Providence, Rhode Island

Higher education has famously put Providence on the map, with Brown University, Providence College, and the Rhode Island School of Design all calling the city home (and providing lots of employment opportunities besides). But Rhode Island’s capital has transformed itself from a sleepy college town to a place with a burgeoning arts and nightlife scene, earning it a few nicknames such as “the Renaissance City” and “the Creative Capital.”

Waterplace Park, on the Providence River, serves as a central spot for all the action. It’s where WaterFire takes place from late spring through late fall, during which steel sculptures in the river are lit into bonfires (during the day, the river is a kayaker’s paradise). The RISD Museum always has an exhibit or event worth checking out, and the century-old Providence Performing Arts Center puts on plays, musicals, and concerts.

It’s easy to get around the city, which is divided into 15 neighborhoods, each with its own character and personality. Providence hosts its own restaurant week and Pride parade. It’s proud of its LGBTQ+ scene, which includes several gay bars including Mirabar, the third oldest gay bar in the U.S. It also celebrates the history of its Black community, from the Rhode Island Black Heritage Society’s exhibit on Black entrepreneurs to its Early Black History Walking Tour, featuring many Black-owned restaurants.

Providence also has a lot to offer in the way of health care. There are 26 above-average nursing homes within 50 miles, per Caring.com, and several well-regarded hospitals. Rhode Island Hospital is the largest in the state and its only Level I trauma center, affiliated with the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, and Miriam Hospital is ranked as the No. 1 hospital in the state. The VA Providence Health Care System provides medical and mental health services for veterans.