Are you wearing a flannel shirt, skinny jeans, a vintage tee, a mustache or vintage eyewear?
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Consider your calendar: do you have plans to hear an indie band play live, attend an art gallery opening, or meet up with your closest friends for craft pints at a gastropub?
If you answered yes to at least 3 of these, then, my friend, you are very likely a participant in the hipster phenomenon.
If you don’t already live in one of the cities cited by Travel and Leisure that best serve the hipster set, then you might want to scope out an apartment in one of these hip places where the welcome mat is rolled out to the authentic and eccentric!
1. Seattle, WA
Seattle is hands-down the best city for hipsters for the great coffee and cool coffee shops that fuel the lives of the trendy and aware. Of course, Seattle is home to the original Starbucks location, but Cherry Street Coffee, Citizen and Café Racer rank high as hipster coffee houses. The lifeblood flows caffeinated through this town.
2. Portland, OR
Thanks to shows like Portlandia, much of the world has been exposed to the hipster phenomenon that is alive and well in Portland, Oregon. We all know that hipsters love bikes, sustainability and craft beers, which is why spots like BikeBar make this town iconic for the hip. Stationary bikes create electricity to power this organic brewpub. (Yep, you read that right.)
3. San Francisco, CA
If hipsters aren’t riding their bikes, they are walking. This is why San Francisco is a popular spot for techie hipsters on the move. This town has tons of alternative transportation, like streetcars, for example. (If you choose to drive, however, you’ll be tickled to know San Francisco is the home of the carstache.)
4. New Orleans, LA
An eclectic and historical city like New Orleans is the one of the best places for the hipster set to shop. Hipster essentials include everything from vintage cars to retro kitchenware to thrift shop couture. Fave vintage stores include Rag Doll, Retro Active and Funky Monkey. You can also hit up local flea markets for a grab bag of goodies. Try the Creative Flea and River Road Flea Market.
5. Portland, ME
Portland, Maine, has a lot of the same hipster features as its West Coast doppelganger, but expressed in its own New England style, of course. Though they have boatloads of craft beers around town like Allagash and Shipyard, the teetotaler hipster is in for a treat at Vena’s Fizz House. This natural soda bar and mixology shop is home to impressive mocktails such as a non-alcoholic version of the Dark & Stormy aptly named the Dim & Story.
6. Providence, RI
Art nerds love life in Providence, Rhode Island. This town has been a hipster haven since 1985 when AS220 opened. Okay, it sounds like a giant super-computer, but it’s actually a giant arts center. Over 100,000 square feet of space housed in three buildings provides ample room for art shows, theater, dance, live music, bars, restaurants and live/work spaces. A hipster must-do: Foo Fest!
7. Austin, TX
“Keep Austin Weird” is Austin’s unofficial city motto and one of the reasons hipsters are attracted to the creative culture in this town. Plus, the city hosts SXSW every year, a giant music, film and interactive festival. The live music scene here is unbelievable, with too many awesome venues to name. (Alright, we’ll name one: check out Mohawk for their multiple stages and hip happy hours.)
8. San Juan, PR
Hey, San Juan’s cool and we really want to visit, but it’s outside our apartment living purview. We list the city here for hip completeness.
9. Philadelphia, PA
All-American hipsters flock to Philly because they dish some of the best dive bars in the United States. An ironic night out wouldn’t be complete without a visit to The Dive for a Schlitz, the Local 44 for a six-pack of craft brew to go, and Johnny Brenda’s for live music. Johnny Brenda’s is located in one of the newest hip neighborhoods: Fishtown, a great spot to shop for a Philly apartment.
10. Denver, CO
Finally, after all that beer drinking and late night music listening, every good hipster needs to get some exercise — and you don’t have to leave Denver to break a sweat. Denver has over 850 miles of paved bike trails and a super cool B-cycle bike-sharing program. This makes it easy to roll on over to the Highlands for some hipster shopping, dining and relaxing.
Honorable mention: Brooklyn, NY
We’re calling an audible from T&L’s list to include the home of much that is hipster: Brooklyn, New York. Here’s an urban neighborhood where biking is de rigueur, artisan craftsmanship is revered, and flannel is an unofficial uniform. Style your facial hair and declare your place in Brooklyn, home of the cool in the city that has it all.
Hey, if you aren’t ready to relocate to one of these happening cities, you can at least move to a hipster neighborhood in your own hometown!
Thanks for reading, hipstas!
Header Photo by Clem Onojeghuo on Unsplash