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This is an interesting one. I'm not sure if it is considered the "premiere" city over Albuquerque or not but I imagine it could be for a lot of people.
When I think of New Mexico I think of Albuquerque but somebody who is arts oriented or is into rich resort towns probably goes with Sante Fe. Or maybe somebody in the public sector because of government.
Yeah -- I think Santa Fe is a "cultural capital" of the Greater Southwest more than its state. It is the 3rd oldest city in the US (1610) and has more recognition and influence than one would think considering tis size.
6. Manchester is the largest city of New Hampshire but not really a large city. Would people outside of New Hampshire know this, or think of Concord as the premiere city? Or draw a blank?
Manchester is definitely New Hampshire's "premiere" city. It has the couple minor league sports teams, the largest population, some bit of an economy, shopping, the only commercial airport, etc. Concord is just known because of being the capitol, not much else. I don't think many people outside of New England know much about the city anyway.
Growing up in New Hampshire, we always considered "The city" to be Manchester. It's also not that unsafe either. Is it all that beautiful of a place? No. Is it unsafe by any real definition of the word? Not even close either.
Dallas gets the Metroplex get the largest metro area
Yeah true but it's Dallas-Fort Worth. Even though DFW and Houston metro areas are roughly the same size, Dallas by itself isn't the largest metro area. You can't forget Fort Worth in this. The Dallas side of the metro area just passed the 5 million mark while the Fort Worth side has around half that. Houston pretty much by itself has around 7 million so if anyone could make an argument that Houston is actually the largest metro area, I can understand it.
Maybe Fort Worth's combination with Dallas makes it the premier metro area in the state. Austin with its popularity I can see people saying it's the premier city. But Houston with its size and power within the state is very hard to beat.
In Texas I'd say that Austin is probably the "premier" city but it is fourth largest, behind Houston, San Antonio, and Dallas. And to me, Fort Worth, the fifth largest city, is actually the most representative of Texas as a whole, so in that sense, it's the premier city to me. San Antonio is right behind Fort Worth, I think (my gosh, it has the Alamo - LOL). I am not sure but it seems like people outside of Texas just tend to think of Dallas or Austin as being "Texas" and kind of forget about San Antonio and Fort Worth, which are two of my very favorite Texas cities.
And actually it's Houston that's the largest Texas city. Houston is all business and it's a no nonsense sort of city, and I do like a lot about it. But it is definitely a southern city and doesn't have a lot of southwest vibe to it and I think to be a premier Texas city it's got to have some of that. But Houston is definitely a power house.
So you would list Austin, then Fort Worth then San Antonio as the premiere cities in Texas?
None of those vibe anywhere close to bring a premiere city.
Houston is bigger than all three combined.
Houston's economy matches all three together.
Houston has multiple major sports teams, San Antonio had one, Austin has zero and FW had shared teams.
Houston fine art and and Theater scene blows all three of the water even though FW is no slouch.
Houston has the diversity of a premiere city, the other 3 doesn't.
Houston has the culinary scene of a premiere city, the other 3 don't.
Houston has 2 international airports and additional regional airports, SA and Austin airports are regional airports with a few international flights.
Houston has the biggest Port in Texas, the others have none.
Houston is the most international city in Texas.
In terms of higher education Houston by far has the most Medical, Law and professional schools.
Houston has more consulates than all these cities combined.
Houston is EASILY the premier CITY in Texas.
I can see the argument that DFW as a whole being the premier metro of Texas, but to list Austin , FW and SA as the premiere city simply because Houston isn't Southwestern is silly. Texas is not even a South Western state. Texas is a southern state just like Houston. Austin, SA and Dallas are not South Western either. I would never even think of listing FW as a premiere city over Houston and Austin and SA are just as laughable. A premiere city for a state the size of Texas to have zero major league sports? International flights only to Mexico? The City of Houston and DFW Metro are the only ones with direct flights to all over the world.If you are looking at it on the city level the choice is obviously Houston.
Keep in mind that the first American settlers, the original 100 settled in Houston. 5 of the 6 capitals of Texas was in the Houston Metro and Houston itself was one of those capitals.
Santa Fe lacks most things that could make a case for it being the premier city in New Mexico. Santa Fe lost that title well over a century ago. Its awesome history, beautiful and unique built environment, large tourism industry and incredible art scene are still not enough to compete with all that Albuquerque offers.
Albuquerque also offers enough on its own in all those areas where Santa Fe shines. It has great history, beautiful and unique areas like Old Town and Los Ranchos, Corrales, etc. It has great cultural amenities and a great arts scene and art history, literary heritage, international fame and notoriety thanks not just to Breaking Bad, but many other cultural references.
Santa Fe can compete with Las Cruces and make a case for being the second city of this state but in no objective way can it compete with Albuquerque for being the premier city in New Mexico.
Albuquerque is the most visited city in New Mexico with 6.2 million visitors a year. Santa Fe has 3.6 million.
Albuquerque is home to the most visited attraction in New Mexico, the Albuquerque BioPark.
Albuquerque hosts the top three largest events by attendance in the state, the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta, New Mexico State Fair and the River of Lights.
Albuquerque has by far the most hotel rooms in the state with about 19,000. Santa Fe has about 6,000 hotel rooms.
No other airport in New Mexico comes close to the Albuquerque Sunport.
No other convention center in New Mexico comes close to the Albuquerque Convention Center.
Albuquerque has by far the largest economy and workforce in the state. Our economy is over six times larger than both Santa Fe and Las Cruces, which are the second and third-largest in the state respectively.
Albuquerque has by far the largest concentration of wealth in the state. Santa Fe has 25% of its households earning above $100,000 a year, while Albuquerque isn't far behind with 22 percent. But since Albuquerque is six times bigger than Santa Fe it's clear where the greatest concentration of wealth is in this state.
Albuquerque has the state's flagship university with the only law school and the only medical school in the state.
Albuquerque has the only Level 1 trauma center in the state. Albuquerque is also home to the state office of the medical investigator.
Albuquerque is by far the most diverse city in the state with the absolute largest ethnic communities in the state.
Albuquerque has the most restaurants in the state and with the biggest variety. Santa Fe may be able to hang when it comes to fine dining and local cuisine, but can't compare to the ethnic offerings of Albuquerque, innovative restaurants or match the sheer numbers of restaurants here.
There are also a few quirks owing to Albuquerque's prominence in New Mexico:
The Archdiocese of Santa Fe is actually headquartered in Albuquerque.
The Santa Fe Railroad never went through Santa Fe and instead was centered in Albuquerque, where it had its main depot, maintenance shops and yard, worker's hospital, etc.
Santa Fe is the state capital, but a fair bit of state agencies are headquartered in Albuquerque and Albuquerque has thousands of state government employees located here.
So you would list Austin, then Fort Worth then San Antonio as the premiere cities in Texas?
None of those vibe anywhere close to bring a premiere city.
Houston is bigger than all three combined.
Houston's economy matches all three together.
Houston has multiple major sports teams, San Antonio had one, Austin has zero and FW had shared teams.
Houston fine art and and Theater scene blows all three of the water even though FW is no slouch.
Houston has the diversity of a premiere city, the other 3 doesn't.
Houston has the culinary scene of a premiere city, the other 3 don't.
Houston has 2 international airports and additional regional airports, SA and Austin airports are regional airports with a few international flights.
Houston has the biggest Port in Texas, the others have none.
Houston is the most international city in Texas.
In terms of higher education Houston by far has the most Medical, Law and professional schools.
Houston has more consulates than all these cities combined.
Houston is EASILY the premier CITY in Texas.
I can see the argument that DFW as a whole being the premier metro of Texas, but to list Austin , FW and SA as the premiere city simply because Houston isn't Southwestern is silly. Texas is not even a South Western state. Texas is a southern state just like Houston. Austin, SA and Dallas are not South Western either. I would never even think of listing FW as a premiere city over Houston and Austin and SA are just as laughable. A premiere city for a state the size of Texas to have zero major league sports? International flights only to Mexico? The City of Houston and DFW Metro are the only ones with direct flights to all over the world.If you are looking at it on the city level the choice is obviously Houston.
Keep in mind that the first American settlers, the original 100 settled in Houston. 5 of the 6 capitals of Texas was in the Houston Metro and Houston itself was one of those capitals.
Look, don't get me wrong, but I have lived in Texas for 25 years, been to ALL the big cities many, many times for business and pleasure, and I just don't consider Houston to be the quintessential "premiere city" of the state. It's a great city, and it has a lot of positives, but I don't think it's what most people think of when they think of "best Texas city."
But you of course are free to disagree. It's just my opinion and you have your own opinion. Ok.
Many people posted opinions on which city they think is premiere in certain states and none were based on which city people from out of state thought of because that's not what the thread is asking.
In fact some posters preface their response with city A is not the city people typically think of when they think of this state but city A is indeed the premier city. I think Montana and New Hampshire were given as examples.
Point is the thread asks which Primiere...
And again the 3 cities you mentioned should not be in the discussion.
When it comes to premiere cities only Houston and Dallas would qualify with Houston having the edge as a city.
If the question was premiere metro then that would be more interesting as it fits the question of the thread more directly in that Houston and DFW are more evenly matched despite Houston being smaller. Austin and SA would be out of the discussion period.
It's hard to read if people are taking offense sometimes but this is a discussion board, so if you post your opinion some people might disagree with it. It's your opinion that Austin and Fort Worth are the premier cities in Texas, some might agree with you, others might agree with me that they should not even be in the discussion. I think it should be based on most premiere in the state and that is clearly Houston and Dallas. It's not which is liked the most or associated with the state the most.
If a city isn't up there on the economy, have the large airports, have the world class amenities, the sports teams etc then it should not be in the discussion when there are two other cities in the state that do have all of that premiere stuff.
Sorry if I am coming off as attacking you but I read Austin, and I thought ok... Then Fort Worth threw me for a loop and then SA... I'm sorry I just find those to be leagues away in comparison to Houston or Dallas. I thoroughly enjoy FW moreso than Dallas but come on, you would really pick it as more premiere over Dallas or Houston?
Santa Fe lacks most things that could make a case for it being the premier city in New Mexico. Santa Fe lost that title well over a century ago. Its awesome history, beautiful and unique built environment, large tourism industry and incredible art scene are still not enough to compete with all that Albuquerque offers.
I agree and don't think anyone who lives in New Mexico would argue that Santa Fe ranks ahead of Albuquerque in common measures but non-state perceptions, from people who think in terms of the cultural influence and history and the "Santa Fe Style" might view it as New Mexico's "premier" city. The state went through major changes after WW2 and Santa Fe (to its credit as it turns out, I think) took stock of what it had going and chose to stay close to its roots and cultivate a different developmental approach as "The City Different".
The two cities benefit from being in close proximity but have an interesting relationship. It reminds me of this old YouTube video.
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