Independent Leyton Orient Forum

Small Cities Index:

1. Lausanne, Switzerland
2. Boulder, USA
3. Bergen, Norway

Folks from here will argue that even the capital Oslo can’t offer the friluftsliv (outdoor life) Bergen provides. The city is surrounded by picturesque mountains and is a gateway to the fjords of Norway’s western coast. Recreation options, besides hiking, include summer dives into seawater pools, winter train journeys and ski resorts in Voss and Geilo. The wet weather can be tiresome but it has proven useful in creating a buzzy hospitality and dining scene that’s enlivening the city’s once-tame nightlife. Let’s hope retailers will follow suit, as current shopping options are lacking. Bergen’s creative industries, however, are thriving, nurtured by talent from well-respected universities and growing amid handsome studio spaces, often housed in remarkably revived industrial buildings.

Best for: Culture lovers. Bergenfest is a world-leading summer music festival, while Kode and the recently renovated Natural History Museum don’t disappoint on the cultural venue front.
What it needs: A good coffee shop for early birds.
Cycle-friendly? Yes. Bikes are a popular means of commuting and the city is cycle-friendly.



https://monocle.com/magazine/the-foreca ... rAe2UTiWFA

Ely

Chelmsford

Truro

Went to Bergen once. It was predictably very expensive and not as nice as I thought it would be. Have been to many much nicer European cities.

If you want to see a small city, go to St David's in Pembrokeshire.

Bergen I can live with, as it looked amazing a few years ago when the cycling world champs were held there.

Otherwise, these polls always seem to favours Swiss or Germanic cities, so I assume these are voted for by Traveller magazine subscribers.

Chichester

I like the city of Bergen but sooooo expensive

Wells in Somerset. Was there in the summer.

Don’t forget the one with a racecourse but no train station!!?????

Mont Tremblant city

It must also have the coolest airport in the world

https://www.google.com/search?q=mont+tr ... MdH5QsTUVM

Varazdin, Croatia. The only city with a cemetery as a tourists' attraction.

St Davids in Pembrokeshire is the UK's smallest city. It's just a village of less than 2000 people but has a Cathedral which is why it's a 'city'.

Paisley should by definition be a City because it has a Cathedral

Unfortunately for those Paisleys it's a Catholic one so doesn't count.

Perpignan. Was once the seat of the mighty Kings of Majorca.