Coolest neighbourhoods

Dundas West
Toronto, Canada
Nestled between Trinity Bellwoods and West Queen West, this stretch of Canada’s ‘city of neighbourhoods’ is a culture consumer’s paradise with boutique art galleries, snug bars, understated nightclubs and enough cosy coffee shops to keep you buzzing along. Independent shops like Rose City Goods and Easy Tiger sling hand-poured soy candles and recycled bamboo dinnerware, while speciality stores help you build a perfectly curated wardrobe for your toddler or dog. Characterised by its large population of Portuguese and Brazilian immigrants, the neighbourhood remains a cultural hotspot where you can frequent great delis and bakeries full of avós (we like mainstays Caldense or Nova Era) just as easily as upscale international eateries (see Antler and Bernhardt’s). Change is afoot: Dundas Street is due to be renamed due to its namesake’s links to historical slavery. But whatever it’s called next, right now Dundas West is Toronto’s place to be.

Shawlands
Glasgow, UK
With its great parks, art, coffee and dining, Shawlands keeps Glasgow braw. The neighbouring areas of Langside, Strathbungo and Govanhill have all played their part in the Southside’s rise to eclipse the West End as the city’s best area to socialise and live in recent years – but Shawlands is the bustling nexus point of Glasgow below the Clyde. The internationally renowned Burrell Collection has recently had a multimillion-pound refurb, and it’s surrounded by buzzy independent local businesses – such as French-Japanese patisserie and design shop Godshot Studio – on the main artery of Pollokshaws Road, before it bisects with Kilmarnock Road in front of a beautiful Flatiron Building-esque sandstone tenement block. But explore the side streets too for delightful plant-based lattes and flat whites at Frankie, or superior sourdough from Deanston Bakery.

Cours Julien
Marseille, France
East of Marseille’s swanky marina and an easy stroll from the picturesque Old Port, this gritty, buzzing quartier was once home to the city’s open air wholesale markets, and is known to locals as ‘Cours Ju’ (a play on the word ‘court-jus’, meaning ‘short-circuit’). It’s a creative hotbed littered with street markets, live music venues, vintage clothing stores, secondhand book shops and old warehouses repurposed as hip art galleries. And that’s not the only place you’ll find paintings: seek out the best of the the graffiti-tattooed district’s street art on a guided tour of its cobbled alleys.

Barrio Yungay
Santiago, Chile
The colourful Barrio Yungay, located a short walk from heaving Avenida Alameda and Barrio Brasil, is on the up. Boasting national heritage status as the Chilean capital’s first planned barrio, it’s had an edgy reputation in recent years. But Yungay has now become a magnet for the young and cool: even Chile’s millennial president, Gabriel Boric, chose to move here in March 2022. Illustrious new residents aside, working-class locals stroll alongside bohemian creative types on attractive boulevards such as Lavaud, lined with a diverse array of baroque, Bauhaus and art deco façades. Yungay is home to several fascinating museums and the lush green space of Parque Quinta Normal, while an up-and-coming food scene includes restaurants serving trad Chilean fare alongside sourdough pizza parlours and speciality coffee houses.

Cliftonville
Margate, UK
While Margate’s Old Town delivers a good old-fashioned British seaside day out, Cliftonville buzzes with a different kind of energy. It’s home to one of the UK’s most thriving artistic communities, largely due to an influx of creative ex-Londoners who’ve flocked to the area’s affordable housing and studio spaces, plus the massive tidal ocean pool at Walpole Bay. The neighbourhood’s spine is Northdown Road, which is a block back from the coast and stretches from the Old Town to Palm Bay. Until recently a parade of charity shops and bookies, Northdown is now home to record shops, cafés and conscious groceries, as well as game-changing community-funded venues like q***r bar CAMP and gallery Quench.

Shimokitazawa
Tokyo, Japan
Just one stop from Shibuya on the express train, Shimokitazawa – or Shimokita, as the locals call it – has reclaimed its title as Tokyo’s coolest neighbourhood. Having gone through a massive revamp since 2019 (when it last featured on this ranking), Shimokita will be almost unrecognisable to those who haven’t visited in a few years. Previously known for its vintage stores, Shimokita has evolved into a hotspot for indie film enthusiasts, café-goers and serious foodies. This hip hub has also seen countless new shopping and dining facilities pop up, including one which has transformed some dead space under the train tracks into a lively restaurant. But the area is still reliably filled with classic independent businesses and affordable options for eating, drinking and shopping.

Barrio Logan
San Diego, USA
Located just 16 miles north of the border, the tight-knit San Diego community of Barrio Logan is a vibrant and historic hub of Mexican-American culture. It’s anchored by Chicano Park, in the shadows of the freeway that bisected the neighbourhood in the ’60s. The park is the direct result of community activism – protesters formed a human chain for 12 days to stop the state from seizing the land – and it’s now home to the largest concentration of Chicano murals in the world, with more than 80 world-class paintings depicting scenes from the Mexican Revolution, ferocious Aztec warriors, and larger-than-life portraits of heroes like Frida, Diego and Cesar. Along the main thoroughfare, Logan Avenue, lowriders in Chevys, Cadillacs and Buicks (with flamboyant paint jobs and gravity-defying hydraulics) line up to blast Earth, Wind & Fire from souped-up stereo systems. Sustenance comes by way of small family-owned businesses who have been serving the community plates of taquitos for decades – gracias, Las Cuatro Milpas.

Mile End
Montreal, Canada
Despite rising challengers like Verdun, it should come as a surprise to absolutely no one that Mile End continues its reign as Montreal’s coolest neighbourhood. Part of the Plateau-Mont-Royal borough, this pocket north of Mont-Royal Avenue is home to some of the city’s world-famous institutions as well as epic new spots. Historically a hub for Jewish immigrants and artists (and later indie bands), Mile End is an enclave for some of the city’s best restaurants, independent bookstores, flower shops, butchers, bakers and candlestick makers. It’s a walkable nook that’s home to rival bagel shops, a tea room that transforms into a champagne salon after dark, a skate park that transforms for ‘digital block parties’ (complete with dazzling projection art) and a watering hole that’s transitioned to crudo, croques monsieurs and caviar service. Add a couple of the best brunches in town and a heavy pour of expertly crafted cocktails, and you’ve got one heck of a neighbourhood.

Ridgewood
New York City, USA
Ridgewood, Queens sits close by the Brooklyn border, pulling in the best of each borough: the diversity and local vibes of Queens and the hip offerings of Brooklyn, specifically neighbouring Bushwick. Ridgewood’s identity, though, is old-school-meets-trendy with a mix of landmark staples, like Rudy’s Bakery and Gottscheer Hall, and buzzy new bars and restaurants like The Acre, Evil Twin and Café Plein Air. While (like all NYC neighbourhoods) it’s constantly evolving, it keeps its past intact with an impressive ten historic districts, including the rows of two-storey brick houses that define the neighbourhood. In fact, Ridgewood harbours the oldest surviving stone-built Dutch colonial house in NYC: the Vander Ende-Onderdonk House, originally built in 1709. With its enduring mom-and-pop stores and a commitment to honouring its history, Ridgewood is a sleeper hit of a neighbourhood: beloved not despite, but because of, its low-key vibe.

Wat Bo Village
Siem Reap, Cambodia
The area around the Wat Bo pagoda, one of the oldest in Siem Reap, was first developed as tourism gradually descended on Cambodia’s ‘Temple Town’ in the ’90s. But in 2021, a city-wide makeover kickstarted a serious glow-up for Wat Bo Village. Helped out by up its idyllic riverside location, it’s now an incredibly chic quarter. The vicinity of Street 26 and Wat Bo Road has become a favoured haunt for expats frequenting its numerous bars (former Pub Street luminaries Laundry and chinoiserie-themed Miss Wong), experimental Khmer restaurants in scenic settings (Banlle) and elegant design hotels (Viroth’s, Treeline Urban Resort). Stewart on 26 boosts the area’s nightlife rep with DJ nights, while organic-cooking institution Tevy’s Place doubles as a social enterprise empowering local women. Until recently a forgettable residential suburb, Wat Bo now stands unrivalled as the city’s – and arguably Asia’s – most happening area.

Cais do Sodré
Lisbon, Portugal
Guess who’s back – back again? Cais do Sodré has been the heart of Lisbon’s nightlife for a good few years now, but in 2022 it’s more popping than ever. Anchorede by ‘Pink Street’ (the dazzlingly painted Rua Nova do Carvalho) and its colourful umbrellas, this is the neighbourhood where Lisbon’s most promising young chefs are opening new restaurants; where small businesses are springing to life; where much-loved bars and nightclubs are finally rising from the ashes of the past few years. (Pensão Amor and Copenhagen, we missed you!) Refurb works on the Cais do Gás warehouses by the River Tagus will soon be finished, creating a new home for three landmarks of Lisbon nightlife: Europa, Tokyo and Jamaica. And Rua da Boavista, heading over towards the Santos neighbourhood, is full of life after years of neglect. You’d better plan for a big night, because the day isn’t long enough to explore it all.

Colonia Americana
Guadalajara, Mexico
It may be little explored by foreigners, but Guadalajara is known by many Mexicans as the country’s cultural capital – and right now, Colonia Americana is the epicentre of its underground scene. Located right next to 500-year-old El Centro, it’s an edgy blend of art deco and neoclassical mansions with artists’ squats and warehouses containing some of the city’s best music venues – shout out to Segundo Piso Music and Bar Americas: Latin America’s answer to Berghain. The plaza around neo-gothic Templo Expiatorio del Santísimo is prime for people-watching at any time of the day thanks to its many food carts and street performers. Creative locals sit with their laptops in any number of sleek cafés (try Café Correcto or Lluvia) and sip local tequila in dive bars on Chapultepec Avenue long into the night.