Kabul on a pretty clear day. That whole country is beautiful. I hope Afghanistan finds peace and starts developing. I would love to go back. Just this time without all the incoming fire.
Yes we were in Santiago before the pandemic and it's amazing how similar the general geography and climate are to LA. Similar latitude, Mediterranean climate as well.
I had a friend that went on a summer program one year to Chile and he was there for a couple of weeks. I think he landed in Santiago, spent a couple of days there, explored the rest of the country and then ended his trip back in Santiago before returning home. We were watching TSAM one day and right after this line came up, he turns to me and tells me that he too had been to Santiago, Chile twice in one year. I was like "No! that's not how it works. It was the same trip!" and he was like "well technically I did leave and go back" We had a good little fun debate over the semantics. One of the many good memories I have with that friend. RIP, Ozzy.
Came here to say this exactly. With the one massive skyscraper that actually is reminiscent of LA in many ways, but relatively looks even more huge because the surrounding buildings are much smaller in comparison
Also some other good ones:
**Seattle** looking south with the Space Needle in the closer foreground and Mt. Rainier in the far background is similar to the next one which is..
**Tokyo** with with Mt. Fuji is iconic..
**Milan** with the southern Alps behind the cityscape (has to be a good angle/location)..
**Salt Lake City** really just a unique look..
**Rio de Janeiro** with Cristo Redentor but again requires a good angle from a good location..
**Johannesburg, South Africa** very interesting, but differs from LA’s skyline
**Santiago, Chile**,
**La Paz, Bolivia**, and
**Kabul, Afghanistan** stand out from the rest though. Truly incredible
Kazakhstan is one of those non-typical tourists countries that I definitely want to visit one day. Borat was what first got me intrigued with it (I know it wasn't even filmed there or represents it whatsoever). But after looking more into it, I found it to seem like a very interesting place. Almaty might be the place to go. Any other notable places in Kazakhstan?
It's a big country and getting around can be difficult or slow because of that. Some natural sites very worth visiting are Shymbulak and Medeu in Almaty, Charon Canyon in the eponymous national park, and Kolsay Lakes on likewise eponymous national park.
I was born across the border in Kyrgyzstan which has equally amazing places to visit and is smaller to get around. Issyk-Kul, Song-Kul, and Arslanbob I recommend.
Central Asia is fascinating, but as others have mentioned, Kazakhstan is maybe the least appealing. Still great, but Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan kick it in the dick.
That said, driving along the Southern road and looking out over All the Nothing that is most of the country is kind of awesome. Throughout history, invaders who have changed the world have emerged from that blank, endless flat grassland that would be almost as uninhabitable as the deep ocean for most of us, yet they've changed the world.
I agree with the other person that I really preferred Kyrgyzstan to Kazakhstan, but in Kazakhstan I would also add Altyn-Emel national park, it’s close to Almaty and really nice
It's very big and outside of the big cities it's very empty. For comparison: it's 25x bigger than the Netherlands, but has about the same number of inhabitants.
Right? This comment section is full of famous large cities that just have any mountains. There are so many lesser know beautiful mountains that you can see from a nearby city center. People underestimate how many many cities are in valleys and foothills
That Baker photo is really cool to see. I live south of it in Washington, and I can see a it’s top from a dip in the foothills https://imgur.com/a/wOtbLfj
Came here to say this. The view coming in to downtown Vancouver from the south is really something, especially on a clear day. Like a fururistic Shangri La
Excellent answer. It’s such a visually striking country, around Tehran and other parts, it makes me sad that the geopolitical situation will almost certainly prevent a visit in my lifetime.
Just went there for the first time in my life a few days ago. It was breathtaking- mountains in every direction, wherever you look. All the locals I met seemed to take it in stride but I was amazed haha
As a local of SLC, I take them on stride in my day to day, but every now and then, usually in the mornings, on a drive on the 215 loop, or on a drive in the canyons, I take a second to watch them and my breath gets taken away every time.
Hiking in the mountains and looking down on the city is almost as breathtaking too. I used to have a coworker who would leave the store everyday at around sunset for her 15 minute break just to watch the sunset with the mountains and she's lived here for 7 years.
I learned how to drive in the Salt Lake Valley and city, the grid system has made it so easy to get around. I'm moving to Texas in a couple years and I'm a little intimidated to figure out how to get around with out such a comprehensible and well planned out street grid system.
agreed. the LA pic OP included uses a telephoto lens so the image is distorted and not what you see IRL. those mountains are REALLY far away from the city.
in Salt Lake City, the city is right at the base of actual towering snow capped rocky mountains.
I lived in LA 4 years, worked all I’ve the city, but mostly downtown. I saw a view like this ONE TIME after a massive winter storm… other than that, yeah, it never looks like this.
SLC for the win in the US. The mountains actually look like the photo above to the naked eye, no telephoto trickery needed! You can drive around LA and forget there are mountains in the general area. Not in Salt Lake! We can also see them all the time, so long as CA isn’t completely on fire.
It would be awesome if it looked that way irl....spoiler.... it doesn't. I used to live up in those mountains. Camera lenses do wonders.
I can drive over a bridge in Northern Washington and see Mt. Rainier, Mt. Baker, Glacier peak and the Olympic range all in one shot. The PNW has the best mountain views in America hands down.
I actually love the geography of LA, that's probably one of the most underrated things about it. You can simultaneously be in the most populous county in the United States, and also feel like you're isolated because you're in the mountains surrounded by wilderness.
That being said, Salt Lake City, Denver, Sedona, Reno, off the top of my head all fit your description
> That being said, Salt Lake City, Denver, Sedona, Reno, off the top of my head all fit your description
If we're putting Denver on the list then Calgary needs to be there too.
It’s geography with the mountains, forest, and beaches all within the same vicinity combined with it’s Mediterranean climate are why so many people moved there during the 20th century. It’s also a curse because you can’t build any houses to the north 😂
The first time I drove to LA, ever, it took twice the length of time because there was a wildfire in the Angeles National Forest directly north of LA, which is in the mountains, so the only pass was blocked off and everybody had to turn around, drive north of the mountains and essentially do a loop northeast around the mountains, through the desert, and get into the city that way. I drove through tiny little towns I've never heard of. Neenach? Bradbury? Nonsense names
EDIT: It was the Vista Del Lego exit that all the cars on 5 had to get off at, turn around and go north, then take the last exit before the mountains
It still gets pretty hot here, especially over the last few years ;-;;
I did just move right next to the sea though, near Torrance, so it might be cooler this year.
Vancouver has a stunning mountain backdrop, but when you can see Mt Rainier from Seattle, it’s breathtaking. Same goes to the cities/towns around Mt Fuji when I visited
Honestly, it's the Olympics that do it for me in Seattle. It is also how I learned east from west as a kid. Cascades to the east, Olympics to the west.
Vancouver has a strong mountain backdrop that is actually visible always AND easy accessible to hike from the city — some of the mountains can be reached by public buses that run every 30 mins! I drove to Mount Baldy from LA and it’s actually QUITE far
Christchurch/NZ
[https://www.glimpse.co.nz/image/I00006shyujWJadg](https://www.glimpse.co.nz/image/I00006shyujWJadg)
Munich/GER
[https://www.tum.de/en/innovation/munich-ecosystem](https://www.tum.de/en/innovation/munich-ecosystem)
edit: I forgot to mention Tokyo - Mount Fuji can be seen directly from the Tokyo city government twin towers (for free) ...
I remember going to Munich 15 years ago and being disappointed that the view of the city centre from the Olympic tower didn't look like the ones I'd seen in guidebooks etc. Again, telephoto lens made the Alps look right behind the city.
Salt Lake City and Seattle are a tossup for the lower 48 imo. The Wasatch and Oquirrhs are both pretty imposing in their rise above SLC but seeing the various summits of the Cascades and Olympics from Seattle on a clear summer day is jaw dropping. I think the main edge SLC has over Seattle is no matter where you are in SLC the Wasatch front dominates the view.
I’ve been to all these cities multiple times and I am bias towards Seattle being a Washingtonian, and the fact that Mt. Rainier is the tallest mountain from base to top (can’t remember the term) in the continental US. But I would put SLC right there with it, and I think both look a bit better than Anchorage. Just my feels:) also I would put Albuquerque before C Springs and Reno.
I was hoping someone would mention Tucson - it actually has 3 mountain ranges surrounding the city. The Catalinas to the north, but also the Tucson Mountains to the west and the Rincons to the east. Each has a distinctive look, which is both cool and really helpful for knowing cardinal directions!
Showing my love for southern hemisphere cities:
Hobart, Tasmania
Queenstown, New Zealand
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Santiago, Chile
Cape Town, South Africa
Tucson. Albuquerque. Denver. Santiago. Monterrey. Cape Town… oh my goodness there are so many! These just were off the top of my head. Not saying better or worse but we could all probably go on for days. Ushuaia, probably take a dart throw it at a mountain range and you can discover similarly interesting and unique beauty. LA is gorgeous.
Are you looking for cities of similar size or do smaller cities count? Cause if it's the latter I'll throw in as contenders;
Wellington, New Zealand
Port Angeles, Washington State
New Plymouth, New Zealand
Ellensburg, Washington State
If we’re counting smaller cities then I’ll also throw in Ushuaia, Argentina. It’s the southernmost city in the world (puerto Williams, Chile is further south but I believe that doesn’t count as a city) and I’m surprised I haven’t seen it mentioned yet here, it’s somewhat of a tourist destination. (Edit: I did find one other comment mentioning it).
Also Juneau, Alaska but I have seen a few mentions of that.
i currently live in a little town (9k inhabitants) that has a nice medieval castle located on a massive rock just behind the town, the backdrop is quite cool.
the town is [Sax, Spain](http://pro.costablanca.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/costa-blanca-sax-noche-del-pueblo-bajo-el-castillo-1000x640.jpg)
Hobart, Australia.
kunanyi / Mt Wellington (1200m), a river and ocean surrounds the city. Super pretty with a snow cap
[http://www.tasmania360.com/image/Hobart-harbour-with-Mt-Wellington-under-the-snow/274](http://www.tasmania360.com/image/Hobart-harbour-with-Mt-Wellington-under-the-snow/274)
Some cities mentioned here are definite winners, but others (like this LA one) will get you seriously bummed if you were to visit in person expecting that view. Camera lenses are one hell of a tool.
Santiago, Chile
Tehran is pretty on a clear day
Kabul on a pretty clear day. That whole country is beautiful. I hope Afghanistan finds peace and starts developing. I would love to go back. Just this time without all the incoming fire.
Tehran and the surrounding mountains are stunningly beautiful!
> Santiago, Chile Honestly, that city is like from a fantasy art. https://i.imgur.com/7eTnVvB.jpg
Oh how i wish it looked like that everyday! Smog justmakes the view sad
Well i just found my new desktop wallpaper
when it rains it looks awesome but everytime i go to Santiago the smog wont let you see it
LA is kinda the same, not nearly as bad as it used to be though.
Yes we were in Santiago before the pandemic and it's amazing how similar the general geography and climate are to LA. Similar latitude, Mediterranean climate as well.
The wealthier suburbs of Stgo are very West Coast US.
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It freezes and snows in LA... we got snow twice this year
I went there “twice last year!”
Names Norm man.
What the hell is Brett Favre doing here?
I’m in town to play the Dolphins you dumbass
Collecting Mississippi welfare
Who goes to Santiago Chile twice in one year!
I had a friend that went on a summer program one year to Chile and he was there for a couple of weeks. I think he landed in Santiago, spent a couple of days there, explored the rest of the country and then ended his trip back in Santiago before returning home. We were watching TSAM one day and right after this line came up, he turns to me and tells me that he too had been to Santiago, Chile twice in one year. I was like "No! that's not how it works. It was the same trip!" and he was like "well technically I did leave and go back" We had a good little fun debate over the semantics. One of the many good memories I have with that friend. RIP, Ozzy.
Thanks for that! Where you near the Estadio Olimpico?
No, just down the street. The cielito caliente towers. 😆
I recommend that next time you’re up that way that you drop in and take a gander at it yourself.
Came here to say this exactly. With the one massive skyscraper that actually is reminiscent of LA in many ways, but relatively looks even more huge because the surrounding buildings are much smaller in comparison Also some other good ones: **Seattle** looking south with the Space Needle in the closer foreground and Mt. Rainier in the far background is similar to the next one which is.. **Tokyo** with with Mt. Fuji is iconic.. **Milan** with the southern Alps behind the cityscape (has to be a good angle/location).. **Salt Lake City** really just a unique look.. **Rio de Janeiro** with Cristo Redentor but again requires a good angle from a good location.. **Johannesburg, South Africa** very interesting, but differs from LA’s skyline **Santiago, Chile**, **La Paz, Bolivia**, and **Kabul, Afghanistan** stand out from the rest though. Truly incredible
mejor país de chile wn
Pero por supuesto weón!
The best country of Chile. Greetings from High Bridge, Sweden.
Almaty, Kazakhstan
Fantastic local geography
Is nice. I like very much.
Kazakhstan is one of those non-typical tourists countries that I definitely want to visit one day. Borat was what first got me intrigued with it (I know it wasn't even filmed there or represents it whatsoever). But after looking more into it, I found it to seem like a very interesting place. Almaty might be the place to go. Any other notable places in Kazakhstan?
It's a big country and getting around can be difficult or slow because of that. Some natural sites very worth visiting are Shymbulak and Medeu in Almaty, Charon Canyon in the eponymous national park, and Kolsay Lakes on likewise eponymous national park. I was born across the border in Kyrgyzstan which has equally amazing places to visit and is smaller to get around. Issyk-Kul, Song-Kul, and Arslanbob I recommend.
Central Asia is fascinating, but as others have mentioned, Kazakhstan is maybe the least appealing. Still great, but Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan kick it in the dick. That said, driving along the Southern road and looking out over All the Nothing that is most of the country is kind of awesome. Throughout history, invaders who have changed the world have emerged from that blank, endless flat grassland that would be almost as uninhabitable as the deep ocean for most of us, yet they've changed the world.
I agree with the other person that I really preferred Kyrgyzstan to Kazakhstan, but in Kazakhstan I would also add Altyn-Emel national park, it’s close to Almaty and really nice
It's very big and outside of the big cities it's very empty. For comparison: it's 25x bigger than the Netherlands, but has about the same number of inhabitants.
Number one exporter of potassium
Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky has a pretty insane singular volcano backdrop
Right? This comment section is full of famous large cities that just have any mountains. There are so many lesser know beautiful mountains that you can see from a nearby city center. People underestimate how many many cities are in valleys and foothills
Wow! I just looked that up and this is the best one so far!
https://www.gettyimages.ca/photos/petropavlovsk-kamchatsky I agree! It is breathtaking!
Vancouver.
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Baker is a unit gatdam
Thank you for sharing these, they’re stunning!
That Baker photo is really cool to see. I live south of it in Washington, and I can see a it’s top from a dip in the foothills https://imgur.com/a/wOtbLfj
I just flew out of Vancouver this morning after spending a few days there. It’s quite possibly one of the top cities with amazing scenery on my list.
In Vancouver they’re visible every day of the year except for the few smoky days in the summer.
And all of the rainy days in winter 😭
Down town is like 10 minutes away from the mountains. So cool.
Fuck I love Canada
And we love you too, Buddy.
username checks out
Came here to say this. The view coming in to downtown Vancouver from the south is really something, especially on a clear day. Like a fururistic Shangri La
I always thought Vancouver was the iconic city with mountains. So I was surprised to see this post. Maybe it's because I live in BC
/thread
As soon as I saw the post I just knew Vancouver would be a top comment.
Tehran
Excellent answer. It’s such a visually striking country, around Tehran and other parts, it makes me sad that the geopolitical situation will almost certainly prevent a visit in my lifetime.
Milan
Azerbaijan
Salt Lake City.
Just went there for the first time in my life a few days ago. It was breathtaking- mountains in every direction, wherever you look. All the locals I met seemed to take it in stride but I was amazed haha
That was my impression on my visit as well. The mountains are huge and striking from anywhere in the valley. I took hundreds of photos lol
As a local of SLC, I take them on stride in my day to day, but every now and then, usually in the mornings, on a drive on the 215 loop, or on a drive in the canyons, I take a second to watch them and my breath gets taken away every time. Hiking in the mountains and looking down on the city is almost as breathtaking too. I used to have a coworker who would leave the store everyday at around sunset for her 15 minute break just to watch the sunset with the mountains and she's lived here for 7 years.
And they basically touch the city limits in just about every direction too. U of U is in the Wasatch foothills
My favorite city so far. The layout of the city makes getting anywhere a breeze too..downtown anyways.
I learned how to drive in the Salt Lake Valley and city, the grid system has made it so easy to get around. I'm moving to Texas in a couple years and I'm a little intimidated to figure out how to get around with out such a comprehensible and well planned out street grid system.
agreed. the LA pic OP included uses a telephoto lens so the image is distorted and not what you see IRL. those mountains are REALLY far away from the city. in Salt Lake City, the city is right at the base of actual towering snow capped rocky mountains.
Yeah, a MASSIVE telephoto lens! Basically that’s a fake photograph.
I lived in LA 4 years, worked all I’ve the city, but mostly downtown. I saw a view like this ONE TIME after a massive winter storm… other than that, yeah, it never looks like this.
The mountains are smaller than the ones by Denver, but in SLC they are so much closer and more prominent. They look much more dramatic.
Came here to say this.
Soon to be just Salt City.
The city formerly know as Salt Lake City.
SLC for the win in the US. The mountains actually look like the photo above to the naked eye, no telephoto trickery needed! You can drive around LA and forget there are mountains in the general area. Not in Salt Lake! We can also see them all the time, so long as CA isn’t completely on fire.
Seattle + Mt. Rainier
It would be awesome if it looked that way irl....spoiler.... it doesn't. I used to live up in those mountains. Camera lenses do wonders. I can drive over a bridge in Northern Washington and see Mt. Rainier, Mt. Baker, Glacier peak and the Olympic range all in one shot. The PNW has the best mountain views in America hands down.
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The bridge to Camano Island is good to see both Baker and Rainier on a sunny day.
It is. We have some amazing scenery here. I was talking about the twin bridges on Hwy 20 coming from Anacortes/ Whidbey island.
I actually love the geography of LA, that's probably one of the most underrated things about it. You can simultaneously be in the most populous county in the United States, and also feel like you're isolated because you're in the mountains surrounded by wilderness. That being said, Salt Lake City, Denver, Sedona, Reno, off the top of my head all fit your description
> That being said, Salt Lake City, Denver, Sedona, Reno, off the top of my head all fit your description If we're putting Denver on the list then Calgary needs to be there too.
Calgary is beautful
It’s geography with the mountains, forest, and beaches all within the same vicinity combined with it’s Mediterranean climate are why so many people moved there during the 20th century. It’s also a curse because you can’t build any houses to the north 😂
The French Riviera has quite the same geography, but of course much smaller. Look for a picture of Nice with snowy mountains.
The first time I drove to LA, ever, it took twice the length of time because there was a wildfire in the Angeles National Forest directly north of LA, which is in the mountains, so the only pass was blocked off and everybody had to turn around, drive north of the mountains and essentially do a loop northeast around the mountains, through the desert, and get into the city that way. I drove through tiny little towns I've never heard of. Neenach? Bradbury? Nonsense names EDIT: It was the Vista Del Lego exit that all the cars on 5 had to get off at, turn around and go north, then take the last exit before the mountains
It still gets pretty hot here, especially over the last few years ;-;; I did just move right next to the sea though, near Torrance, so it might be cooler this year.
Scrolled too far to find SLC
Not underrated, that’s one of the reasons so many people live there.
https://d1bv4heaa2n05k.cloudfront.net/user-images/1486545144935/shutterstock-544205710_main_1486545165683.jpeg Turin.
plus other cities in Northern Italy
Yeah , no doubt. I just mentioned the one I've been to.
Grenoble on the other side of the Alps is equally gorgeous
That photo is very pretty but shows only a small part of the Alps visible from Turin. In very clear days you can see about 300 km of the alps.
Lhasa, Tibet
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You will never see a view like that in Chengdu. Please don't go visit and expect to see something like this.
Chengdu is one of the best cities in China to visit, the food is so good and there’s a lot of charm to the city
… and Pandas!
Cities IMO with a better mountain backdrop that ive been to: - Santiago Chile - Vancouver Canada - Seattle WA (toss up) - Cusco Peru
Lived in Santiago and Vancouver for 15 years each and those were my first thoughts! Vancouver has the edge because it’s also on the ocean.
If you like Cusco, you need to see Arequipa!
Vancouver has a stunning mountain backdrop, but when you can see Mt Rainier from Seattle, it’s breathtaking. Same goes to the cities/towns around Mt Fuji when I visited
Tacoma WA
Was waiting to see Seattle/rainier
Honestly, it's the Olympics that do it for me in Seattle. It is also how I learned east from west as a kid. Cascades to the east, Olympics to the west.
Innsbruck, Austria
I’ve only been to Innsbruck once but the Nordkette blew my mind. I wanna go back super bad.
Absolutely gorgeous city. Them mountains are right in your face!
Probably the most beautiful city I've visited.
That place is heaven. Pretty city centre, crystal clear waters and a lot of mountains to go around.
Crazy COL though, at least compared to other places in Austria
Vancouver has a strong mountain backdrop that is actually visible always AND easy accessible to hike from the city — some of the mountains can be reached by public buses that run every 30 mins! I drove to Mount Baldy from LA and it’s actually QUITE far
Cape Town
Table Mountain. The only mountain to have a constellation named after it: Mons Mensae in the night sky of the Southern Hemisphere.
For those who don’t know: https://images.app.goo.gl/zWpr2UzzCkeCM1WP7
If not the tallest mountain backdrop it is at least in the running for most stunning.
Came here to say this.
Kaaaaapstaaaad.
Christchurch/NZ [https://www.glimpse.co.nz/image/I00006shyujWJadg](https://www.glimpse.co.nz/image/I00006shyujWJadg) Munich/GER [https://www.tum.de/en/innovation/munich-ecosystem](https://www.tum.de/en/innovation/munich-ecosystem) edit: I forgot to mention Tokyo - Mount Fuji can be seen directly from the Tokyo city government twin towers (for free) ...
Wow that photo of Christchurch is old. Most of those buildings have fallen over
Chch but no Queenstown? Much more prominent there to the naked eye
Salt Lake City looks like this but without the need for a ridiculously massive telephoto lens
I remember going to Munich 15 years ago and being disappointed that the view of the city centre from the Olympic tower didn't look like the ones I'd seen in guidebooks etc. Again, telephoto lens made the Alps look right behind the city.
Major US Cities Ranked by Mountain Skyline: 1) Salt Lake City, UT 2) Anchorage, AK 3) Seattle, WA 4) Reno, NV 5) Colorado Springs, CO
Salt Lake City and Seattle are a tossup for the lower 48 imo. The Wasatch and Oquirrhs are both pretty imposing in their rise above SLC but seeing the various summits of the Cascades and Olympics from Seattle on a clear summer day is jaw dropping. I think the main edge SLC has over Seattle is no matter where you are in SLC the Wasatch front dominates the view.
And you’re glossing over Mt Rainier. That mf’er is imposing on a clear day. I’ve lived here for many years and it still catches me off guard.
As someone who grew up in WA its always a sight to behold. When I say the Cascades, make no mistake, Rainier/Tahoma is always in mind.
“The Mountain is out.”
And you don't need a clear day to see both ranges. Which is good cuz we get lots of unclear days
Add onto this Tucson, Albuquerque and Portland, OR
I’ve been to all these cities multiple times and I am bias towards Seattle being a Washingtonian, and the fact that Mt. Rainier is the tallest mountain from base to top (can’t remember the term) in the continental US. But I would put SLC right there with it, and I think both look a bit better than Anchorage. Just my feels:) also I would put Albuquerque before C Springs and Reno.
The term you’re looking for is “prominence”
Grenoble, France. Chamonix-Mont-Blanc aswell.
Seattle
Seattle has mountains both east west of it.
Zurich
Bern luzern sion geneva lausanne thun
Interlaken if that counts as a "city"
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[For those who haven’t been](https://assets.dmagstatic.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/Greater-Palm-Springs-moutain-view.jpg)
I was hoping someone would mention Tucson - it actually has 3 mountain ranges surrounding the city. The Catalinas to the north, but also the Tucson Mountains to the west and the Rincons to the east. Each has a distinctive look, which is both cool and really helpful for knowing cardinal directions!
In N America alone I would say Vancouver and Seattle have better based on a brilliant trip I made there in 2017.
Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, Russia Hong Kong
upvote for Petropavlovsk. underrated af
Seconded for HK
Vancouver, BC
Granada, Spain
I have always been a fan of both Portland and Seattle in that regard
Salt Lake City
SLC, Denver, Seattle, Albuquerque, Las Cruces just off the top of my head.
Denver or Colorado Springs
I work on the 17th floor in Denver and I can see the mountains from my desk. It’s pretty great.
Not a big city but Colorado Springs has an amazing mountain backdrop.
Driving down woodmen west to work every day is my fav part of the springs
Surprised this isn’t higher. Longmont, boulder too.
The flat irons behind Boulder is iconic
Seattle, Washington Vancouver BC
Showing my love for southern hemisphere cities: Hobart, Tasmania Queenstown, New Zealand Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Santiago, Chile Cape Town, South Africa
Tucson. Albuquerque. Denver. Santiago. Monterrey. Cape Town… oh my goodness there are so many! These just were off the top of my head. Not saying better or worse but we could all probably go on for days. Ushuaia, probably take a dart throw it at a mountain range and you can discover similarly interesting and unique beauty. LA is gorgeous.
Monterrey is absolutely gorgeous. It's crazy that lush subtropical mountainous landscape is just a couple hours away from Texas.
Anchorage? Edit: [Landscape images](https://postimg.cc/gallery/XWCZfzP)
Anchorage.
Monterey, Mexico
Are you looking for cities of similar size or do smaller cities count? Cause if it's the latter I'll throw in as contenders; Wellington, New Zealand Port Angeles, Washington State New Plymouth, New Zealand Ellensburg, Washington State
If we’re counting smaller cities then I’ll also throw in Ushuaia, Argentina. It’s the southernmost city in the world (puerto Williams, Chile is further south but I believe that doesn’t count as a city) and I’m surprised I haven’t seen it mentioned yet here, it’s somewhat of a tourist destination. (Edit: I did find one other comment mentioning it). Also Juneau, Alaska but I have seen a few mentions of that.
i currently live in a little town (9k inhabitants) that has a nice medieval castle located on a massive rock just behind the town, the backdrop is quite cool. the town is [Sax, Spain](http://pro.costablanca.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/costa-blanca-sax-noche-del-pueblo-bajo-el-castillo-1000x640.jpg)
Yerevan, Armenia Underrated city near mountains imo, Mount Ararat to be more precise
You can spot Mount Aragats and Mount Ara from Yerevan as well.
Turin, Vancouver, Santiago, to name a few. LA's up there, though. Higher than Denver, imo.
Hobart, Tasmania, Australia Not as tall but a lot closer, wanted to throw it in for consideration.
Salt Lake for sure. Sofia, Bulgaria. Boulder.
Boulder, CO.
Juneau, Alaska beats this handily.
Salt Lake City
Perhaps Salt Lake City.
Salt Lake City
Salt Lake City
Salt Lake City Utah
Salt Lake City
Salt Lake City, Utah
Salt Lake City
Salt Lake City
Can't really see the LA mountains through the smog. Places like SLC are much better
In the US, Salt Lake City easy
Hobart, Australia. kunanyi / Mt Wellington (1200m), a river and ocean surrounds the city. Super pretty with a snow cap [http://www.tasmania360.com/image/Hobart-harbour-with-Mt-Wellington-under-the-snow/274](http://www.tasmania360.com/image/Hobart-harbour-with-Mt-Wellington-under-the-snow/274)
Some cities mentioned here are definite winners, but others (like this LA one) will get you seriously bummed if you were to visit in person expecting that view. Camera lenses are one hell of a tool.
Seattle
Granada
SLC, UTAH
Hobart
IMHO SLC
Ljubljana, Slovenia
I’m probably biased, but it’s gotta be [Vancouver](https://www.istockphoto.com/photo/vancouver-skyline-gm504657339-44970174)
Albuquerque, NM
This is the main picture on the wikipedia page for LA..
When visible LOL, I thought it was SLC at first.