.3 million people in the U.S. claim Irish ancestry – that’s more than six times the population of Ireland, and consumers are projected to spend $7.2 billion on the holiday this year.

Different cities have their own St. Patrick’s Day traditions. Chicago, for instance, gained fame for dyeing its river green, while other places are now known for their elaborate pageants, pub crawls or long processions of marching bagpipers. But not every city is ideal for the holiday. WalletHub compared 200 of the largest cities across 15 key metrics to find the best places to wear green and save some, too. Our data set ranges from Irish pubs and restaurants per capita to the lowest price for a three-star hotel on St. Patrick’s Day to the weather forecast.

Top 20 Cities for St. Patrick’s Day

1.	Boston, MA	11.	Naperville, IL
2.	Chicago, IL	12.	Philadelphia, PA
3.	Savannah, GA	13.	Knoxville, TN
4.	Reno, NV	14.	Columbia, SC
5.	Pittsburgh, PA	15.	Fort Lauderdale, FL
6.	New York, NY	16.	Henderson, NV
7.	Worcester, MA	17.	Syracuse, NY
8.	Buffalo, NY	18.	Las Vegas, NV
9.	Tampa, FL	19.	New Orleans, LA
10.	Santa Rosa, CA	20.	Madison, WI