In most places in the United States, the location which appears best on a postcard may not necessarily be the location which best suits a walk. Unsafe frequently presents itself in less marquee forms, as a deserted business district at night, a crowd so thick it can be attract opportunistic theft, or a hall where a visitor is constantly being shoved, directed, and sold.
These frictions are likely to be resolved by local habits. Neighborhoods have streets that people like to walk along, parks that are not lonely or abandoned and neighborhoods where there is no point in making a transaction out of every person passing by.
1. Times Square (New York City) Where locals go: Hells kitchen avenues and West village
Times Square is crowded, loud, bright and distracting to the extent that it is an easy target of pick pocketing in a crowded tourist spot and tourist scams. The feeling of being closely approached and rushed can be interpreted as unsafe even in core blocks where violent crime is not the norm.
Residents who want a more relaxed version of Midtown flock to the areas of 8th Avenue and 9th Avenue with restaurants to Hell’s Kitchen, where the spectacle is replaced by regular patrons. The West Village is walking friendly and has good evening foot traffic that feels grounded and navigable to walk on at a different pace altogether.
2. Central Park after dark (New York City) Where the locals go: Riverside Park on a daytime, or neighborhood streets at night
The size of the park turns out to be the matter when the sun sets: there are no long sight lines, all roads become deserted, and the atmosphere might become lonely even to the most self-assured traveller. The park policy on visitors is uniform concerning the avoidability of visiting the park at nighttime, particularly since most of the areas have a lack of lighting and physical separation between them and street activity.
People continue to think of Central Park as a great place to go, only on the daytime program, when joggers, families and bikers start generating safety through numbers. When the night falls, the residents tend to take a shortcut to the street avenues of the neighborhood or even the interiors of cultural plans instead of walking through the park.
3. The Financial District late evening (New York City) Where locals go: Restaurant corridor of TriBeCa and the Lower East Side
The Financial District may be ordered and controlled during the working day. Once the offices are vacated, it will be strangely silent, and empty streets can be considered unsafe without an imminent danger even to the visitors who have to move through new blocks.
Those locals who seek something similar experience downtown but might not want to experience the sudden nighttime hush would prefer the more of the residential charm of TriBeCa or turn towards the more predictable dining-and-bar streets of the Lower East Side where storefronts are open and crowds steady.
4. Hollywood Boulevard (Los Angeles) Where locals hang: Silver Lake and Koreatown night life areas
The uncomfortable feeling of Hollywood Boulevard is usually imposed by the endless friction: full crowds, constant solicitation of money and offers to join tours and extras. Tourists complain that they are over-marked and over-stimulated, more so when taking pictures or reviewing maps.
The locals who follow the creative vibration of the city usually bypass the boulevard and gather with friends in Silver Lake or Koreatown, where going out is a neighborhood bar and restaurant and not associated with constant harassment. The atmosphere may also be hectic–only less demonstrative and less sales-oriented.
5. Wandering (Downtown Los Angeles) Skid Row-adjacent: The locals have it: The premeditated walks that go to Arts District and Grand Avenue
The issue in downtown L.A. does not lie in downtown L.A. per se; it is the ease with which one can stroll in areas that seem disturbing to a person who has not been shown street layouts and street patterns before. The agony is increased once one gets out of a rideshare, glances at a phone, and instantly feels like an outcast.
Locals mitigate risk by means of choreography: direct paths to certain locations, reduced time taken on aimlessly drifting strolls, and a set of places where people gather and which are well-defined. Even the Arts District and the biggest cultural attractions on the Grand Avenue can be included in a great evening, yet the in-between blocks remain an element that residents consider to be a means of walking, rather than a means of casually exploring.
6. South L.A. as a drive-through curiosity Where locals go: Neighborhoods built to see, and daytime cultural plans
South Los Angeles is not presented as a visitor default yet it is a big and culturally important area. Visitors find it unsafe as they simply drive in without background, they lack a local purpose behind their presence on a certain block and they are filled with the discomfort of feeling obviously out of place.
The locals tend to explore L.A. by pursuing areas that align with the intention of the day, such as beaches, museums, food strips, or concert areas, instead of using neighborhoods they have never been to as sightseeing land. Whenever cultural plans are directed to less known directions, the people will go during the daytime and with a certain direction in mind.
7. Atlantic City Boardwalk stereotypes Where locals go: The Tourism District with on-duty patrols and patrolled avenues
The boardwalk may also be unsafe even before a visitor steps in Atlantic City, particularly to people who associate casino towns and not knowing what to expect on the streets. The current statistics on the city however indicate a quantifiable change: total crimes are reducing by over 11% in the first quarter of 2025, and extra patrols and surveillance investments in tourist-prone zones.
The locals are likely to explore the more well-lit, actively controlled areas of the Tourism District which are where infrastructure is crowd oriented and where there is support infrastructure. This instead is not so much about the secret neighborhood it is more about selecting the policed corridors and busier times that are very likely to be the way residents actually use the city.
8. Overcrowded subway platforms late night (New York City) Where locals go: Trains with more riders, or a short cab for the last mile
Visitors often feel unsafe in transit when stations thin out and the platform becomes a small, isolated waiting room. Late-night conditions change the emotional temperature of a city that may feel perfectly fine at 6 p.m., especially if a traveler is tired, carrying bags, or staring at a map.
Locals commonly manage this by avoiding empty platforms when possible, timing departures for busier trains, and taking a cab or rideshare for the last mile rather than walking long distances on quiet streets. The goal is not fear it is reducing exposure to environments where help and witnesses feel far away.
9. Any “must-see” block with constant hustling Where locals go: Streets where people are there to live, not to sell
Across cities, a reliable signal that a place will feel unsafe is the sense that visitors are being processed: aggressive pitches, pressure to stop, and a steady stream of micro-interruptions. Even when the risk is mostly nuisance-level, the stress response is real, and it can erode enjoyment quickly.
Locals tend to default to mixed-use neighborhoods areas with groceries, schools, parks, and everyday restaurants because regular life creates a steadier social atmosphere. These are the streets where walking slowly, checking directions, or taking photos does not automatically attract attention.
Tourist traps rarely feel unsafe because they are inherently “bad.” They feel unsafe because they are optimized for volume, not comfortbig crowds, distracted people, and a steady churn of strangers. Local alternatives usually share a few traits: consistent foot traffic, clearer purpose, and fewer reasons for anyone to treat a passerby as an opportunity. In practice, the “safer” choice often looks like the same city just lived in at its normal speed.
