[military spouse]

We are trying to leave the Phoenix area, but most places are so challenging. Anyone willing to share which of these areas they prefer. We've never been to either, but lived in Dothan for a few years. Any help would be appreciated!

[military spouse]

I should add the my husband's employment does not depend on the geographical region, he simply needs access to a major airport. I am a registered nurse, no kids, one large, handsome dog.

[EscAlaMike]

I definitely prefer Baldwin County over the Huntsville area, but a lot of it is just personal preference.

Beach/coastal vibe or hills/mountains?

I love all the trees and water of the Gulf Coast.

Winters will be quite a bit greyer, colder, and longer in Huntsville.

[dijkstra]

Like EscAlaMike said, it will mostly come down to personal preference. Huntsville is a rapidly growing area with a ton of shopping and dining options. It is an easy drive to Nashville and Chattanooga and not a bad drive to Atlanta. We have tornadoes sometimes during severe weather and we have a little snow in the winter that usually melts away the same day but can hang around for a day or two every once in a while.

We really like Fairhope. We visit Fairhope on short weekend trips from time to time. They have a warmer climate with shorter winters. The beaches are a short drive and there are plenty of restaurants including fresh seafoood. It is a very nice area. Their pitfall on weather is the possibility of tropical storms and hurricanes.

[military spouse]

Originally Posted by EscAlaMike

I definitely prefer Baldwin County over the Huntsville area, but a lot of it is just personal preference.

Beach/coastal vibe or hills/mountains?

I love all the trees and water of the Gulf Coast.

Winters will be quite a bit greyer, colder, and longer in Huntsville.

I love cold, grey winters

[EscAlaMike]

Originally Posted by military spouse

I love cold, grey winters

In that case, you may prefer Huntsville!

[military spouse]

Originally Posted by dijkstra

Like EscAlaMike said, it will mostly come down to personal preference. Huntsville is a rapidly growing area with a ton of shopping and dining options. It is an easy drive to Nashville and Chattanooga and not a bad drive to Atlanta. We have tornadoes sometimes during severe weather and we have a little snow in the winter that usually melts away the same day but can hang around for a day or two every once in a while.

We really like Fairhope. We visit Fairhope on short weekend trips from time to time. They have a warmer climate with shorter winters. The beaches are a short drive and there are plenty of restaurants including fresh seafoood. It is a very nice area. Their pitfall on weather is the possibility of tropical storms and hurricanes.

Does spring and fall seem warmer in fairhope? Most everything I've read compares January temperatures and July, but that doesn't always tell the full story. Thank you!

[PortCity]

Originally Posted by military spouse

Does spring and fall seem warmer in fairhope? Most everything I've read compares January temperatures and July, but that doesn't always tell the full story. Thank you!

Fall weather on the Gulf ( Fairhope)is damn near perfect. The biggest issue is that we do not experience fall foliage ( my preference). The temps could be in 80's but with no humidity. On average it's in low to mid 70's

Now Spring could be mixed bag. One year it could be a complete wash out. You could experience rain for days especially in April. This year we havn't experienced that. This year it will rain for 2 days then the next fews days after, nothing but sunshine. Temps have been a little lower this year. Temps have been in the low to mid 70s. Some days the humidity is low and some days it's been high so far this Spring. We are now creeping into the low to mid 80's this week.

[nalabama]

May and October are the best months to live in Fairhope/Foley. When I lived in the Foley area a coat was only necessary for about 30 to 40 days in the winter and you could often take it off by lunchtime. The Foley area is very muggy in the summer despite the winds coming off the Gulf. Huntsville is slightly better in that regard during the summer, but still very hot and humid. Foley feels much more rural and offers far fewer goods and services than Huntsville. In normal times tradespeople in the Foley area seemed much less trustworthy/reliable than those I dealt with in Huntsville. I can’t speak to Fairhope other than to to state it is a nice place to visit.

[RocketDawg]

I prefer Huntsville, but then I live here. I, along with a lot of other people, stay here after retirement. As far as I'm concerned, the Huntsville/Madison area is the nicest place in the state. Baldwin County is nice to visit for the beach, but wouldn't want to live there. It's booming though so a lot of people must want to call it home.

Since you're military, Huntsville has the huge Redstone Arsenal that has several Army commands, NASA, and now the FBI. There aren't many active military any longer (there used to be missile schools, but I think those are gone), but there's a pretty nice PX and commissary.

Huntsville has a pretty major airport (for Alabama); it's the second largest in the state. From Baldwin County, Pensacola would be the nearest and most accessible. Mobile has one, but commercial traffic is pretty low, probably because of Pensacola.

Huntsville is a huge, sprawled out suburban area with a small downtown for the population, but downtown is really nice and getting a lot bigger and nicer, and in a hurry. One drawback is the lack of decent roadways (only one Interstate spur), but just about everywhere thinks their roads are inadequate so nothing new there.

What it boils down to is what you want. The two are about 350 miles apart, one in the very north of the state and the other on the coast. Climates are quite a bit different, but both are hot and humid in the summer - not as hot as Phoenix, but a lot more humid. Air conditioning is a must.

Huntsville/Madison County is booming to be in Alabama. The rate of growth is nothing like Austin, Texas, but still fast. Lots and lots (about 8000) apartments are being built along with 4000 or so single-family houses each year.

You mentioned you are a registered nurse - I just spent two days in Huntsville Hospital, and the staff there coud not be nicer or more competent. The hospital is large (about 1000 beds), they have a great heart center, and is the trauma center for the city. There are several affiliated hospitals in north Alabama (I think about 13) so there is continuity if you're in an outlying area. Crestwood is another hospital that people seem to like, and Madison Hospital is a branch of Huntsville Hospital. Not really many hospitals for a place with a population of 400,000 or so but they're good ones. There's no doubt you could get a job on day 1.