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I've heard from several people that Austin and Denver are very similar to each other in terms of vibe, restaurants and bars, condo housing designs, and urban ideas. I wonder if people on here have the same opinion?
Denver is much more of a sprawling, midwestern city.
We're looking to relocate and are debating between these 3 cities. We were both raised in NYC. Early 40's, no kids, I'm in accounting and he's in hospitality. Looking to live in a really quiet suburb or part of the city regardless of which one we choose with mid to low crime. Also job growth and healthcare are important factors. Help!
I don't have any direct familiarity with Las Vegas, but from what I've read, it is weak on health care. Also, it tends to have more of a boom-bust economy than the other two cities you mention. I think it should be either Austin or Denver.
To give a little more insight into what we do outside of work, it's movies, hiking, visiting parks, dining, and concerts. My husband wants warmer weather, whereas I'm fine with temperate and can handle cold. Traffic is with any major city. We're looking to leave NYC because while yes there's no shortage of things to do and the transit system is convenient, we're looking to slow down a bit, relax, have some quiet and more scenery. We're also looking for a better QOL because here the expensive rent just gets you a roof over your head and no amenities.
To give a little more insight into what we do outside of work, it's movies, hiking, visiting parks, dining, and concerts. My husband wants warmer weather, whereas I'm fine with temperate and can handle cold. Traffic is with any major city. We're looking to leave NYC because while yes there's no shortage of things to do and the transit system is convenient, we're looking to slow down a bit, relax, have some quiet and more scenery. We're also looking for a better QOL because here the expensive rent just gets you a roof over your head and no amenities.
You are focusing now more on the "relaxing and scenery" part, so you need to elaborate more in that area. Obviously, those three cities vary significantly as to environment, so clarifying in this area should help narrow the focus.
LV obviously is very dry, which limits vegetation / forests, and which can take getting used to (skin, sinuses), and will be mostly hot, with cool nights. Since it's a desert, most of your activities will be confined to LV itself. Denver is also dry, higher in elevation (less oxygen, more exposed to UV radiation), and you'd basically have mountains and foothills. As with LV, there isn't much in the way of lakes and water sports. You'd also have snow, though it'd be less than NY. Austin has hot and humid summers, and mild winters, with little snow to contend with. There is more greenery and lushness there than LV or Denver, with lakes nearby. There's also more geographic diversity within hours drives, including a coast. It's also a huge music city, with lots of live music.
But still, you're coming from NY. I'd think somewhere in the east would be less culture shock and more familiar / welcoming.
Last edited by Thoreau424; 08-23-2019 at 11:31 AM..
You are focusing now more on the "relaxing and scenery" part, so you need to elaborate more in that area. Obviously, those three cities vary significantly as to environment, so clarifying in this area should help narrow the focus.
LV obviously is very dry, which limits vegetation / forests, and which can take getting used to (skin, sinuses), and will be mostly hot, with cool nights. Since it's a desert, most of your activities will be confined to LV itself. Denver is also dry, higher in elevation (less oxygen, more exposed to UV radiation), and you'd basically have mountains and foothills. As with LV, there isn't much in the way of lakes and water sports. You'd also have snow, though it'd be less than NY. Austin has hot and humid summers, and mild winters, with little snow to contend with. There is more greenery and lushness there than LV or Denver, with lakes nearby. There's also more geographic diversity within hours drives, including a coast. It's also a huge music city, with lots of live music.
But still, you're coming from NY. I'd think somewhere in the east would be less culture shock and more familiar / welcoming.
We're trying to avoid the east coast because of the humidity which is wreaking havoc on my arthritis. For relaxing and scenery, I mean we want a place where we live is quiet, but within an hour we can be in say a different type of scenery. My husband loves water and mountains to be specific. I figure with LV, we can always drive to Cali if needed. We've been to LV. Never been to Denver or Austin, but I have been to Dallas.
We're trying to avoid the east coast because of the humidity which is wreaking havoc on my arthritis. For relaxing and scenery, I mean we want a place where we live is quiet, but within an hour we can be in say a different type of scenery. My husband loves water and mountains to be specific. I figure with LV, we can always drive to Cali if needed. We've been to LV. Never been to Denver or Austin, but I have been to Dallas.
Humidity exists more than in just the east; it's certainly in the north and south as well. Austin is on the edge of where the humid changes in the state, with areas to the west becoming quite dry. As for quiet, you could find that aways from each of the three cities, but again, each will vary considerably in how that will look. Just keep in mind that if your husband "loves water", that will tend to exclude drier areas. So there's a bit of a conflict in preferences.
To really consider the two cities you haven't been to, you'd really need to see them up close and personal. There's no way to fully convey them over the internet.
We're trying to avoid the east coast because of the humidity which is wreaking havoc on my arthritis. For relaxing and scenery, I mean we want a place where we live is quiet, but within an hour we can be in say a different type of scenery. My husband loves water and mountains to be specific. I figure with LV, we can always drive to Cali if needed. We've been to LV. Never been to Denver or Austin, but I have been to Dallas.
Austin is humid. It may not be Gulf Coast humid, but it isn't dry, and the landmass of Texas doesn't get truly dry until you get beyond the 100th Meridian (which, not coincidentally, is the eastern border of the Texas panhandle).
Quote:
Originally Posted by Thoreau424
Austin has hot and humid summers, and mild winters, with little snow to contend with. There is more greenery and lushness there than LV or Denver, with lakes nearby. There's also more geographic diversity within hours drives, including a coast. It's also a huge music city, with lots of live music.
Austin is definitely greener than Denver and Vegas, but compared to the northeast I think lush is a stretch. The Hill Country isn't exactly enchanted forest-esque. The vegetation is pretty squat, and it can be sparse depending on where you are. Once you get east of I-35, Austin looks like the Great Plains between Lincoln and Omaha. Due to the summertime heat the whole area browns up nicely from July-February.
I've repeatedly given Austin the nod for water recreation. It has a lot of that, but for camping and hiking give me Denver. No contest.
For hiking - the trails around Austin are fair, but the Hill Country doesn't have enough elevation to make a difference when it's 95 degrees outside. Conversely, if it's too hot in Denver just go into the mountains. Idaho Springs and Georgetown are only 35-50 mins west of Denver, but they're 2,000 and 3,000 feet higher than Denver and typically 15-20 degrees cooler. There are literally thousands of miles of hiking trails within a 1 to 2 hour drive of Denver. The state of Colorado has 54-58 mountain peaks above 14,000' (depending on how you measure them) and another 600 over 13,000'. There aren't any mountains in Texas within 5 hours of Austin, and the mountains Texas does have aren't much higher than the first set of foothills west of Denver.
I'd take the camping at places like Mueller State Park, Golden Gate Canyon State Park, or Steamboat Lake State Park over pretty much anything in the eastern third of Texas - especially in the middle of summer. Try tent camping around Austin in July when it's near 100 during the day and around 80 overnight. Have fun with that. Bring plenty of water, and have the gold bond ready for your taint sweat. I suppose the same argument could be made for camping in the Colorado high country in January, but most people camp between Memorial Day and Labor Day, and the weather's far more conducive to it around Denver than it is around Austin.
Austin has a fantastic local/regional music scene for sure, but when it comes to attracting national tours (or in the case of Vegas residencies), it's behind the other two cities because of its proximity to San Antonio, Houston, and DFW.
Billy Joel, Zac Brown Band, Jason Aldean, Stevie Wonder, Dave Matthews Band, Diana Ross, Garth Brooks, and the Rolling Stones all have had or will have tour dates in Denver this year. How many of them have Austin on their calendar? Zero. Denver also has Red Rocks Amphitheater - one of the Top 5/10 outdoor performance venues in the world. No place in Austin or Vegas even comes close.
That being said, to Thoreau's point, the OP should visit Austin and Denver. Do Austin in July/August and Denver in January to get a feel for the extremes of the weather.
Last edited by bluescreen73; 08-23-2019 at 04:43 PM..
Have you also considered Phoenix? It's going to be similar temperatures to Las Vegas but much less humid than Austin and warmer of course than Denver.
- There's a lot of hospitality in Scottsdale, Carefree, Cave Creek and Paradise Valley but unlike Vegas it's not gambling-centric so you don't get the same smoke infested mega-resorts, it's more of an upscale and peaceful retreat for families coming from colder climates basically from October-May or so.
- Phoenix is also a much larger economy than both Vegas and Austin, offering many more accounting opportunities to work in.
- All 4 major pro sports teams play here along with power conference NCAA sports at ASU, there's no shortage of events to go see, be it concerts, major sporting events such as the Phoenix open, national car shows, horse shows, and regular stops for the super bowl and final 4.
- Like Denver, if it's too warm in Phoenix you can drive about an hour to the high country and be in Payson or Prescott at 90 minutes.
- There's a plethora of hiking both immediately surrounding the city, through one of the dozen or so mountain preserves and just a short pop up to the high country and you're hiking in completely different terrain.
Of the 3 you listed I'd probably take Las Vegas, as I'm not a fan of the humidity levels Austin has and the long lasting winter Denver has. When I see chances of snow from October through May I'm not too excited.
It's ok in small doses, but to actually live there? No way.
What causes you to say that?
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