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I am thinking of becoming a (kinda) snowbird. I truly loathe the SF Bay Area winters (dull, wet, cold, grey) even though they are technically described as mild.
I am considering Las Vegas or Phoenix.
I lived in Las Vegas for 2 years and I found the winters there to be cold, but pleasant and sunny.
How different are the winters when comparing Phoenix to Las Vegas?
I have looked at climate charts until my eyes hurt. I've looked at previous threads on the subject, but, they seem to talk more about Chicago than the Phoenix v las Vegas issue. I know that on paper, Phoenix has a warmer average temperature. But, it seems that whilst there is a better chance of a 70+ day in Phoenix, there sure are a lot of days in the 50s, just like Vegas (and the Bay Area). So, the average temperature in Phoenix is being pulled up by those few days where it does get into the 70s.
Do people feel that Phoenix has a consistently warmer, better winter (December to March) climate than Las Vegas? Or, is it a case of it's mostly the same, with more days in Phoenix getting up into the 70s?
A secondary question - Is it possible to keep an outdoor, in-ground pool going in the winter in Phoenix, without exorbitant heating bills? I know that in Las Vegas, it's impossible to keep an outdoor pool warm in winter without a 4 figure monthly heating bill. I tried it and gave up real quick.
Phoenix without a doubt will be warmer. Everytime I’ve been to Vegas in the winter, and it’s been countless, it’s always cold. As for your pool I doubt you’ll be able to keep it warm enough without a heater. I’d ask in the Phoenix forum, I’m sure there’s no shortage of people that will help.
Have you thought about staying in state? Palm Springs would be easier to get to from the Bay Area, not to mention you’d probaly use it in the off season more often if you wanted too as well. You’re close to LA, OC, and San Diego, and most importantly the beach. My friend’s parents live there in the winter, and they’re always coming down to San Diego to see him. I’ve met them and they love it out there. After going to their place once to play golf I couldn’t believe how reasonable condos are out there. Just a thought. Good luck.
I am thinking of becoming a (kinda) snowbird. I truly loathe the SF Bay Area winters (dull, wet, cold, grey) even though they are technically described as mild.
I am considering Las Vegas or Phoenix.
I lived in Las Vegas for 2 years and I found the winters there to be cold, but pleasant and sunny.
How different are the winters when comparing Phoenix to Las Vegas?
I have looked at climate charts until my eyes hurt. I've looked at previous threads on the subject, but, they seem to talk more about Chicago than the Phoenix v las Vegas issue. I know that on paper, Phoenix has a warmer average temperature. But, it seems that whilst there is a better chance of a 70+ day in Phoenix, there sure are a lot of days in the 50s, just like Vegas (and the Bay Area). So, the average temperature in Phoenix is being pulled up by those few days where it does get into the 70s.
Do people feel that Phoenix has a consistently warmer, better winter (December to March) climate than Las Vegas? Or, is it a case of it's mostly the same, with more days in Phoenix getting up into the 70s?
A secondary question - Is it possible to keep an outdoor, in-ground pool going in the winter in Phoenix, without exorbitant heating bills? I know that in Las Vegas, it's impossible to keep an outdoor pool warm in winter without a 4 figure monthly heating bill. I tried it and gave up real quick.
Anyway, thanks everyone for your 5c worth!
I think discussing winter differences is an issue of splitting hairs. Both are hot deserts. One desert is more arid than the other and will see more extremes, both in summer highs and winter lows--that would be Vegas. Vegas will also see bigger highs and lows throughout the individual days. Phoenix is more temperate in this regard. Yes there are differences, but they are pretty mild to me.
But to those more sensitive to the temperature variety, layers are a great investment and are extremely common in the inland West. Ask anyone in Denver about the use of layers, they are experts over there. Down here in the desert southwest, even in the more "temperate" Phoenix, you will see many people still use layers in December. Even though it makes sense that the sun provides the majority of the heat down here, it's amazing how quickly it can go away in the winter, when the sun is around for a lot less time and the asphalt has less time to soak it up like a sponge like it does in June. Nonetheless, temperature variety is a key part to living in a place with no humidity or coastal breeze to keep things temperate, and you aren't going to avoid it by picking Phoenix over Vegas. If having little to no temperature variety is important to you, looking in the arid, inland West is the worst place to be looking. I suggest the coastal regions of the South.
Phoenix absolutely feels warmer. I'm a Las Vegas native who lives in Phoenix. High temperatures in Phoenix are routinely in the 60s or higher with sub 60 degree days between few and far between. Vegas averages highs in the mid to upper 50s during the coldest part of winter with temperatures rarely hitting 70. Nights in Vegas can routinely fall into the 30s. Snow in Vegas is really not rare, occurring at least once every five years. Keep in mind that Vegas is MUCH windier than Phoenix too, making the winter "cold" there much worse.
PHX is quite a bit warmer, but we get our share of super cold nights, too. They just happen less frequently than in Vegas. On the other side, their summers are nicer than ours. But since you're just wintering, PHX is the better choice. Pools here get frigid by November. You will definitely have to heat it, and it gets pricey. Most people here use hot tubs in the winter anyways. The only people swimming are the nutty Canadians who think 70 degrees is warm enough to swim in, which its not. I wouldn't swim up in Quebec in the summer if it was 70 degrees, so whats the difference?
Thanks for all the input everyone. I do appreciate it. It is good to get local feedback, to get a real idea of what it is like.
The main reason I was looking at Phoenix v Vegas is that I love the desert. I loved Las Vegas when I used to live there and loved the winter outdoor activities, but, it was just a little too cold. I've been to Palm Springs several times during the winter months and I love their climate, which is considerably warmer than Las Vegas in winter. I just didn't know how different Phoenix was to Vegas. Climate charts online put Phoenix closer to the Palm Springs climate than the Las Vegas climate.
I can't afford Palm Springs (well- I can't afford the nice parts and the thought of over-wintering next to a Meth Lab does not appeal). I also want to be, at most, a 2 hour flight from SFO as I will not be a true snowbird and will be going back-and-forth fairly regularly during the winter. In Phoenix and Las Vegas i can afford a modest property in a nice area.
If the winter temperatures had been similar, then I would have probably gone for Vegas because I know it. Whilst it is not warmer than the Bay Area, it is sunnier. It's not that horrible gets-into-your-bones grey dampness of the Bay Area. But, I am really thinking strongly about Phoenix now. I will have to give up on the idea of a winter pool though. :-(
From all my climate charts, I was able to come up with the following approximate percentages:
% of December-January days when the daily maximum temperature is 70+ :
Las Vegas 4%
Phoenix 47%
% of December-January days when the daily maximum temperature is under 60:
Yes, the stats are true. Vegas is colder in the winter than Phoenix. Both high and low temps. We can argue how far apart they are, but the fact remains there is a significant difference. High temps only in the upper 30's are not uncommon in Vegas during certain winter coldspells, while Phoenix usually avoids anything equalling that.
As for summer, Vegas is still cooler than Phoenix, but when you get above triple digits, I'm not sure that makes much of a difference.
Just one glance at the climate data for both cities and you can see Phoenix is far warmer in
winter than Las Vegas, even El Paso and Las Cruces can give Vegas a run for its money compared to Vegas.
Average january high in Las Vegas is 58F......Phoenix 66F.
Almost 10 degrees different.
Phoenix is consistantly warmer than Las Vegas....
winter ...spring....fall....only in summer are the average temps similar.
Vegas gets those stuck in the 40s days in winter, not so in Phoenix...highs in the 50s is considered
cold in Phoenix and that’s just a normal winter day in Las Vegas.
Phoenix is far better...both climates you have to endure a god awful brutal summer
but the rest of the year the climate is good, with Phoenix being significantly better
due to much milder/nicer winters.
Want a Vegas winter with cooler summers.....then head to El Paso/Las Cruces.
I've lived in the Bay Area twice (SF for 4 years and Dublin for 1) and have lived in Chandler (best part of Phoenix!) for 8 years. I hate cold. I love it here. I have a wool coat which I brought here, and since I've never worn it, it sits wrinkled in the bottom of a bin in the garage. I have a medium weight jacket that I haven't worn in years as well. I get by fine with short sleeves and a hoodie. Not only is it very rarely actually cold, but in the winter it is almost always sunny.
We have a pool, but since the pool temp is about the average of the day and night temps, it would be very expensive in the winter unless you have solar. We run the pool from May to October.
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