<p>I’m a student and it has always been a dream for me to travel along the east coast; have not had a chance yet so I’d like to know what you all lovely parents’ favourite city on the east coast is, particularly out of New York, Boston, Washington D.C., Philadelphia and why? Have never been there and would like to hear about your experiences and how they compare in terms of culture, atmosphere, people, things to do, etc. </p>
<p>Also, how would you compare them to Chicago?</p>
<p>Portland ME would be my favorite East Coast city right now. Great restaurants, nice vibe. I have only visited Portland in the summer though. 2nd favorite is Boston (has several good restaurants, all that history). Love Boston in the Fall.</p>
<p>I’ve never visited Chicago. I read once somewhere that port cities (like Portland and Boston) are similar to each other just like lake cities (Chicago, Buffalo) have similar qualities.</p>
<p>Princeton is kind of utopia, in my view. I also love the DC metro area. And Boston, especially Cambridge is pretty great. Philadelphia is growing on us. Have had trouble warming up to NYC, not sure why.</p>
<p>I’ve lived in the Philadelphia area my entire life, so I am biased! </p>
<p>But if you were to travel, drive up I95 and see DC, Philly and New York! All great cities.</p>
<p>Boston…</p>
<p>If you love history, Philadelphia is a great city to visit. Everything is within walking distance and they have done a wonderful job of preserving the past (the Liberty Bell, Betsy Ross’s house!) and marrying that with a new building - National Constitution Center [Home</a> - National Constitution Center](<a href=“http://constitutioncenter.org/]Home”>http://constitutioncenter.org/) It also has the very fun Reading Terminal Market within walking distance of the historical area. [Reading</a> Terminal Market Home](<a href=“http://www.readingterminalmarket.org/]Reading”>http://www.readingterminalmarket.org/) There are numerous walking tours available or you can do your own thing.</p>
<p>Philadelphia!!! Of course, we live right in center city so am also biased.
Lesser known smaller museums to see “Philadelphia’s Magic Gardens”, “The Fabric Workshop”, “ICA” and PMA’s “Perelman” building.</p>
<p>Washington offers the extra benefit that many places are free. You can see all of the museums on the mall (Air and Space, Natural History, American History, Sculpture Gardens, National Gallery of Art, American Indian Museum,etc) without paying a dime. There are many free concerts as well and at 6 PM at the Kennedy Center there is a different free show every night. Enjoy what your tax dollars pay for!</p>
<p>To visit: Washington, DC. Your tax dollars at work… All those museums, supported by the federal dollar, free admission. Congress. The White House. These are important places and a pleasure to visit. </p>
<p>To live in: none of them. Too many mosquitoes.</p>
<p>I agree with the order in the link below: NY, Washington D.C., Boston, Philadelphia
[Top</a> Tourist Destinations in the Eastern U.S.](<a href=“http://usatravel.about.com/od/Top-Destinations/ss/Top-Destinations-Eastern-USA.htm]Top”>http://usatravel.about.com/od/Top-Destinations/ss/Top-Destinations-Eastern-USA.htm)</p>
<p>As for Princeton being a utopia…cough, cough…it’s a boring place…when you’re young and free stick with NYC or even Hoboken, NJ (for cheaper rent and easy access to NY). You can move to Princeton when you’ve settled down and ready to raise kids.</p>
<p>favorites in order - NYC, Boston, DC, Baltimore, Philly</p>
<p>I agree with Classof2015 - Portland, Maine. Of course, I’m biased since I live about 20 minutes from the city.</p>
<p>My next favorite is Boston, although I am always very happy to leave there after a visit. The streets and traffic are too crazy for me.</p>
<p>I detest both Philly and Boston because of the old roads and confusing signage. I get lost almost instantly in both areas. I will concede, though, that they might be worth visiting if you travel by plane or train and don’t have to deal with driving.</p>
<p>I like New York to visit, but I live in the DC area now, and I have learned to like it much better than New York as a place to live. It’s newer, cheaper (relatively), cleaner, and more manageable in size. If only it had pizza as good as New York’s…</p>
<p>While I like NYC and Boston, charming places that are delightful to visit are Charleston and Savannah.</p>
<p>So much depends on what you like to do. Theatre? NYC, hands down. Lay on the beach? Virginia Beach or Charleston (Kiawah). </p>
<p>Do try to match your visit with the Seasons. I find NYC best in May or September or at Christmas. Washington DC is hot and crowded during summer months … but Portland is wonderful. And you don’t need to experience Charleston SC summers to know why wealthy residents summered in Newport RI.</p>
<p>Same reason many old blue bloods wintered in St. Simons, Sea Island and/or St. Augustine</p>
<p>In terms of CITY in capital letters, there is only NYC. It is arguably the greatest CITY in the world, with a richness of everything to a surpassing degree. It is the only place in America where Dr. Johnson’s words about London apply: if you’re tired of London, you’re tired of life.</p>
<p>But all the places along the coast have things to recommend them. They all have history. I live in Boston. It’s a great place to visit or to live. Yesterday, I was in the North End and realized I hadn’t been up the Revere Mall in a few years. So I walked around, went past North Church up to Copp’s Hill cemetery, where the Mathers are buried, through the streets - which I know very well - of a neighborhood with layers of history. I stopped into a tourist place where they do colonial era printing and talked to a family from Maryland. I helped some tourists from Japan find Pizzeria Regina, which is buried in the neighborhood on Thatcher. I tried to duck into Galleria Umberto to bring home an arancini but Ralph was locking up and said they were sold out - at 2PM, which is early for them. (To show how local Umberto’s is, they closed for vacation for the month of July though they’re right on the main drag. They devote the room which opens onto Hanover Street to store flour.) I headed past Paul Revere’s house - discovered when an historian saw an article about an arrest in what was then a flophouse and realized that was a 17thC house. </p>
<p>Only Philadelphia has as much or more of a feel for colonial history. The difference between the cities is not in the visiting but in the living. The parts of Boston you go in and live in are safe, well off and teeming with young people in college and in their 20’s and 30’s. Only parts of NYC have that concentration of youth.</p>
<p>The contrast with Chicago is complex. Much of my family lives in Chicago, mostly in Lincoln Park. It’s a great city, very midwestern, very different from the east coast.</p>
<p>How can I pick just one? </p>
<p>I love Boston for its history and New England charm. </p>
<p>I love New York for its theater, shopping, specifically the department store display windows, and Rockefeller Center. </p>
<p>I love Philadelphia for the old John Wanamaker’s Christmas Show, the Old Tavern Inn and everything else in the Old City, the fabric district, jewelry row, the art museum, and the memories of going to a Phillies game as a kid. </p>
<p>I love DC for its monuments, the Smithsonian, the cherry blossoms, and the nostalgia associated with the fact that my parents took me there regularly, from age 2, even though they were working class people. </p>
<p>When I went to Chicago, I thought I had died and gone to heaven. It’s like NY, but cleaner. I also love the fact that it is along the water. My husband kept trying to get me to agree to taking a family vacation there, but I wasn’t enthused. I didn’t think it had much to offer. I was wrong. Those of you who live within a day’s trip to Chicago are so lucky.</p>
<p>I lived in NYC during the bad years (late 70’s-mid 80’s) then moved to Chicago and couldn’t agree more with Fly Me. I loved Chicago. That being said, I love NYC. Boston is a bit provincial for me but, tbh, I’ve never done anything touristy on my trips there. DC is a great city to be a tourist in. Very easy to get around and most everything is free. </p>
<p>Whoever mentioned that Chicago and Buffalo have similar qualities must be smoking something. ;)</p>
<p>When we were planning our honeymoon decades back, we were trying to figure out which city to go to & finally decided to see as much as we comfortably could & saw a ton of them. Started in NYC, which was fun with all the famous sites & shows. Went to Niagra Falls, Ontario, Torronto & then Freeport, Maine (home of LLBean’s original store), Boston (& Martha’s Vineyard), DC and Williamsburg, VA. Each place had its own charm & have enjoyed re-visits as well. Philadelphia is an interesting place, as is Maryland. Figure out what appeals to you & then figure out which city or cities.</p>