East Village & Greenwich Village

East Village used to be really gritty and rough, but it's become incredibly gentrified and hip. It's somewhat expensive, ethnically diverse and full of NYU students.

Greenwich Village, also known as 'West Village', used to be an industrial park but was taken over by bohemians, beatniks, artists and literary types in the 1950s, who squatted in abandoned factories. These days the rents are very high, but it still has a creative counterculture atmosphere. It has cobblestone streets and as well as the independent galleries it's home to some of NYC's best bars, nightclubs and restaurants.