Brooklyn

The story

Also known as Kings County, Brooklyn would rank as the third-most populous city in the United States if it still stood alone. Its landmarks include Coney Island, Prospect Park and the Brooklyn Bridge, which carries millions of commuters between lower Manhattan and the borough. Dumbo, just across the bridge, looks back over the water at Manhattan. Each neighbourhood has its own pull. Bedford-Stuyvesant, home turf of Notorious B.I.G. and Aaliyah, was the heart of Brooklyn's civil rights efforts and still has late-night jazz. Prospect Heights keeps mom-and-pop shops and a dining strip along Vanderbilt Avenue, Carroll Gardens is good for vintage shopping, and Brighton Beach has its boardwalk. The borough is also known for its pizza, Italian delis that have lasted a century, intimate live music venues, avant-garde galleries and independent perfume makers.