# What's the largest American city you've never been to? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 9, 2007, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-american-city-youve-never-been-to/399358 "2007-04-09T19:54:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![BrassyPhrase](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ea666f/32.png) [@BrassyPhrase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrassyPhrase)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2007, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-american-city-youve-never-been-to/399358/61 "2007-04-10T03:40:26Z")
In the original list? I live in Houston, #4. And do love this searching for an identity city. I’ve been to LA and liked it b/c it reminded me of Houston. Which is probably not the kind of thing people admit to often. The biggest city I’ve not been to in adulthood is NYC, though I’d love to visit it. I saw Philly as a child helping relatives move, but would like to see it again. Phoenix, airport only. Not sure about San Jose. I think I did b/c I remember my mother warbling “do you know the way to San Jose” on a car trip. I’ve been to everything but 11, 20, and 28 until way down the list. I meant to say, I grew up in 28. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2007, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-american-city-youve-never-been-to/399358/62 "2007-04-10T03:50:09Z")
I’ve been west of San Antonio, so Los Angeles, Phoenix, San Diego, San Jose, and San Francisco are all off my list. I’ve also never been to Dallas or Indianapolis. I’ve only been to Chicago and Detroit via airport connections. I have been to New York City, Houston, Philadelphia, San Antonio, Jacksonville, and Columbus. The most populous city I hadn’t heard of was Aurora, Colorado. ---
**Author:** ![MoodIndigo1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e8c25b/32.png) [@MoodIndigo1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MoodIndigo1)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2007, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-american-city-youve-never-been-to/399358/63 "2007-04-10T04:10:47Z")
It was easy enough to guess New York. The largest city that I’d never heard of was Aurora, Colorado. Odd, since I have been to Colorado: Denver, Boulder, and Colorado Springs. Maybe I’m just having a brainslip, these seem to occur often lately. ---
**Author:** ![MoodIndigo1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e8c25b/32.png) [@MoodIndigo1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MoodIndigo1)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2007, 4:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-american-city-youve-never-been-to/399358/64 "2007-04-10T04:52:45Z")
1 New York City New York 3 Chicago Illinois 5 Philadelphia Pennsylvania 6 Phoenix Arizona 8 San Antonio Texas 9 Dallas Texas 11 Detroit Michigan 14 San Francisco California 15 Columbus Ohio 17 Memphis Tennessee 18 Baltimore Maryland 20 Charlotte North Carolina (slept overnight on the way to visit friends in Georgia, does that count?) 21 Nashville Tennessee 23 Boston Massachusetts 24 Washington District of Columbia 27 Denver Colorado 33 Albuquerque New Mexico 34 Atlanta Georgia 38 New Orleans Louisiana 39 Cleveland Ohio 42 Virginia Beach Virginia 48 Minneapolis Minnesota (loved the architecture in that city) 49 Colorado Springs Colorado 53 Raleigh North Carolina 56 Cincinnatia Ohio 58 Pittsburgh Pennsylvania 65 Newark New Jersey 66 Buffalo New York 67 St. Paul Minnesota 77 Greensboro North Carolina 78 Norfolk Virginia 82 Baton Rouge Louisiana 89 Akron Ohio 99 Arlington Virginia 108 Richmond Virginia 109 Winston-Salem North Carolina (2 friends teaching there) 124 Providence Rhode Island 140 Dayton Ohio 141 Tallahassee Florida 162 Syracuse New York 183 Savannah Georgia 187 New Haven Connecticut 188 Hartford Connecticut 214 Lafayette Louisiana 226 Allentown Pennsylvania 227 Charleston South Carolina 244 Athens Georgia (visited two friends who studied there) 248 Cambridge Massachusetts The larger cities I’ve visited for conventions, for the most part, though I once spent a month in NYC with friends. I haven’t visited many of the West Coast cities, I just realized. I’ve always wanted to visit Portland OR and Seattle WA. Los Angeles doesn’t appeal to me at all. I’m puzzled at why San Juan PR isn’t on this list. By these criteria, it should be 43rd. Great city! ---
**Author:** ![MoodIndigo1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e8c25b/32.png) [@MoodIndigo1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MoodIndigo1)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2007, 4:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-american-city-youve-never-been-to/399358/65 "2007-04-10T04:57:19Z")
Well no excuse for that-- I read the thread wrong. Please delete or ignore my 2 posts. \ ---
**Author:** ![Lama\_Pacos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d6d6ee/32.png) [@Lama\_Pacos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lama_Pacos)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2007, 9:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-american-city-youve-never-been-to/399358/66 "2007-04-10T09:39:29Z")
#3. Chicago. Haven’t heard of #42, Virginia Beach. ---
**Author:** ![Angel\_of\_the\_Lord](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/angel_of_the_lord/32/2949_2.png) [@Angel\_of\_the\_Lord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Angel_of_the_Lord)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2007, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-american-city-youve-never-been-to/399358/67 "2007-04-10T21:31:00Z")
Largest I’ve never been to? That’d be #1, NYC. Largest I’d never heard of? That’d be #84, Hialeah, FL. WTH is that? ---
**Author:** ![Sal\_Ammoniac](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8dc957/32.png) [@Sal\_Ammoniac](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sal_Ammoniac)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2007, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-american-city-youve-never-been-to/399358/68 "2007-04-10T21:46:27Z")
I’m seeing a lot of votes for Houston. Does that say something bad about Houston, or is it just that Houston isn’t on the way from Point A to Point B? ---
**Author:** ![Sternvogel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bc79bd/32.png) [@Sternvogel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sternvogel)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2007, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-american-city-youve-never-been-to/399358/69 "2007-04-10T21:53:18Z")
[QUOTE=Angel of the Lord] Largest I’d never heard of? That’d be #84, Hialeah, FL. WTH is that? [/QUOTE] Since it’s mostly known for its [horse racing track](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hialeah_Park), I’m guessing you don’t follow the “sport of kings”. Similarly, I’m guessing that the people who’d never heard of Mesa or Chandler aren’t baseball fans, as both of those Arizona cities have been stops on the spring-training Cactus League circuit. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2007, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-american-city-youve-never-been-to/399358/70 "2007-04-10T21:57:39Z")
The highest one I’ve never been to is #17, Memphis. If driving through doesn’t count, then it’s #13, Jacksonville. I’ve actually slept in the top 7, up to San Antonio, and then 9-12., 14-16, 18 and 20. Fort Worth is next to Dallas - I’ve been in the airport, but not Ft. Worth proper, so I won’t count it. Mesa is next to Phoenix - friends used to live there, so I’ve actually slept there. There is a big Intel plant in Chandler, I’ve been a couple of times, but just for the day. I’ve slept in 24 of the top 30. I travel way too much. ---
**Author:** ![Monstera\_deliciosa](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monstera_deliciosa/32/109_2.png) [@Monstera\_deliciosa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monstera_deliciosa)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2007, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-american-city-youve-never-been-to/399358/71 "2007-04-10T23:10:18Z")
#4 Houston is the largest city I’ve never been to. I’ve been to the top 3 (New York, LA, and Chicago), and #5 (Philadelphia), but none of the rest of the top ten. After Philly, the next largest I’ve visited is #18 Baltimore. #121 Moreno Valley, CA is the largest city I’ve never heard of. ---
**Author:** ![betenoir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/258eb7/32.png) [@betenoir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/betenoir)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2007, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-american-city-youve-never-been-to/399358/72 "2007-04-10T23:26:21Z")
Easy, LA. Never been don’t particualy want to. And I’m surprised at how low some of the places I have been to/lived in are. Who knew SF was so small? I’ve alo been to London, Berlin, Nottingham, Toronto…but I guess none of them count for this OP. ---
**Author:** ![RedRosesForMe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/91b2a8/32.png) [@RedRosesForMe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RedRosesForMe)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2007, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-american-city-youve-never-been-to/399358/73 "2007-04-11T02:21:06Z")
I’ve never been to LA nor do I want to. I’ve never heard of Arlington, Texas. And how is Tampa bigger than Pittsburgh? On both those lists? We had a bit of a Burg Exchange Program for a while, kids from St. Pete going to Pittsburgh and vice versa, and I thought it seemed a lot bigger than Tampa… hmm. ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2007, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-american-city-youve-never-been-to/399358/74 "2007-04-11T02:24:59Z")
I’ve never visited Chicago, and I don’t think I’ve heard of Arlington (50), although I have heard of the 12 cities immediately following it. ---
**Author:** ![fachverwirrt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/94ad74/32.png) [@fachverwirrt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fachverwirrt)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2007, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-american-city-youve-never-been-to/399358/75 "2007-04-11T02:32:26Z")
Been to New York, so that answers the OP. Also from the top twenty, Chicago, Philadelphia, San Diego, Memphis and Baltimore. I may have been in San Francisco many years ago, and my parents actually put a contract down on a house in San Jose, but I was four months old when they moved to Massachusetts. I live in (rather, near) St. Louis (no. 52), and went to school in Manchester, NH (no. 220). I’ve been in a bunch of others, but I’m not going through the whole list. ETA: I was rather surprised to discover that Boston only has ca. 600,000 people. The metro area is quite a bit larger, but I always figured there were at least a couple million in the city. ---
**Author:** ![ataraxy22](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ataraxy22/32/307_2.png) [@ataraxy22](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ataraxy22)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2007, 3:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-american-city-youve-never-been-to/399358/76 "2007-04-11T03:00:19Z")
FIrst one I haven’t been to is #22 El Paso (well I was at the airport there once). First one I absolutely haven’t been to at all is #25 Milwaukee Others I’ve NEVER been to in the top 100: #29 Las Vegas (airport only) #31 Oklahoma City #36 Fresno #41 Mesa, AZ [I may have been here] #54 Santa Ana, CA #55 Anaheim, CA #60 Aurora, CO [I may have been here] #62 Riverside, CA #68 Anchorage #74 Lincoln, NE #75 Chandler, AZ #76 Henderson, NV #81 Fort Wayne, IN #88 Rochester, NY #93 Laredo, TX #94 Modesto, CA #99 Glendale, CA #125 N. Las Vegas is the first I never heard of. Didn’t know that part of LV was separate from the rest of it. ---
**Author:** ![fachverwirrt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/94ad74/32.png) [@fachverwirrt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fachverwirrt)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2007, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-american-city-youve-never-been-to/399358/77 "2007-04-11T03:22:32Z")
Aaaaaand… I completely misread the OP. The largest city I’ve **never** been to would be LA. Number 2 on the list. ---
**Author:** ![kelly5078](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/6f9a4e/32.png) [@kelly5078](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kelly5078)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2007, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-american-city-youve-never-been-to/399358/78 "2007-04-11T03:48:56Z")
NYC. Never heard of Chandler, Arizona or Henderson, Nevada (75 & 76). ---
**Author:** ![Rodgers01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b19c9b/32.png) [@Rodgers01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rodgers01)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2007, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-american-city-youve-never-been-to/399358/79 "2007-04-11T05:23:41Z")
Largest I’ve never been to is L.A. I think the largest I never heard of is [Hialeah, FL](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hialeah%2C_Florida), which, according to Wikipedia is the #1 Spanish-speaking city in the US – guess I’m just out of the loop. Of the top ten, I’ve been to New York, Chicago, Phily and Phoenix (and lived in two of them!). I’m hurt in the rest by the fact that I’ve never set foot in California or Texas. Biggest city I’ve never been to that I _want_ to go to (as I’m not really interested in L.A.) would be Houston. I’d like to do a grand tour through Texas someday. ---
**Author:** ![Hostile\_Dialect](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e495f1/32.png) [@Hostile\_Dialect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hostile_Dialect)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2007, 9:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-american-city-youve-never-been-to/399358/80 "2007-04-11T09:28:32Z")
Never been to Houston. Never heard of Paterson, NJ (#150), but then again I’m a bit of an armchair US Geography geek. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-american-city-youve-never-been-to/399358.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-largest-american-city-youve-never-been-to/399358.md?page=5)