Why choose San Antonio over Austin?

[TerpsandHorns]

NIGHTLIFE

Austin has the more centrally located nightlife. Anyone who visits Austin can easily find the 6th street & Warehouse area corridors. It is like most college towns with a very distinct bar/nightlife district. Austin is simply not big enough to have dozens of little bar districts like many BIG cities.

The Austin bars tend to cater to the college crowd. You can feel very old (even in your mid to late 20s) on 6th Street with all the 19 to 22 age crowd. The warehouse district is much better for older crowds, but it tends to still look to the under 35 crowd.

All in all, the ATX nightlife is great (outstanding at times) but it sort of comes with an expiration date depending on the number of birthday candles you have...

........

San Antonio is a much bigger city with multiple neighborhoods and all age residents.

Much like many other BIG cities, San Antonio has tons of nightlife and bars spread out in many diffrent pockets. If you just visit the riverwalk area to judge SA's nightlife than you are missing many other areas. Although it can be fun, The riverwalk nightlife caters to the tourist/convention crowds. St Marys area, the Broadway bar cluster in Alamo Heights, and Southtown come to mind as 3 nightlife areas with many bars other than just the riverwalk corridor. If you just visited SA for a few vacation days, you would never think to go to these bar districts...but if you lived there you would find the nightlife/bars quite enjoyable and plentiful all over the Metro area.

[hoakley]

Okay, I think I have an intersting perspective to offer here. I just moved to Austin from Dallas, and while I haven't lived in SA, I do have relatives there, and so I have spent a good deal of time there. Personally I prefer Austin; obviously, as we moved here. However, I would be the last person to bash SA. I don't think that's necessary. I think there are some nice things about SA, and some very interesting things to do and see. However, personally, I do find Austin to be prettier (on the whole). However, I would also be the first to admit that the traffic is a freakin' nightmare! Every bit as bad as Dallas, which is twice the size of Austin. One thing that really bugs me though is that people keep saying that Austin is better for singles, and SA is better for families. I couldn't disagree more. Austin/Austin area happens to have some of the best ISDs in the entire state. And more than that, there are TONS of kid-centric activities going on around town all the time! Activities at the parks, museums, etc. And depending on where you live, many neighborhoods have activities going on all the time like pool parties, etc that are aimed at the kids. My son is 7, and he LOVES it here. And has said so, without any prompting, many times. I guess it's just one of those things where everyone feels an allegiance to their own town. And that's fine. But lets not fall into the trap of painting with just broad strokes as "Austin is for singles" and "SA is for families". Yes, Austin does have (as everyone knows) a thriving nightlife. And yes, I have heard that there are some great areas in SA for raising families, and many family things to do there. But that is not to say that SA has no nightlife, or that Austin has nothing to offer kids/families. And as for people who've never lived in either place, stop bashing our cities. They are both nice cities, with much to offer those that live there.

[imaterry78259]

Hoakley,

I agree with you except that SA is just as pretty as Austin, expecially the neighborhoods. I would like to know what areas of Austin that you find so appealing

[infinity & beyond]

Anyone who thinks San Antonio has great nightlife has probably been confined to either Nebraska or the hills of West Virginia. For a city of its size, quality (i.e. not some old joint in a strip mall) is just lacking. Austin just offers so much more and seems to have many different kinds of nightlife experiences. One of San Antonio's draws (or drawbacks) is that it doesn't feel like a big city...at all. That is slowly changing though, but still to me it lacks the put togetherness and cosmopolitan feel of a real city. I don't think its as simple to say that SA is better for families or Austin is better for singles. It depends on the person at hand...and different people will like different things.

And I agree with the above poster...SA is NOT a pretty city. Many parts IMO just look very run down...as if the laid back attitude of the population contributes to a laid back attitude toward timely repairs and upkeep. Who knows....

[oldmanshirt]

I have to wonder where all you people who think SA looks run down have been hanging out. Inner East Side? And which cities are you comparing it to to come to the conclusion that it looks "run down"? Which cities don't have areas that look run down? I've seen alot of Austin outside of downtown, and it looks almost exactly the same as SA, except the streets aren't as well-developed. The suburbs may be a different story because they're newer areas, but guess what? SA has newer areas too (i.e., Stone Oak).

If you have the mind-set that you're just going to find something to criticize no matter what, you'll probably always find something to criticize.

[imaterry78259]

I must agree with oldmanshirt- Austin is really full of it self. The jight life in Austin is centered downtown and demographically for college students. Out side the downtown area there is practically nothing. As far as neighborhood, I definitely have to give the edge to SA by a wide margin. Every city has its rundown neighborhood and new neighborhood but SA just far exceeds Austin in that area. I have live in woprk in both places so I would tell the Austinites to put up or shut up. Name the neighborhood in Austin that you are talking about. Where are the nightclubs outside the downtown area in Austin? Can't wait for your response!!!!!!

[hello13685]

Hi infinityand beyond, I do agree with your points. From what I can tell, and in my opinion, that "run down" look you mention is a southern thing (also in Houston, Louisiana cities, and perhaps to a degree in Austin too), so it's not so much just an SA thing. When I've mentioned this "run down" look to locals, they don't know what I'm talking about, despite that it is everywhere, crooked telephone poles, ugly metal billboards and signs lining the roads near strip malls, and all that you do not find in other parts of the country. What I consider a slum, locals consider middle class.

I am therefore realizing more and more that beauty and quality is a very personal thing, so it's hard to argue these points. As an example, I was waiting at the gate yesterday for a San Diego to San Antonio flight, and a woman standing behind me said she had really missed Bill Miller's barbecue, and she lamented the fact that she had not been able to find any food that good in San Diego. I couldn't believe my ears (I mean, even by barbecue standards, SA can do a lot better than BM. You can find great BBQ here). And then it occurred to me that she had experienced in San Diego a bit of what people like me have experienced in SA. In the end, an Austinite or San Antonian could probably spend months pointing out the high points of their neighboring cities, but if you like your Bill Miller's (in the example), you are just not going to see it. You are not going to be convinced no matter what anyone points out to you.

[PopsGuysRule]

Originally Posted by Shasta523

Taraaa;
We lived in Austin and made the mistake of moving to SA because we thought if would be more affordable and nicer. Boy were we wrong. Austin is a much nicer place to live. SA has tooo many aggresive drivers and to many uneducated people living here. Wages here are low as a result of the under educated people.
In regards to 210's reply:

Low cost of living....Low quality of housing & other living aspects as well.
Friendly people...People here are not friendly, SA has one of the highest statistics of domestic violence, road rage, & various other crimes.
Fantastic shopping...Only La Canterra or North Star Mall are the Fantastic Shopping areas.
Great downtown...The Riverwalk is great but the rest of Downtown is slummy
Beautiful hill country...Austin's Hill country is much more beautiful.
Good schools...In a statisticall report Austin beats SA hands down.
Cheap housing...Cheap housing is only in the slummy areas and if you are able to get a cheap house anywhere else in SA then chances are it was built by a shotty builder that uses low grade products.
Weather in the fall, winter, and spring....Weather in SA is the same or compairable to Austin.

Well, somehow, you missed out on that better education and culture that Austin supposedly offers.

Your post contains eight spelling errors (four of them in the very first pseudo-paragraph), very poor grammatical structure throughout the entire post, numerous incomplete sentences, and several words inaccurately capitalized.

Most importantly, however, is that we don't really give a damn what you think of San Antonio. Amazingly, we get along just fine without you.