Retiring to Cookeville or Crossville area? Seeking recommendations for our visit

[be8nice]

Originally Posted by JMT

If the Knoxville and Chattanooga airports have "all the connections you'll need" then why do so many people from Knoxville and Chattanooga drive to Nashville to fly? I lived in Knoxville for 12 years, and one of the things I hated most was its dinky airport with very limited service and very high fares. Chattanooga is even worse although Chattanooga is at least closer to Nashville and Atlanta.

There are 19 airlines in Nashville that fly to 72 nonstop destinations, and 8 of those are international, not just Toronto and London. Knoxville's airport has 23 destinations (none international) on 7 airlines, and Chattanooga's airport has 11 destinations (none international) on 5 airlines. For that matter, you can't even fly to the west coast out of Knoxville or Chattanooga without having to change planes somewhere which, for many of us, is not just a major inconvenience, but for the elderly or for families flying with little kids, it can be particularly aggravating.

For me and for many others, it is definitely a perk to live closer to the Nashville airport. It is very nice to hop on a plane in Nashville and not get off again until I've gotten to London or San Francisco or Los Angeles or Seattle or Salt Lake City or Portland or Boston or Calgary or San Antonio or Grand Bahamas or Montego Bay, etc. And with the strongly rumored nonstop to Paris or Amsterdam coming with Delta, flying to Europe will be even easier out of BNA. By the way, BNA is the fastest-growing major airport in the country with over 17 million annual passengers which is almost 6 times the Knoxville and Chattanooga's airports combined. Clearly, for many, many people, the airports in Chattanooga and Knoxville do NOT have "all the connections you'll need."

Modcut: Deleted rude comment

Nashville is not a major international airport, the only airport in the south that is one is Atlanta. This is true.

Nashville has more non-stops and its larger in size and volume. I never said nor made the claim that it didn't.

I searched and the several flights you speak of appear to be seasonal (non-year-round) flights to a handful of Caribbean locations. My original point stands: Nashville is not a major international airport, its a domestic airport and most its non-stops are via Southwest airlines. Southwest is not truly international, and since the original post referred to International flights, that's what I focused on. From Chattanooga or Knoxville - much smaller and easier airports to get in and out of - you have one connection to most International destinations. You hop to Atlanta or Chicago or Detroit and can then connect on. Same as Nashville, as Nashville doesn't have many International flights.

What I was trying to communicate to the original comment was that you're most likely to get anywhere within one connection at Chattanooga or Knoxville, which is true. I personally view the smaller atmosphere of the airports as a GOOD thing. You can get through security and walk to a gate much quicker the smaller an airport is, then worry about the hub congestion later when you connect on.

There's nothing I dread more than having to walk through O'Hare or Atlanta or Dulles or any of the major international hubs. I've been through all of them in my life and they're all a pain and over-congested.

Now that the original question poster has multiple views, they can make their own mind up. Its all good, either way.

[JMT]

Originally Posted by RResearch

I know we can't totally replicate our current VA town in TN, but we'd love to have:
- small town feel
- must be an older home with character; no new construction or cookie-cutter subdivision
- about an hour to an international airport, as we do a lot of international travel
- proximity to high quality medical care
- availability of activities - small towns to visit, antique/flea markets, festivals, etc. If possible we'd also like to have the ability to take classes (things like art, tai chi, gardening, book clubs, auditing college classes...).
- 60-90 min from a city with bigger cultural activities (rock concerts, art shows, etc)
- proximity to a small local airport would be ideal, as my spouse is a pilot

Originally Posted by be8nice

[color="Red"]Nashville is not a major international airport

The OP did not ask for a major international airport, just an international airport. Nashville is an international airport with 8 international destinations, and the airport is building a brand new international concourse so it can have even more. Southwest, which is beefing up its Nashville service, has destinations in 11 countries and will likely add additional international service out of BNA once that concourse is completed.
(Southwest currently flies from BNA to Cancún.) In addition, Delta recently upgraded Nashville to one of its "focus cities" which means even more international service is likely. Knoxville and Chattanooga do not have any nonstop international destinations. The chances of BNA getting more international destinations are almost certain. The chances of TYS or CHA getting any international flights at all are very, very slim.

For those of us who like to fly, Cookeville's proximity to BNA is a definite perk.