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Here's how I would rank the remaining large cities:
1.) Washington, DC - one could argue that DC should also be included in the OP's "excluded" list as well. Tons of pedestrian activity, excellent public transportation, lots of public parks/squares, museums, and monuments.
2.) Philadelphia - Center City Philly is really underrated and has a lot of awesome neighborhoods within walking distance of one another.
3.) Seattle - feels like a smaller version of San Francisco (and I mean that in a good way )
4.) New Orleans - if you count the French Quarter as being a part of Downtown New Orleans, how could the city not be included on this list?
Smaller cities/towns (in no particular order):
Charleston
Annapolis
Santa Barbara
Savannah
You are exactly right and I know I am late at responding but how can anyone forget New Orleans? I was down there the during the Super Bowl and Carnival and I must say this city always impresses me. This is one of my favorite places. I've been to almost every US city other than Cali and New Orleans downtown is filled with things to do and sights and happenings to see. DC and Philly should come down .... been to both in Dec 09 and didn't get the feel like I thought I would. There are multiple sights to see and very historic, but that was pretty much it. I'm talking about cities who downtowns have ppl walking and moving around everywhere.
You are exactly right and I know I am late at responding but how can anyone forget New Orleans? I was down there the during the Super Bowl and Carnival and I must say this city always impresses me. This is one of my favorite places. I've been to almost every US city other than Cali and New Orleans downtown is filled with things to do and sights and happenings to see. DC and Philly should come down .... been to both in Dec 09 and didn't get the feel like I thought I would. There are multiple sights to see and very historic, but that was pretty much it. I'm talking about cities who downtowns have ppl walking and moving around everywhere.
So you went to New Orleans during a Superbowl celebration and thought the city/downtown was hopping. And you went to D.C. and Philly in the dead of winter and wondered where all the people were. Okay. Got it.
So you went to New Orleans during a Superbowl celebration and thought the city/downtown was hopping. And you went to D.C. and Philly in the dead of winter and wondered where all the people were. Okay. Got it.
Yea, I'm gonna have to agree with you on this one. Jacksonian may have the most skewed experience of these cities possible. It would be like calling downtown Jacksonville a more happening scene than Miami Beach...solely because he was in Jacksonville during the World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party (for those of you who don't know what that is, it's the annual Georgia vs Florida football game and it's absolutely insane), but visited Miami Beach during a hurricane.
I think Philadelphia should be higher than DC on that list. I've heard Center City is awesome. Downtown DC is actually pretty quiet at night from what I've experienced. Most of the action happens in places like Georgetown, Adams Morgan, etc...and somewhat out in Old Town in Alexandria (My favorite place in the DC area).
I love New Orleans and the French Quarter, been there a few times. The scene there is second to none when it comes to original feel and the party culture of the town... Laissez Les Bon Temps Rouler! And the Saints won their first Superbowl ever, so I bet the party was spectacular.
On average though, Center City Philadelphia is quite a happening place with 300,000 jobs right there and 90,000 full time residents, a large portion of whom walk or bike to work. Sure, the main downtown canyon can have an empty feel after 6pm, but even that isn't as bad as most other American downtowns.
In the category of smaller cities with a city population, not metro but city, of 250,000 and under Boise would be one of the finest because the downtown in Boise is active, clean, vibrant, a gathering place, and a great city center for foodies and people who enjoy fine wine,excellent Northwest beer, coffee, art, there is always something going on and downtown actually gets busier after 5pm. I've traveled to alot of cities and have lived in larger cities and Boise's downtown has more going on and more going for it than many cities larger than Boise.
You are exactly right and I know I am late at responding but how can anyone forget New Orleans? I was down there the during the Super Bowl and Carnival and I must say this city always impresses me. This is one of my favorite places. I've been to almost every US city other than Cali and New Orleans downtown is filled with things to do and sights and happenings to see. DC and Philly should come down .... been to both in Dec 09 and didn't get the feel like I thought I would. There are multiple sights to see and very historic, but that was pretty much it. I'm talking about cities who downtowns have ppl walking and moving around everywhere.
Curious what part of Philly and DC you were in, some of the touristy areas can feel barren after dark, plus Dec is colder so a little less pedestrian traffic. And to another postings point, Philly's CBD suffers the same issues as many others after business, but just head 2 blocks south and that is where life is, the Canyon on Market street is a sleepy street after 7, but just on the other side is one of the more vibrant neighborhoods in all of the US, try walking through Rittenhouse Square on a warm spring night, quite majestic but still on a human scale.
DC just outside of the Mall/downtown can be quite vibrant as well, plus I love the areas that adjoin Rock Creek park.
To be exact the weather was quite smooth in Philly when I went. It was on New Years day, parades were going on and the weather was appropriate, very sunny and ppl was out everywhere. We even took a long stroll down south (fat tuesday), broad, and market streets. Philly was beautiful, one of the best skylines I've seen and Pat's couldn't have been better on the food. But overall, city life ...... laid back and boring! It didn't appeal to my way of living. Now kidphilly i'm sure you may know areas unknown right off for tourist, just like I could navigate you through some areas of Jackson or New Orleans unknown right off. I can accept that right off for DC because it was cold as in DC, I just thought it was something they were used too up that way, it wasn't snowing at all though.
And yes "a75206" New Orleans was packed! Loved it and all the Saints fans ..... and yes you should have seen the city when we won both the NFC Championship and the Super Bowl, nothing could compare. I wasn't on here to bash any city, I just love traveling and visiting different places. My next destination is San Fran, time for me to hit up California, I hear San Fran is one of the best!
I think Philadelphia should be higher than DC on that list. I've heard Center City is awesome. Downtown DC is actually pretty quiet at night from what I've experienced. Most of the action happens in places like Georgetown, Adams Morgan, etc...and somewhat out in Old Town in Alexandria (My favorite place in the DC area).
In general, I would agree with this. Particularly west of Connecticut Ave., downtown DC is pretty quiet after business hours. Penn Quarter/Chinatown and Metro Center areas maintain a pretty consistent crowd into the nighttime and on weekends due to the restaurants/shopping in the area.
So glad to hear that you like Old Town--it's one of our favorite areas too. We prefer it to Georgetown, it's not nearly as cramped and tourist-filled, and (to us at least) the shops are more interesting.
[quote=bornjacksonian;13007423I can accept that right off for DC because it was cold as in DC, I just thought it was something they were used too up that way, it wasn't snowing at all though. [/quote]
The city quiets down a lot in the colder months, generally speaking. Although certain neighborhoods such as Dupont, Adams-Morgan and U Street stay hopping pretty much year round.
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