Top 25: The world’s most colorful cities to brighten your day
It has been scientifically proven that colors have a huge impact on our mood and well-being. Bright colors are stimulants that can even make our heart beat faster. Red is a good example: the origin of its stimulating properties goes back to caveman times, when it was associated with fire, danger or anxiety.
Pastel colors have a positive effect on our state of mind and mood: many people paint walls, ceilings and furniture in these colors. But color mania should not be limited to interiors. Entire streets, neighborhoods and even cities are painted in bright colors to keep their residents in good spirits.
Not surprisingly, many of the cities on this list are in northern countries, where overcast skies and lack of sunlight can easily cause depression. However, some of the world’s most colorful cities are in places where it is warm and sunny all year round, such as the Caribbean, South America, and the Mediterranean.
If you’re one of those people who loves bright, saturated colors everywhere, you might want to move to one of these most colorful cities in the world! And even if you don’t, this post is sure to make your day brighter!
25. Wroclaw, Poland The city of about 635,000 people is Poland’s fourth-largest city and the historic capital of the region known as Silesia. As the main cultural and financial center of Western Poland, Wroclaw is also famous for several historical monuments and stunning architecture.
24. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil The host of the 2016 Summer Olympics is famous for its iconic tourist attractions, including, of course, the Brazilian Carnival, the Christ the Redeemer statue and Copacabana Beach, but this Brazilian metropolis also boasts remarkably colorful neighborhoods.
23. Stockholm, Sweden
Sweden’s capital and the most populous city in the Scandinavian countries, Stockholm is known for its beautiful architecture painted in bright colors. The local subway, well known for its station interiors, has even been called the longest art gallery in the world.
22. Cinque Terre, Italy Located in Northern Italy, Cinque Terre is technically speaking not a city at all, but rather part of the popular Italian Riviera. It consists of five villages whose residents have built their colorful homes right on the cliffs, with stunning views of the sea.
21. Barcelona, Spain The proud capital of Catalonia is literally drowned in unique and colorful architectural masterpieces designed by Antoni Gaudi, one of the greatest architects of the 20th century.
20. Lima, Peru The capital and largest city in Peru features a mix of architectural styles, from modern glass skyscrapers and monumental Spanish Baroque buildings to picturesque colorful houses built on hillsides.
19. Auld San Juan, Puerto Rico Located on a small island along the northern coast, nearly 56 kilometers from the mainland of Puerto Rico, Auld San Juan is the oldest settlement in the country. The town is a marvelous mosaic of light pastel colors.
18. Jodhpur, India What at first glance may seem like an artful imitation of a smurf village is actually the main city of the Indian state of Rajasthan. Seeing the colorful blue houses all around makes you understand why Jodhpur topped Lonely Planet’s list of most unusual places to stay in 2013.
17. Reykjavik, Iceland As the world’s northernmost national capital with less than 55 days of sunshine, Reykjavik makes up for the cold and overcast weather with cheerful, colorful houses seen in many parts of the city.
16. Valparaiso, Chile Becoming home to nearly 300,000 people, Valparaiso grew rapidly in the second half of the 19th century, when it was still known as “Little San Francisco” or “The Pearl of the Pacific. Famous for its colorful houses scattered throughout the city, Valparaiso also boasts impressive work by street artists.
15. Willemstad, Curaçao The capital of Curaçao, an island in the southern Caribbean, is rich in Dutch-style colonial architecture. The city center, with its unique colorful architecture and harbor, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
14. St. John’s, Canada The capital and largest city of the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, St. John’s is famous for its unique architecture, especially its brightly colored, low buildings that house gift shops, clothing stores and restaurants.
13. Buenos Aires, Argentina The capital of Argentina is rich in strikingly colorful neighborhoods. The most famous of them is La Boca, which retains a European flavor thanks to immigrants from Genoa, Italy, who moved here in the late 19th century.
12. Cartagena, Colombia Cartagena, with a population of nearly 900,000, is the fifth largest city in Colombia. Located on the coast of the Caribbean Sea, it has a varied architecture dominated by the colonial style, conspicuous by the bright, colorful facades of the houses.
11. Copenhagen, Denmark Nyhavn (New Harbor), Copenhagen’s historic waterfront, canal and entertainment district, boasts some of the most colorful houses in the city. Colorful seventeenth- and eighteenth-century single-story houses, cafes and restaurants line the canal.
10. Guanajuato, Mexico Guanajuato is a city and municipality in central Mexico and the capital of the state of the same name. The historic center has several small plazas and colonial-style mansions, as well as civic structures and churches built of multicolored (mostly pink and green) sandstone.
9. Istanbul, Turkey Located in the European part of Istanbul, the traditional Jewish quarter of Balat is the most vibrant part of Turkey’s largest city. Located on the western shore of the Golden Horn Bay, the neighborhood is known for its remarkably colorful rows of houses.
8. Venice, Italy Situated on 118 small islands separated by canals and connected by bridges, Venice is considered one of the most beautiful and romantic cities in the world. Venice is known for the beauty of its buildings, unique colorful architecture and works of art.
7. Havana, Cuba The largest city in the country and the entire Caribbean, Cuba boasts a mix of the world’s most diverse architectural styles, from castles dating back to the 16th century to modern high-rise buildings. Although many of the buildings have significant similarities, they are incredibly colorful!
6. Lisbon, Portugal One of the oldest cities in the world, Lisbon is famous for its extraordinarily diverse architecture with many different styles, but the colorful houses with red roofs make the Portuguese capital easily recognizable.
5. Bergen, Norway The second largest city in Norway, Bergen is one of the cities with almost year-round cloudy weather. Nevertheless, its pastel-colored neighborhood, known as Bruggen, makes up for the lack of sunlight with an incredibly joyful variety of colors.
4. Menton, France Located on the famous French Riviera, the popular resort town and commune is famous for its beautiful beaches, blooming botanical gardens and picturesque colorful architecture.
3. Nuuk (or Gothob), Greenland In Greenland’s capital and largest city, residents lift their spirits by building strikingly colorful wooden houses.
2. Sighisoara, Romania Located in the historical region of Transylvania, this small Romanian town is famous for its traditional civil architecture. Most of the houses in Sighisoara were built at least 300 years ago and are now considered historic monuments.
1. San Francisco, USA San Francisco is known for an eclectic mix of architectural styles, among them “Painted Ladies,” a term used to describe Victorian dwellings that are painted in 3 or more colors to embellish or highlight architectural details.
The 25 most colorful and vibrant cities on our planet, where you’re sure to improve your mood
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Today there is a stereotype that the modern city is a gray boxes, skyscrapers, which plunge people into depression and melancholy. But in fact there are under the sun and such cities, one view of which lifts people’s spirits and brings back the joy of life. In this review we will talk about the brightest cities in the world.
1. Wroclaw
Poland The city of about 635,000 people is the fourth largest city in Poland and the historical capital of the region known as Silesia. The main cultural and financial center of Western Poland, Wroclaw is also known for a number of historical monuments and stunning architecture.
2. Rio de Janeiro
Brazil Rio de Janeiro, which will host the 2016 Summer Olympics, is famous for its iconic tourist attractions such as the Carnival, the Christ the Redeemer statue and Copacabana Beach. That said, the Brazilian metropolis has surprisingly colorful suburbs.
3. Stockholm
Sweden The capital of Sweden and the most populous city in the Nordic countries boasts beautiful architecture, notable for its vibrant colors. The local subway (which is world-famous for its station decor) is even called the longest art gallery in the world.
4. Cinque Terre
Italy Located in Northern Italy, Cinque Terre is not technically a city, but rather part of the popular Italian Riviera. It consists of five villages where people carefully built their colorful houses on cliffs overlooking the sea.
5. Barcelona
Spain Barcelona, the proud capital of the Spanish autonomous community of Catalonia, is literally overflowing with unique colorful architectural marvels designed by Antoni Gaudi, one of the greatest architects of the 20th century. It is no wonder that many people think this city is the most beautiful in the world.
6. Lima
Peru The capital and largest city of Peru is characterized by a combination of architectural styles. In Lima, monumental Spanish Baroque buildings are next to modern glass skyscrapers and picturesque colorful houses built on the hills.
7. Old San Juan.
Puerto Rico Located on a small island that lies along the northern coast 56 kilometers from the mainland of Puerto Rico, Old San Juan is the oldest settlement within the country. The town shocks the imagination with an amazing mosaic of light pastel colors.
8. Jodhpur
India What looks like an unusual imitation of a smurf village is actually Jodhpur, a major city in the Indian state of Rajasthan. The city with its bright blue houses topped the list of most unusual places to live in 2013.
9. Reykjavik
Iceland Reykjavik is the northernmost capital of a sovereign state in the world. In this place, the sun only shines for 1,300 hours a year. Reykjavik makes up for its cold and gray weather with colorful houses found in many parts of the city.
10. Valparaiso
Chile A city of 300,000 people in the second half of the 19th century was known as “Little San Francisco” and the “Pearl of the Pacific.” Known for its colorful houses scattered throughout the city, Valparaiso also boasts impressive works of street art.
11. Willemstad
Curaçao The capital of Curaçao, an island in the southern Caribbean, Willemstad is notable for its Dutch-style colonial architecture. The city center, with its unique architecture and colorful harbor, is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
12. St. John’s
Canada The capital and largest city in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador is known for its unique architecture. St. John’s in particular stands out for its low historical buildings, which today are mostly tourist stores, clothing boutiques, and restaurants.
13. Buenos Aires
Argentina Buenos Aires, the capital of Argentina, also has some strikingly colorful suburbs. The most famous of these is La Boca, which looks like a European town. This is not surprising, as many of the first settlers who founded La Boca came from the Italian city of Genoa.
14. Cartagena
Colombia 900,000-strong Cartagena is the fifth-largest city in Colombia. Located on the coast of the Caribbean Sea, the city has a variety of architecture, but colonial style and colorful, low-rise houses predominate.
15. Copenhagen
Denmark Nyhavn, an area of historic waterfront, canals and entertainment in Copenhagen, boasts some of the most colorful homes in Copenhagen. Copenhagen’s harbor district is simply overflowing with colorful 17th- and 18th-century townhouses, cafes and restaurants.
16. Guanajuato
Mexico City Guanajuato is a city and municipality in central Mexico and the capital of the state of the same name. The historic center is notable for its many small plazas and colonial-era mansions, as well as churches made of colorful (mostly pink and green) sandstone.
17. Istanbul
Turkey Located on the European side of Istanbul, the traditional Jewish quarter known as Balat is the most colorful part of Turkey’s largest city. Lying on the west bank of the Golden Horn, the neighborhood is famous for its rows of strikingly colorful houses.
18. Venice
Italy Venice, located on a group of 117 small islands separated by canals and connected by bridges, is generally considered one of the most beautiful and romantic cities in the world. The city is known for the beauty of its buildings, unique colorful architecture and art.
19. Havana
Cuba Havana, which is the largest city in Cuba and the Caribbean, boasts the greatest variety of architectural styles in the world. Here castles built in the late 16th century are juxtaposed with modernist modern apartment buildings.
20. Lisbon
Portugal One of the oldest cities in the world, Lisbon has an unusually diverse architecture with many different styles. However, the most iconic buildings in the Portuguese capital are the colorful houses topped with red roofs.
21. Bergen
Norway Norway’s second largest city, Bergen is one of the cities with the least amount of sunshine per year. Nevertheless, its suburb of Briggen makes you forget this thanks to the fact that its houses are painted in all the colors of the rainbow.
22. Menton
France Menton is a French commune and popular tourist area located on the famous French Riviera. This place, nicknamed the “Pearl of France,” is famous for its beautiful beaches, large botanical gardens, and picturesque colored architecture.
23. Nuuk
Greenland In Nuuk, Greenland’s capital and largest city, people cheer themselves up by creating strikingly colorful wooden houses. Only 17,000 people live in Nuuk.
24. Sighisoara
Romania Sighisoara is a small Romanian city, located in the historic district of Transylvania (birthplace of Vlad Tepes), which is famous for its traditional civil architecture. Most of the 164 houses in this town are at least 300 years old and are considered historic monuments.
25. San Francisco
USA San Francisco is known for its eclectic mix of architectural styles, including the Painted Ladies. The term refers to an architectural ensemble of six Victorian-era and King Edwardian houses that are painted in different colors.
And yet many people prefer to get away from the city (even the brightest) on weekends to nature. After all, only there can you see landscapes like the ones captured in these 17 amazing photos that let you look at the world from a different angle.
