Pittsburgh

Pittsburgh needs 2 days: riding the Duquesne Incline, an 1877 funicular with panoramic views of the city's three-river confluence, on one, and touring the Museum of Illusions the same afternoon. May-October brings the mildest weather, avoiding the gray Great Lakes region winter. It's cheaper than major East Coast cities. It was the world's steel capital for almost a century -hence the nickname 'Steel City'-, and its shift toward tech and healthcare after the industrial decline of the 1980s made it a frequently cited case of urban renewal in the United States.