The neighborhood that’s right for your first trip to a city is almost never the neighborhood that’s right for your fifth or tenth. First-timers want centrality, walkability to the must-sees, the comfort of being near other tourists. Returning visitors want depth, residential life, the feeling of being inside the city instead of next to it.
Paris. First time: the Marais (4th). Tenth time: the 11th around Oberkampf, or Belleville (20th).
London. First time: Covent Garden or South Kensington. Tenth time: Hackney, Peckham, or Walthamstow.
Tokyo. First time: Shinjuku or Shibuya. Tenth time: Shimokitazawa, Yanaka, Kagurazaka.
New York. First time: Midtown. Tenth time: Williamsburg, the West Village, or Brooklyn Heights.
Rome. First time: near the Pantheon. Tenth time: Pigneto, Testaccio, or Garbatella.
Barcelona. First time: Eixample. Tenth time: Gràcia or Poblenou.
Mexico City. First time: Roma Norte. Tenth time: Coyoacán or San Ángel.
Returning visitors don’t need to see the cathedral again. They need a neighborhood that gets richer with each visit. That is what depth feels like.