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Dude, I was responding to Akenaton06 saying that I must have been in the government district not uptown..get it?
Last time I went, it was around 2005. I was near the Marriott city center on N Tryon Street. It was a Saturady afternoon and as I said the place looked dead. Perhaps things have changed since then, I don't know. But there is still no way you can compare Charlotte to Miami in terms of excitement and lifestyle...after all Miami is a playground for the rich and famous. A more likely match up would be with Charleston SC, a different sort of city, I know. Still I would choose Charleston over Charlotte any day of the week. So would most people I know. Sorry.
Dude, I was responding to Akenaton06 saying that I must have been in the government district not uptown..get it?
Last time I went, it was around 2005. I was near the Marriott city center on N Tryon Street. It was a Saturady afternoon and as I said the place looked dead. Perhaps things have changed since then, I don't know. But there is still no way you can compare Charlotte to Miami in terms of excitement and lifestyle...after all Miami is a playground for the rich and famous. A more likely match up would be with Charleston SC, a different sort of city, I know. Still I would choose Charleston over Charlotte any day of the week. So would most people I know. Sorry.
OK, first of all, Charlotte has added tons of things uptown since 2005 (ie light rail, NBA arena, Epicentre, Ritz Carlton, W brand hotel Aloft, several condo towers, about 5,000 new uptown residents, etc).
Secondly, your bias towards Charleston is quite sad. Really it is. You won't find a Charleston vs Miami (or a Charleston vs Atlanta) thread as often as would find a Charlotte vs (tier one southern cities) thread. No offense to you (or the city you chose to live in), but Charlotte competes on a different level than Charleston. It is no surprise that Johnson & Wales University decided to close their Charleston location in order to relocate to Charlotte.
And finally, your last comment about most people (you know) choosing Charleston over Charlotte kinda shows your bias against Charlotte. Think about it dude. You live in Charleston. Therefore most folks YOU know probably live in Charleston too. For you to imply that Charleston is a more "popular" place to live in is just silly (being that more people live in the Charlotte area than Charleston).
I mean, come on. Charlotte has more folks in its city limits than Charleston has in its entire metro. Surely you can understand why your comments can not be taken seriously. If you want to be honest, Myrtle Beach is more comparable to Miami than Charleston. Your attempt to "slide" and "boost" Charleston into this thread (and at the same time knock Charlotte) ruins your credibility. I would highly suggest that you (at the least) do a night out in Charlotte on the weekend before you make any more ridiculous statements.
And just for the record (eventhough Charleston is more known for "historic" tourism than Charlotte) Charlotte is the only top 30 travel destination in the Carolinas. Miami (obviously) is a top 30 travel destination as well. Charleston (and Savannah) are not. If you don't believe me, do yourself a favor and look it up.
One last thing. If you really think Charleston caters to the rich more than Charlotte, compare Charlotte's high end retailers (South Park Mall) and hotels to Charleston's and take notice of the pattern you see. Other than Saks (Charleston has one and Charlotte does not), Charlotte has a significant edge over Charleston in this department (last time I checked).
Last edited by urbancharlotte; 09-19-2009 at 10:55 AM..
Let me just say that I think that most Charlotte people on here would agree that Charlotte is nowhere to being on the same level as Miami yet, but they are very proud of the strides and accomplishments that Charlotte has made over the last 10-15 years. 15 years ago, downtown Charlotte would shut down after 5pm, now there is something going on on any given weekend, from wed-sat nights. Now granted most bars and nightclubs still close around 2am, but that's still more than what it used to be. Charlotte is still making strides, and I believe in the next 10-15 years, Charlotte will be more of a 24 hour city. You have to remember, Rome wasn't built in a day, neither was New York, LA, Miami, or all of the other happening cities. It's going to take some, and I believe Charlotte will eventually get there.
Was that supposed to be impressive? I mean it was not bad but Miami has two (three if you include Ft. Lauderdale) late night areas that have more people than that and that is not including South Beach because only Vegas and NYC can compete with South Beach. It is more than I expected to see though but really I seen places like Madison Wisconsin as busy.
Those clips weren't posted in an attempt to prove that uptown Charlotte is more vibrant than downtown Miami, but were in response to Melchior6 who said that the last time he/she visited uptown, it was dead. Those clips show that a regular weekend night in uptown Charlotte isn't anything near dead.
Last time I went, it was around 2005. I was near the Marriott city center on N Tryon Street. It was a Saturady afternoon and as I said the place looked dead. Perhaps things have changed since then, I don't know.
Yes, much has changed in the space of four years. Uptown has added light rail, a new NBA arena, an entertainment complex (EpiCenter), more hotels, more residential, etc. The foot traffic on a Saturday afternoon in uptown won't be heavy unless something special is going on, but still decent. I'd say that Charleston would have a leg up on Charlotte is this regard, since there are more attractions and even more importantly, retail, downtown.
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Still I would choose Charleston over Charlotte any day of the week. So would most people I know. Sorry.
That's because you live in Charleston. That's not to negate anything that Charleston has going on, because it's a lot and I think that uptown Charlotte could learn from downtown Charleston in several respects. But people absolutely love the growing "big city" energy and vibe that is to be had in uptown Charlotte, which is only getting better and better--including many people from Charleston that I know who either visit sometimes or who now live here. But I don't want to turn this into a "Charleston vs. Charlotte" debate; just wanted to point out that uptown Charlotte is definitely a significant center of activity.
Hey Urban, I seriously think you should run for mayor of Charlotte LOL. Anyway, There has been some crazy comparisons on city data lately comparing much smaller cities to very large cities. I think this thread was started out of boredom more than Charlotte being important enough to compare to Miami. Heck, I think Tampa is a better comparison to Miami than Charlotte(The location, climate and beaches Urbancharlotte). These vs. threads are getting old because, it seems like every city has been compared to each other.
Hey Urban, I seriously think you should run for mayor of Charlotte LOL. Anyway, There has been some crazy comparisons on city data lately comparing much smaller cities to very large cities. I think this thread was started out of boredom more than Charlotte being important enough to compare to Miami. Heck, I think Tampa is a better comparison to Miami than Charlotte(The location, climate and beaches Urbancharlotte). These vs. threads are getting old because, it seems like every city has been compared to each other.
Well, I personally take all Charlotte comparisons seriously. Whether the town is larger or smaller than Charlotte, I take the thread seriously.
Charlotte has been compared to places like Atlanta and Omaha. And both times, I took the thread seriously. I don't get offended when Charlotte is compared to smaller cities (and you will see that I am one of few Charlotte posters that take smaller city comparisons to Charlotte seriously).
I am a well traveled poster (seen the entire lower 48). I KNOW what America looks like from personal travel experience (and NOT just internet pictures). If I gave my "real" opinion of some of the "big city" attitudes on city-data, I think some folks might end up with their feelings hurt.
The truth is that cities like Charlotte are MUCH closer comparisons to cities like Miami (and Atlanta) than Miami and Atlanta are to cities like Chicago and NYC.
Miami is more international and dense than Charlotte/Atlanta, but it is still not a Chicago or NYC. It just isn't. As already stated by a poster from St. Louis, Miami and Atlanta are NOT top tier US cities (as much as their boosters would like us to believe that they are). They are ONLY tier 1 SOUTHERN cities.
And for the last time, I am not a guy trying to "boost" Charlotte beyond its level. If that were the case, I would only post words (words=lies) instead of videos (Videos = truth).
These are NOT "doctored up" professional videos taken by some actor that was hired by Charlotte's convention and visitor's bureau. It was taken by me (a southern raised "regular Joe" from Charlotte). I do not expect ANYTHING from my videos but to educate those that post many words (ie, many lies) about Charlotte. Plain and simple.
In other words, if you are one of those people that enjoy calling Charlotte "dead", there will be a video (and picture links) posted that makes a liar out of you. It is what it is.
Last edited by urbancharlotte; 09-19-2009 at 12:33 PM..
OK, first of all, Charlotte has added tons of things uptown since 2005 (ie light rail, NBA arena, Epicentre, Ritz Carlton, W brand hotel Aloft, several condo towers, about 5,000 new uptown residents, etc).
Secondly, your bias towards Charleston is quite sad. Really it is. You won't find a Charleston vs Miami (or a Charleston vs Atlanta) thread as often as would find a Charlotte vs (tier one southern cities) thread. No offense to you (or the city you chose to live in), but Charlotte competes on a different level than Charleston. It is no surprise that Johnson & Wales University decided to close their Charleston location in order to relocate to Charlotte.
And finally, your last comment about most people (you know) choosing Charleston over Charlotte kinda shows your bias against Charlotte. Think about it dude. You live in Charleston. Therefore most folks YOU know probably live in Charleston too. For you to imply that Charleston is a more "popular" place to live in is just silly (being that more people live in the Charlotte area than Charleston).
I mean, come on. Charlotte has more folks in its city limits than Charleston has in its entire metro. Surely you can understand why your comments can not be taken seriously. If you want to be honest, Myrtle Beach is more comparable to Miami than Charleston. Your attempt to "slide" and "boost" Charleston into this thread (and at the same time knock Charlotte) ruins your credibility. I would highly suggest that you (at the least) do a night out in Charlotte on the weekend before you make any more ridiculous statements.
And just for the record (eventhough Charleston is more known for "historic" tourism than Charlotte) Charlotte is the only top 30 travel destination in the Carolinas. Miami (obviously) is a top 30 travel destination as well. Charleston (and Savannah) are not. If you don't believe me, do yourself a favor and look it up.
One last thing. If you really think Charleston caters to the rich more than Charlotte, compare Charlotte's high end retailers (South Park Mall) and hotels to Charleston's and take notice of the pattern you see. Other than Saks (Charleston has one and Charlotte does not), Charlotte has a significant edge over Charleston in this department (last time I checked).
As far as trying to "slide and boost Charleston into this thread", guilty as charged! Sure Charlotte is a larger and more important city in terms of business and industry. And obviously Charlotte has more people because of more job opportunities etc. Not because it is better liked...puh-lease! Lol. But with regard to my tastes, as far as a place to live I much prefer charming and scenic Charleston with its many beaches, elegant historic homes and abundance of upscale restaurants etc. Charleston has ambiance, style and class, something Charlotte can't touch upon. If you think Charlotte beats Charleston as a major tourist destination, it is you who needs to look it up. Tourism is a major industry in Charleston. What in the world would people come to see in Charlotte, pray tell?
To be fair Charlotte is growing at a fast rate and has quite a bit of potential but for those who are financially set or enjoying retirement, a warmer more beautiful historic town by the coast is bound to have more appeal..
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Sure Charlotte is a larger and more important city in terms of business and industry. And obviously Charlotte has more people because of more job opportunities etc. Not because it is better liked...puh-lease! Lol. But with regard to my tastes, as far as a place to live I much prefer charming and scenic Charleston with its many beaches, elegant historic homes and abundance of upscale restaurants etc. Charleston has ambiance, style and class, something Charlotte can't touch upon. If you think Charlotte beats Charleston as a major tourist destination, it is you who needs to look it up. Tourism is a major industry in Charleston. What in the world would people come to see in Charlotte, pray tell? 
