Cincinnati, Ohio Image © Bryan Busovicki, 2007 Used under license from Shutterstock.com
It's fitting that planes bound for Cincinnati land in Northern Kentucky. The two regions, once divided by the Ohio River as a fluid Mason-Dixon Line, are growing together into a vibrant metroplex. Cincinnati hugs its German heritage of beer, brats and baseball-the Cincinnati Reds, now playing in the riverside Great American Ball Park, were its first professional team. Downtown pulses with renowned museums, theaters, restaurants and shops clustered around the sentimental heart of the city, bubbling Fountain Square. Along the South Banks of the Ohio, Covington's Riverside Historic District glitters with columned mansions, while MainStrasse bustles with boutiques and bistros. Just east, Newport, Ky., has reshaped its riverscape with the Newport on the Levee entertainment complex, Newport Aquarium and America's first official offshoot of Munich's Hofbrauhaus. The Purple People Bridge, linking Newport to Cincinnati, offers a tethered climb plus a pedestrian deck. And the views that inspired Winston Churchill to call Cincinnati "the most beautiful inland city in America."