The 1920s was a revolutionary decade that redefined culture, architecture, and social standards globally. The period of success, artistic upheaval, and cultural emergence left an everlasting impression on cities that still exist a century later.
Here are 20 cities where you can still experience that classic 1920s feeling, from Art Deco treasures to speakeasy culture that refuses to slip into the mists of history.
Chicago, USA
Chicago’s 1920s legacy lives on through its impressive architectural heritage. The city’s skyline features stunning Art Deco buildings, such as the Chicago Board of Trade and the Carbide & Carbon Building, with distinctive geometric patterns and lavish ornamentation.
The green-gold terra cotta Carbide & Carbon Building was reportedly designed to resemble a champagne bottle during Prohibition, adding a touch of rebellious charm to the cityscape.
Paris, France
Paris was the epicenter of artistic innovation in the 1920s, and that spirit remains palpable today. The city’s Left Bank still embodies the creative energy of the ‘Lost Generation’ of expatriate writers and artists who gathered in cafés like Les Deux Magots and Café de Flore.
Montparnasse retains much of its bohemian character, with art galleries and historic studios where painters like Picasso and Modigliani once worked.
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New Orleans, USA
Few American cities preserve their 1920s atmosphere as authentically as New Orleans. The French Quarter’s wrought-iron balconies and cobblestone streets create the perfect backdrop for experiencing the birthplace of jazz.
Preservation Hall continues to showcase traditional jazz in a venue frozen in time. At the same time, the city’s historic streetcars still clatter along St. Charles Avenue, just as they did a century ago.
Vienna, Austria
Vienna’s coffee house culture reached its zenith in the 1920s and remains virtually unchanged. Historic establishments like Café Central and Café Landtmann maintain their wood-paneled interiors, marble tabletops, and traditional service where newspapers are still presented on wooden rods.
The city’s modernist architecture from the period, particularly in public housing projects, revolutionized urban planning and remains influential.
Miami Beach, USA
Miami Beach’s historic district features the world’s largest concentration of Art Deco buildings. Over 800 preserved structures feature the distinctive pastel colors, porthole windows, and geometric patterns that defined the 1920s architectural style.
Ocean Drive looks particularly magical at night when neon lights illuminate these historic facades, creating a time-travel experience to the Roaring Twenties.
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Berlin, Germany
Berlin in the 1920s was synonymous with cabaret culture and artistic experimentation, themes that continue to define the city. The Babylon Cinema still operates in its original 1929 building, showing silent films with live musical accompaniment.
Numerous speakeasy-style bars hidden behind unmarked doors or disguised as other businesses carry on the clandestine tradition of Weimar-era nightlife.
Napier, New Zealand
Napier offers the most concentrated 1920s architectural experience in the world. After a devastating 1931 earthquake, the entire city was rebuilt in Art Deco and Spanish Mission styles popular in the late 1920s.
The result is an astonishingly cohesive urban landscape that feels like a movie set from the era, complete with vintage car parades and an annual Art Deco festival where residents dress in period attire.
Buenos Aires, Argentina
Buenos Aires experienced a golden age in the 1920s that shaped its distinctive character. The city’s grand Recoleta district showcases French-inspired mansions and apartments from this prosperous era.
Teatro Colón, one of the world’s finest opera houses, reached the height of its international prominence during this period and maintains its sumptuous Art Nouveau and Art Deco interiors.
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Shanghai, China
Shanghai’s famed Bund district preserves the city’s status as the ‘Paris of the East’ during the 1920s. The waterfront promenade features dozens of banks and trading houses built in Art Deco and neoclassical styles, testifying to Shanghai’s cosmopolitan past.
The recently restored Peace Hotel, with its legendary jazz bar where elderly musicians still perform nightly, offers an authentic window into the city’s glamorous jazz age.
Montreal, Canada
Montreal enthusiastically embraced Art Deco architecture in the 1920s, resulting in landmarks like the Aldred Building and Atwater Market that still define the city. The city’s underground speakeasy tradition, born during American Prohibition when Montrealers served liquor to thirsty visitors across the border, continues in hidden bars requiring passwords or access through secret entrances.
Mumbai, India
Mumbai possesses the world’s second-largest collection of Art Deco buildings after Miami. The Marine Drive area features a stunning ensemble of 1920s and 1930s structures that earned UNESCO World Heritage status.
These buildings uniquely blend traditional Art Deco elements with Indian motifs, creating a distinctive style known as ‘Indo-Deco’ that reflects the city’s cosmopolitan character during the late colonial period.
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Asmara, Eritrea
Asmara stands as one of the most unexpected repositories of 1920s architectural heritage. Under Italian colonial rule, the city became an experimental canvas for modernist architects, creating an extraordinary collection of Art Deco and Futurist buildings.
The Fiat Tagliero service station, designed to resemble an airplane with dramatic concrete wings extending 98 feet, remains one of the most striking examples of this ambitious architectural movement.
Detroit, USA
Detroit’s prosperity in the 1920s produced architectural treasures that endure despite the city’s later challenges. The Guardian Building, a cathedral-like Art Deco masterpiece with Native American-inspired motifs, features a spectacular lobby with colorful tiles and dramatic arches.
The Fisher Building’s golden tower still dominates the skyline, while renovated theaters like the Fox return to their former glory with lavish interiors featuring elaborate plasterwork and opulent chandeliers.
Brussels, Belgium
Brussels enthusiastically embraced Art Deco and developed its variant, ‘Style Moderne’ or ‘Jazz Modern.’ The Villa Empain exemplifies this distinctive approach with its geometric precision and luxurious materials.
The city’s commitment to architectural preservation means that entire neighborhoods maintain their 1920s character, from apartment buildings with decorative ironwork to the Palais des Beaux-Arts, a major cultural venue designed by Victor Horta.
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Havana, Cuba
Havana experienced explosive growth in the 1920s during America’s Prohibition era when it became a playground for Americans seeking legal alcohol. The Hotel Nacional, completed in 1930, still dominates the Malecón waterfront with its blend of Art Deco and neoclassical elements.
Classic American cars from the period remain in circulation as everyday transportation rather than tourist attractions, adding to the city’s time capsule quality.
London, UK
London’s Art Deco landmarks provide a striking contrast to the city’s older architectural traditions. The former Daily Express Building on Fleet Street exemplifies the style with its dramatic black glass facade and chrome detailing.
Subway stations built or renovated during this period, like Arnos Grove with its circular ticket hall, showcase how modernist design extended to public infrastructure, creating everyday encounters with 1920s aesthetics.
Prague, Czech Republic
Prague embraced Cubist and Functionalist architecture in the 1920s, with distinctive results that can still be appreciated today. The House of the Black Madonna houses the only Cubist café in the world, Grand Café Orient, which was recently restored to its 1920s appearance.
The city’s Functionalist buildings, emphasizing clean lines and practical design, represent a different facet of 1920s modernism that influenced urban development throughout Central Europe.
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San Francisco, USA
San Francisco’s embrace of Art Deco is evident in landmarks like the Pacific Telephone Building and the Maritime Museum. The city’s vintage streetcars continue to operate along Market Street and the Embarcadero, many restored to their 1920s and 1930s appearance.
Neighborhood movie palaces like the Castro Theatre maintain their original ornate interiors, complete with mighty Wurlitzer organs that rise from beneath the stage just as they did nearly a century ago.
Sydney, Australia
Sydney’s 1920s building boom resulted in landmarks defining the city’s character. The heritage-listed State Theatre maintains its lavish Gothic, Italian, and Art Deco interior with gilt decorations and painted ceilings.
Though completed in 1932, the Sydney Harbour Bridge was designed and begun in the late 1920s, embodying the era’s ambition and industrial aesthetic, transforming the city’s famous harbor.
Cairo, Egypt
Cairo witnessed a flourishing of Art Deco and neoclassical architecture in the 1920s that created a distinctive urban landscape. The downtown area features numerous buildings from this period, with decorative facades incorporating Egyptian motifs into modernist designs.
Cinemas like the Metro and the Rivoli maintain much of their original character. At the same time, the Baron Empain Palace, known as ‘Le Palais Hindou,’ stands as one of the most extravagant examples of early 20th-century eclectic architecture.
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Echoes of the Jazz Age
These cities don’t just retain 1920s architecture as museum artifacts; they incorporate these historic features into modern urban life. The lasting popularity of the 1920s style reflects the optimism, inventiveness, and desire to defy the convention of the time.
A century on, these attributes continue to inspire and enchant visitors, who are transported to an era of unparalleled cultural change.
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