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Well we can agree to disagree, I really don't see it, this is from someone who has lived in LA, Boston, and visited Sao Paulo numerous times.
I appreciate that we can all agree to disagree in a polite manner. This forum tends to bring out the extremists, so it's nice to see a respectable difference of opinions in this thread. It's refreshing to see in the C v C forum.
Lived in Denver for a short period of time before returning to STL.
Liked: Mountains, hiking, climate
Disliked: traffic (quickly becoming horrible due to influx of people moving to the state and the states inability to build new or expand existing infrastructure), potholes (Many), housing prices (rising with no end in site), entitlement vibe from so called "Natives" (If drivers in your state boast a "Native" sticker on their car then their sense of entitlement/pride is a little extreme IMO, which leads to a direct correlation to their attitude towards "outsiders")
In my honest opinion Denver and the front range has very unique qualities/features to it which are awesome. But I do think it is definitely hyped up way too much and overrated. Maybe I expected too much from Colorado/Denver but it just wasn't worth it for us in the end. Overpriced and quickly becoming overpopulated due to all the Californians leaving the state they destroyed to destroy yet another state.
I think San Diego is a great city to go on a weeklong vacation, although it's extremely overrated in terms of a place to live. They have the highest electric bill there in the country, it's extremely hard to get a job, and the weather although really nice, gets boring after a while.
I'd argue that all of the western cities on the coast are overrated (still awesome, but not the paradises people imagine them being) while cities like Phoenix and Salt Lake City are criminally underrated
Overrated- Seattle. Weather is beyond awful and it is far too expensive given that terrible weather. Also the downtown is gross- nice views from downtown and nice view of downtown when you are on the water, but the city itself when you are at ground level is surprisingly ugly compared to Portland and SF.
Underrated- probably SLC just because it is OK and most don't think about it at all. It's not great, but not as bad as I expected.
I can't believe people are putting LA in overrated. On the West Coast, people mostly hate it. It may have a good image on the East Coast and Midwest, but everyone I know (including people in LA) mostly hate it, so I don't see how it could be "overrated". It's basically the West Coast Detroit outside of West LA.
San Diego is rated correctly- I've never heard much beyond it being a decent mid-sized town with great beaches. If People are expecting more than that, then yes it would be overrated.
Las Vegas: They have the Las Vegas Strip which is two miles of hotels, clubs and buffet's but the metropolitan area has a terrible economy outside of one industry. The educational system is terrible. It feels like living on Mars because it is so dry. The violent crime rate is rapidly escalating. Most of the Valley is dumpy. The people are very stressed out and unfriendly.
Denver: It is a decent city but it is so overpriced. The prices of homes in the city proper are so high it is comical. The educational system in the city itself is terrible for the most part. The traffic is terrible with people swarming in like it is the 1800s gold rush. They have some very warm winter days but in the spring it takes for ever to warm up.
Phoenix: It has a very good economy and very low cost of living. But it has some alot of really dumpy areas. The city is extremely unvibrant and feels deserted.
Underrated Cities:
Salt Lake City: Great mountain views, very fun, lots of single people, open-minded, excellent job market. Alot of really walkable neighborhoods for people who are big into urban areas. Alot of very interesting topography.
Grand Junction, CO: I was there a week and it is a very clean, college town on the Western Slope. The cost of housing is a fraction of what Boulder or Denver is. They have a very large amount of retail for a city of it's size because it is the biggest city between Salt Lake and Denver. I also like the book cliff mountains.
Flagstaff: I know its very expensive, but it had the mountain city mentality without the pretentious element. There are alot of very interesting people there. They are also supposedly the epicenter of the largest Pondorosa Pine forest in the nation. North Arizona University is also a huge university that creates a very vibrant atmosphere.
Utah County, Utah: I thought it was very friendly. I liked the clean, culture and manners of the locals. It has one of the fastest growing economies in the country but also some of the lowest cost housing per square foot. The topography and landscape is really interesting as half the county is mountains and they have a huge freshwater lake.
Los Angeles County: I love it because it offers so much all in one country. There are parts of the county that feel like middle of the desert and remote. They also have some of the densest neighborhoods in America. There are tons of micro-climates. There is just so much fun, entertaining stuff to do and it is all one county.
Overrated- Seattle. Weather is beyond awful and it is far too expensive given that terrible weather. Also the downtown is gross- nice views from downtown and nice view of downtown when you are on the water, but the city itself when you are at ground level is surprisingly ugly compared to Portland and SF.
Lets be honest the weather isn't that bad and we have been have hotter and hotter spring and summer days every years. Vancouver has the same exact weather yet you never here people ragging on them. But I do see what you mean with "gross" parts of downtown. The homeless population is pretty bad down there. Some streets reek of garbage. But other areas of the downtown (especially on 4th Ave and up), are pretty clean. Hopefully with the redeveloped waterfront, it will make waves through the rest of the downtown core.
Colorado Springs is very underrated. It's a really beautiful city with hills and mountains right in your face. Very green in the summer time. And the people are so friendly.
There's so much to do for tourists and locals. They have a beautiful zoo on the mountain and you can see the entire city from it. You can ride to the top of one of the highest points in Colorado. Manitou Springs right next door offers so much to do for people who are into hiking (The Incline) and history (Ute Cliff Dwellings). A a top notch 5 star hotel. Beautiful neighborhoods all over and a surprisingly lively downtown. It's very underrated imo
Denver: It is a decent city but it is so overpriced. The prices of homes in the city proper are so high it is comical. The educational system in the city itself is terrible for the most part. The traffic is terrible with people swarming in like it is the 1800s gold rush. They have some very warm winter days but in the spring it takes for ever to warm up.
I agree with you on this one. I'd argue from 1995-2010 or so, Denver was probably the #1 city to live in the entire western US. It had a lot to offer in terms of both urban and recreational amenities (still does-- but much more crowded and difficult to access now), had a good diverse economy (this part is still true today and probably even stronger than ever, to Denver's credit) and it was very reasonably priced city-- and being moderately priced was one of Denver's top benefits. The prices have gone up the roof and the traffic has gotten so bad it is really taking a hit on the "quality of life."
The climate of Denver is chaotic, to say the least, and not well understood, even by people who live in Denver. It has its ups and downs. I think people in Denver can be downright schizophrenic about what the climate and physical geography of the place is really like.
Most underrated city in the west: Reno. I don't know why Reno is almost never even thought of by people, even within the mountain west. It has a LOT to offer. Gorgeous location, just east of the Sierras, 40 minute drive from Lake Tahoe, 4 hours from San Francisco. Mountains all around in every direction (in the Great Basin). People have an old outdated image of Reno being a dumpy city full of casinos, brothels, meth heads, and rednecks, but the truth is, while you can still find a lot of the "old Reno" around, there are tons of areas in the Reno area (particularly the south part of town) that are upscale, modern, with a very California-suburban (in a good way) feel to it. There are a lot of small scale manufacturing businesses moving to the area. Biggest downsides are very high housing costs (not as high as Denver, but getting up there) and very low wages. Not a great combo. But for those who can somehow make it work economically and want to live in a smaller city, seems like a great place to live.
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This forum tends to bring out the extremists, so it's nice to see a respectable difference of opinions in this thread. It's refreshing to see in the C v C forum.