Atlanta, Memphis, Raleigh-Durham, Asheville, Houston, Austin — a few Southern cities that fit the bill. Cheaper flights and lower costs for food and entertainment. |
You overpaid. By a lot. Tickets should have been $800 or less and many hotels and rentals can be had for $500 or less. |
You couldn’t have listed a more dull group of cities. |
(18:07) These cities are affordable and OP might really like them. Who's to say?
I don't think this list is any duller than listing the same US and European cities ad nauseum on this board. |
I never look at the state department warnings. But I am from Latin America so I am used to be careful. |
You have no idea what you are talking about. They’re not generalizations, they’re categorized that way because of how much assistance the US government can provide per the likelihood of something catastrophic happening. If it’s a “reconsider travel” alert and you’re kidnapped, don’t expect the total weight of the US government to come to your aid (though frankly hostages in Israel has lost most of my trust in that anyway). |
Someone has been watching too many movies. That's not even remotely close to how State Dept warnings work. The odds of being kidnapped are extremely low. Your main threats are robberies and being hit by a car when crossing the street. Hell, even 25 years ago those were the biggest threats. There are still areas like Cucuta that are dangerous and should be avoided, but that is irrelevant if you just avoid the area..duh. |
We rented a really nice 3BR Airbnb in New Hampshire fir 5 days before Christmas, went x-country skiing and hiking, then spent Christmas Eve and Christmas in Boston, looked at the lights, had Chinese and drove back to DC.
It was fun and very affordable. |
We went to LA one year, which was surprisingly affordable. We had frequent flier miles for the flights, stayed in a cheaper hotel a few blocks from the beach, did free stuff during the day (hikes, walking around the beach) and ate a lot of amazing street food. |