Beating out Islamabad, Pakistan, in a poll of 46,000 respondents, Newark, New Jersey, was rated as the most unfriendly city in the world. In a scathing review, reported that “Newark is best know for being the site of an airport near New York, and for many of our readers, that’s the only reason to stop there.”
After taking into account political perception, size, language barriers, and the friendliness of the locals, American cities dominated the least friendly list, with five U.S. cities making it into the top ten and eight making it into the top 20. Cities were scored on a 100-point scale, with Newark scoring a dismal 13.4.
The survey also in the world, with the Brazilian island town of Florianopolis taking the top spot with a score of 95.8, followed by Hobart, Tasmania. Only one American city, Charleston, South Carolina, made the top 10 list with respondents praising the “sand, sun, history, good food, and friendly people.”