I wonder if a good amount of Tampa area people head to Asheville NC

[housingcrashsurvivor]

Asheville is nice and I love the Smokies & Blue Ridge Mountains but I'd never live there full-time as I'm not a snowman. I spent a few summers with family vacationing near Knoxville and I've been to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in the three good seasons & all the way on the Blue Ridge Parkway from Cherokee through Shenandoah at peak Autumn and suggest that anyone who has the chance do that trip at least once in your life. It is stunning at almost every turn, especially the sections between the Park & Asheville.

For the most part, there is no comparison between traffic there & here. But don't be completely fooled. Here, when you get in traffic (unless on a causeway) you can hop onto numerous surface roads. There, between mountains, not so many options.

[Keeper]

Actually we have a member on the Orlando forum who just moved to
Asheville. Not sure if he will check in here but his member name is CommonSense, you might want to ask on the NC forum. He hated Orlando just so you know

[kyle19125]

I could probably stand to have a cabin in the mountains to get away to periodically throughout the year, especially in July and August!

[hiknapster]

I've lived in Knoxville for five years now, from swFlorida. The economy is very good here with an unemployment rate of 7.8 percent. Cost of living and housing is great, the schools are wonderful and the people welcoming and friendly. Knoxville is in a valley and there is no traffic congestion and plenty of alternate roads, a lot more than Fort Myers, Florida, in fact.

Snow is limited to about a few flakes a year that melts in a few hours if it sticks at all. It is very pretty but there is no need for shovels or boots. Winters are extremely mild and only last 3 months, with a real, glorious spring and a 3 month summer that is much more tolerable. And we get fall foliage to boot, but without the insane cold of the north.

Moving here is the best thing we ever did. We even opened up an auto repair shop, a life-long dream, and something that we didn't think would be possible anywhere else.

Best of luck to you all. May you land where your heart seeks.

[DoctorRain]

Originally Posted by gypsychic

We almost moved to Asheville a few years ago. We even bought a place there for vacations, which we sold after a couple years. It is a nice place, but we discovered it's really just a nice place to visit, at least for us. My experience is that we met friendly people who were transplants from many places but the natives really, really, resent people from Florida and the NE. For me Florida is home, and I like it a whole lot better, especially where we are now, in Sarasota.

It all depends on what one is looking for. Asheville is DEFINITELY NOT the place to go if you need to earn a decent living. There is really no job market to speak of, just low end retail and server type jobs unless one is in health care or an entrepreneur. It's a small city of about 70,000, mostly geared toward tourists and retirees, and the pseudo-hippie crowd.

Yea I figured you might as well stay in FL if you are gonna go here honestly. I am willing to bet Asheville doesn't have more to offer than Sarasota let alone Tampa. That area seems quite limited but a friend in NC plans to move there soon so I read a little about it. Some say theres more of a progressive hillbilly feel to it.

[DoctorRain]

Originally Posted by xbillyx

I've been to Asheville twice. It's alright to visit but I think it's highly overrated. There are cooler hippie towns to go to IMO (e.g. Boulder, CO).

Or the biggie, PORTLAND.

[DoctorRain]

Originally Posted by vaughnwilliams

A friend of mine and his family moved to the Asheville area about four years ago. He bought a couple of acres and an old farm house. He claims to like it a lot (though decent work is almost non-existent), but I get the impression he's not telling everything. I'm sure the weather is wonderful and the outdoor lifestyle is great, but according to my friend, it's hard to make a living there, even in good times.
As far as the natives resenting the influx of Floridians (or Halfbacks)-I don't blame them one bit.

Climatewise it looks more suitable than FL, but in reality, its probably not much better than Johnstown Pennsylvania especially locationwise to things or nearest big cities around. It seems like they highly overrate Asheville and seems like its just more of a progressive hillbilly type feel where most of the music is bluegrass style folk. It seems horrible economically. As bad as St Pete anyhow.

[Gatornation]

Ashville has a lot of old money and hippies. We loved visiting there when we lived in Chapel Hill/Raleigh.

I'm not sure what Florida city could top Raleigh/Durham. If it wasn't for family in FL we'd still be there. Tampa doesn't even come close.

[xbillyx]

Originally Posted by DoctorRain

Or the biggie, PORTLAND.

Haha. How are you liking it out there? I spent two years in Seattle and loved. As a new Portlander, you'll probably hate this...but I much preferred Seattle. That said, however, I understand the appeal of Portland. It's a pretty city and is urban but feels more like a large town. I just couldn't stand the weather.