I love Whiterun, maybe because it the first main city you go to, like on Oblivion Chorrol was my fav as I went their first haha, but I love it. Although Riften is rather small I often enjoy walking around it..... I also like Markarth because It looks like Helms Deep and I love Lord of the Rings haha

I really dont like Whindhelm for some reason :/

If I was forced to pick one it would be Riften.

But in all honesty I am not a fan of the cities in Skyrim. They just don't do anything for me. Sure, Sure there cool to see the first time, maybe the second time, but after that I start to see that compared to the cities of Cyrodill, I am not impressed-at all.

So far it seems Markarth and Riften are neck and neck, with whiterun chasing up as third for most 'homely' ?
Good posts people, it's really exciting to see what people think of all the diverse areas of this game.

My favorite has to be markarth because of the creatvity in the design and how the finished product looks in the game. remarkable.

Honestly though i love all of the cities in skyrim, they are each creative and well thought out. my only gripe is i just wish there was more size and depth to it. i feel like on my first visit i know where everything is and who everyone is. what i loved about oblivion was that there were houses with random people, some to didnt serve a purpose to any quest at all, but just gave the city a bigger feel. i just wish there was more to the cities even though that is quite vague to say.

Whiterun just feels like home to me haha.

But this is exactly the point, Bethesda keeps starting me off by having me go to a city that's "vanilla" or "normal" that has everything I need. I think they would be better served by having me go to a city that is pretty inconvenient, or at least missing a few things. I even have to question why Solitude is considered the empirical base in Skyrim when Whiterun seems like it would be better for economics (center of trade routes and good agricultural area) as well as being in a good spot from a military standpoint. Sure Solitude has a port, but it doesn't really make any sense to put your capital city in a corner of your lands.

I assume it's because most capitals are where civilizations first spring-up or settle and that's usually along major waterways.

Markarth looks stunning... from the outside. But the house there seemed rather oppressive with the low ceilings. It was as if you were entombed alive. And let's not even talk about what goes on beneath that city...

Windhelm doesn't look like much. It's rather oppressive because of the Gray Quarter and all the racism. However, I really like the house there. It's huge and roomy and affordable. It has high ceilings and a huge armory. I love the wood look/feel (almost like a big log cabin).

Winterhold - nothing there, 'nuff said

Whiterun is a go to place, since it has lots of stores, a smelter and the house is conveniently near the main gates. However, I've out grown that house and don't get me started about Lydia... lol It's a quaint city, but can get boring after a while.

Falkreath - I never really considered that place. I also get lost looking for the alchemist LOL

Dawnstar is only good for the Quicksilver mine. It's a frozen place of nothing, just like Winterhold lol

Solitude has that "big city" feel and the Bard's college is pretty cool. However, I always have the feeling that everyone is rather stuck up. Plus, it has a heavy Empire presence. The house is pretty nice, but it should be for the price you pay. However, the first time around, all the bookshelves broke, so that's what I mainly remember lol It's stone on stone on stone. I prefer the warmth of wood and golden Birch trees, I prefer...

Riften - now we are getting somewhere. At first I thought Riften was just a dirty cesspool of human scum as well. However, I always liked cities near the water, like Anvil. Sure, it's a lake and not an ocean, but it's accessible and it's close. I like the wooden walkways, I like how my footfalls sound when I run across them. And I really come to like my house in Riften - Honeyside. You can sit on the porch, listen to the waves and watch a pretty sunset across the lake. There are many good people in Riften, and remember it is also the city of love, since the only Temple of Mara is home to Riften!

The Rift is a lovely place anyway. It feels like it's always fall and the colors of the trees are just so beautiful. The sun is shining most of the time and even if it's not, a light fall rain is falling, which is rather soothing. How can you not like the Rift?

London, Paris, and Washington D.C. say hi. Yes, John Locke would agree with you that capitals should be centralized, but then you wind up with the 'backwater nominal capital' issue. Why shouldn't your largest, most prosperous and most populous city be the regional capital?

whiterun. it has everything that i need.

I just got this game too. I prefer Riften. It has a very normal feeling like whiterun, but underneath the shroud of lies lurks a brotherhood of theives and tricksters. Idk it just has a cool feeling since everyone knows they are there but dont want to admit it. I also like Riften because of the size, solitude is good but its to big for me.

To Sum it up

Pros
Average Size (Debatable, I think its larger than whiterun but thats just me its probably not heh)
Sinister Feeling (See above, not the Morthal Sinister)
Central Market Place (Everything is all in 1 place)
Thieves Guild (Am i the only one who thinks Vex is sixy =P ?)

Cons
Average Size (Not for me but it is for others)
No companions guild (See above ---^)
Thieves Guilds location (This is a big one for me, a large amount of loading screens, i personally think they should have made the cistern connected with the Bar itself and have the hidden door have a lock and when u join u get a key aswell as the hidden door in the graveyard. When you pull the chain/hit the button it shud do the loading screen and instead of the ladder hatch there should be stairs.
House Size (Its not a grand mansion like solitude)

Conclusion
I know there are not more pros than cons but like i said this is just my opinion, thanks for reading and have a good day Dovakin *roof shudders* =)

Whiterun is my favorite.

From a purely aesthetic standpoint, Markarth is my absolute favorite. The city being built into a wall and having multiple layers to run up and down reminds of something right out of Lord of the Rings. Markarth's house is my favorite too. It may not have windows, but the game designers did an excellent job in utilizing the space and decorating it.

For me it really depends on the character I am playing when it comes to favorite cities, as they vary for me. With my current character, my favorite city has been Riften because of the convenience of the smith and the various outdoor trading booths being in the same vicinity. The city is really easy to navigate. I know a lot of people complain about the so-called dinginess and the corruption. I was right there with you guys until my third character joined the thieves guild. Now the city feels absolutely homy to me. Too bad my game is bugged and I can't trigger the Jarl or her steward in town to offer me the house. Rawr!

I haven't spent a lot of time in Winterhold as I actually find it really confusing to navigate, though I'm sure that would change if I made the effort to commit the city to memory. I have never fully committed to the Stormcloack cause, so I don't really feel at home there.

Solitude looks absolutely stunning if you are viewing it from the outside across the river coming from Morthal. Once inside it kind of bores me there. The view from Proudspire Manor is pretty stunning.

Markarth: dont fall
whiterun: old folk's home
solitude: City siting on an arch that might collapse just like what happened to winterhold...
Winterhold: 99% destroyed, with a polishing college sticking out of the ruins
falkreath: Small hold, yet biggest graveyard
Morthal: Swamp City, never seen that city on maps on Uesp/wikia. i guess its a new addition to skyrim
Windhelm: Shabby City, dont like it
DawnStar:Good city, but the Jarl ruined it
Riften: ROCK YEA!!!!!
i m bias

The complaint isn't about leaving, it's about arriving. Of course you can access fast travel from right outside your door. It's when you want to go home and drop everything off and you fast travel back to the city and have to walk all the way across it, that's what's annoying. In Whiterun and Markarth I find the houses close enough, partially because the fast travel drops you inside the city gates. With Riften you either have to walk around to the back door (which I don't find all that convenient, but then again I've never been a vampire or had guards after me) or sit through another loading screen to get inside the city (and if you wanted to go to the shops before going home, you have an extra loading screen anyway, even though the blacksmith sits outside). The walk to Proudspire Manor from either the Solitude or the Blue Palace fast travel points try the limits of my walking-home patience (if it takes me more than about 10 seconds to get to my house after fast traveling, I'm not interested), and there's no way I'll ever use the Windhelm house as a base of operations, it's just too far from the city gate.


Yeah, the containers thing is an issue for me with the Riften house especially. But those rooms you can't do anything with? Those are your housecarl's bedroom once you become thane. You don't notice it in Whiterun because generally you go ahead and kill the dragon and Lydia moves in immediately (if you buy the house before killing the dragon, Breezehome will also have an extra room with nothing but cobwebs in it). For PC users, there's also an awesome mod that puts an enchanting table with a container on it in Breezehome, which just makes the place complete. I definitely recommend it.


That's why I love the house in Markarth: it's close to the city entrance, it has both tables with containers close at hand, and there's a stunning view from the front door. Markarth is my favorite city by far, just for the stunning views.

My favorite city is Markarth just due to its Dwemer architecture and the house looks pretty good as well. The only downside to Markarth is the corruption, but I can deal with that.

I have to speak up on behalf of Windhelm! I love the hulking, sculptured architecture, and that there are alleys to explore and sneak around. The place has a dark, gothic vibe. Probably best to remove Ulfric though if your not a nord.

I also happen to like Dawnstar, the sort of place I could retire to. I like the location and feel, and although its small, a lot of interesting things seem to happen here.

Riften is a place I feel at home in too, might buy my next house there. I currently live in Markarth, but find the house oppressive. A wooden house in Riften with lake views is far more organic