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Keep in mind that everyone's preferences are going to be subjective, but I'd select Austin, by a mile, on everything except perhaps for weather/climate.
I'm a "city" guy. Austin has a thriving "Downtown" area with tall buildings, a lively sidewalk/street scene, walkability, etc.
Irvine's "Downtown" area, which I consider to be in/around Main Street & Von Karman, feels like a spread apart office park catering to cars first and people second.
That's not to put Irvine down, but it's just two completely different environments. Irvine, outside of those mid-rise buildings like Oracle and Wells Fargo, feels like a giant suburb whereas much more of Austin feels like a city.
Both cities are very car-dependent; however, I feel like Austin has taken better strides to cater to cyclists and pedestrians.
I never thought I would see these two cities matched up. I would go with Austin all the way unless your absolute main concern was climate. Otherwise they couldn't be more different. One is a major city and the other is pretty much an office and entertainment hub of greater Orange County. Irvine was nothing but strawberry fields until the 70's and therefore everything feels too new and sterile. It is the safest city of its size in the country however and nearby schools are great. You have plenty of amenities in neighboring cities and counties and also some amazing beaches very closeby.
But if we're comparingn actual city limits, then Austin all the way.
Apples to oranges. (Irvine the college-suburb of L.A. right?)
But here it is:
Weather & traffic: Irvine
Everything else: Austin, by a mile.
Irvine is so far south, it's almost hard to call it a suburb of Los Angeles.
If you like super pre-fab suburban areas, then Irvine is your choice. It doesn't even have a single "walkable" street, at least as far as I know. Even in notoriously sprawly Orange County, it is one of the few cities that is 100 percent catering to the car.
One thing I have noticed about these California exurbs (thinking Thousand Oaks, Mission Viejo, Irvine, Carlsbad, Santa Clarita) is that the massive, freeway-esque roads almost always have bike lanes.
Irvine is so far south, it's almost hard to call it a suburb of Los Angeles.
If you like super pre-fab suburban areas, then Irvine is your choice. It doesn't even have a single "walkable" street, at least as far as I know. Even in notoriously sprawly Orange County, it is one of the few cities that is 100 percent catering to the car.
One thing I have noticed about these California exurbs (thinking Thousand Oaks, Mission Viejo, Irvine, Carlsbad, Santa Clarita) is that the massive, freeway-esque roads almost always have bike lanes.
Irvine is a pedestrian wasteland. NO ONE walks. Well, except in the Irvine Spectrum (nice shopping/entertainment center). Also, Irvine is notorious for having a "police state" vibe (i.e. the "Orange Curtain"). It's pretty much the most sterile and pristine suburb in the United States.
I'm not bashing Irvine, however. If you like suburbia, it doesn't get any better than Irvine. Rich, perfect (in the suburban sense of the word), a police department that snuffs out anyone who even gives off a whiff of "shady-ness," a great university, and a twenty-minutes drive to Newport Beach.
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