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A great extended weekend destination, to be sure. The Hill Country is great when also tied into a trip to San Antonio, Fredericksburg, Boerne, the Hyatt Lost Pines (near Bastrop), San Marcos, or Gruene (a charming if not overrated town, IMO). Austin can make for a great central point for a central Texas visit, or an overnight stop on the way to one of the other, aforementioned destinations.
Beautiful city, generally very safe, a lot of greenery along Town Lake, and even a more-than-ample brewpub scene, but I'd be bored there after a few days. A sea of hipsters and yuppies, living in a pretentious local subculture and amongst scenery that is really just above-average by national standards, ain't my thing! (Almost anywhere in the West and even much of the East have much more inspiring natural beauty.)
10 Kansas City, MO
9 Salt Lake City, UT
8 Greenville, SC
7 Portland, ME
6 Nashville, TN
5 Burlington, VT
4 Chattanooga, TN
3 San Diego, CA
2 Austin, TX
1) Asheville, NC
Agreed. Asheville would be at the top of my list.
I've always gone to Asheville on the weekends and such, but I'm now seeing someone who lives around twenty minutes from downtown. I'm now telecommuting, and am spending some time over there during the week as well, exploring Asheville more in the way a resident would.
The more I'm there, the more I like it. The food, beer, and nightlife options (especially in a small city, and even more so in Appalachia) are tremendous. NC is starting to unlock and the nightlife is coming back.
Asheville's restaurant and beer scene are among the best in the country for a city of that size. That's not even taking into account the incredible amount of outdoor activities within an hour or so of the city limits.
A great extended weekend destination, to be sure. The Hill Country is great when also tied into a trip to San Antonio, Fredericksburg, Boerne, the Hyatt Lost Pines (near Bastrop), San Marcos, or Gruene (a charming if not overrated town, IMO). Austin can make for a great central point for a central Texas visit, or an overnight stop on the way to one of the other, aforementioned destinations.
Beautiful city, generally very safe, a lot of greenery along Town Lake, and even a more-than-ample brewpub scene, but I'd be bored there after a few days. A sea of hipsters and yuppies, living in a pretentious local subculture and amongst scenery that is really just above-average by national standards, ain't my thing! (Almost anywhere in the West and even much of the East have much more inspiring natural beauty.)
I tend to agree. I've been to Austin (and surrounding areas) a number of times, and hill country is pretty, but it's never wowed me. I don't think anywhere in Texas particularly hits the "great for weekend trips" wish either.
Based on the comments, I'm leaning towards checking out Asheville first--seems like a good jumping off point. My one hesitation on fit is, even though I admittedly like a lot of hipster things, I myself am not particularly hipster. Is it more pretentious or less pretentious than Austin?
I tend to agree. I've been to Austin (and surrounding areas) a number of times, and hill country is pretty, but it's never wowed me. I don't think anywhere in Texas particularly hits the "great for weekend trips" wish either.
Based on the comments, I'm leaning towards checking out Asheville first--seems like a good jumping off point. My one hesitation on fit is, even though I admittedly like a lot of hipster things, I myself am not particularly hipster. Is it more pretentious or less pretentious than Austin?
Burlington, VT, Asheville, NC and Portland, ME.
If you have buku money, Boulder.
I prefer Burlington to Asheville. Lake Champlain is magical. VT has the best beer scene in the US in my opinion, pound for pound. First stop should be Foam while in Burlington before expanding the the OG NEIPA shops like Alchemist and Hills Farmstead. Best skiing East of Colorado. Few hours to Montreal, three to Boston. The music scene is intimate but it’s certainly there.. It has the output to prove it. Phish, Moe, Dispatch, Noah Kahan style is prevalent. New England in general checks the boxes, second to only the PNW/Colorado.
Portland is a bit removed from the mountains, but the coastal setting is nice, and the food is crazy good. It’s a bigger area than Burlington and Asheville, too. Easy day trip to the mountains, white water rafting. Weekends in Bar Harbor and all of the other beautiful coastal areas like Camden, etc. Make sure to check out Bissell brothers for some wild NEIPAs. Tree House, Hills Farmstead, Trillium, Alchemist, Lawson’s, and several others get love before Bissell Brothers. But Bissell stacks up with any of them.
Love that city. And the outdoor activities are fabulous.
Great craft beer spots and restaurants throughout the city too.
So much to do in the way of day and weekend trips too, in every direction and within a two hour drive or so - the Smoky Mountains, canoeing and white water rafting, Atlanta, Nashville, Asheville, you name it.
I prefer Burlington to Asheville. Lake Champlain is magical. VT has the best beer scene in the US in my opinion, pound for pound. First stop should be Foam while in Burlington before expanding the the OG NEIPA shops like Alchemist and Hills Farmstead. Best skiing East of Colorado. Few hours to Montreal, three to Boston. The music scene is intimate but it’s certainly there.. It has the output to prove it. Phish, Moe, Dispatch, Noah Kahan style is prevalent. New England in general checks the boxes, second to only the PNW/Colorado.
Portland is a bit removed from the mountains, but the coastal setting is nice, and the food is crazy good. It’s a bigger area than Burlington and Asheville, too. Easy day trip to the mountains, white water rafting. Weekends in Bar Harbor and all of the other beautiful coastal areas like Camden, etc. Make sure to check out Bissell brothers for some wild NEIPAs. Tree House, Hills Farmstead, Trillium, Alchemist, Lawson’s, and several others get love before Bissell Brothers. But Bissell stacks up with any of them.
I’ll throw in Ithaca NY and Ann Arbor MI for places with a similar scene as well.
Love that city. And the outdoor activities are fabulous.
Great craft beer spots and restaurants throughout the city too.
So much to do in the way of day and weekend trips too, in every direction and within a two hour drive or so - the Smoky Mountains, canoeing and white water rafting, Atlanta, Nashville, Asheville, you name it.
add Huntsville, AL if she's considering cities as small as Chattanooga too
I prefer Burlington to Asheville. Lake Champlain is magical. VT has the best beer scene in the US in my opinion, pound for pound. First stop should be Foam while in Burlington before expanding the the OG NEIPA shops like Alchemist and Hills Farmstead. Best skiing East of Colorado. Few hours to Montreal, three to Boston. The music scene is intimate but it’s certainly there.. It has the output to prove it. Phish, Moe, Dispatch, Noah Kahan style is prevalent. New England in general checks the boxes, second to only the PNW/Colorado.
Portland is a bit removed from the mountains, but the coastal setting is nice, and the food is crazy good. It’s a bigger area than Burlington and Asheville, too. Easy day trip to the mountains, white water rafting. Weekends in Bar Harbor and all of the other beautiful coastal areas like Camden, etc. Make sure to check out Bissell brothers for some wild NEIPAs. Tree House, Hills Farmstead, Trillium, Alchemist, Lawson’s, and several others get love before Bissell Brothers. But Bissell stacks up with any of them.
I only saw Boise mentioned once. It hits all 7. Maybe a bit of a younger club scene being it's a college town with Boise State U within walking distance of downtown, but it does bring about a lively local music scene in the clubs and bars that's just coming back to life. Portland, OR hits them all too, with the Oregon Coast 90 miles away and the Mt Hood national forest even closer. Both are big, big craft beer locations. Ft Collins, and all the cities south to Colorado Springs (to include Denver in the middle) would fit your list too, just less major water nearby.
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