Torn between Dallas and St. Louis for March/April (neighborhood, live in)
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Go to DFW.
Dallas Arboretum has spectacular blooms in March. You can also visit the Fort Worth Botanic Garden which has a beautiful Japanese Garden. There is plenty to do in DFW...museums in both cities...the 6th Floor museum where Kennedy was shot from, the Stockyards in Fort Worth.
Weather is perfect in March. Whoever said it was summer is clueless. Do your research and plan it out.
Regarding the OP and cold weather, I can relate, and feel the same way. I lived in St. Louis for 4 years. Basically, half your year will be spent indoors near a fireplace if cold is an issue. St. Louis is real winter. When I mean real winter, tacking on humidity and snow that can be labor intensive when it comes to clearing your driveway. Another poster said St. Louis will be cheaper and your money will go a long way. That poster is also correct. There's a reason for that. Anyone who doesn't think that weather factors into COL is fooling themselves. There's a reason why New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and Missouri don't gain much population. It's not because of politics. It's weather. Most folk vote with their feet due to weather. For the most part, warm and for many, dry, is preferrable to cold. That's the price you pay for staying warmer. Sounds like rural isn't an option, as there could be bargains to be had an hour or so outside of Dallas.
St. Louis is a real gem, not necessarily downtown but some neighborhoods like The Hill are just so cool to me. St. Louis at one point was the westernmost outpost of America, I guess the San Francisco of it's day in a way. But the city in UNBELIEVABLY DANGEROUS. Do not go to North St. Louis.
Dallas I like too in other ways, I would say it's better place to live than to visit for tourist reasons. I mean of the biggest Metros LA, NYC, Chicago, SF, DFW, there's one in there that really doesn't belong.
Regarding the OP and cold weather, I can relate, and feel the same way. I lived in St. Louis for 4 years. Basically, half your year will be spent indoors near a fireplace if cold is an issue. St. Louis is real winter. When I mean real winter, tacking on humidity and snow that can be labor intensive when it comes to clearing your driveway. Another poster said St. Louis will be cheaper and your money will go a long way. That poster is also correct. There's a reason for that. Anyone who doesn't think that weather factors into COL is fooling themselves. There's a reason why New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and Missouri don't gain much population. It's not because of politics. It's weather. Most folk vote with their feet due to weather. For the most part, warm and for many, dry, is preferrable to cold. That's the price you pay for staying warmer. Sounds like rural isn't an option, as there could be bargains to be had an hour or so outside of Dallas.
I think the OP is just looking to visit that time of year, not move to.
I lived in KC for a few years which is a smidgen colder and snowier, and am quite familiar with St. Louis. Neither are terribly snowy places in the grand scheme of things.
"Half the year" is an exaggeration. I now live in Wisconsin and even here winter isn't really half the year, especially if you include the many days in October and April that can be in the 60's-70's.
March could be springtime or maybe a little chilly in Missouri. A rogue snow or ice storm is possible, but unlikely most years. In April, you're likely in the clear.
If the OP is that concerned about being cold, maybe save St. Louis for an early May or early-October trip when the weather is more likely to cooperate. Summers are fine but generally very hot.
As a place just to visit, St. Louis is a pretty cool place with plenty to do. In my opinion, it is more interesting than Dallas from a visitor's perspective. Crime isn't going to be much of an issue for a visitor unless they purposefully seek out the bad stuff.
For what it's worth, Missouri isn't really much a cold weather state and there are far colder states growing faster than it. People do move to southern MO for the warm weather and KC grows at a steady pace. Really it's mostly St. Louis being stagnant at the moment the holds the state numbers down a bit.
More than anything, people go where they go for jobs and family reasons. St. Louis needs to find ways to improve its economy.
Not everyone can or would move just to find better weather. Of course some do.
Looking for somewhere warm (I have chronic anemia, so cold weather is very harsh for me, even LA cold is too cold for me)
Looking for somewhere with good public transportation.
There is a botanical garden in St Louis, but it’s a bit early in the spring for gardens to have very much.
St. Louis is a real gem, not necessarily downtown but some neighborhoods like The Hill are just so cool to me. St. Louis at one point was the westernmost outpost of America, I guess the San Francisco of it's day in a way. But the city in UNBELIEVABLY DANGEROUS. Do not go to North St. Louis.
Since OP is from Los Angeles, I suspect they have some idea about how to stay safe in big cities. Be aware of your surroundings and companions. Don't get into risky situations. The north side is a bit notorious but there isn't a lot to draw tourists up there. There are 50 or more neighborhoods designated in St. Louis -- you can't see them all. The Hill is well known as the Italian neighborhood. Bevo Mill area is the Bosnian neighborhood. Soulard, Lafayette Square, Benton Park, Central West End, and Grand Center are all worth a visit. The Delmar Loop is worth a visit - just west of the city limits in University City.
Since OP is from Los Angeles, I suspect they have some idea about how to stay safe in big cities. Be aware of your surroundings and companions. Don't get into risky situations. The north side is a bit notorious but there isn't a lot to draw tourists up there. There are 50 or more neighborhoods designated in St. Louis -- you can't see them all. The Hill is well known as the Italian neighborhood. Bevo Mill area is the Bosnian neighborhood. Soulard, Lafayette Square, Benton Park, Central West End, and Grand Center are all worth a visit. The Delmar Loop is worth a visit - just west of the city limits in University City.
I would go further and say Delmar Loop is a must for any vistor. One of the really cool streets in this country, just don't go east of the U City/St Louis line and north.
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