How frequently do you visit neighboring cities?

[begratto]

Originally Posted by 10023

An interesting question would be how often people travel to other cities vs. non-urban areas nearby.

I would almost guarantee that more New Yorkers go to the Hamptons, Jersey Shore, Hudson Valley, Poconos, etc than to go other cities. More Chicagoans go to lakes in Wisconsin or Michiana dunes than to St Louis or Milwaukee. More Londoners certainly go to the country than to any other British city (though Londoners also tend to hate other British cities).

I also think it's going to be rare for people in "alpha" cities to visit other nearby cities. People in Richmond probably go to DC quite often; people in Chicago don't have much to go to Indianapolis for unless they've got family or a team playing in the B10 college basketball tournament.

Otherwise, even those of us that enjoy visiting cities are bound to prefer places that offer a different culture or are major tourist destinations.

Way, way more Montrealers go to their cottages (second homes, really) in the Laurentians ("les Laurentides") or in the Eastern Townships ("les Cantons de l'Est") every weekend than to neighbouring cities. There are traffic jams every Friday going out from the city and on Sundays coming in.

[pacarlson]

New Orleans and Austin frequently. Next couple of years it will be New Orleans and Minneapolis. Visiting my kids.

[Leo the Dog]

Rarely do I travel to cities to simply explore. Usually it's for a purpose and then I end up taking the time to explore.

Locally, I take day trips and overnight trips all over SoCal, whether it's LA, small towns or wildernous areas.

[MolsonExport]

I live in London (boring one in Ontario).

Annual Visits:

-Toronto/GTA (at least 20 times per year). 2 hour drive, similar via train, 30 minute flight. Family, friends, business, etc.

-Montreal (used to be 5 or more times per year, now down to 2-3 times per year). 10 hour drive, about the same by train, 2 hour flight (with connection in Toronto). My home town. Family and friends. Coolest city in Canada.

-Ottawa (couple of times per year, often combined with Montreal trips). 9 hour drive. Family (mostly wife's) and friends.

-Guelph/Kitchener-Waterloo (4-5 times per year). 90-minute drive, about the same by train. 3 universities, and I often sit on master's/phd committees at nearby universities. Guest talks. Friends.

-Vancouver (once per year). 5 hour flight (with connection in Toronto). Lived in Van for years, and I have a few friends out that way. Used to have family as well, but all have left on account of extreme housing costs, so I visit much less often, to my chagrin.

-Beaches of Lake Huron (near Grand Bend/Ipperwash): 45-minute drive from my door. Maybe 8 times a year, down from at least 15/year. (I have a backyard pool now). Beach, camping, Beer and all that jazz

-Europe (2-3 times per year). Work (teaching, conferences, research) and fun.

-Asia (once a year). Work (conferences, research) and fun.

-USA (1-2 time per year). Work (conferences, research) and fun.

-Elsewhere: here and there. Australia a couple of times, Latin America four times. Haven't yet been to Africa or the middle East.

[rellott]

From Houston:

San Antonio: Quite often. Brother lives there and some friends. Plus it's a fun town to visit for a day or weekend. Other family members live in Comfort, so we visit SA very much. Actually went there for the past 2 weekends

Austin: Around 5 times a year. Going there this weekend. Friends and I like to do trips there. Family in Round Rock.

New Orleans: Once a year

Dallas: Avoided at all costs. Went there a bunch b/c of my ex, but before or since not at all. However, I'm going there next month for a wedding. Family lives bout an hour east in Sulphur Springs, but we never go to Dallas while we're there.

Corpus Christi: Once in my life, but really want to change that

[dave8721]

From Miami:

Fort Lauderdale: Probably 5 to 10 times a year for various purposes. My kids love the science museum there as well.
West Palm Beach: My brother lives there so fairly often
Orlando: I have 2 kids under 7. Of course I go there a lot.
Tampa: Never. Would have have been at all had my father not been hospitalized there a few years back.
Jacksonville: Never been in my life.
Naples: Never been
Fort Myers: Never been
Key West/Florida Keys: Go maybe once every other year.
Tallahassee: Went a few times in the early 2000's when I had friends that lived there. Haven't been back since.

Funny how I've been to NY, LA, SF, Chicago, London...etc so many more times than I've been to close places like Tampa.

[10023]

Originally Posted by dave8721

Funny how I've been to NY, LA, SF, Chicago, London...etc so many more times than I've been to close places like Tampa.

This was part of my point earlier... there's nothing surprising about this.

People in alpha cities generally don't visit the nearby cities, they go to other big cities that are tourist draws. People in smaller places go to the nearest major city all the time.

[Tom Servo]

I drive up to Milwaukee fairly often. On average maybe 1-5 times a year. Milwaukee (and Wisconsin in general) is actually a surprisingly great getaway. It's only about 80 miles up north, so it's an easy day trip. Growing up, my dad would drive us up to Wisconsin every autumn to pick apples and do autumn-y shit; Milwaukee is where we'd end up for the night.

I've been 3 times this year for various reasons. I might make it up there once or twice more this year.

St. Louis, almost never. I dislike St. Louis as a place to visit. The only time I find myself in St. Louis is if I'm passing through... this friday I'm going down there to see the Cubs play the Cardinals. We might stop off at the Six Flags there to ride the three rides worth riding before the game. One of these days I want to check out Anheuser-Busch.

Detroit, also rarely. And by choice. Nothing about Detroit says 'visit this place' in my opinion. The only time I end up there is when I get tickets to see the Blackhawks play at the Joe. I plan on going later this summer to catch a Tigers game and cross one more stadium off my list but other than that...

Indianapolis, never. I've driven through once. Again, what's there?

I can't really think of other big (I use that term loosely) cities that I would consider neighboring. Cincinnati? Never been. Cleveland? Went to an Indians game once. No further interest. Minneapolis? Long drive. Never been. Not really interested beyond seeing a Twins game.

Now small neighboring towns... there are many.

I try to get to Champaign-Urbana every autumn for Illini football if possible. The U of I bar scene is awesome too. I'm almost 30 now, so the that has become much less of a focus. Nonetheless, Illini football games are cheap and fun. And that part of Illinois is really pleasant in October.

Galena, Illinois is an awesome place to check out in the summer. It's kind of far, so it's not really something I would ever frequent, but it's a pretty great little town.

Benton Harbor, Michigan is another cute little town that is a great summer day trip.

And then there are about a hundred little places in Wisconsin that a great too. Lake Geneva is the obvious destination that comes to mind. Again, Wisconsin is just a generally great place to drive through and check out. Summer especially.

[creamcityleo79]

Milwaukee - 3-5 times/yr (family is there)
Rochester - 1-2 times/yr
Chicago - 1-2 times/yr
Kansas City - 1 time/yr
St Cloud, MN - 6+ times/yr

[goat314]

Originally Posted by Tom Servo

I drive up to Milwaukee fairly often. On average maybe 1-5 times a year. Milwaukee (and Wisconsin in general) is actually a surprisingly great getaway. It's only about 80 miles up north, so it's an easy day trip. Growing up, my dad would drive us up to Wisconsin every autumn to pick apples and do autumn-y shit; Milwaukee is where we'd end up for the night.

I've been 3 times this year for various reasons. I might make it up there once or twice more this year.

St. Louis, almost never. I dislike St. Louis as a place to visit. The only time I find myself in St. Louis is if I'm passing through... this friday I'm going down there to see the Cubs play the Cardinals. We might stop off at the Six Flags there to ride the three rides worth riding before the game. One of these days I want to check out Anheuser-Busch.

Detroit, also rarely. And by choice. Nothing about Detroit says 'visit this place' in my opinion. The only time I end up there is when I get tickets to see the Blackhawks play at the Joe. I plan on going later this summer to catch a Tigers game and cross one more stadium off my list but other than that...

Indianapolis, never. I've driven through once. Again, what's there?

I can't really think of other big (I use that term loosely) cities that I would consider neighboring. Cincinnati? Never been. Cleveland? Went to an Indians game once. No further interest. Minneapolis? Long drive. Never been. Not really interested beyond seeing a Twins game.

Now small neighboring towns... there are many.

I try to get to Champaign-Urbana every autumn for Illini football if possible. The U of I bar scene is awesome too. I'm almost 30 now, so the that has become much less of a focus. Nonetheless, Illini football games are cheap and fun. And that part of Illinois is really pleasant in October.

Galena, Illinois is an awesome place to check out in the summer. It's kind of far, so it's not really something I would ever frequent, but it's a pretty great little town.

Benton Harbor, Michigan is another cute little town that is a great summer day trip.

And then there are about a hundred little places in Wisconsin that a great too. Lake Geneva is the obvious destination that comes to mind. Again, Wisconsin is just a generally great place to drive through and check out. Summer especially.

You might want to explore some of the unique neighborhoods. If your experience is from Cardinals games to Six Flags, no wonder you think it sucks.

Do a little investigation before you go ragging on the cities within a 300 mile radius of Chicago. Obviously most of these cities dont just lay it out there like Chicago, but they are definitely interesting towns in their own right. I would say St. Louis is at least as interesting as Milwaukee.

[MonkeyRonin]

Originally Posted by MolsonExport

I live in London (boring one in Ontario).

-Montreal (used to be 5 or more times per year, now down to 2-3 times per year). 10 hour drive, about the same by train, 2 hour flight (with connection in Toronto). My home town. Family and friends. Coolest city in Canada.

10 hour drive to Montreal? But it isn't more than 5 or 6 from Toronto...

[McBane]

Originally Posted by Tom Servo

I drive up to Milwaukee fairly often. On average maybe 1-5 times a year. Milwaukee (and Wisconsin in general) is actually a surprisingly great getaway. It's only about 80 miles up north, so it's an easy day trip. Growing up, my dad would drive us up to Wisconsin every autumn to pick apples and do autumn-y shit; Milwaukee is where we'd end up for the night.

I've been 3 times this year for various reasons. I might make it up there once or twice more this year.

St. Louis, almost never. I dislike St. Louis as a place to visit. The only time I find myself in St. Louis is if I'm passing through... this friday I'm going down there to see the Cubs play the Cardinals. We might stop off at the Six Flags there to ride the three rides worth riding before the game. One of these days I want to check out Anheuser-Busch.

Detroit, also rarely. And by choice. Nothing about Detroit says 'visit this place' in my opinion. The only time I end up there is when I get tickets to see the Blackhawks play at the Joe. I plan on going later this summer to catch a Tigers game and cross one more stadium off my list but other than that...

Indianapolis, never. I've driven through once. Again, what's there?

I can't really think of other big (I use that term loosely) cities that I would consider neighboring. Cincinnati? Never been. Cleveland? Went to an Indians game once. No further interest. Minneapolis? Long drive. Never been. Not really interested beyond seeing a Twins game.

Now small neighboring towns... there are many.

I try to get to Champaign-Urbana every autumn for Illini football if possible. The U of I bar scene is awesome too. I'm almost 30 now, so the that has become much less of a focus. Nonetheless, Illini football games are cheap and fun. And that part of Illinois is really pleasant in October.

Galena, Illinois is an awesome place to check out in the summer. It's kind of far, so it's not really something I would ever frequent, but it's a pretty great little town.

Benton Harbor, Michigan is another cute little town that is a great summer day trip.

And then there are about a hundred little places in Wisconsin that a great too. Lake Geneva is the obvious destination that comes to mind. Again, Wisconsin is just a generally great place to drive through and check out. Summer especially.

Either you're very negative or the midwest just sucks.

Thankfully, I'm here in Philly, a stone's throw away from other really great cities.

NYC - at least once a year
Baltimore - about once every year or two
DC - about once every couple of years

[ue]

Edmonton is extremely isolated relative to the Eastern half of the continent or even the West Coast. It's 3 hours to anything of note (urban or otherwise), with a few exceptions (Elk Island, some small towns).

I make it down to Calgary 2-3x per year, though. It's the closest other city. Mostly just as a small getaway and to visit friends. I seem to be going more and more frequently as the years go on. It used to be about once every 2 years.

I used to go to Jasper about once a year, but it has been a really long time since I've been at all. I've been to Banff more recently, though the last time was in 2012.

Vancouver is usually the bigger city of choice for Edmontonians to escape to, though I haven't been in 9 years. I am visiting again this summer, though. Saskatoon is relatively close, but I haven't been there for a long time. Likewise for the Okanagan, Alberta and BC's domestic playground.

These days, most of my travel seems bound for places beyond Alberta, though usually different places each time. The only city I've been to more than once in the past 5 years outside of Alberta is Toronto (2011 and 2014).

[599GTO]

I've been to Hong Kong, Seychelles and safari in South Africa more times than I have been to Uptown and the Bronx, which I have been to watch baseball.

I have never been to Staten Island or Queens in my life (besides airport).

[MolsonExport]

Originally Posted by MonkeyRonin

10 hour drive to Montreal? But it isn't more than 5 or 6 from Toronto...

plus 2 hours to get to Toronto and another 90 mins-2 hours to drive through it, plus bathroom breaks. 10 hours at least. Done it perhaps 60 times.

[Centropolis]

Originally Posted by Tom Servo

St. Louis, almost never. I dislike St. Louis as a place to visit. The only time I find myself in St. Louis is if I'm passing through... this friday I'm going down there to see the Cubs play the Cardinals. We might stop off at the Six Flags there to ride the three rides worth riding before the game. One of these days I want to check out Anheuser-Busch.
.

just tell the cabbie maryland and euclid, its a world apart from the busch stadium area downtown. central west end, of course is higher end but is an active area with lots of options all up and down euclid and on side streets and is uniquely st. louis. it doesnt have a typical midwestern layout.


stlhomestyle.com

soulard, where a-b is - is of course more rambunctious but again doesnt really look quite like any other area of the midwest (at least the great lakes/indy) either and is loaded with corner bars.


abstraktmg.com

[Tom Servo]

Originally Posted by McBane

Either you're very negative or the midwest just sucks.

Illinois, Wisconsin, and Michigan are all pretty great. A lot of cool places to find, beach and lake towns, and a lot of great scenery throughout. I don't have much to say about the Midwest beyond that. Beyond Chicago, I wouldn't say the other cities in the Midwest are very interesting. Or at least not on the same level as say Boston, Seattle, Portland, Miami, Philadelphia, DC, New Orleans, or even Pittsburgh.

Originally Posted by goat314

You might want to explore some of the unique neighborhoods. If your experience is from Cardinals games to Six Flags, no wonder you think it sucks.

Do a little investigation before you go ragging on the cities within a 300 mile radius of Chicago. Obviously most of these cities dont just lay it out there like Chicago, but they are definitely interesting towns in their own right. I would say St. Louis is at least as interesting as Milwaukee.

I have been through St. Louis's neighborhoods. Sorry, but it's just not my kind of place. Kansas City on the other hand, I think it is a lot of fun and has a lot to offer, especially in terms of delicious foods. I'd visit KC far more often if it weren't so far.

And it's the people that make Milwaukee a great place (well the bar scene and food too), not the city itself. Just my opinion...

[Centropolis]

tom servo i don't know how you have never been to minneapolis nor have any interest, especially since you mentioned kansas city. its sort of a larger, more vibrant kansas city plus the bonus of st. paul...

i've rented bikes and explored minneapolis, just wish it were closer.

[Leo the Dog]

From the original post.

I'm thinking about cities that you visit regularly to get a different experience from your own city, but not places you visit because you have family there, or your company sends you on regular business trips there.

I think the point of this thread is where we go on leisure, non-work or non-family associated. Too many posts include areas affiliated with family/work.

Where do you go in your own time is the question.

[mrnyc]

Originally Posted by 10023

An interesting question would be how often people travel to other cities vs. non-urban areas nearby.

I would almost guarantee that more New Yorkers go to the Hamptons, Jersey Shore, Hudson Valley, Poconos, etc than to go other cities. More Chicagoans go to lakes in Wisconsin or Michiana dunes than to St Louis or Milwaukee. More Londoners certainly go to the country than to any other British city (though Londoners also tend to hate other British cities).

I also think it's going to be rare for people in "alpha" cities to visit other nearby cities. People in Richmond probably go to DC quite often; people in Chicago don't have much to go to Indianapolis for unless they've got family or a team playing in the B10 college basketball tournament.

Otherwise, even those of us that enjoy visiting cities are bound to prefer places that offer a different culture or are major tourist destinations.

hard to believe you did not add los angeles for your limited view of ny'ers.

for all ny'ers florida would be right up there with anywhere nearby. its basically a sixth borough. ditto for much of the midwest.