Young professional looking for fun area and good commute to NNMC-Bethesda (Silver Spring: apartments, rental)

[OncNurse]

Hi everyone,

I will be transferring to the Naval Hospital in Bethesda in August from San Diego and I'm looking for apartments to rent. If you are familiar with SD, I'm looking for an area with a similar feel to the gaslamp district (lots of restaurants/night life, geared more toward young professionals as opposed to the college crowd). I have lived in a predominantly college/party/beach area for the last three years and want an area that is a little nicer. I am not too familiar with the area, but I have mostly been looking at places in Bethedsa, North Bethesda, Rockville and Silver Spring. I hear the traffic is pretty killer, and with 12hr shifts, I would like to keep the commute to under 30 minutes. Any suggestions? My target price range is around $1600 per month and I'm single, so schools aren't a consideration for me. Thanks so much for any information!!

[FrankLaw]

Look towards downtown Bethesda, I would say. Lots of nice restaurants/bars/a club or two, and the people that populate the night life tend to be young professionals as opposed to college kids. During the day, you get a nice mix of young professionals and young families milling about.

I'm not sure if you'll be able to find a rental (sounds like you want to rent) for $1600 around there, but if not, it won't be a ton more than that.

Beyond that, an area that's a little livelier if farther away is Dupont Circle in DC. It's pricier, though.

[cpterp]

Why not live right in Bethesda? It has everything you're looking for and more. The only downside is that it's extremely expensive.

[Fiddlefeet]

There's a metro rail and there are ride-on buses that I used fairly often while living in Bethesda. Just something to keep in mind that you might find it nice to live near a metro stop. My brother lives in Highland House in Bethesda on Wisconsin Ave. It's expensive, but it's close-ish to National Naval.
Georgetown is exciting, but there are obviously a lot of college kids there --- When I used to drive to Georgetown U Hospital from Bethesda, it would take me 30 minutes to drive there, but over 45 minutes to get home. That was fifteen years ago. Friendship Heights might be convenient for you. I'd rather walk on hot coals than live in DC, personally. . . I'm trying to remember if you can be in Friendship Hgts and still be in Maryland. . .good luck to you. I daresay someone who is more current will be along shortly to give you more and better ideas.

PS Of course --- the good thing about twelves is you'll be traveling at non-peak hours, if there is such a thing in the DC metro area anymore.