Lower East Side/Chinatown, Manhattan

What would immigrant families of the past, crammed into narrow tenements, think of the Lower East Side today? Maybe that things change. It’s party central for young people, though old-school residents hold fast, cultivating community gardens and maintaining mom-and-pop businesses. The Bowery, one of the city’s oldest thoroughfares, and other lively streets bleed into Little Italy and Chinatown, resulting in a fusion of tantalizing foods.

Best for: nightlife seekers, food lovers, college students
Where to stay: Public hotel ($$$), Moxy Lower East Side ($$)
Things to do: New Museum, Economy Candy, Di Palo’s, Metrograph cinema
Where to eat and drink: Kisa ($$), Bar Contra ($$), Wu’s Wonton King ($), Subject ($$), 169 Bar ($)