What are Your Favorite International Cities?
Decatur Metro | June 25, 2014 | 11:53 am
Continuing on our favorite U.S. cities thread from last week, what are your favorite small, medium and large international cities?
Photo by Moyan Brenn Delight via Flickr
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A medium-small city we really liked was Oslo, visited in the summertime. It had the feel of San Francisco but on a much smaller scale- water bay and views, hilly, beautiful neighborhoods, arts and culture, cafes, and out & about citizenry. In a very short time span, we hit a couple of great museums including the city museum that had The Scream painting and an amazing Viking museum, a couple of great public spaces including the town hall where they award the Nobel Peace Prize and a fantastic park filled with amazing outdoor art, and some kind of old military fort. I would love to go back and spend more time there.
I visited Oslo in January 2000 and would also recommend it without reservation. A wintertime trip to Scandinavia would be, I suspect, very different from a summertime one. But it wasn’t THAT cold–highs were right at freezing the whole week I was there–and if you’re open to cultural experiences, I’d say it’s an interesting one. Bonus points for: everyone speaks English; I found it to be immaculately clean; and it’s so safe that even the royal family takes mass transit.
I could travel to Paris and Rome every single year. (Other favorites are islands, not cities.)
I think old, central European cities are under-appreciated by Americans. I love Vienna and Budapest. That’s a great trip for European history buffs. The art and music scenes in Vienna are world-class. And Budapest has got some food and wine–in addition to great museums, spas, and city sights. The Hungarians are incredibly warm, but it helps if you can speak a little German since English is not well spoken by folks middle-aged and older.
Quebec in the summer and Cancun in the winter.
Of course, these are the only two non-American cities I’ve ever been to…
1. Florence
2. Munich
3. St. Petersburg
4. Tokyo
5. Dublin
I would love to give Spain and France a chance. I seem to always circumnavigate them accidentally.
I think large city would be Istanbul, but it’s hard to be undercover there. So much going on, such incredibly old things to see that constantly remind you of how truly and incredibly young our country is. Plus, being on the edge of where East meets West is kind of cool.
Medium I would go with York, England. I haven’t been there for a long time but my last time was nearing Christmas and it felt like I was in a Dickens novel.
Small? Let’s go with a place that’s completely walkable because you can’t drive there. Zermatt, Switzerland. It’s small yet bustling, has great food, and being in the shadow of the Matterhorn (not the one at Disneyland) is just fantastic. Go in the winter when you can throw skiing into the mix and it gets even better.
My experience is limited but I would say Stockholm for Europe as long as you have plenty of money. I lost weight in Scandinavia. In Latin America, my favorite city is San Cristobal in the State of Chiapas, Mexico–it’s in the town/small city category. I really like Montreal but I hear that Quebec is even better.
I’ll go with Edinburgh but you need to be picky about your weather. Nice is nice.
Edinburgh is great but at Fringe and Tattoo time is a madhouse. Well, most of the summer is nuts. I go there for work and it get progressively more packed with tourists.
Prague! So much love for Prague.
Barcelona too!
I will second Barcelona. Beautiful city, beautiful people.
I’ll add Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Very large city, friendliest people on the planet. Amazing food at very low prices.
Singapore…best on earth
Dubrovnik, Croatia
I’d have to go with Cape Town, South Africa. Mountains, beaches, good wine, great food, and penguins (and really cheeky baboons) What more can you ask for?
What more can I ask for? How about safety?
I’d love to go to Cape Town – it looks and sounds remarkable – but statistics show it has become one of the most dangerous cities in the world. No personal experience going, which i regret. I wish i’d gone when it was safer.
If I chose my travel destinations by crime rates, I think I’d be very bored. When we were living in Southern Africa, we traveled to Cape Town at least a half dozen times and never had a problem. Yes, safety can be an issue in South Africa, particularly in some parts of the large metropolitan areas (Johannesburg, Durban, Cape Town). But just like in any other big city (or small intown suburb), if you practice situational awareness, understand your surroundings, and travel smartly, the odds of you becoming a crime victim will decrease.
Plus, the Wild Animal Safari park in Pine Mountain is not quite like Kruger. By a long shot.
I hope you aren’t confusing Cape Town with Johannesburg– vastly different in terms of crime and feeling of safety. If you stay in the nice areas of CT or say the wine country or beach towns just outside of CT, crime is maybe on par with Atlanta. Like here, the bulk of the crime numbers come from the most impoverished areas. I wouldn’t send an Atlanta tourist to about a third of the Atlanta area, same for CT. I lived in CT for a year, and it is one of the most wonderful places on earth- please please don’t let perceived crime get in the way of visiting this wonderful place.
Small – how about St. Andrews. An ancient University town, very quaint, with beaches (Chariots of Fire beach run was filmed there), and of course the birthplace of golf.
Also Oia, at the tip of Santorini. It has to be the most beautiful place on Earth.
Medium – Amsterdam.
Large – London. Greatest city on Earth. Pubs, history, nice people, easy to get around.
My husband went to college at St. Andrews. I’ve never been but oh how I want to go.
1. Melbourne, Australia
2. Vienna, Austria and Prague, Czech Rep are close seconds
+1 for Melbourne, Australia (but I’m biased – it’s my hometown)
I lived there for 2 years so I’m biased too.
The city in the photo is??? I’m going to go ahead and embarrass myself and guess that the river is the Seine and that’s the Ile de Cite in Paris.
Amsterdam and Copenhagen. Two wonderful walkable cities.
Small: Oxford; Stanley, Falkland Islands (seriously!– it’s beeeyoutiful)
Med: Cannes (w/o the festivities), Reykjavik
Large: Melbourne, Auckland, Vienna, Vancouver.
Yes, Oxford all the way!
I think Cambridge is so much more beautiful than Oxford- that is one of my favorite places in England.
Montepulciano, a small town in Tuscany… No better place!
Buford Highway
(I’ve never traveled anywhere).
I have visited Mexico City several times and I’d go back in a heartbeat. From the museums to Garibaldi Plaza’s mariachis to Lucha Libre, there is just so much to do. Great food and nice people, too.
London, London, London. My heart belongs to London.
Venice & Paris tie for 2nd, but a distant 2nd.
The traveler’s conundrum: is it better to pick a place and return there again and again, getting a deep understanding of it? Or should you take the “so many cities, such a short life” approach?
And I liked Venice very much. and Edinburgh. And Galway. And Oxford.
Split the baby– there are lots of places I went once and was thrilled to see but don’t need to go back (Costa Rica, Tanzania, South Africa, Thailand, Cambodia, Korea, Bali, Sydney, Amsterdam, Madrid, St Lucia, Athens, Turkey, Ireland, Montreal) and other places I want to go again and again (Bermuda, London, Paris, Rome, Italian Riviera, Capri, Barcelona, Seville, Vancouver, Hong Kong).
We have taken that approach on a single trip scale, especially when the kids were younger. On several trips we have opted to get to know one area really well, rather than run around like crazy trying to see every last tourist stop. We spent a week in an apartment in Galway over a decade ago, and barely saw much else of Ireland beyond some drives to the scenery in County Kerry.
In this spirit, we often rent an apartment as opposed to a hotel (once you have more than one kid, a lot cheaper than a hotel in many places where 2 rooms may be required for a family of 4; even without kids, a more unique and local experience). It’s fun to shop locally, try to figure out how the household appliances work, wonder why the weird bin full of water mounted at the top of the closet makes glugging noises and some motor has to run to get hot water, etc.
Completely agree with you! We often rent apartments when we travel, even if it is the Oakhurst2 instead of the Oakhurst3. We love having a kitchen so we can go to local markets and eat some meals “in”. Our last trip to Europe we used airbnb and had a great experience. (Plus, in a hotel you are surrounded by tourists!) We rent apartments when we travel domestically too.
Duluth. It’s basically another country.
Just back from a few days in Paris & Barcelona. 4th visit to Paris, and 3 days there reminded me what a great city it is to enjoy, despite its size. Great Metro system, with wonderful performing musicians, lots of great museums and big tourist sites, English spoken almost everywhere, but with lots of little, out-of-the-way streets and restaurants to discover. Barcelona was great, too, especially for a 1st visit. English not as widely spoken but people were friendly and food and sangria plentiful. If you appreciate Gaudi, you’ll like Barcelona.
For medium size, maybe Austin? I liked the bike trails and food trucks. Or Sienna, Italy. Near Florence but not a crowded or touristy.
Small city…hmmm. Sat in a sidewalk cafe in Pau, France (southwest part of the country), drinking a cold beer and looking at an incredible view of the Pyrenees one May. Great local wine and food, friendly people.
I’ll agree with the person who said Oia on Santorini for small.
Athens
Jerusalem
Istanbul
New York, London, Paris, Munich
Everybody talk about…pop musik
“Pop Musik”
-M
I really like Helsinki and Kiev — of course it is really helpful in both cities to be on an expense account. For vacation travel, Lagos, Portugal or Cinque Terre, IT.
Never been to Asia, Africa or South America.
Any particular recs for Portugal?
A real overlooked gem is Vilnius, Lithuania. Relatively affordable, has a medieval center that is not yet over-restored like Tallin. Friendly people, laid-back, colorful.
This thread is making me:
1) Feel a bit provincial compared to some of you well-travelled folks
2) Realize that some folks either have a ton of disposal income or really neat jobs
3) Remember that the Iron Curtain fell along time ago and there’s some Eastern European cities and former Soviet cities that need visiting
3) Motivated to go visit some neat places
Well, a lot of the trips I took were in the less expensive off-season back in the 90s. International airfares were MUCH cheaper, the federal excise tax on tickets had been temporarily rescinded, and the dollar was a lot stronger vs. the various European countries and later the Euro. Plus, I was in a 2-income family, so we thought we could afford it. Even took the kids a few times. Now that I’m retired, I guess I do have some of that disposable income that I was always wishing I had more of. And, yes, I’d like to visit some Prague and Budapest. And Argentina, Peru, Vancouver, ……
A lot of ground can be covered in Jr. Year Abroad and a Rotary grad year abroad. Encourage your kids to take advantage of programs like that!
Amsterdam! We lived there for three years and didn’t want to leave. It’s less ostentatious than Paris and Rome – perhaps less romantic, but more charming! It’s beautiful, adorable, and built on Dutch practicality. Rent a bike, ride a boat, and go Dutch!