[Travel] Favourite US City / Town

[The Spanish]

Absolutely, I like Boston too, been there a good many times as the wife has cousins in New England. If there is such a thing, possibly the closest to a British city that you will find in the US.

Because it was a British city

 

[Cowfold Seagull]

Because it was a British city

Indeed..

 

[Cowfold Seagull]

Not a great lover of cities anywhere, but I could quite easily live in small town Colorado or Wyoming. In particular Boulder in Colorado, just north of Denver, it seems to have a small town feel to it even though it is quite large. Right next door to Rocky Mountains is a big plus. Similarly, I could live in Durango, South West to Rocky Mountains. Also close enough to Monument valley. Perfect spot.

would love to live in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Next door to both Grand Teton and Yellowstone Nationals Parks. I think you can tell that I love the wide open spaces of USA.

If I had to live in a city, then NYC

New York couldn't be any more diifferent than all of the other towns, and the wide open spaces that you love so much!

 

[DIFFBROOK]

New York couldn't be any more diifferent than all of the other towns, and the wide open spaces that you love so much!

I know, that is why I said "If I had to"

Ive been to Denver, San Francisco, LA, Boston and NYC. For fun NYC beats all of them. But, to be honest all of them would probably drive me mad. I loved Jackson Hole - I could very much live there.

 

[blue'n'white]

NYC is good - lots of things to do but my favourite big city is New Orleans (perhaps because it was the first place I visited in the USA). Music everywhere. The other (smaller) place I love is St Petersburg in Florida - great weather, very laid back atmosphere and a fabulous blues festival every April.

 

[smillie's garden]

Not a bite thing, just used to live there.

Fair enough. I stayed there for a month in '89, and was happy to leave. I suppose the proximity to the Smoky Mountains would be a plus, but the town seemed too full of Bob Jones's University types, and consequently rather dull.

 

[Mellor 3 Ward 4]

I've done all 50 states and three quarters of the largest 80 metropolitan areas (this is a look at me thread, isn't it?) and love the place generally.Having said that, I'm not too keen on San Diego although I know it is many people's favourite US City. All down the West Coast there is poverty, homelessness and hopelessness on a scale that beggars belief in the big cities and SD is no exception. We cleared our own 'jungle' a couple of years ago because of a TB outbreak. I actually live in Coronado which is a bit tasty but would never be able to afford it if I had to pay the bills. Now, take me to a cool college town or somewhere that's obscenely well off or dripping with history and you've got me. Pacific North West, specifically Oregon would be my recommendation.

Seattle, Puget Sound, Olympia and down to Astoria continuing down the Oregon Coast as far as the Avenue of the Giants in Northern California. Then head back up through Oregon via Ashland with its Shakespeare festival, quick 7 hour detour to Crate Lake, then up past Eugene through the Willamette valley and then out to Bend and the high desert East of the Cascades before rounding Mount Hood and coming back along the Colombia River gorge. Apart from white water rafting (for softies), mountains, prairies, hiking, wine country, scenery, culture, fancy restaurants and a climate similar to Bordeaux it hasn't got much to offer. Finally, get pissed up in Seattle to round things off.

Everywhere else is gorgeous in one way or another but the state I try to avoid is Florida (thought I'd lucked out when I was sent to Tampa only to discover that the climate is just like Sussex - four months of lovely weather and 8 months when it's just not nice outdoors).

We seem to be going back to The Rockies time and again from Montana (Jasper actually) down to Albuquerque. Glacier, Teton and Yellowstone National Parks are brilliant if you avoid high summer. Do a one way trip from Salt Lake City up through Idaho and then out through the NE of Yellowstone over the Beartooth pass (11,000 feet up) before crossing the prairies to Little Big Horn and stopping off at Cody, WY for a Saturday night rodeo (bit of a zigzag that). Then across the prairies to places like Laramie and Cheyenne before ending up in Denver which has a zillion option.

And, if you ever want to be really bored, drive across Texas. **** me, that was a silly idea.

I think I ought to get back to work ... pub-time in 20 minutes, Just time to send out a couple of emails to ruin Monday morning for a few Limeys.

To be continued on Bell Cheeses At Work thread ...

PS special mentions for Chicago, Philadelphia, DC and (grudgingly) NYC.

50 states - impressive - I'm jealous - I guess it helps living there! We've been to about half that yet still feel incredibly lucky to have seen as much as we have.

Favourite City - it's a tough one - Chicago, Portland, San Francisco spring to mind for very different reasons, but I enjoyed of the 'smaller' ones like Boulder in CO, Milwaukee WI and Clearwater, Florida.

Green Bay went to watch NFL - a massive Stadium but nothing, and I mean nothing else! Bloody cold too!

Never been to LA, have no desire to, and I personally didn't get swept away by NYC. St.Louis OK for the Courthouse, The Arch and the baseball stadium - not much else there.

You mention the Pacific North West - what an amazing place - We did a road trip two years ago which started in Seattle/San Juan Islands (great for Orca watching) then round the Olympic peninsular, down the Washington / Oregon coast (loved Canon Beach) as far as Rockaway beach, then inland and up to Portland - then we followed the Colombia River Gorge, down to Boise, then across Idaho to the Tetons (white water rafting) and up to Yellowstone. From there over to Cody and on to Mt. Rushmore. South to Boulder & Denver.

Currently putting together our next road trip - Deep South - want to take in New Orleans, Memphis, Nashville, possibly across to Charlotte. Wife will want a few days on the beach to finish up - any thoughts - Savannah?

This is a great thread BTW!

 

[Badger]

Boston, San Fran, Seattle - in that order. NY is OK, but doesn't really offer anything more than London IMO. Many US cities are absolutely crap, you'd have to pay me to live in LA for example.

Almost exactly this. I'd perhaps have Seattle and Portland fighting it out for third spot though. You've rightfully slagged off LA, my least favourite city in the world.

Chicago is the one city I'd still like to visit.

Special mention for Monterey (and surrounding little towns) in California. I was there in November and thought it was really nice, un-American feeling place.

 

[seagully]

Like Seattle a lot- would have loved to have been living there in the early 90s when the grunge scene kicked off.

 

[marlowe]

Statewise I loved the south western states of Colorado, Arizona, Utah and New Mexico. It's probably the closest you'll get to being in the Old Wild West and they provided the backdrop to many iconic Western movies. Arizona and Utah is largely Navaho reservation land. Then there are the ancient pueblos of New Mexico. The whole area is absolutely stunning.



However although I've never been and in total contrast I'm quite fascinated by the urban decay of Detroit. Ghost towns have always held a fascination for me and in recent years Detroit has become virtually a ghost city with almost a third of buildings, both residential and business becoming abandoned and derelict. I would love to explore all the abandoned buildings some of which are quite grand. It would probably be quite dangerous though.

https://youtu.be/JcmkSXXmBhw

 

[Mellor 3 Ward 4]

I know, that is why I said "If I had to"

I loved Jackson Hole - I could very much live there.

Great place.

 

[Arthritic Toe]

Sedona, Arizona

 

[The Spanish]

Newport RI all day long, oldest pub in USA apparently

If you are on a budget though just go to Cowes instead it’s exactly the same

 

[Brovion]

San Fran seems to be getting a lot of love on here - but I didn't really like it either when I went in '94. Maybe its changed now, but I wasn't that impressed tbh.

No, I'm not a big fan of SF. My brother-in-law lives there and we've been about seven or eight times, the last time this summer. I don't find the locals particularly friendly and it is way too hilly. It's also expensive, but you can say that about a lot of California.

 

[PTC Gull]

It is indeed a bit of a "look at me" thread, and why not!

I've been to 38 states and lived in Atlanta, Houston, St Louis, New Jersey, New York, Chicago and Los Angeles.

Living in Manhattan for a couple of years (about 8 years ago) was amazing. Every bloke's dream. Still can't believe I had the opportunity. Wonderful city though it is, a couple of years was probably enough for me. A country boy at heart, I found city living a bit of a challenge. Not enough open spaces.

Atlanta … nice place to live; crap place to visit. Used to tell people how much we liked living there, but when they visited we found it tough to explain why.

Houston … awful place. Flat, ugly, horrendous climate. We were there for a year in 1979 and the one thing it had going for it was the country music "urban cowboy" scene.

Living in New Jersey was, surprisingly, very nice. Most people only see the bit between Newark Airport and Manhattan, but go 30 miles west beyond the urban sprawl and there's wide open country, charming small towns, and some great residential areas.

St Louis has to be one of America's more boring towns with summers so hot and humid you don't want to leave your house. Was told by a number of locals that it was a great place to be a kid (safe, well established, good schools), but the moment they could leave town they were off. Then, when they settled down to raise a family St Louis, once again seemed a good choice.

Living in Chicago for a short while was great, but not a place I'd be happy to live for too long. One of the negatives was that there were few nearby places worth visiting.

I liked LA. Not everyone's cup of tea, but the beach areas are very nice and there are some interesting neighbourhoods. If you avoid the crap areas it's actually a decent city.

As for my favourites? I go back to the USA two or three times every year on holiday, and probably the southwest, the west and the Pacific Northwest and the Rockies are my favourite areas for amazing scenery, great cities, and charming small towns.

Other places to recommend are Florida (the west coast and the Panhandle but NOT in summer), New Orleans (amazing), Savannah and Charleston SC (both charming cities and very walkable), Newport RI and New England.

I have been to Nashville and Memphis, but only on business trips many years ago, and both are on my list for this year or next. Also for this year or next is Yellowstone.

On my boring list (personal opinions of course) are Washington DC, Dallas, Philadelphia and Denver. Much as I love the Rocky Mountains and the rest of Colorado, I really can't find any reason to stop off in Denver.

Would agree with all of this. Interested to know where in Atlanta you were? And below the Panhandle in Autumn is great place to be, deserted beaches and just the locals for company. Its called "the forgotten coast". Outer Banks in NC is also nice, again after the summer holidays.
I also enjoyed going to Williamsburg in Virginia many years ago.

 

[mylesfdo]

San Fran seems to be getting a lot of love on here - but I didn't really like it either when I went in '94. Maybe its changed now, but I wasn't that impressed tbh.

Dont get me wrong I like it and its a lovely city but Im just a bit bored with it now as been 4 odd times! There are some lovely places near by mind all accessible on BART or Uber such as Hayward.

 

[mylesfdo]

Looking at a family fly/drive over Easter. San Fran, Yellowstone, LA, Vegas, San Diego/Tijuana day trip. Few days in each although LA I could easily bypass. Any other gems in that part of the world?

Id defo swerve LA as San Diego much nicer! Try and stay at Imperial Beach as it lovely.......u can get the tram down to border and walk over to avoid taking car and then hop on a bus and go 2-3hrs out of the shithole hat is Tijuana! San Jose I liked as well which is not too far a drive from San Fran and if you go to Vegas make sure you go to Red Rock Canyon and also a Cirque du Soleil show! Depending on where you fly into Ive got a great contact for car hire upgrade but would need to be pick up and drop off in Vegas probably! PM me if need info.

 

[Shuggie]

Currently putting together our next road trip - Deep South - want to take in New Orleans, Memphis, Nashville, possibly across to Charlotte. Wife will want a few days on the beach to finish up - any thoughts - Savannah?

This is a grea
t thread BTW!

Morning all,

Yes, yes and yes again. Savannah is fabulous. From Nashville head through Chattanooga simply because of the name to Atlanta (dinner at Fat Matt's rib shack, live music, queues out the door and real southern food, if a little commercialised) and follow Sherman's march to the sea avoiding interstates. Watch and/or read Gone With the Wind before you go. From Savannah north there are plenty of beach resorts from Kiawah Island (mortgage required) to more modest places. Beaches all the way up the coast to Charleston (fab place) and beyond. Up to you when you head left to CLT.

Looks like those goddam Limeys took my emails the wrong way overnight. Stop taking all your Brexit angst out on me if you don't mind!

 

[Chicken Run]

If you are on a budget though just go to Cowes instead it’s exactly the same

Mmm

 

[goldstone]

Would agree with all of this. Interested to know where in Atlanta you were? And below the Panhandle in Autumn is great place to be, deserted beaches and just the locals for company. Its called "the forgotten coast". Outer Banks in NC is also nice, again after the summer holidays.
I also enjoyed going to Williamsburg in Virginia many years ago.

East Cobb County, NW of downtown, between Roswell and Marietta.