General Chat / Coolest City you have ever visited?

Why does nobody have NYC on their lists?

 

I think the problem with NYC is that it's a very spread out city that takes a lot of time to explore. If you go to NYC and only have a limited amount of time you'll probably end up doing the most touristy, souless crap the city has to offer. Things like Times Square (I hate Times Square with a passion), Rockefeller Center, the Grey Line, the Circle Line, the terrible new Yankee Stadium, the corporate new Madison Square Garden and the Statue of Liberty are all high on people's lists but honestly none of these things are a portrayal of the real New York City.  I left the Empire State building / Top of the Rock / 1 WTC off of this list because as touristy as it is I won't for a second pretend my mind isn't blown every time I travel to the top of one of those buildings (which I only do when there's no line, usually at night and usually in the winter).

 

To really experience New York, you need to visit Williamsburg, Little Italy, Chinatown even parts of Harlem. New York city is a city that takes a long time to fall in love with because the best things about it are the small, out-of-the-way things people discover on their own... not the tourist traps which are way too prevalent in Midtown.

 

As a tourist I think the only things worth doing in Midtown are the Empire State Building which is touristy but incredible and of course a Broadway show. Besides that stay away from Midtown and F**K Times Square.

 

Again, I'm not overly well traveled outside of the U.S. I'm not comparing New York to other cities but to get the most out of New York, travel off the beaten path. I feel like a lot of people who come here with a limited time-frame miss out on a lot of things and it's a shame.

Columbus is a favorite of mine but that's because I'm a buckeye fan. NYC would be my favorite if it weren't for Columbus though.

I'm very attached to my hometown of Stockholm. It's really very beautiful, shame about the lack of affordable apartments these days... The other major Swedish cities (if you could call them that...) are also pleasant: Gothenburg, Malmö, and in particular Uppsala.

 

Outside of Sweden, Berlin has a very nice atmosphere but is mostly pretty boring to look at. I was hugely disappointed by Rome but should probably give it another chance. I preferred Florence. Brussels has a special place in my heart as I lived there for four years, and it's also packed with nice architecture and has some wonderful parkland in the outskirts. In Belgium I also really like Gent. Some lesser known European towns I really liked are Bayonne and Nîmes in France and Burgos in Spain.

I'm very attached to my hometown of Stockholm.

 

I'm not sure if you meant it to be, but I thought this was pretty clever

I'm from the NYC area (as you could've probably guessed by my name), but I'm not gonna go with New York because... well, that's cheating. I really do want to say Las Vegas or Orlando, but in the end, I'm going to go with something a bit more out of the blue - Niagara Falls, Ontario. It's got the falls, obviously, but also a Ripley's Believe It or Not museum, a Great Wolf Lodge, a sweet observation tower, a few casinos, a really cool arcade, a wax museum, mini-golf courses, and a whole bunch of other stuff that I can't really think of right now. And to top it all off, it's in Canada!

 

I'm not sure if you meant it to be, but I thought this was pretty clever

I actually have no idea what you mean, haha! But it does seem now that I somehow screwed up that sentence...

Oh no, it makes perfect sense. I was alluding to the idea of Stockholm Syndrome, which would suggest you're a prisoner there and have come to like it over time.

Rome is the number one for me. There is an excavation site on every street corner and the mix with the classical Italian architecture is absolutely stylish. It's a shame I'm not too keen on Italians themselves, but otherwise I would definitely want to live there for a couple of years.

It's hard to name other favorites, as I think every city has its own charms. Runner-ups are San Francisco, Barcelona, Lisbon and Amsterdam. These are all cities I would like to live in at least once in my lifetime. Budapest and Hong Kong are beautiful too. I love some parts of Los Angeles as well, but looking at the total picture of the city, it wouldn't come close to the previously mentioned cities.

 

In three weeks I will expand my city list with Pisa and Lucca and in May I will visit Denmark for the first time.

 

I wonder why a lot of people mention Cape Town as their favorite. It didn't make such an impression on me.

Oh no, it makes perfect sense. I was alluding to the idea of Stockholm Syndrome, which would suggest you're a prisoner there and have come to like it over time.

I didn't catch it at first either, but that's clever indeed

I wonder why a lot of people mention Cape Town as their favorite. It didn't make such an impression on me.

I don't know if it would've made my list if I didn't spend two weeks seeing every facet the city has to offer, with some great company.

I'm from the NYC area (as you could've probably guessed by my name), but I'm not gonna go with New York because... well, that's cheating. I really do want to say Las Vegas or Orlando, but in the end, I'm going to go with something a bit more out of the blue - Niagara Falls, Ontario. It's got the falls, obviously, but also a Ripley's Believe It or Not museum, a Great Wolf Lodge, a sweet observation tower, a few casinos, a really cool arcade, a wax museum, mini-golf courses, and a whole bunch of other stuff that I can't really think of right now. And to top it all off, it's in Canada!

Are you joking? That's literally the most depressing shithole of a place I've ever been. And that says a lot since I drove there straight from Detroit.

Chicago is definitely my current favorite. I interned there over a summer and got to stay in the Lincoln Park area. The touristy things are well worth it, (Parks, the bean, willis and john hancock buildings, lakeshore drive) and I fell in love with exploring around Lincoln park and other areas of the city. Very rewarding to explore. Not to mention the food was amazing pretty much everywhere we went. 

 

However, I'll be traveling around Europe next spring (my first time overseas), so I expect my favorite could easily change. 

Current rough draft of cities I plan to visit

Edinburgh

Glasgow 

Prague

Amsterdam

Brussels

Paris 

London

Manchester

Liverpool 

Dublin

Barcelona

Rome

Vienna

 

Surely one of those can top Chicago.

I'd switch Brussels for Antwerps or Ghent or maybe even Bruges. Brussels is pretty depressing and boring except for maybe that one square.

I'd also advice you to add Utrecht when you're going to Amsterdam. It's easier to navigate and less touristy and I live there.

Oh no, it makes perfect sense. I was alluding to the idea of Stockholm Syndrome, which would suggest you're a prisoner there and have come to like it over time.

Ah, of course! And in a way you could probably say it's true...

Chicago is definitely my current favorite. I interned there over a summer and got to stay in the Lincoln Park area. The touristy things are well worth it, (Parks, the bean, willis and john hancock buildings, lakeshore drive) and I fell in love with exploring around Lincoln park and other areas of the city. Very rewarding to explore. Not to mention the food was amazing pretty much everywhere we went. 

 

However, I'll be traveling around Europe next spring (my first time overseas), so I expect my favorite could easily change. 

Current rough draft of cities I plan to visit

Edinburgh

Glasgow 

Prague

Amsterdam

Brussels

Paris 

London

Manchester

Liverpool 

Dublin

Barcelona

Rome

Vienna

 

Surely one of those can top Chicago.

 

You completely dodging Germany?  

It's interesting to see how the views of the americans and the europeans differ and what makes a cool city for them.

 

The coolest place I've visited is Mostar in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It has such a warm and quiet atmosphere. The old town with the famous bridge has so many alleys and elevation changes. The people there are so welcoming and the food is ace. Only good memories connected to this city.

 

Other cities on the top of my list are Amsterdam, San Francisco and Split.

I think I was too young when I visited Rome. Venice is worth a mention but it is overrun by tourists. You have to go to the outer districts or visit in the evening.

 

Fisch: I can't think of a really cool German city actually. A lot of people like Hamburg though, never been there.

Berlin is probably my favourite city.

I'd say either Las Vegas or New York, both are polar opposites but have unique and interesting qualities that I really enjoyed.  Can't say I've been to many big cities though, Chicago, Austin, Dallas, Pittsburgh and Cincinnati are really the only notable ones that I've spent any time in.

A lot of people like Hamburg though, never been there.

I visited Hamburg last year, but it did not make such a good impression on me. Most of the city is just plain ugly and filled with concrete blocks, mostly due to the WWII bombings. The nightlife consists of whorehouses and sex shops. I did enjoy the weekend, but I won't return soon.

Are you joking? That's literally the most depressing shithole of a place I've ever been. And that says a lot since I drove there straight from Detroit.

 

Depressing shithole? Where the hell did you get that impression? Then again, being a skateboarder, depressing shitholes are kinda my native habitat. 

I went to Tyler Texas today. 1/10.