[persom]

I have an opportunity to relocate with the company i work to a choice of seveal florida towns. i do not really want to go to south florida, but i am thinking about 4 possible places: melbourne, daytona beach, orlando, and vero beach. What would be your recommendation as the one to choose and why? Of course the economy of the city and lowest crime would be prime factors, but having two kids (one kindergarten and one infant) would make the quality and safety of the schools the deciding factor.

[floridasandy]

i would pick vero beach or melbourne of those 4 choices, and melbourne would have a little more to do than vero. i would not even consider daytona beach or palm bay area. if you like quiet and sedate, you might want to pick vero or sebastian. if you want a lot to do you can visit orlando for a day trip and then don't have the hassle of dealing with orlando on a daily basis. personally, if i was just moving to florida i would move to the viera area (newer/ nicer) or if i had enough money ponte vedra beach. (beautiful but expensive). as long as you have a job you will probably really like florida. the big problem with florida right now is the availability of employment and the wage structure of the job market.

[kwick release]

I second Vero or Melbourne. We have 2.5yr old twin girls and another on the way and chose Satellite Beach for the schools and safe family friendly environment. Viera is really nice too. Check out the below link for schools. Good luck!

GreatSchools.net

[verobeach]

Come to Vero Beach. Safe, good schools, never crowded beaches, shopping and restaurants. When you want a change of pace, drive to Melbourne, W Palm Beach or Orlando for the day.

[Denise in Fla]

Given the choice it would be Melbourne and surrounding areas or Vero Beach, and Viera is very nice. I would choose to stay in Brevard county, more central to Orlando and the Kennedy Space Center, nice beaches, etc.

[mimigirl]

I lived in Viera (part of Melbourne) and absolutely fell in love with it. I had to move away because my husband and I couldn't sell a house we had up north. I can't wait to move back to Viera one day....it is the perfect location....an hour outside Orlando, close to the beach, plenty of shopping and very pretty.

[patsuit]

I live in Merritt Island which is about 8 miles from the Cape Canaveral, Cocoa Beach area andit takes me 40 minutes to get to Orlando airport. I love the beach which is why I moved here, but found out that the schools in Cocoa Beach are awesome. My 13 yr old was starting high school and I was advised against the move. It was the best move I could have made! After six months of not finding a job, I went back to Philadelphia. My daughter had been a C/D student in Philly, and after 6 months at Cocoa Beach High she was A/B+ and a private school outside of Philly could not even match the curriculum!! Let me know if you want more info - I have now been here almost 25 years and still love it everyday.

[ChrisA70]

Vero Beach or Melbourne/palm Bay/Sebastian would be the best choice... NO ORLANDO. NO DAYTONA. I lived in 3 of them(not Daytona). Orlando is horrible, never went back there except for Seaworld... The other 4 I mentioned are great.