Home to the Heinz food empire and Andy Warhol, the world-famous pop artist, the city of Pittsburgh, located in the western part of the state of Pennsylvania, in the north-eastern U.S., has enjoyed a spectacular cultural renaissance and tourism boom since the noughties. Once known for its industrial might and homegrown steel industry, today visitors flock to experience its world-class cultural institutions, big draw festivals and vibrant food scene, centred on the Strip District.
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The city enjoys a dramatic setting, watched over and framed by lofty peaks such as Mt. Washington. Point State Park, at the edge of its vibrant Downtown, meanwhile, marks the spot where three mighty rivers – the Allegheny, Monongahela and Ohio – meet and converge. This, in turn, has given rise to one of the city’s affectionate nicknames, the ‘City of Bridges’, Pittsburgh being home to 466 of the structures.
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Pittsburgh’s vibrant and rejuvenated Downtown area boasts a seriously impressive skyline, awash with modern architectural marvels and historic gems, many the legacy of local industrialists turned philanthropists such as Andrew Carnegie, the Scottish-born steel magnate. This has led movie directors to come calling, the city providing memorable backdrops for blockbuster movies such as The Dark Knight Rises, leading to yet another of the city’s nicknames, ‘Hollywood East’.
Having reinvented itself as a major technology hub in recent years, with a strong record in sustainability, Pittsburgh has become increasingly popular with young professionals and hipsters, the latter thronging the bars and eateries of its regenerated areas such as Lawrenceville. Combined with other strengths such as its abundant green spaces, this has helped Pittsburgh earn some impressive plaudits, including being voted ‘most liveable city in the U.S.’ by the likes of Forbes magazine and The Economist.
In short, Pittsburgh, backed by the rural charm and small-town appeal of surrounding areas such as Butler County – not to mention its direct British Airways flight service from London Heathrow – is a great sell for repeat visitors to the U.S., either as the focus for an entire trip or twinned with other regional centres in the north-east such as New York or Philadelphia.