San Antonio, Texas: Number 1 of the 5 friendliest cities in America

Thinking of moving? Read Barbara Corcoran’s, contributing editor of the TODAY Show, picks for the perfect place to live.

What makes a city friendly? We looked for certain standards like safety, diversity, pedestrian and bike friendliness, as well as the presence of parks and public spaces. Then we looked for something unique, like a place that always has big, fun public events or someplace with a lot of farmers markets. Most importantly, we talked to brokers to get their personal stories of friendliness.  And finally, we took a look at statistics that help make a place friendly, such as enough hotel rooms to welcome visitors, enough bars to have a robust happy hour, enough tourists willing to visit and, of course, budget-friendly home prices.

Here are some notes, findings and quotes from our five friendliest cities:

San Antonio, Texas: Where they pay it forward

More than 26 million people visit San Antonio each year.

• The city has 68 miles of urban hike and bike trails, and more than 11,000 acres of urban parks.  The second oldest park in the U.S., San Pedro Park, is in San Antonio.
• The Riverwalk, or Paseo del Rio, is a city park meandering along the banks of the San Antonio River, and it's the heart of the city.  You can walk along its picturesque banks, lined with lush local plants, and stop in the riverside restaurants, shops and cafes.  There's even a special place to get married on the Riverwalk:  Marriage Island.
• The median single-family home sales price is $150,000.

Below is Barbara's list of the 5 friendliest cities:

1. San Antonio, Texas
2. Denver, Colorado
3. Davis, California
4. Nashville, Tennessee
5. madison, Wisconsin