Exploring Hidden Cities in Europe — Skip the Famous Ones

For travelers drawn to the romance of unfamiliar cities rather than the well-worn scenery of big capitals, we’ve picked three European cities where stylish art and local life are thriving.

Words Pyo Youngso
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Leipzig, Germany, Instead of Berlin

A year ago, Peggy Gu, the internationally known DJ who has long been based in Berlin, said on a YouTube channel that she was thinking of leaving the city because she had grown tired of a Berlin where everyone calls themselves a “creative director” (she has since moved to London). She has a point. Once a city becomes a “hipster hot spot,” it stops being hip. Over the past decade or so, a surge in visitors has deepened overtourism problems, including gentrification around major attractions and worsening traffic and crowding.
Against this backdrop, Leipzig is gaining attention as the “new Berlin.” The largest city in the eastern German state of Saxony, Leipzig was once known as a “city of music” for the legacies of Bach, Mendelssohn, and Schumann. In recent years, thanks to its low cost of living, young artists, creators, and startups have flowed in, making it a new center of underground culture and art. Former industrial districts have been reborn as galleries and performance venues, and fresh, creative experiments are flourishing in music, publishing, media, and more. Its bike-friendly atmosphere, local food, and urban regeneration—a sustainable lifestyle—are among the reasons the city is nicknamed “Hypezig.” With a population about one-sixth the size of Berlin’s, it is also less commercialized and less touristy, so you can soak up local flavor in a relaxed atmosphere. It takes just over an hour (about 1 hour 10 minutes) from Berlin by high-speed train, and the city is small enough to explore on foot or by bike.

Leipzig Tourism Website: www.leipzig.travel/en/

Bordeaux, France, Instead of Paris

Ahead of the Olympics last summer, Parisians seemed to feel as much fatigue as anticipation. With record numbers of tourists expected, a good many locals planned to flee Paris during the Games, while sharply rising prices for transportation, lodging, and more held back travelers who wanted to visit. Even after the Olympics, Paris’s overtourism problem persists. Tourist attractions such as the Louvre and Montmartre are so packed with crowds that they disrupt Parisians’ daily lives, and the growth of short-term rental properties like Airbnb is affecting the housing environment as well.
For those who want to enjoy French culture and everyday life at a more leisurely pace, we recommend Bordeaux. It is usually known as France’s signature wine region, but few people actually know what kind of city Bordeaux is. Does it help to say that its nickname is “Le Petit Paris”? Georges Haussmann, who oversaw the redesign of Paris in the mid-19th century, was born here. The center of Bordeaux also features Haussmannian architecture, with straight streets, grand boulevards, large squares, and uniform building facades, giving it an atmosphere similar to Paris. Add to that beautiful 19th-century neoclassical buildings, historic cultural venues such as the Grand Théâtre de Bordeaux, and a high-caliber food and wine culture, and you can enjoy a refined lifestyle and elegant sensibility that rival Paris. It takes about 2 hours from Paris to Bordeaux by TGV.

Lucca, Italy, Instead of Florence

From January to September last year, the number of visitors who stayed at least one night in Florence reportedly exceeded 7.8 million. Given that the local population is about 400,000, that is nearly 20 times as many visitors as residents. The fact that the major sights are concentrated within a 5-kilometer radius is one reason Florence suffers from overtourism in particular. To address this, the city has banned code-based key boxes at short-term rental accommodations in the city center, as well as small tourist vehicles and the use of microphones and loudspeakers.
If you were planning to head to Florence for Renaissance architecture and Tuscan cuisine, we suggest turning toward Lucca instead. A fortress city of the medieval Republic of Lucca, it is an ideal destination for a time-travel trip to the Renaissance. The moment you step inside its perfectly preserved 16th-century walls, beautiful squares and medieval buildings such as the Cattedrale di San Martino appear along cobblestone streets and captivate you. After a stroll through the center, try Lucca’s traditional dish, tordelli lucchese (meat-filled pasta in a rich ragù). It pairs nicely with wine from the small wineries around Lucca. It takes a little over an hour (about 1 hour 10 minutes) to drive from Florence to Lucca.