Fayetteville AR vs. Athens GA

[ericbiller]

Fayettville could and ark in general could use some rail trails, the whole area surrounding is not the most bicycle friendly. but that could change with the new fed transportation bill. Maybe we'll get a trail linking Fayettville, Beaver, Eureka Springs, etc.

[PigSooie]

I currently live in Fayetteville, but have considered moving to Athens for further schooling. I visited UGA one time and absolutely loved it. I only had a couple hours there, so I didn't see much, but what I did see, it left a wonderful impression on me. Beautiful town, great atmosphere. Everyone I talked to was very nice and helpful as well.

That said, I really like Fayetteville and am very pleased I chose to spend 3 years getting my undergrad degree here. It's a total college town, which is convenient for the stage of life I'm in. I know that after I graduate this December, I won't be interested in living here anymore, but many people do not share that opinion. It is a fantastic place to live if you enjoy outdoor activities in particular. The cost of living is low as well.

However, Fayetteville is at least 5 hours from any big city. Dallas is about 5 hours one way, St. Louis is 6 hours the other way, Chicago is 10 hours away, Atlanta is 11 hours away (all by car). I'm about to arrange a flight to Atlanta, and flying out of here or even out of Little Rock was prohibitively expensive, so I'm flying out of a middle-of-nowhere airport in Missouri that's 2 hours from Fayetteville...which, with gas and parking, is still cheaper than flying out of XNA or LIT. So traveling can be less convenient. If you want to stay near a big city (and beaches), I'd go for Athens.

Good luck!

[gthog61]

Well I grew up in Arkansas and went to Georgia Tech so you could probably guess which one I would select.

I will say I don't understand how anybody can say Fayetteville has mountains nearby and Athens doesn't. North Georgia is a lot like NW Arkansas in my opinion so I think that part is a wash.

[SwingVote08]

Originally Posted by PigSooie

I currently live in Fayetteville, but have considered moving to Athens for further schooling. I visited UGA one time and absolutely loved it. I only had a couple hours there, so I didn't see much, but what I did see, it left a wonderful impression on me. Beautiful town, great atmosphere. Everyone I talked to was very nice and helpful as well.

That said, I really like Fayetteville and am very pleased I chose to spend 3 years getting my undergrad degree here. It's a total college town, which is convenient for the stage of life I'm in. I know that after I graduate this December, I won't be interested in living here anymore, but many people do not share that opinion. It is a fantastic place to live if you enjoy outdoor activities in particular. The cost of living is low as well.

However, Fayetteville is at least 5 hours from any big city. Dallas is about 5 hours one way, St. Louis is 6 hours the other way, Chicago is 10 hours away, Atlanta is 11 hours away (all by car). I'm about to arrange a flight to Atlanta, and flying out of here or even out of Little Rock was prohibitively expensive, so I'm flying out of a middle-of-nowhere airport in Missouri that's 2 hours from Fayetteville...which, with gas and parking, is still cheaper than flying out of XNA or LIT. So traveling can be less convenient. If you want to stay near a big city (and beaches), I'd go for Athens.

Good luck!

No info on comparing the 2, but just clarifications to this post...

The airport the poster is talking about is most likely Springfield, Missouri which is about 2 hours away. I've never flown out of here because it's never been more convenient than Tulsa, Oklahoma (1.5 hours due west of Fayetteville) where many ppl in NWArk fly out of because yes it's usually $50-$150 more to fly out of XNA (Fayetteville regional airport) than most other airports in major cities like Atlanta.

Atlanta also is a major hub of Delta (or THE main hub of Delta...can't remember) which is now joined with Northwest Airlines. That meshed with the fact that it's the busiest airport in the US (yes, slightly more so than Chicago O'Hare) then it's a hands-down favorite for flights over Fay.

Correction - St. Louis is 5 hours away, not 6 - I've driven it a million times. This still doesn't make it convenient I concede. Everyone commutes to Little Rock, Dallas, Kansas City (3 hours due north), and St. Louis for big city attractions. Dallas is the favorite of these. Little Rock is just home to a lot in NWA. Tulsa is larger than Little Rock if I remember right and offers a bigger city feel but obviously doesn't touch Dallas. Oklahoma City is about 4 hours due west as well. Memphis is about 5 hours out. Point being...lots of decent size cities around but none as convenient as Atlanta for sure.

The ocean at its nearest point is New Orleans I believe which is 9 hours south/southeast. Most from the area vacation to the beach to Gulf Shores, Alabama or Destin, Florida or Panama City, Florida though. All about 10-11 hours southeast by car. NWArkansans hang out at Beaver Lake for the most part. It's a pretty monsterous lake stretching northeast into Missouri and back down into Arkansas 2-3 hours east of the region. Lots of people have lakehouses that can afford a second home. Lakehouses are cheap as chips compared to any others in the US.

Fayetteville is a good mix of good ole boys, college students, and business professionals from all over the US (mostly California and upper midwest transplants). I've never been to Georgia so I can't speak for Athens.

Weather seems important to you since you'll be spending summers in Seattle or Portland. NWA is the coldest place in Arkansas but typically has a definite 3 months of each season. It snows but not much. The coldest it gets is in the single digits but this is rare. Usually 20s for lows in winter is typical, 40s by day. Snow will disappear usually the next day but if it's really bad it might take a few days. Humidity is nice and average. Summers are killer hot in my opinion riding in the 90s pretty much for 3 months solid. Tornadoes are an issue as are thunderstorms but even though they're frequent they never seem to rip thru houses or anything like that - just knock down trees, take off shingles. Flash flooding and ice are usually the worst things that plague Fayetteville (hilly). Winters are usually pretty sunny compared to most places. Spring/Fall are half and half with sunny days and thunderstorms. You can expect the threat of thunderstorms for a solid week at times.

Flights to Seattle out of XNA usually go for around $350 at the cheapest (usually $400s) but you can get it for $200 out of Tulsa's airport TUL during Sep-Apr (expect to pay around $300-$350 during peak summer months).

My two cents...

[dvcgal]

To the OP: I'm a Georgia girl and have to say that I would prefer to live in Athens over Fayetteville! Of course my opinion is bias, but Athens has always felt like a second home to me!
To me, this would be an easy decision but I will say that if cost is a major determining factor, then Fayetteville should be your pick because the cost of living is much cheaper in Fayetville than in Athens.
Good luck!