Not so long ago, any New Yorker would never have compared Brooklyn to Manhattan in terms of luxury living conditions, give or take a few neighborhoods. Today, however, Brooklyn has become one of the most popular and trendy neighborhoods in New York City. This special borough of ​​New York is home to the best coffee shops, renowned restaurants and shopping malls of all kinds. Whoever wants to drink a craft beer in New York, does not hesitate to go to Brooklyn. Thus, in just a few years it has become a mecca for bohemians, hipsters and gourmets. 

Thanks in part to television shows such as "The Cosby Show" and "2 Broke Girls," Brooklyn is now almost as famous internationally as New York itself, attracting thousands of tourists each year leaving Manhattan to cross the Brooklyn Bridge. If you don't want to miss out on anything this neighborhood has to offer either, take note of the tips we give you in this insider guide to Brooklyn.

Brooklyn is one of the five boroughs of New York and is located southeast of the city, at the western end of Long Island. It has about 2.6 million inhabitants, making it the largest borough of all. In addition, Brooklyn is a meeting point for cultures and religions from around the world, which is reflected in both its personality and its unique architecture. The downtown area "Downtown Brooklyn" is characterized as the third financial and commercial area of ​​the city, only after Midtown Manhattan and Lower Manhattan.

The most recognizable or more modernly “Instagram-able” part of the area is between the Brooklyn Bridge and Prospect Park, the brick and sandstone houses of the 19th century. Thus, the best parts of Brooklyn are Boerum Hill, Brooklyn Heights, Carroll Gardens, Cobble Hill, Clinton Hill, Dumbo, Fort Greene, Fulton Ferry, Park Slope, Prospect Heights, Red Hook and Vinegar Hill. Further north are Williamsburg and Greenpoint, which in no time have gone from Polish and Italian working-class neighborhoods to becoming the city's coolest, hipster, and most popular blocks.

Central and southern Brooklyn are the most ethnic parts of the borough, offering a world of colors and contrasts. The majority of Orthodox Jews live in Borough Park. Bensonhurst and Decker Heights are traditionally Italian areas and on Coney Island's Brighton Beach you'll find mostly Russians. Lastly, Bedford-Stuyvesant is the most African-American area in Brooklyn. This world of coexisting cultures is what makes Brooklyn so special and what attracts thousands of people every year. People of all origins and religions coexist in this neighborhood. The contrast between rich and poor is very striking. Over 35% of the area's residents are Black and African American, especially in East and North Brooklyn.

As you might expect, there are many areas in the city that it is advisable to avoid, especially at night, but Brooklyn has become very safe over the years and you should not be afraid to wander freely around the neighborhood. In any case, it is recommended that you avoid parts like Crown Heighs or certain areas of Bedford-Stuyvesant at night. But it’s pragmatic to say that personal injury cases in New York are common, given the amount of people and moving objects in flow at constant times of day. 

Crime in Brooklyn was for many years a complicated issue for the city government, but with Mayor Giuliani in office, policies began to progress. Giuliani yearned to fight violence and crime in the city with all the weapons at his disposal, and after much effort his work paid off. The British magazine "Economist" annually lists the 10 safest cities in the world. Last year, in the article "Safe Cities Index 2015", they placed New York in the tenth-place ranking. New York became the only American city to make the list.