Top 10 things to do in Knoxville & surrounding areas (Oak Ridge: low crime, neighborhoods) - Tennessee (TN) - City-Data Forum

where_to_move · 11-16-2006, 12:50 PM

Hi there: For all that live or have spent time in Knoxville...
Could you list your top 10 or top however many...for things to do in & around Knoxville?
I have seen this on other state forums & it seems to be very helpful!
Thanks in advance~~~~

where_to_move · 11-17-2006, 05:15 PM

since no one has posted anything yet...
I can at least start it...although I haven't been there...just can say a few from word of mouth.
1. go to a UTenn football game.
2. Pigeon Ford/Gatlinburg
3. Smokey Mountains...

Anything else anyone???

futureVol · 11-17-2006, 05:22 PM

Tennessee Smokies baseball game

jmarkey · 11-18-2006, 05:09 AM

Although there's an awful lot to do outside of Knoxville, the city itself has plenty to keep you busy.

1. The Knoxville Zoo

2. The Star of Knoxville riverboat. Scenic tours or dinner cruises

3. Mast General Store opened recently downtown. I haven't made it down there yet, but it's tops on my list of Things to Get To.

4. Ijams Nature Center.

5. The Dogwood Festival. We missed this by a couple of weeks when we moved here and it sounds great. Next spring.....

6. Market Square and the downtown area are a great place to wander around for the day.

7. If you're a shopper, Turkey Creek has too much to list here. A stop at Mimi's Cafe for breakfast or lunch is not to be missed.

8. More greenways and parks than you can shake a stick at. Leash up the dog and start walking!

windycity82 · 10-18-2007, 09:16 AM

Hello,

My parents (nearing retirement age) are looking at possibly moving south. I'm a newcomer to the region too (Greenville, S.C.) so I don't know too much about the cities they're considering. Could anyone who's moved around a lot or traveled a lot in the South give an opinion on the best overall place to live between Knoxville, Nashville, Charlotte, Raleigh, etc.? Please feel free to mention other good cities if I'm forgetting any. They probably don't want to go farther south than Tennessee. I thought Knoxville might be a good possibility for them, but I'm reading a lot of negative and very little positive, so that's disenchanting. Schools are not an issue for them, so the main points would be low crime, lots of things to see and do, nearby recreation, etc. Thanks!

JMT · 10-18-2007, 10:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by windycity82

Hello,

My parents (nearing retirement age) are looking at possibly moving south. I'm a newcomer to the region too (Greenville, S.C.) so I don't know too much about the cities they're considering. Could anyone who's moved around a lot or traveled a lot in the South give an opinion on the best overall place to live between Knoxville, Nashville, Charlotte, Raleigh, etc.? Please feel free to mention other good cities if I'm forgetting any. They probably don't want to go farther south than Tennessee. I thought Knoxville might be a good possibility for them, but I'm reading a lot of negative and very little positive, so that's disenchanting. Schools are not an issue for them, so the main points would be low crime, lots of things to see and do, nearby recreation, etc. Thanks!

I'm not sure what you mean when you say that you're reading a lot of negative and very little positive about Knoxville. If you're referring to this forum, keep in mind that it's pretty much just 1 or 2 people who are saying negative things; the rest of us who post about the Knoxville area love it here and say so in our posts. Also keep in mind that the one person who seems to post nothing but negative posts about Knoxville happens to live here, so if it's really as bad as he says, surely he would've moved away by now.

At any rate, what kinds of activities do your parents enjoy? Knoxville certainly has a lot to do. We're close to the Smoky Mountains and to several large lakes.

Otherwise, I don't know that Knoxville offers any more or less to do than the other cities you mentioned; they all have museums, touring Broadway shows, live theater, historic neighborhoods, golf courses, outdoor festivals, large shopping malls, excellent medical care, etc.

Knoxville's crime rate is probably lower than the other cities you mentioned, particularly Charlotte and Nashville. But you can look up crime rates here at city-data.com and check out for yourself. There are some neighborhoods in Knoxville with more crime than others, of course. But over all, the crime rate here is pretty good for a big city.

One thing to keep in mind, however, is the airport situation. If your parents enjoy traveling, they might not want to live in Knoxville. While our airport is nice and is VERY easy to navigate, air fares are probably double what you'd pay out of Nashville or Raleigh. Charlotte generally has high fares, too, thanks to the near-monopoly of USAir there.

knoxgarden · 10-18-2007, 12:40 PM

I'm semi-retired in Knoxville and love it. Plenty to do, easy to do things -- don't have to sit in traffic or worry about huge crowds. Lots of good restaurants. Very hard to be bored here.
I love taking classes at the University of Tennessee. They have dramatically reduced rates for those over 60 and/or disabled.
Adult Student Services at The University of Tennessee (broken link)
I've taken classes in interior design, pottery, and right now I'm taking forensic anthropology and there are a couple of retirees in it, along with younger students. I'm really enjoying my second chance at an education.
There are a lot of very active older people around. Knoxville seems to give them a second wind. A lot of interesting volunteer opportunities. Medical facilities are excellent and people are very friendly.
The airport can be an issue but I don't fly much. Car travel is very easy.

gemkeeper · 10-18-2007, 04:48 PM

I remember you mentioning a month or so back that you were going to take the forensic anthropology class, knoxgarden. Sounds very interesting. Glad you made it.

Looking forward to doing the same myself next fall in as many disciplines as I can manage.

The UT Adult Ed website should help you out a lot, windycity. Also, search for the post from LauraC titled "101 Things to do in East Tennessee" published by the Oak Ridger newspaper. Great list of wonderful attractions for any age. It will give you and your folks a view of what they may enjoy in E. TN. The whole thread is a treasure trove of things to do and see in TN.

Continue reading threads that seem to talk about Tennessee's appeal and offerings and you will learn a lot very quickly about the area. You might want to move yourself!

tsimmu · 10-18-2007, 06:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by windycity82

Hello,

My parents (nearing retirement age) are looking at possibly moving south. I'm a newcomer to the region too (Greenville, S.C.) so I don't know too much about the cities they're considering. Could anyone who's moved around a lot or traveled a lot in the South give an opinion on the best overall place to live between Knoxville, Nashville, Charlotte, Raleigh, etc.? Please feel free to mention other good cities if I'm forgetting any. They probably don't want to go farther south than Tennessee. I thought Knoxville might be a good possibility for them, but I'm reading a lot of negative and very little positive, so that's disenchanting. Schools are not an issue for them, so the main points would be low crime, lots of things to see and do, nearby recreation, etc. Thanks!

Hmm, you don't say from where they're moving but since they don't want to be too far south what about KY -- Lexington? or VA -- Roanoke? Richmond?

windycity82 · 10-20-2007, 11:43 AM

Thanks! Interesting stuff -- I'm especially glad to hear about the variety of continuing ed classes. I will continue reading more posts.