Often the best way to get to know the true spirit of a town or city is through its neighbourhoods: strolling residential streets, browsing independent stores and eating and drinking where the locals do. In some destinations it’s the downtown areas that have the coolest places to hang out, while in others it’s the shopping districts, out-of-town suburbs, LGBTQ+ neighbourhoods, historic Latino areas or Chinatowns. Here’s our pick of some of the coolest neighbourhoods worth exploring around the US.

It’s tricky to find a spot of Mission, San Francisco’s oldest neighbourhood, that doesn’t reflect its artsy spirit, whether that’s in the form of murals on walls and building façades or collections of art such as the Chicano and Latin American works displayed at the Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts. It’s this uncompromising creativity that makes this arguably the city’s coolest neighbourhood, too, despite some pretty stiff competition. That, and the eclectic array of bars and eateries, with tamale stalls right next to vegan pho cafés and Indian dosa restaurants.

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This district just east of the French Quarter has long been a favourite hangout for New Orleans residents, and it’s beginning to draw visitors, too. Nightlife revolves around the buzzy bars and music club of Frenchmen Street, while the area is dotted with quirky shops, dive-y bars and eateries from old-school brunch spots to sleek restaurants like Paladar 511. Hotel Peter and Paul opened in 2019, taking over old church buildings with a retro riot of gingham furnishings and cosy rooms with cathedral windows.

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River North or RiNo has all the hallmarks of a cool neighbourhood, and then some: an edgy, creatively driven history, restored warehouses and factories – now home to brewpubs, art studios and music clubs – street art and food halls. In fact it has three of the latter including Denver Central Market, which has stalls serving anything from rotisserie chicken to fresh oysters. The alleyway between Larimer and Walnut Streets is a public gallery of murals, stretching for several blocks.

It’s a reliable sign that a neighbourhood is cool when people refer to it in shorthand, just like Bedford-Stuyvesant or “Bed-Stuy”. This large Brooklyn district has long been a centre of Black community and culture, with residents from Jackie Robinson to Jay-Z, and that’s celebrated at the Bedford-Stuyvesant Museum of African Art. It’s also home to centuries-old Herbert Von King Park and many of the city’s classic brownstones, whose high stoops line leafy residential streets.

Like many of the best neighbourhoods, East Liberty has a fascinating backstory. It’s named for the “liberties” or grazing lands that lay to the east of Pittsburgh’s original settlement, becoming part of the urban sprawl when trolley lines began in the mid-19th century. More recently it’s had something of a makeover, sparked by Google and Uber opening offices here. Restaurants, bars and boutiques have opened up, murals have been painted on old warehouses and sculptures – large and tiny – dot the streets.

Scott’s Addition could be the name of a limited-release craft beer, and that’s pretty apt – Richmond’s coolest area is primarily a brewery district. The neighbourhood has more than a dozen breweries, distilleries and taprooms inside converted warehouses. The compact, walkable district was once a manufacturing hub, though now pretty much the only machinery is used to make beer – and people are more likely to find a fusion restaurant or retro bowling alley than a factory.

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Fountain Square was Indiana’s first commercial historic district with buildings dating from the 1870s, and it’s become the place to hang out in Indianapolis. Just a mile or so from downtown, it’s a hip haven of art galleries, craft studios and restaurants people head to for long, lingering brunches. It has an endearing vintage vibe, too, with vinyl and comic book stores, a duckpin bowling alley, retro dance halls and burlesque clubs.

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Just off the paved River Walk, this micro-district has restaurants and shops scattered across the grounds and housed in the original 19th-century buildings of long-running Pearl Brewery, which stood abandoned here for decades until redevelopment in the early 2000s. The former bottling plant is now a food hall, the brewhouse is home to chic Hotel Emma, and vintage brewing tanks have been planted with herbs and flowers.

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Wynwood has cooked itself a reputation as one of Miami’s coolest areas with the two main ingredients for any hip hood: craft beer and street art. The area, just north of downtown, is effectively one big gallery where breweries, brewpubs, shops and restaurants are plastered with murals. It began with the Wynwood Walls, an open-air graffiti gallery with rotating murals, before the art spread through the neighbourhood. Even the parking garage, pictured, is a vibrant work of art.

What was once an industrial hub and later fell into disrepair has been revived as one of the capital’s most desirable neighbourhoods. Capitol Riverfront’s resurgence began in 2008 when Major League Baseball stadium Nationals Park moved here. Now an entire district has popped up around it, with upscale apartment blocks – many with gorgeous roof terraces and views of the Anacostia River – boutique breweries, an urban winery and restaurants serving locally sourced seafood. Yards Park, with green space, water features and swimming, is a highlight.

A series of “secret” staircases snakes up and down Silver Lake’s hillsides, including the rainbow-striped Micheltorena Stairs (pictured). The steps, built to help people reach now-defunct streetcar stations, are painted with bold colours and murals. It’s just one of the charmingly quirky features that have helped mark out the area as one of LA’s coolest. There are also gorgeous stores selling vintage glassware, homewares, fashion and books, ramen restaurants, taco stands and live music venues, all glued together with a vibrant sense of community.

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Named for its main avenue, South Congress or “SoCo” is classic Austin, from its fiercely independent spirit to the fact that one of its most popular attractions revolves around bats. Between March and October, people usually gather on Congress Avenue Bridge to watch more than a million migrating Mexican free-tailed bats flutter out from their nests under the arches. The shops are pretty quirky, too, selling hand-stitched cowboy boots and vintage gear and often with window signs bearing the slogan “Keep Austin Weird”.

Pearl gleams on the northern edge of Downtown Portland – and just about has the edge when it comes to the city’s coolest neighbourhoods, too. Home to Powell's City of Books – believed to be the world’s largest bookstore, and so huge there are maps to help customers navigate its shelves – the main draw here is shopping. It’s just gem after gem of vintage stores, art galleries and boutiques filled with shiny, pretty things. There are almost as many places to eat and drink, too, with cafés, brewpubs and organic restaurants occupying once-abandoned warehouse buildings.

This mural-plastered pocket of downtown has become the city’s favourite dining hub and is especially popular for that trendiest of meals: brunch. There are even food tours focusing on the meal and the best spots to visit for a long, lazy grazing session. Downtown 8th Street is also perfect for pottering, thanks to its pedestrianised areas with cool shops and art galleries and plenty of trees providing shade.

Wicker Park is one of Chicago’s oldest neighbourhoods and also one of the most interesting. Pho restaurants, record stores and vintage shops occupy the old furniture factories that once dominated the area, while residential streets are lined with 19th-century townhouses. The 606 – an elevated park on a former railroad, a little like New York’s The High Line – skims overhead, with walking and cycle paths bordered by fragrant shrubs and wildflowers. Bold murals and sculptures brighten the route, which links Wicker Park with other neighbourhoods.

Sometimes called the Warehouse District, bike-friendly North Loop is vibrant in both looks and vibe. Its heart lies inside converted 19th- and 20th-century warehouses, which now house independent boutiques, art studios, galleries and artisan food stores. This is the place for people looking to discover the city’s real spirit, through the innovative and seasonally driven restaurants, cool cocktail bars and LGBTQ+ nightlife scene.

Santa Fe’s downtown is like no other in the US. An intriguing blend of adobe (dried mud brick) buildings, bursts of blooms and greenery, colourful street sculptures and murals, the neighbourhood centres around Santa Fe Plaza, where local artisans sell paintings and crafts. Famous landmarks include the Cathedral Basilica St Francis of Assisi and the striking New Mexico Museum of Art, while Canyon Road is the place to find art studios and shops.

There's a whole other Nashville to discover away from the Grand Ole Opry and the honky-tonk bars of Broadway, and it’s in neighbourhoods like Germantown, a refreshingly relaxed area that’s popular with shoppers and foodies. Named because it was settled here by German immigrants, Germantown is home to top-rated restaurants like Rolf & Daughters, while Victorian buildings now house high-end boutiques and art stores. It’s just lovely to stroll around – with so many trees that the Nashville Tree Foundation has designated it as a city arboretum.

Before pretty much every hip, laid-back area in the US was labelled the new Brooklyn, there was Brooklyn itself – and many of its neighbourhoods remain among the country’s most-loved. Williamsburg, whose streets stretch towards the waterfront for incredible views over the bridge to Manhattan, is classic Brooklyn. Its mix of eclectic boutiques, cool cafés, innovative restaurants and warehouses plastered with murals has kept it fresh and vibrant.

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Asheville is a patchwork of historic and cool neighbourhoods and even has a square near downtown – South Slope Brewing District – that revolves around the craft beer movement. The River Arts District just about has the edge, and not just because its acronym is RAD. Stretching along the French Broad River, the area has built up around old mills and factories now filled with art studios with glassblowing, woodwork, ceramics and paintings. Unsurprisingly, it also has a few craft breweries, and is a favourite evening hangout with BBQ restaurants and nightlife spots.

Chickens have free range in Ybor City, Tampa’s equivalent to Miami’s Little Havana. The clucking, strutting hens and roosters, thought to descend from birds kept by early residents, are protected by law. Ybor City, founded by cigar magnates in 1885, is also a hub of Cuban culture and – according to locals – the birthplace of the meat-packed Cuban sandwich. Its streets ooze old-fashioned charm, from the faded wall murals to the original factories reborn as apartment blocks and shops where cigars are still rolled by hand.

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Plenty of people probably drive past Tin City without realising it's there. But they’d be missing out, because this micro-district on California’s Central Coast is all about the finer – and most fun – things in life. The area just off the Highway 101 has become one of the region’s hippest places for wine tasting, with around 20 tasting rooms pouring small-production wines in corrugated tin sheds. There are also distilleries, regular markets and food to soak up the booze, from sheep milk ice-cream at Negranti Creamery to innovative tasting menus at Six Text Kitchen.

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Founded in 1870, Honolulu’s Chinatown has been twice destroyed by fire and was the city’s red light district in the early 20th century before transforming into the vibrant arts district it is today. Its rich history is part of the charm, as is the mix of traditional noodle and dim sum spots, trendy bars and antiques markets. It’s also something of a creative hub with independent galleries, theatres and concert halls – and the arty vibe extends to the shopping scene, with some cute boutiques and mercantile-style stores.

The park of the same name (pictured) is the heart of this neighbourhood in downtown Orlando, and it’s a beauty: palm-lined paths weave past sculptures and fountains, tracing the edge of the water where resident swans glide about. But the area’s real cool kudos comes courtesy of its nightlife, with a surprisingly large number of speakeasy-style bars in the area. They’re hidden behind unassuming doors, entered with passwords, tucked in car parks and accessed via secret staircases.

Providence is one of those destinations where life really does gravitate towards the downtown area, with the neighbourhood set beautifully on three rivers. Brown University is right here in the centre, too, and the area has all the best features of a college town. There are restaurants serving local seafood, cool brewpubs, street sculptures and murals. There's also an appealing mix of history, architecture and nature, with paths lined with 18th-century buildings, riverside paths and parks, and iconic skyscrapers including The Superman Building.

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The Hill, as it’s often known, is the city’s LGBTQ+ hub and one of the most popular areas for nightlife. It isn’t just dive bars and clubs – though there are plenty, including historic grunge hot spot Comet Tavern. The scene spans karaoke, bowling, pool, billiards and even axe-throwing. Known for its counterculture and creative communities, the neighbourhood is also home to independent bookstores, record shops and cafés. At the top of the hill is Volunteer Park, with walking trails, the Asian Art Museum and views that unfurl across the city.

Portland’s Old Port is at once the most historic part of the city and the liveliest. Lanes weave towards the waterfront, with pubs, bars and restaurants spilling onto the cobbles in warmer months. Longer, broader streets are lined with 19th-century brick buildings, many erected after a fire devastated the city in 1866. Now, most of these are occupied by independent shops, tiny galleries and museums, brunch cafés and craft cocktail joints.

This cute district in Midtown is the place to come for independent shops selling quirky art, artisan chocolates, musical instruments and vinyl. It’s also the place to stay for dinner and drinks. It’s a real nightlife hub with hip cafés, craft brewpubs and cocktail bars, while restaurants range from classic Southern spot Soul Fish Cafe to farm-to-fork food at former 1950s beauty parlour The Beauty Shop, where the best seats are under hooded hair dryers.

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Little Five Points or L5P is one of several neighbourhoods in east Atlanta and is widely considered the coolest in the entire city. That’s largely down to its colourful, charmingly ramshackle storefronts, with rows of shops selling vintage gear, vinyl and quirky-cool gifts. But it also just has that certain something – a free spirit, creativity, a sense of community – that marks certain districts out above the others. It’s especially lively in the evening, with dive bars, burger joints, Ethiopian restaurants and live music at venues like the Variety Playhouse, a converted 1940s cinema.

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The Strip might have all the flash but Vegas’ downtown area has a very different vibe. There’s neon, sure – in the form of vintage signs and shapes displayed around the area and in the brilliant (in every sense) Neon Museum. There are also small, locally owned shops and restaurants, cool brewpubs and vintage stores. The Arts District is especially lovely to stroll around, browsing mid-century furniture and memorabilia from long-gone casinos in antiques stores along Main Street, exploring small galleries and perhaps getting a seasonally driven cocktail at the sumptuous Velevteen Rabbit.

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