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just when looking at numbers-Seattle's climate appears more comfortable year-round. MA gets pretty hot in the summer on bad days. And way too icy/snowy. Bike lanes get jammed full of snow and sleet for months on end by snowplows.
I've lived outside of both- Bellevue and Cambridge (and further suburbs)- like some other posters in this forum.
Access to nature and better nature, is substantially better around Seattle. Nothing like it to me, outside of SLC and Denver. Wake up, brush teeth, starbucks, drive east.
But there are far more, and far better cities and towns 20-30 minutes outside of Boston - coastal, inland, and commercial hubs. This goes for both inner ring cities and suburbs, as well as further reaching commuter suburbs. Just more, nicer and more accessible in Boston.
I notice a lot of folks making this a Seattle vs. Boston debate. I don't think it's supposed to be that.
OP, when it comes to suburbs and near neighborhoods, Boston is certainly a step up from Seattle. Seattle doesn't really have an answer to all of the cities and towns that you'd find unique and might be a fit. Not a shot at Seattle, but when Redmond and Sammamish are two of your gold plated cities/suburbs, it doesn't make me feel super excited about the MSA. Kirkland, to me, is the crown jewel suburb, but I digress..
When it comes down to moderate weather and the types of nature you'll utilize, nobody's opinion matters except for yours. If that's what you prefer, that debate is settled. The only thing you'll really miss out on is summers in Eastern Massachusetts. To me, that is nearly irreplaceable. We spent our time down the Cape, on the Islands, in Northern New England. I like the water/boating/fishing culture, with so many towns and cities to explore. But, winters are dreadful if you don't like snow and cold. A tradeoff I made (and still make, for now).
Boston has better, nicer suburbs no doubt. A lot of Seattle suburbs are either generic or sketchy, But Seattle does have some interesting cities and suburbs in its metro area: Tacoma, Kirkland, Edmonds, Bainbridge Island, Bellevue, and several others. Also, if you're willing to travel an hour+, you've got nice towns like Bellingham, La Conner, Mt. Vernon, Olympia, Roslyn, etc.
Seattle wins for weekend trip destinations nearby: Olympic National Park, San Juan Islands, Leavenworth Bavarian Village, Whidbey Island, Mt. Rainier, Victoria, Vancouver, Portland, Astoria, Cannon Beach, Wine Country (Walla Walla), Methow Valley/Winthrop. You have a pretty awesome, diverse array of options for a weekend trip from Seattle that I'm not sure Boston can match.
And the water/boating/fishing culture I'd argue is stronger in Seattle than Boston. It has the top maritime culture in the country, from my experience.
Last edited by PolarSeltzer; 08-11-2021 at 05:22 PM..
The real feel in Boston today and tomorrow and friday is supposed to be 99 103 and 103. Eastern MA summers are nice but it's still pretty humid IMO. Much better than Bmore though. And seemingly less rainy than NJ.
Real feel in Lowell will reach 109, 105 in Brockton and 106 in Quincy
Seattle suburbs got up to 115 earlier this summer, with Seattle hitting 108. The last 5 or 6 years or so, Seattle's summers have been much hotter with average temps being in the 80s - and it's brutal because air conditioning is extremely rare! And then you've got an average of 1-2 weeks of unsafe, smoky air over the last few years.
Basically - Seattle summers aren't as great as they used to be. I honestly much prefer summers in Minneapolis (where I live most of the time) in recent years.
Seattle suburbs got up to 115 earlier this summer, with Seattle hitting 108. The last 5 or 6 years or so, Seattle's summers have been much hotter with average temps being in the 80s - and it's brutal because air conditioning is extremely rare! And then you've got an average of 1-2 weeks of unsafe, smoky air over the last few years.
Basically - Seattle summers aren't as great as they used to be. I honestly much prefer summers in Minneapolis (where I live most of the time) in recent years.
Yeah it hasn't been great this summer. It was warm in my apartment last night because some teenagers were being loud outside so I had to close the window to sleep, and all I have is a fan. I imagine A/C units will be standard in new apartments starting in the next few years, and (of course) poorer people will have less access to cooling.
Incidentally, I just came from Minnesota. The area around Duluth reminded me of the Oregon coast --- it was foggy and cool, with abundant coniferous trees, hills, houses along the water, older architecture, and a lot of shipping.
Boston has better, nicer suburbs no doubt. A lot of Seattle suburbs are either generic or sketchy, But Seattle does have some interesting cities and suburbs in its metro area: Tacoma, Kirkland, Edmonds, Bainbridge Island, Bellevue, and several others. Also, if you're willing to travel an hour+, you've got nice towns like Bellingham, La Conner, Mt. Vernon, Olympia, Roslyn, etc.
Seattle wins for weekend trip destinations nearby: Olympic National Park, San Juan Islands, Leavenworth Bavarian Village, Whidbey Island, Mt. Rainier, Victoria, Vancouver, Portland, Astoria, Cannon Beach, Wine Country (Walla Walla), Methow Valley/Winthrop. You have a pretty awesome, diverse array of options for a weekend trip from Seattle that I'm not sure Boston can match.
And the water/boating/fishing culture I'd argue is stronger in Seattle than Boston. It has the top maritime culture in the country, from my experience.
Depends what you’re looking for in a weekend trip… New York City is a very manageable weekend trip from Boston..ocean beaches, islands, mountains all nearby..Seattle may win on outdoor weekend trips but Boston is no slouch..I’d say Boston wins on nearby cities
just when looking at numbers-Seattle's climate appears more comfortable year-round. MA gets pretty hot in the summer on bad days. And way too icy/snowy. Bike lanes get jammed full of snow and sleet for months on end by snowplows.
Seattle's hotest was over 12 degrees hotter than Boston's this year.
Seattle suburbs got up to 115 earlier this summer, with Seattle hitting 108. The last 5 or 6 years or so, Seattle's summers have been much hotter with average temps being in the 80s - and it's brutal because air conditioning is extremely rare! And then you've got an average of 1-2 weeks of unsafe, smoky air over the last few years.
Basically - Seattle summers aren't as great as they used to be. I honestly much prefer summers in Minneapolis (where I live most of the time) in recent years.
Yes, I'm aware of the heatwave but by and large Boston much hotter in the summer with 17 days above 90 degrees this year and most of them feel like 100 degrees. Boston is humid and less green in the city.
Seattle having a once-in-a-lifetime (literally) heatwave for 2/3 days doesn't negate the crux of Boston being significantly hotter and more humid in the summer. By a wide margin.
The average high in august in Seattle is 77, with a low of 57 lol. In February the high is 59 with a low of 38. 6 inches of snow per year....How is that not leaps and bounds better than Boston?
Yes, I'm aware of the heatwave but by and large Boston much hotter in the summer with 17 days above 90 degrees this year and most of them feel like 100 degrees. Boston is humid and less green in the city.
Seattle having a once-in-a-lifetime (literally) heatwave for 2/3 days doesn't negate the crux of Boston being significantly hotter and more humid in the summer. By a wide margin.
The average high in august in Seattle is 77, with a low of 57 lol. In February the high is 59 with a low of 38. 6 inches of snow per year....How is that not leaps and bounds better than Boston?
I'm not sticking up for Boston but the summers are nowhere near as bad as you are making them out to be. If that were the case, NYC would literally just be Florida. I hate humidity, and Boston is manageable.
In my opinion, Seattle has the better weather.. but that's a bit of an over exaggeration on Boston's summer.
Seattle's hotest was over 12 degrees hotter than Boston's this year.
Seattle's hottest this year was also several standard deviations above it's average daytime high. In general, it's in the high 70s / low 80s and dry.
EDIT: Regarding your point about humidity, the PNW is humid during the rainy season which brings up the average yearly humidity. Summers are not humid, at least during the daytime. Like, if Phoenix is a 1 and Miami is a 10, Seattle summers would be a 4 on the dry scale.
I'm not sticking up for Boston but the summers are nowhere near as bad as you are making them out to be. If that were the case, NYC would literally just be Florida. I hate humidity, and Boston is manageable.
In my opinion, Seattle has the better weather.. but that's a bit of an over exaggeration on Boston's summer.
Seattle has high humidity but is not muggy, even in the summers.
There’s a relationship between humidity, temperature and dew point and Seattle is in the Goldilocks zone where humidity might be high but it doesn’t feel very muggy. Boston is totally different. The same humidity in Boston will feel much muggier.
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