1. Join Local Facebook Groups
Facebook Groups are great, because they can be very specific to what you need. For instance, when I moved to San Antonio, I joined different groups for restaurants, job hunting, and apartment hunting. While your friends are posting random memes and news that are not always relevant to you, Facebook groups will always show you interesting things near you, because you handpicked the content yourself. In addition, these groups typically form communities of very active and knowledgeable people who are willing to share their wisdom. Want to know where you should have your birthday dinner? 120 comments about nearby restaurants. You can even search groups for common questions, and attend meetups if your group has them.
Types of groups I recommend checking out:
- Restaurant/foodie groups
- Photography/art groups
- Hiking groups
- Sports groups
2. Check Out Facebook Events
Another thing that Facebook did right is their Facebook events. Facebook events acts as a hub for all the fun things going on in the area. You can search events, see what’s popular, or look them up by category or date. I like it, because you’re often able to see the exact dates for big events well in advance, allowing for proper planning (e.g. time off requests, ticket purchases, etc). It’s also perfect for finding small events that you wouldn’t have even known about if it weren’t for Facebook events, such as farmers markets and open mic nights.
3. Browse Yelp Local Businesses
Yelp is probably my favorite way to find cool new places to check out. It’s a website mainly for rating and reviewing local restaurants, but also for everything else from museums to automotive services, doctors, and anything in between. I find the photos to be most useful in helping me decide where I want to go next. If you become really active on Yelp, you become eligible to join the Yelp Elite Squad too, which will get you into exclusive events made just for YES members for free.
4. Find Fun Things to Do on TripAdvisor
TripAdvisor is similar to Yelp, but focuses more on ratings and reviews of local attractions such as theme parks, tours, and landmarks. I like using Trip Advisor for finding the most popular things to do in a city. They sometimes offer special deals if you book activities through their website as well.
5. Follow the Local Tourism on Instagram
Using the search bar on Instagram, look up the city you want to see more of. Check out the top accounts and popular hashtags. Also, look for interesting accounts that tagged photos in the area. Find a few that you’d want to follow, and maybe even slip into their DMs and ask for some advice on cool places to hang. Doing this has made it possible for Emil and I to find hidden trails to frozen waterfalls, and find other cool businesses we might not have heard if otherwise.
6. Explore Local Trails on AllTrails
If you’re into the outdoors and hiking, AllTrails is a great app to help you find the best trails in town. You can search trails by location or name, and add filters for difficulty and length. I like checking out the photos to see what features the trail has, and reading the comments to learn what people like. There are so many trails even in the middle of some cities. You might be surprised by how many you pass by in a day without ever noticing they’re there.
7. Look for Deals on Groupon and Living Social
8. Get to Know the Locals
- If you’re looking for a more structured way of meeting people, the app Meetup allows individuals with common interests to plan events together. I haven’t used it personally, but have heard it’s useful. Of course, always be careful when meeting someone new.
- In addition, you can find Reddit communities online where you can start conversations about things to do in your area. This option is good for people who aren’t willing to meet with people in person, but still want to know what’s good.
