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Yeah, ignore the lion and pit bit, we all know the drill. These are the cities I'm interested in, and I would really love people's opinions as to which one is 'the best'. I'm sure most will pretty much ignore Boise, but maybe some won't. I want to be clear that for the most part, I'm talking about as close to the downtown or rather the part of the city where everything goes on as possible.
Some Criteria I can think of:
Lowest Average housing cost (average downtown condo cost)
Lowest Cost of living
Best Nightlife
Best attractions (cinemas and museums are the main ones for me)
Best restaurants
Best parks
Best Lakes, rivers etc
Most beautiful natural setting
Best cityscape
If anyone happens to know any actual figures when it comes to housing cost, that'd be great and if anyone has enough knowledge, ranking all 6 in order would be great.
That'll do, and anything else you'd care to add would be lovely.
EDIT: I've added Austin in, but the title hasn't changed.
Last edited by BruceTenmile; 03-15-2011 at 05:28 AM..
Atlanta probably - Huge metro. Big city. Beautiful area. Sweet Skyline(s), not sure on COL, high GDP.
Then Seattle - Kind of like Atlanta, but with a high COL
Then MPLS - Kind of like a mini Atlanta, thrives in Arts, great parks, moderate COL
Then Denver- pretty similar to Atlanta and MPLS and Seattle. Mountains nearby...
Then Austin- Arts, UT, etc.
Portland - Beautiful
then Boise - just size wise, doesn't stack up.
I think that Portland, Seattle, Denver, Austin and Minneapolis are very comparable cities... Atlanta might be the bigger one of the bunch and Boise might be the smaller one.
I don't like Atlanta at all. I'm not a concrete jungle NYC kind of guy, but the city of Atlanta feels very suburban and strip mall-y to me. Plus, the traffic is terrible.
I'd also stay away from Boise. I had similar ideals about it before I visited, but it's a pretty dull and overall very "family-friendly" city -- not the type of place to fit in with the rest of the cities on your list.
Austin is a good place if you like film and music, but feels kind of smallish to me overall. The alternative "Keep Austin Weird" crowd is slowly being taken over by yuppies and by-the-numbers hipsters.
Denver is in a beautiful setting but I didn't find that the city had much to offer. I didn't dislike it, but there was nothing that stood out about it at all, either. Then again, I only spent two nights there. I'm not sure about the cost of living.
Seattle is nice, but being in the Pacific Northwest, it's a very "white" city (I don't know if that matters to you, but I tend to like a little bit more racial diversity). It also totally has a yuppie and outdoors-y vibe and the cost of living is high. That said, it's a beautiful city and there's quite a bit to do. I prefer it to Portland, which has a similar vibe.
I haven't been to Minneapolis but it intrigues me.
To begin with, Boise is a much smaller city than any of the others on the list. So when it come to city amenities of any kind, Boise will be solidly in last place. So It really isn't fair to include Boise in most criteria. If you like a small city, which may soon develop into a mid-size city, Boise is the only choice.
I live in Minneapolis, and have spent a fair amount of time in the other cities, minus Boise. These are merely my personal perceptions, they should be balanced with the opinions of others.
Taking cost of living and housing together, my best guess is that Portland and Seattle are on the expensive side. I suspect that Boise and Atlanta are the two least expensive, while the other cities are in the average range.
For nightlife, in order: Atlanta, Seattle, Minneapolis, Austin, Denver, Portland, Boise
All of the cities have cinemas, and, with the exception of Boise, finding "art" cinemas is not difficult. For museums, in order: Minneapolis, Atlanta, Seattle, Denver, Portland, Austin, Boise.
I don't think any of these cities stand out for their restaurants. Again, with the exception of Boise, they all have several quality restaurants.
Minneapolis probably has the best city park system, but all of the other cities have closer access to national parks.
For lakes and rivers, Easily Minneapolis is the best.
Seattle has one of the most beautiful natural settings of any city on the planet. The mountains on one side, and the ocean on the other is a combination that cannot be beat. Denver has a mountain setting, but not a lot of greenery. Minneapolis has a lot of fresh water and green surroundings.
Cityscape is probably the most subjective of all. Seattle's natural setting, combined with its impressive skyline make it my favorite. Atlanta, Minneapolis, and Denver also rank high.
I don't think any of these cities stand out for their restaurants. .
Seattle has a phenomenal food scene. As does Portland. The access to fresh local produce meats and especially seafood lends itself to incredible cuisine.
Thanx very much for all the responses. I have to say, I do know a whole lot of stats about these cities and am well aware that Boise is by some way the smallest of the cities. To make it clear, I'm not moving anytime soon, maybe never, it's just a dream really.
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