Dallas is not far behind Houston being an immigrant city.

people who hate new york visit the city already hating it. it's beautiful in its idiosyncrasy. i get a hoot every time someone accompanies me on the subway. i've only mostly explored manhattan and if i never make it to brooklyn i'll be alright. i'd be more bummed out on never having visited ithaca or saranac lake as far as new york goes. i want to visit west point and cooperstown and albany for some reason. a canoe trip down the hudson river valley in fall would be idealic

Great list, Lush, but why am I not surprised? Of your small towns, Hood River has replaced Moab as my favorite accessible (to me) town. When I lived in Colorado, I was in Moab a few times a year, after playing in the canyons. I'm now in Hood River at least monthly, either post-skiing or hiking in the Oregon desert.

(06-28-2017 09:36 AM)Lush Wrote:  outside of my city (cincinnati)

favorite small towns

1. paducah, kentucky
2. boone, north carolina
3. moab, utah
4. la crosse, wisconsin
5. hood river, oregon

midsize

1. fargo, north dakota
2. duluth, minnesota
3. chattanooga, tennessee
4. reno, nevada
5. savannah, georgia

big

1. san francisco
2. new orleans
3. detroit
4. portland
5. pittsburgh

(06-28-2017 01:51 PM)Moody Magic Wrote:  Dallas is not far behind Houston being an immigrant city.

Dallas used to have a Nordic component to it that Houston doesnt have due to all the cell companies HQ'ing there back in the 90s and 2000s. Is that still the case?

(06-28-2017 01:55 PM)geef Wrote:  Great list, Lush, but why am I not surprised? Of your small towns, Hood River has replaced Moab as my favorite accessible (to me) town. When I lived in Colorado, I was in Moab a few times a year, after playing in the canyons. I'm now in Hood River at least monthly, either post-skiing or hiking in the Oregon desert.

(06-28-2017 09:36 AM)Lush Wrote:  outside of my city (cincinnati)

favorite small towns

1. paducah, kentucky
2. boone, north carolina
3. moab, utah
4. la crosse, wisconsin
5. hood river, oregon

midsize

1. fargo, north dakota
2. duluth, minnesota
3. chattanooga, tennessee
4. reno, nevada
5. savannah, georgia

big

1. san francisco
2. new orleans
3. detroit
4. portland
5. pittsburgh

HOod River is amazing....The Double Mountain brewpub can cater my funeral. They are that good.

(06-28-2017 01:54 PM)Lush Wrote:  people who hate new york visit the city already hating it. it's beautiful in its idiosyncrasy. i get a hoot every time someone accompanies me on the subway. i've only mostly explored manhattan and if i never make it to brooklyn i'll be alright. i'd be more bummed out on never having visited ithaca or saranac lake as far as new york goes. i want to visit west point and cooperstown and albany for some reason. a canoe trip down the hudson river valley in fall would be idealic

I went to a wedding in Ithaca last fall, and spent a few days in the city. I suspect Ithaca is rough in the winter, but what a gem of a place. Plus, it's close to NYC. When people describe NYC as big, I get it. But it feels far more accessible to me than places like Dallas, Phoenix, and Atlanta. In New York, it's all about the neighborhood (and San Francisco, for that matter), street level activities, or borough that you're in. In the other cities, I feel no sense of place and completely subsumed by fast moving traffic. They actually feel bigger and far more impersonal to me than does New York.

(06-28-2017 01:54 PM)Lush Wrote:  people who hate new york visit the city already hating it. it's beautiful in its idiosyncrasy. i get a hoot every time someone accompanies me on the subway. i've only mostly explored manhattan and if i never make it to brooklyn i'll be alright. i'd be more bummed out on never having visited ithaca or saranac lake as far as new york goes. i want to visit west point and cooperstown and albany for some reason. a canoe trip down the hudson river valley in fall would be idealic

Manhattan is intoxicating - the energy, the people, the neighborhoods, the food and the fact that it never stops. I absolutely love it.

(06-28-2017 01:57 PM)aTxTIGER Wrote:  

(06-28-2017 01:55 PM)geef Wrote:  Great list, Lush, but why am I not surprised? Of your small towns, Hood River has replaced Moab as my favorite accessible (to me) town. When I lived in Colorado, I was in Moab a few times a year, after playing in the canyons. I'm now in Hood River at least monthly, either post-skiing or hiking in the Oregon desert.

(06-28-2017 09:36 AM)Lush Wrote:  outside of my city (cincinnati)

favorite small towns

1. paducah, kentucky
2. boone, north carolina
3. moab, utah
4. la crosse, wisconsin
5. hood river, oregon

midsize

1. fargo, north dakota
2. duluth, minnesota
3. chattanooga, tennessee
4. reno, nevada
5. savannah, georgia

big

1. san francisco
2. new orleans
3. detroit
4. portland
5. pittsburgh

HOod River is amazing....The Double Mountain brewpub can cater my funeral. They are that good.

I'm a hophead, so totally agree on Double Mountain (Killer Green is my jam), and I love their pizza after a day hiking or skiing. Don't sleep on Pfriem, though. They're making incredible beers (more along the Farmhouse style) and they have a great summer setting along the river for watching kiteboarders.

Surprised no one has mentioned San Diego. That's my #1 city I'd move to if housing wasn't stupid expensive

So Top 5 to visit for me:
1. San Diego
2. Vegas
3. NYC
4. Charlotte
5. Dallas (Only drivable one on this list for me)

hood river's dope. went to double mountain as well, would have gotten some food, but i needed to get across the country and didn't have much money. looking at my atlas, i was surprised to see how close it is portland. it's practically in the metro area. seems much further away

(06-28-2017 02:13 PM)Lush Wrote:  hood river's dope. went to double mountain as well, would have gotten some food, but i needed to get across the country and didn't have much money. looking at my atlas, i was surprised to see how close it is portland. it's practically in the metro area. seems much further away

The Gorge makes it feel so separate. I practically live in downtown PDX, and can be in Hood River in just under an hour.

(06-28-2017 01:56 PM)aTxTIGER Wrote:  

(06-28-2017 01:51 PM)Moody Magic Wrote:  Dallas is not far behind Houston being an immigrant city.

Dallas used to have a Nordic component to it that Houston doesnt have due to all the cell companies HQ'ing there back in the 90s and 2000s. Is that still the case?

It still does but over the last 10-15 years the cell/IT industry​ has brought a large Indian population to suburbs like Irving, Richardson and Plano.

(06-28-2017 01:15 PM)KNIGHTTIME Wrote:  

(06-27-2017 11:27 PM)Kittonhead Wrote:  I've been to Louisville a few times for long weekends. Nice for a chill weekend.

The Italian restaurants are a bang.

I hear the service is really quick as well.

(06-28-2017 02:32 PM)memphistiger89 Wrote:  

(06-28-2017 01:15 PM)KNIGHTTIME Wrote:  

(06-27-2017 11:27 PM)Kittonhead Wrote:  I've been to Louisville a few times for long weekends. Nice for a chill weekend.

The Italian restaurants are a bang.

I hear the service is really quick as well.

They give you as much as you can take, and always send you home with a soft wet noodle.

Man this was hard to put together because I love visiting so many different places for different reasons

Major Cities
1. New York - I love visiting, but would not want to live there. Had a job offer once in Manhattan right on Columbus Circle but turned it down. NYC has so many great neighborhoods, restaurants, museums, historic sites, etc...
2. Chicago - Have lived in the midwest for a while now so have been to Chicago for a lot of long weekends, conferences, etc... and always really enjoy the city.
3. New Orleans - Spent about 5 nights a month there over a two year period for work a few jobs ago. So many great restaurants, architecture, and hospitality. NOLA offers so much more than Bourbon St., unfortunately a lot of people's opinion of NOLA is formed from Bourbon St.

Midsize
1. Portland, Maine - Great walk-able downtown area, good bars & breweries, the ocean, and lobster....it is about all I need. I worked there for a summer when I was in college and have great memories.
2. Madison, WI - Ok a bit biased since I went to grad school there. But Madison is a great college town with a big walk-able area, good bars, two lakes right by downtown, etc...
3. Fort Collins, CO - Beer, Beer, Beer

Small
1. Morro Bay, CA - great beaches and setting right on highway 1
2. Durango, CO - cool town with a lot of great outdoors activities around it plus a couple good breweries
3. Duluth, MN - ok not that small of a town but not as big as my mid-sizers. Duluth has a great setting on Lake Superior close to outdoor activities, Canal Park has a lot of amenities in terms of restaurants, breweries, shops, etc...

Charleston, Savannah, and Key West

If you like Seattle, you'll love Vancouver. If you like LA, you'll love Montreal. Give 'em a try, doubt you'll be disappointed. Best in US have to be NYC, SF, CHI and NO. Each is so unique.

(06-28-2017 02:03 PM)geef Wrote:  

(06-28-2017 01:57 PM)aTxTIGER Wrote:  

(06-28-2017 01:55 PM)geef Wrote:  Great list, Lush, but why am I not surprised? Of your small towns, Hood River has replaced Moab as my favorite accessible (to me) town. When I lived in Colorado, I was in Moab a few times a year, after playing in the canyons. I'm now in Hood River at least monthly, either post-skiing or hiking in the Oregon desert.

(06-28-2017 09:36 AM)Lush Wrote:  outside of my city (cincinnati)

favorite small towns

1. paducah, kentucky
2. boone, north carolina
3. moab, utah
4. la crosse, wisconsin
5. hood river, oregon

midsize

1. fargo, north dakota
2. duluth, minnesota
3. chattanooga, tennessee
4. reno, nevada
5. savannah, georgia

big

1. san francisco
2. new orleans
3. detroit
4. portland
5. pittsburgh

HOod River is amazing....The Double Mountain brewpub can cater my funeral. They are that good.

I'm a hophead, so totally agree on Double Mountain (Killer Green is my jam), and I love their pizza after a day hiking or skiing. Don't sleep on Pfriem, though. They're making incredible beers (more along the Farmhouse style) and they have a great summer setting along the river for watching kiteboarders.

Double Mountain's pizza might be better than their beer and their beer is amazing.

(06-28-2017 02:56 PM)AusTxPony Wrote:  If you like Seattle, you'll love Vancouver. If you like LA, you'll love Montreal. Give 'em a try, doubt you'll be disappointed. Best in US have to be NYC, SF, CHI and NO. Each is so unique.

I agree with you on the first one as Seattle and Vancouver are a lot alike. However, there couldn't be two cities on this continent that are more opposite than LA and Montreal. For the record, I hate LA and I absolutely love Montreal.

(06-28-2017 03:11 PM)UConnHusky Wrote:  

(06-28-2017 02:56 PM)AusTxPony Wrote:  If you like Seattle, you'll love Vancouver. If you like LA, you'll love Montreal. Give 'em a try, doubt you'll be disappointed. Best in US have to be NYC, SF, CHI and NO. Each is so unique.

I agree with you on the first one as Seattle and Vancouver are a lot alike. However, there couldn't be two cities on this continent that are more opposite than LA and Montreal. For the record, I hate LA and I absolutely love Montreal.

Yeah I didn't quite get the LA to Montreal comparison either...I guess now i'm interested in what the OPs logic is there.

The thread asked US...so I didn't mention Montreal. But it is a fantastic city.