Considering a move from PA to CA or FL (Tampa area)

[LandsharkJB]

I'm going to offer the opposite opinion, which is funny because we moved from Chester County to Tampa Bay one year ago.

I strongly disagree with the advice to only visit during the summer, it would be like being interested in PA and saying to visit in February so you see it "at its worst". Whats the point if you can't explore and have a nice time? I think you're doing it perfectly, come down for a nice vacation, do some scouting of Tampa and Sarasota, see how close Orlando is, etc and see if its a life that interests your family. There's plenty of time after that for another scouting trip in the summer to experience the heat, or visiting the east coast, etc.

For us the heat was a non issue, we grew sick of the snow what seemed like endless bleak winters and figured we'd rather have three miserable months of warmth than cold, and we have no regrets.. but i do understand some people can't stand it. I miss the idea of fall when I see a commercial, but the reality was it goes so quick from summer to winter in PA I wasn't missing much.

It's also funny how many people in this thread are from Chester/Bucks county... I never run into you guys in public. It's always people from Pittsburgh who wind up disappointed I'm not from their side of Pa. Pfft.

[HWTechGuy]

Originally Posted by LandsharkJB

I'm going to offer the opposite opinion, which is funny because we moved from Chester County to Tampa Bay one year ago.

I strongly disagree with the advice to only visit during the summer, it would be like being interested in PA and saying to visit in February so you see it "at its worst". Whats the point if you can't explore and have a nice time? I think you're doing it perfectly, come down for a nice vacation, do some scouting of Tampa and Sarasota, see how close Orlando is, etc and see if its a life that interests your family. There's plenty of time after that for another scouting trip in the summer to experience the heat, or visiting the east coast, etc.

For us the heat was a non issue, we grew sick of the snow what seemed like endless bleak winters and figured we'd rather have three miserable months of warmth than cold, and we have no regrets.. but i do understand some people can't stand it. I miss the idea of fall when I see a commercial, but the reality was it goes so quick from summer to winter in PA I wasn't missing much.

It's also funny how many people in this thread are from Chester/Bucks county... I never run into you guys in public. It's always people from Pittsburgh who wind up disappointed I'm not from their side of Pa. Pfft.

Good post. I especially like the part highlighted in bold as I'm originally from Bucks County and have been here a year myself.

[Guitarguy73]

That's funny. Where in Chester County? We are right in Chadds Ford.

I don't think it would be a fair comparison to go June-August. Visiting is different to living there in a home with a pool and also having a boat. Being there in the heat of summer with a hotel as "home base" and driving all around in a rental car is a recipe for a terrible vacation!

Honestly, we are in a pretty affluent suburb and community and hope to goto a very similar situation in Palm Harbor or other 'burb. Can the school really that bad? I kind of want to view it as typical suburban community/life but in a different climate.

I'm still struggling to see how boating, wake boarding, fishing, tubing and swimming year round can be a bad thing.

Philly area Nov-May is pretty bleak...

[Familyof2]

I didn't say to ONLY visit in summer. But a trip during summer would give you a small taste of the worst weather. I did visit PA in February to see if I really remembered how bad winter can be. Due diligence. I didn't make my decision based on one vacation during the best weather either. Yes the first year or two of living in Florida feels like a vacation. For me it got monotonous after that. I stayed 8 years because the husband liked it so much. I tried to like it. I really did. It would have made my life easier. It's not for everyone. My experience with hillsborough public schools was not good (even in highly rated Fish Hawk schools). If you are used to Chadds Ford Unionville schools you are going to want to look at private schools. You actually will not be boating/swimming year round as there are daily thunderstorms June-September. Yes they are short storms but the lightning in Tampa bay is no joke. Again this is just my experience. You came here looking for opinions. This is mine. Obviously there are millions of people who live in Florida and love it. I thought you seemed on the fence and wanted to hear the cons not just the pros.