A poster boy for gentrification, Hoboken is Manhattan writ small (and with an NJ affix!). A criss-crossing grid of neat red-brick buildings complete with New Yorker fire escapes and flat-topped roofs dominates the heart of the city, which also enjoys some of the finest broadside views of the Big Apple from its perch on the western banks of the Hudson River.

During the 20^th century this enclave of Jersey City was an industrial powerhouse, while later decades brought prosperity by the bucket load. Swish apartment complexes shot up along River Street, punctuated by the likes of Pier A Park, where skyscrapers can be seen looming to the east and monuments to the Mile Square City’s 9/11 victims stand as testimony to the town’s proximity to that great metropolis across the water.

Hoboken tour guides also direct visitors to Washington Street, the town’s central thoroughfare and a veritable hubbub of lively cafes, bars and eateries that spill out onto the shady sidewalks. This is also where the city marks one of its two major claims to fame, with a plaque showing the site of America’s first ever baseball game. The other can be found at 415 Monroe Street; the birthplace of Frank Sinatra no less!