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And not cities but specific parts of a city that are unique within the city itself.
I will start with some obvious ones:
Manhattan - Just can't find anything else like it in the US. While other boroughs are not as unique and more comparable to Chicago, Philly, Boston; Manhattan whether you love it or hate it, just too unique of an experience.
French Quarter, New Orleans - The architecture, atmosphere, food, colonial vibes, you can find it in cities outside of the US but living in the French Quarter is an experience not really found elsewhere in the US.
South Beach, Miami Beach - An urban, dense, tropical, extremely walkable area that is vibrant, international and full of Art Deco architecture. Latin American and touches of Europe, under the guise of the US. Again can't find a neighborhood or area in another city that matches this in the US.
Charleston, SC - The historic district is like you stepped back in time. It’s very walkable with charming alleyways and big old homes. It reminds me a lot of Europe actually. I’ve not been anywhere else quite like this in the US.
Santa Fe plaza area and, to some extent, old town in Albuquerque have a unique feel. Santa Fe dates to about 1610 and Albuquerque 100 years later.
Of course, the ancient Indian pueblos of Acoma and Taos are the oldest continuous occupied towns in the US...approaching 1000 years. Other Indian communities might also qualify.
Big cities have distinct neighborhoods that are more or less unique unto themselves. Some of that might be due to gentrification and some might be due to an influx of immigrants. I don't count gentrified neighborhoods as inauthentic, just different from what they once were. I'm familiar with both types of neighborhoods in St. Louis where I grew up -- but any long-established city will have examples.
Also in Missouri are the small towns of Hermann and Sainte Genevieve. Hermann, on the Missouri River, is distinctly German. Ste. Genevieve, on the Mississippi River, preserves a French colonial legacy that faded from most other similar towns.
I don't think that there's anything quite like the Capitol Hill neighborhood in Washington DC. It's townhouses, restaurants, big marketplace, and general vibrancy can be found a lot of places. But living around the US Capitol, the Supreme Court, the Library of Congress, and having tons of federal staffers, aides, and officials as neighbors seems unique. Don't feel you can find quite the same mix of architecture, population, and atmosphere anywhere else.
South Beach, Miami Beach - An urban, dense, tropical, extremely walkable area that is vibrant, international and full of Art Deco architecture. Latin American and touches of Europe, under the guise of the US. Again can't find a neighborhood or area in another city that matches this in the US.
Well, I think I may have found a match.
Waikiki, Honolulu - A dense, tropical, **extremely** walkable, vibrant, international, urban district, full of highrises, not to mention ultra high end boutiques like Chanel and Hermes, numerous five-star hotels, countless entertanment amenities, rooted in a culture completely unrelated to the American mainland(Hawaiian), is the #1 US destination of Japanese tourists, and sits next to the crater of a volcano.
If you mean city-metro, consider Galveston a part of Houston.
Westport, in Kansas Citi
Outshone by the Quarter, New Orleans West Bank is pretty unique. Even maybe The Ninth Ward.
Northern Kentucky, opposite Cincinnati'
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