Best vacation spot with good transit systems (US) ?

Question

My friend and I are planning a summer vacation as our university graduation present. Neither she or I or the other two going are 25 so we cannot rent a car and want to be able to get around but not sure what cities would be good for a nice vacation but also have adequate transit besides NYC. Thank you for any recommendations ! :) 

Answer 1

I second the recommendation of Chicago for a summer trip. There's a lot to do there, and enough is walkable if you stay in the downtown area, although there's also good public transportation. There's good shopping, good restaurants, concerts, shows, etc. If you want a beach vacation, I recommend the Gulf shore of Florida because the Gulf is cleaner than the Atlantic and warmer. Stay on the beach. There's not much public transportation, though. 

Answer 2

Chicago, Boston, Washington DC, and Seattle all have excellent public transportation.  Philadelphia and San Francisco aren't bad.  LA is okay.  You don't need much public transportation if you stay in the French Quarter in New Orleans, and the streetcar system gets you around the nearby Garden District well enough.

Answer 3

New York, Washington, Boston, Chicago.

Answer 4

Chicago has great public transportation. You can take the Metra trains out into the suburbs too. In The Loop area there are plenty of places to walk to. 

Going this year you will probably still come up against  places closed and summer festivals and  concerts canceled, no matter where you go.  Sport games may still not allow spectators. 

Answer 5

You don't need to be 25 to rent a car.

Almost all major rental car agencies allow people to rent cars at 20 or 21.

You will have to pay an underage fee to rent the car.

Uber is everywhere.

Answer 6

Washington, DC.  Dallas has some public transportation but there are places it doesn't go.

Answer 7

anyplace that has subways

Answer 8

Chicago has a lot of things to do as well as decent public transportation.  Ditto for DC.  And I haven't been there for a few years, but San Diego has public transportation.  It's not great, but it's adequate for getting around.

Answer 9

Chattanooga is decent and the shuttles are free downtown

Answer 10

Key West is great.  There's no bus service, but lots of cabs, and you can walk pretty much every where.  Great restaurants, bands, and a very cool vibe.  But it's pricey.  San Fransisco has a good public transportation system too, but again, it's pricey.