What is the best retirement city in central and north east PA? (Philadelphia: sales)

[maddymappo]

I want to retire to a place that is not too far from Philadelphia (within 1.5 hr. max drive). I want beauty, safety, low taxes, near a good hospital, has cultural and educational outlets like theater and art, where a single senior citizen will not be isolated, and it would also be nice to be in a city that has a bus terminal or train station. And of course that is not too expensive. That is a big list but I am flexible and open to ideas. Thank you.

[ki0eh]

Elizabethtown, PA might be a good spot. Small college town on the Amtrak route between Lancaster and Harrisburg, ten miles or so from Hershey and the Penn State Hershey Medical Center, ten miles or so in another direction from Mount Gretna and its summer arts scene, can choose from emerging cultural outlets in Harrisburg and Lancaster.

[Rtom45]

I second that suggestion. My in-laws lived in E-town for most of their lives until they passed just a couple years ago. We talked a few times about moving them closer to us since we were their only family, but they were perfectly happy there.

[twinmma]

WOuld you consider State College? It's not that far of a drive from Philly, but is is over the one and a half hours you are seeking. It is beautiful, has a good hospital, great places to eat, and a lot of culture with the University being there. (Great theatre, nice art museum, Bryce Jordon Center for events, all kinds of sports, golf courses...) I think this would be a great place to retire.

[Lion11]

State College would be a great place to retire to, and it is becoming more of a popular place! Here is some info on happy valley:
State College, Pennsylvania: Best Places to Retire - USNews.com
Foxdale Village - Retirement Community in State College Pennsylvania - Best Places to Retire
Ranking The Best Places To Retire - The New York Times (#78)
http://books.google.com/books?id=lxG...um=11#PPR13,M1 (p.41-46 in the Northest section. Includes some great info.)
Happy searching!

[BevoInPA]

Camp Hill is on the bus route, about 2 miles from the Amtrak station. Camp Hill is one of Harrisburg's oldest suburbs with a good mix of retired and young families and singles like myself.

People take pride in their homes. Houses are VERY affordable by the standards of larger metro areas. If you have dogs you will love it. They are allowed in the parks and EVERYONE walks their dogs at night (no pooh allowed). Sidewalks connect everything and there is a little cluster of shops, restaurants, and coffee shops on Market Street. There is also a HUGE Giant on the edge of Camp Hill that you can walk to and take cooking classes and some other classes that I have never attended.

If you are interested in local government or school district administration you will love it because the boro is the school district with about 3,000 people. We recycle, collect garden clippings, mulch, then you get the mulch for your yard, also compost, there are community gardens (not sure how you get them because I am overwhelmed by my own garden). There are neighborhoods that sort of stick together for neighborhood gargage sales and block parties. Mine is Beverly Park and has a very active group of organizers that close off streets for parties.

I am not originally from here but I love it. I know my neighbors which is more that I can say living in Florida, Texas, Illinois, and New Jersey.

Traffic is sort of bad, according to the locals. I have seen worse.

[maddymappo]

Hello, Ki0eh, Rtom45, twinmma, Lion11, BevoInPA - Thank you all so much. The information and suggestions are very much appreciated. I am going to do more research on these areas and plan a visit.

Maddy