Anyone familiar with New Glarus? (Madison, Baraboo: hotel, house, middle school)

[nanannie]

Hi,I could not find much info on the area,my daughter is checking out a teaching position and we are looking for locals to tell us something about it.Thank you

[LML]

Well, I don't live in New Glarus...it is about a 1/2 hour drive south of me. However, I go there often and find it a perfectly charming little town. The town was founded by Swiss folks many moons ago and has retained much of the original charm in the buildings in the town center. There are several "festivals" each year including one based on the William Tell story. There are some good resturants and a thriving artist community. There is an "artist mall" set of buildings in the downtown area. The community has a good reputation and I honestly can not remember ever hearing anyone say anything negative about it.

[nanannie]

thank you very much,appreciate it!

[Putty]

Oh gosh, I have such fond memories of "New Glarus" it is just the neatest place, it is small, but quaint and the people are really warm. I have never lived there, but went there several times, I think your daughter would be thrilled to live there.

[nanannie]

Thanks,she comes next week and we will drive up to check it out.She will teach in the middle school

[msnjen23]

New Glarus is a great area. I actually have a very good friend who not only teaches in Monticello (5 minutes further down 69) but grew up in NG and went to school there. She would be a wealth of information. PM me with an email address and I will forward it to her.

[nanannie]

msnjen23,,I will pass this info to my daughter.Very kind of you thank you We are packing up right now to "preview" a house they are interested in,we will eat in New Glarus and head up to Baraboo for the nite.Hope to find a "pet friendly" hotel around there,as this is a real "spur of the moment" trip and have to bring the dog.We also need an indoor pool>we are letting our son play "hookey" from school tomorrow a.m. so he is thrilled

[Drover]

Yeh, New Glarus is a rather nice, tidy little town. It's kind of in the middle of nowhere but it's only about a half-our drive to Madison if you need serious shopping/dining/entertainment options. It also has a bit of tourism to support its economy; it's "Swiss charm" draws in a few folks, and it also hosts one of the nation's most respected microbreweries, which draws people from all over the Midwest. I'm looking to move to the Madison area after I finish school, and New Glarus is on my list of places to check out if I can't afford to live in Madison itself.

[nanannie]

Just checked out New Glarus.Charming town,neat as a pin.All about the tourists.We were the only ones walking around on Sunday,not much open but the bars.It is in the middle of "not much" to be sure.If you need something besides a grocery store /beer/ or swiss chocolates and cheese,you have to drive a bit. Madison is a good 1/2 hr away,but dont know how that trip is during winter.Not much around,but checked out some housing,,alot of bang for the buck compared to what we are used to.Hilly,beautiful scenic road thru the Vermont Valley.A whole different world,but really peaceful and very clean.I dont think we ever saw roadside trash on our hr. drive up to Baraboo.We were told by the locals that we have to return for the"Festivals",everything from Amish days to Polka days. And Yes,EXCELLENT brewski!

[Drover]

Originally Posted by nanannie

Just checked out New Glarus.Charming town,neat as a pin.All about the tourists.We were the only ones walking around on Sunday,not much open but the bars.It is in the middle of "not much" to be sure.If you need something besides a grocery store /beer/ or swiss chocolates and cheese,you have to drive a bit. Madison is a good 1/2 hr away,but dont know how that trip is during winter.Not much around,but checked out some housing,,alot of bang for the buck compared to what we are used to.Hilly,beautiful scenic road thru the Vermont Valley.A whole different world,but really peaceful and very clean.I dont think we ever saw roadside trash on our hr. drive up to Baraboo.We were told by the locals that we have to return for the"Festivals",everything from Amish days to Polka days. And Yes,EXCELLENT brewski!

To be sure, the tourism is much more brisk during the traditional Wisconsin "tourist" season, which runs from memorial day to labor day. And even then, New Glarus isn't going to generate the kind of foot traffic as the more developed resort areas like Door County or the Dells or Minocqua. But NG gets its fair share. As for the drive up to Madison in the winter, it's all on major county or state roads which get cleared off immediately and thoroughly after a winter storm. As long as you can wait one day (or two at most) after the storm, the roads will be just as clear as if a snowflake had never landed on them.