Cultural/Arts and vibrancy mecca's on the cheap! (violent crime, hotels)

[MattDen]

What cities are cultural, arts mecca's on the cheap?

It seems like many of culturally vibrancy city like Madison, Seattle, Boston are very, very expensive?

Anyone know of any cities that are cheap cultural cultural arts and entertainment mecca's on the cheap?

Here is my list...
Columbus, Ohio (of course I love that city)
Pittsburgh, PA
Minneapolis, MN (not cheap, but for the amount of cultural amenities it offers compared to places of similar vibrancy it is)
Denver, Colorado
Cincinnati, Ohio (would be nice if one could go there without worrying about the massive amount of violent crime though that is fairly widespread) And many of the entertaining areas are close to the most violent areas in a very violent city, what a shame in much a masterpiece of a city! The architecture of the neighborhoods is better then a majority of museums in most cities in my opinion though when it comes to Cincinnati.


I have also heard Chicago is considered more reasonable then many cities for alot of people considered the amount of cultural, entertainment and arts related amenities they have and also the same with Milwaukee although some say Milwaukee lacks cultural vibrancy while others say its under-rated on its scene's. Any midwesterners around?

Ive also heard Buffalo, Syracuse and Rochester have an unusual amount of cultural, arts, entertainment vibrancy for cities of their and of course up-state NY is considered to have some of the lowest median rents and housing values in the country.

[chitown68]

I think that I learned from somewhere that Fort Worth has a number of cultural offerings that are relatively inexpensive. I think that is probably due to the cost of living factor that you alluded to in your posts. Other cities that come to mind are Indianapolis, St.Louis and Cleveland.


It has been awhile since I have been to Milwaukee.For a city its size, I think it offers quite a bit. What hurts Milwaukee, in my opinion, is the fact that it seems to be in the shadow of Chicago due to its proximity. For instance, the Milwaukee Museum of Art is a decent museum. But will it ever get the National buzz that the Art Institute of Chicago gets? But even if it doesn't, that doesn't mean that there isn't some degree of vibrancy. I just think that locals are probably more aware of it than others living outside of the region.


I have always found the cultural offerings of Chicago to be reasonably priced.For instance, general admission to the Art Institute is 12.00 . Brookfield Zoo's admission should be around 10.00. There is also the Lincoln Park Zoo which is free. I don't know what the prices are for cultural offerings in other cities, but I do feel that in Chicago, I have a large selection of things to do that are relatively affordable.

[M TYPE X]

Ann Arbor
Cleveland
Madison
Milwaukee
Pittsburgh

... Chicago is too expensive when you factor in hotels, gas prices, food and restaurant taxes, etc

[Empidonax]

Originally Posted by MattDen

What cities are cultural, arts mecca's on the cheap?

It seems like many of culturally vibrancy city like Madison, Seattle, Boston are very, very expensive?

Anyone know of any cities that are cheap cultural cultural arts and entertainment mecca's on the cheap?

Here is my list...
Columbus, Ohio (of course I love that city)
Pittsburgh, PA
Minneapolis, MN (not cheap, but for the amount of cultural amenities it offers compared to places of similar vibrancy it is)
Denver, Colorado
Cincinnati, Ohio (would be nice if one could go there without worrying about the massive amount of violent crime though that is fairly widespread) And many of the entertaining areas are close to the most violent areas in a very violent city, what a shame in much a masterpiece of a city! The architecture of the neighborhoods is better then a majority of museums in most cities in my opinion though when it comes to Cincinnati.


I have also heard Chicago is considered more reasonable then many cities for alot of people considered the amount of cultural, entertainment and arts related amenities they have and also the same with Milwaukee although some say Milwaukee lacks cultural vibrancy while others say its under-rated on its scene's. Any midwesterners around?

Ive also heard Buffalo, Syracuse and Rochester have an unusual amount of cultural, arts, entertainment vibrancy for cities of their and of course up-state NY is considered to have some of the lowest median rents and housing values in the country.

Madison really isn't very expensive. It just seems like it should be, given the university impact and the city's medium size.

Both Milwaukee and Buffalo have very vibrant cultural scenes. Milwaukee is particularly strong in music, film, cuisine, festivals, lake/river activity and architecture; Buffalo is notable for modern art, architecture and theater. Both Milwaukee and Buffalo have strong countercultural neighborhoods with authentic (not yuppie, etc.) grass-roots political and cultural interests.

A lot of well developed college towns have vibrant cultural scenes--Madison, Ithaca, Bloomington, Ann Arbor, etc. all have a lot going on, even in summers.

[M TYPE X]

Originally Posted by quijote

A lot of well developed college towns have vibrant cultural scenes--Madison, Ithaca, Bloomington, Ann Arbor, etc. all have a lot going on, even in summers.

Notice that the list doesn't include Champaign. There's a reason for that.

[Empidonax]

Originally Posted by M TYPE X

Notice that the list doesn't include Champaign. There's a reason for that.

You did indeed read between the lines!!