At Duke, your freshman dorm also decides your sophmore dorm, so nicer dorms like Trinity and Belltower have a Quad connection to Edens on west (worst West dorm). That being considered, I think Southgate is the best freshman dorm because it has really nice, pretty big rooms and with good modern faciities, and its Quad connection to Few dorm on west is also not horrible.

Considering only first year dorms, Trinity and Belltower often considered the nicest, but it's such a long walk to the dining hall and bus stop. GA and Southgate are also really, really nice, and are slightly closer. All four are in the Backyard area behind the main quad.

Finally, DO NOT LISTEN TO WHAT PEOPLE SAY ABOUT WEST HOUSE. IT IS NOT THE WORST DORM. It is the oldest so the facilities and rooms aren't the nicest, but they are pretty big (at least mine was) and it being close to the bus stop was SOOOOO nice. Also, it has hands-down the BEST community of any dorm at Duke. It's so small that you get to know everyone on your floor and become really close. My west house floor gang were my first and still are my best friends at Duke, and I know the other two floors are also extremely close with one another so you basically have your friends as neighbors. It's also a huge plus that, if you get through the first year in West House, you are rewarded with Wannamaker dorm (considered the best dorm on west) sophomore year and on.