Williamsburg (Hampton, Forest, Windsor: to rent, new home, safe neighborhoods)

[lutarian]

Hello everyone.

I just checked out Williamsburg and it looks very interesting.

I just have a few questions.

1. How friendly are the people?
2. Are there plenty of activities for children and active adults?
3. What is the cost to rent a nice house? Would like something 2k or under per month. (would rent for the first year)
4. Is is sunny most of the year? Besides winter of course.
5. How harsh is the winter?
6. Do you have a hospital near by?

Thanks alot everyone!

[Mr Williamsburg]

First make sure you search this forum for answers about the Williamsburg VA area. There have been many different posts thru time. You should re post in the Hampton Roads forum for more responses. Or maybe a moderator can move the question there ?
The following are my opinions . I'm sure we will get a little disagreement on the forum by subsequent posters. Lastly spend a week here on vacation. Do things the locals do. See if it's for you ! We love it...

1. How friendly are the people? Williamsburg VA is a melting pot of nationalities. To me it is one of the friendliest places we have lived. If you have children get them involved in sports or school activities, get invloved as a parent and you will meet tons of families who are very friendly and outgoing.
2. Are there plenty of activities for children and active adults? Yes and Yes. Depends on what your children like to do but ours enjoy Busch Gardens, Water Country, Colonial Williamsburg, Summer Camps, Boating, Sailing, Jet Skiing, Horse back riding, football ( playing and watching, tailgating at W & M)), soccer, basketball, baseball track and field, bowling, movies, hiking, swimming ( lots of swim teams) Mountain Biking, lacrosse, The Beach in VA Beach or Outer Banks, The Mountains ( 2.5 hours away, Virginia Living Museum ( animals, reptiles, fish, etc, festivals, Great Wolf Lodge ( in the winter for birthday parties) Kayaking, Skate Park near the Rec Center, James City County Parks and Rec Sports Programs,The Rec Center ( indoor pool ) The Christmas Parade, Forth of July, Grand Illumination, Kidsburg ( when they were younger) snowboarding ,Skiing in the mountains ( 3 hours away)
3. For adults, in addition to the above we enjoy at running ( my wife) cycling ( me), concerts at Lake MAtoaka, VA Arts Festival, Williamsburg, Syphonia, Museums, Corner Pocket, Kimball Theater, Great Restaurants, VA Arts Festivals, Farmers Market on DOG St., Shakespeare Festival, Polo Cup, An occasion for the arts, Tennis, Golf the list goes on…
4. What is the cost to rent a nice house? Definitely. There are numerous homes in great neighborhoods for $2000 and below. Currently there are some in Fords Colony, Stonehouse ( a $600k new home),Windsor Forest, Brandon Woods, Landfall at Jamestown and many more.
5. Is is sunny most of the year? Besides winter of course. Very sunny maybe too sunny. It was a very dry summer… kind of humid in the Summer.
6. How harsh is the winter? Very mild. We hardly ever get an accumulation of snow anymore in Williamsburg. I haven’t had to shovel any snow in over 6 years.
7. Do you have a hospital near by? Brand new Sentara Williamsburg ttp://www.sentara.com/Sentara/HospitalsFacilities/Hospitals/Williamsburg/ They are trying to get another hospital approved on the east side of Williamsburg as well.

[PChildres]

We're moving to Williamsburg as well in early January. I live in Houston now and hearing everyone on this forum talking as if Williamsburg is so BORING and no NIGHTLIFE. I think that sounds just about perfect. Who wants to live in a city full of clubs and wild and crazy teenagers? Not me.

[lutarian]

I agree. I am currently living in TX also.

[dvcgal]

You are going to love being in Williamsburg! When it comes to family, this is the type of place that you will want to raise your kids. That said, Williamsburg offers a lot of activities for both the young and the more mature! Williamsburg does not have a huge nightlife but people should not move here looking for that. What Williamsburg does offer is good schools, some better than others, safe neighborhoods, and a family friendly atmosphere. Of course I have my own opinion about some of the residents and their friendliness, BUT you find people who are unfriendly in every town, so you have to compare the good to the bad and the good here seems to outweigh the few bad apples! ~At least for us it does! There is always downtown Williamsburg, Jamestown, Yorktown, Va Living Museum, Va Air and Space Museum, Va Aquarium, Colonial Parkway~fishing, swimming, bike riding, picnicing~ Va Beach, Yorktown Beach, Busch Gardens, Water Country and the list just keeps going! There is so much to do here that you actually get a little spoiled by all the activity!
Good luck!
DVCGAL!

[dvcgal]

Originally Posted by PChildres

We're moving to Williamsburg as well in early January. I live in Houston now and hearing everyone on this forum talking as if Williamsburg is so BORING and no NIGHTLIFE. I think that sounds just about perfect. Who wants to live in a city full of clubs and wild and crazy teenagers? Not me.

I hope you all are doing okay in Houston! My best friend lives in Willis and she called me to let me know that they still did not have power, but they finally had the phone turned back on! I lived in the Woodlands and I can tell you that when I was there during 2000/2001 we had a rain storm come through that flooded the streets and all kinds of mess so I cannot even imagine what is going on there!

[PChildres]

Originally Posted by dvcgal

I hope you all are doing okay in Houston! My best friend lives in Willis and she called me to let me know that they still did not have power, but they finally had the phone turned back on! I lived in the Woodlands and I can tell you that when I was there during 2000/2001 we had a rain storm come through that flooded the streets and all kinds of mess so I cannot even imagine what is going on there!

The power outages are very bad. Right now close to 50% of the city has gotten power back. Luckily we only lost it for 3 days and we were the only ones in the neighborhood with a generator. Got everything powered from it but the AC so it was still hot all the time. Honestly, I'm kind of glad we got a taste of how bad 'Canes can get. After Rita, ppl were saying "oh we shouldn't have evacuated! It didn't even really hit Houston!" when in reality, if it WOULD'VE hit, it would've been a category 5. Ike was only a 2 and the people here see now how BAD it can be. I'm happy it opened the eyes of some people. Don't play with mother nature. Most unpredictable force on earth.

Anyways, everyone I know is ok. All is well. I'm looking foward to batteling more 'Canes in Williamsburg with ya DVCgal!

[VirginiaYankee]

If you are moving to Williamsburg... I recommend buying passes to Busch Gardens and/or Water Country USA.
It will be a place you will find yourself quite a bit...