Pittsburgh

Pittsburgh is an inland river city, and people do not swim in its three rivers. They kayak, row and boat on them instead. The nearest place to swim is Lake Arthur in Moraine State Park, about 45 minutes north by car. It has small sand beaches on a reservoir lake ringed by woods. On a hot summer day it is a pleasant family outing, but it is a modest freshwater spot with a short season. Closer to home, locals cool off in municipal pools.

The best sand in the region is at Presque Isle, a long peninsula on Lake Erie about two hours' drive north. The lake there warms to around 22°C in August. Neither place makes Pittsburgh a choice for a swimming vacation.

Pittsburgh's food comes out of its industrial and immigrant past. Central and Eastern European families left pierogies, haluski and stuffed cabbage, which still turn up at church sales and in neighbourhood diners. The city's own contributions are loaded sandwiches with fries and coleslaw stacked inside, and the cookie tables at weddings. The Strip District is the place to start. It is a long market street of Italian grocers, fishmongers, Asian markets, coffee roasters and stalls selling sports kit.

A serious modern restaurant scene runs through Lawrenceville, East Liberty and the Strip, with chef-led kitchens in old industrial buildings. There is also a solid craft-brewing culture. Prices are fair for an American city, but the range is narrower than in the big coastal cities.

Pittsburgh's sights come from the steel-era wealth of Carnegie, Frick and Heinz. In Oakland, the Carnegie Museums of Art and Natural History share one huge building, known for its dinosaur halls and a strong collection of art. Next door is the Cathedral of Learning, a Gothic university skyscraper whose Nationality Rooms are each furnished in the style of a different homeland. Across the river on the North Side, the Andy Warhol Museum is the largest museum devoted to a single American artist. The Mattress Factory nearby fills old houses with room-sized installations.

Downtown has Richardson's Romanesque county courthouse and a skyline of early skyscrapers. The Heinz History Center tells the industrial story, and the Frick estate in Point Breeze shows how the barons lived. The city's greatest sight is its setting: dozens of bridges over three rivers, seen from Mount Washington after riding up on the nineteenth-century inclines.

A night out in Pittsburgh means bars rather than clubs, spread across several neighbourhoods with different characters. Lawrenceville's Butler Street has the cocktail bars, breweries and dive bars that draw a young crowd. East Carson Street on the South Side is the long, loud strip of student bars and pub crawls. Smaller scenes gather in the Strip District, Shadyside and the North Side around the stadiums.

Game nights fill the bars with fans in black and gold. The club scene is small, and last orders come at 2am. It is a friendly, unpretentious place to drink, but nobody plans a trip around going out here.

Pittsburgh is steep, green and cut by rivers. Wooded hillsides rise right behind the neighbourhoods. Within the city, Frick Park and Schenley Park have shaded ravine trails. Riverside paths along the Allegheny and Monongahela make easy loops by bike or on foot, and kayaks can be paddled right under the downtown bridges.

About an hour and a half south-east, the Laurel Highlands are the real outdoor draw. In Ohiopyle State Park, the Youghiogheny River runs through a gorge with whitewater rafting, waterfalls and forest hikes. The Great Allegheny Passage, a long cycle trail on an old rail line, starts in the city and runs through this country. Autumn colour on the ridges is the high point of the year. Winters are grey, with modest local skiing.

Pittsburgh's best day trip is Frank Lloyd Wright's Fallingwater, the house built over a waterfall, about an hour and a half away in the Laurel Highlands. Wright's smaller Kentuck Knob is close by, so the two make a full day together. Small Highlands towns such as Ligonier, with its reconstructed colonial fort, are on the same route. Further east, the Flight 93 National Memorial stands in an open field near Shanksville.

Nearer the city, Old Economy Village preserves a nineteenth-century religious commune on the Ohio River. Cleveland is about two hours away, at the edge of a day's range. After that the list thins out. Most of what lies around Pittsburgh is farmland and forest rather than towns worth the journey, and a car is needed for almost all of it.

Pittsburgh has a lot built for children, at a manageable scale. The North Side alone has the Carnegie Science Center, with a submarine and a planetarium, as well as the Children's Museum and the National Aviary, where birds fly freely around visitors. The dinosaur halls at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History are among the best in the country. The zoo and aquarium sit in Highland Park, and Phipps Conservatory's glasshouses are a calm option on a wet day.

Kennywood, an amusement park dating from the 1890s with classic wooden roller coasters, is a summer favourite. Riding the inclines up Mount Washington goes down well with children. The city is relaxed and welcoming to families, but it is hilly and spread out, so a car makes days with small children much easier.

Downtown Pittsburgh is compact and easy on foot. Bridges lead straight across to the North Side's museums and stadiums, and the Strip District is a short walk along the river. The light rail, known as the T, runs underground downtown and crosses to the North Side, and the two inclines climb Mount Washington.

Beyond that core it gets harder. Oakland, Lawrenceville, Shadyside and Squirrel Hill are reached by a bus network that serves commuters better than visitors. Steep hills and river crossings make walking between neighbourhoods slow. Most visitors use ride-hailing for evenings out. Day trips into the Laurel Highlands need a car.

Shopping in Pittsburgh is local and low-key. The Strip District is the most enjoyable place to browse, with food stalls, kitchenware, sports merchandise and weekend street vendors. Lawrenceville's Butler Street has independent clothing, vintage and design shops. Walnut Street in Shadyside is the closest the city comes to an upmarket boutique street.

Downtown shopping is mostly practical, with a scattering of shops around Market Square and the glass towers of PPG Place, and it serves office workers more than visitors. Big-brand shopping happens in the suburban malls, which need a car. There are no luxury districts or local crafts of note, so this is not a city to visit for shopping.

For an American city, Pittsburgh is good value. Hotel rooms, including downtown on most nights, cost well below what the big coastal cities charge, and casual meals, beer and the Strip District's food are reasonably priced. Prices are still American, though: restaurant bills come with a tip on top, and rides between neighbourhoods add up. Rates rise on big football and concert weekends.

Pittsburgh has a serious performing arts scene for a city of its size, gathered mainly in the downtown Cultural District. The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra plays in the gilded Heinz Hall and has a long reputation among American orchestras. The restored Benedum Center hosts the Pittsburgh Opera, Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre and touring Broadway musicals. Pittsburgh Public Theater and smaller companies on the South Side keep up a year-round programme of plays.

The Hill District was once a major jazz centre, and the playwright August Wilson set most of his plays there. The city's jazz heritage lives on in smaller clubs. Rock and indie bands play in the clubs of Lawrenceville and the Strip, and a few large venues bring touring acts.

Pittsburgh has no bathing tradition. Wellness here means hotel spas and neighbourhood day spas offering massages and treatments. The calmest places are Phipps Conservatory's warm glasshouses and the quiet paths of Frick Park and Schenley Park. For a proper spa stay, people drive about an hour and a half to the resort hotels of the Laurel Highlands.