Best Beach towns (Ocean City, Hampton, Chesapeake Beach: real estate, salary, living)

[rdugirl]

RN, in my mid 40's thinking of relocating from Raleigh, NC to beach in either MD or DE. Any advice appreciated. Looking for a place that has vibrant downtown, not 100% touristy, walkable and close to hospitals.

[HandsUpThumbsDown]

All are pretty touristy. Downtown Lewes DE might be a good bet.

[Pilgrim21784]

Hmmnn, anything big enough to have a vibrant downtown is very likely to be a huge tourist spot. OC & Rehoboth get inundated that way. Just about any beach town location will have the same or similar issues in season, its hard to avoid.

You can find "nooks" outside the towns' proper where all year round living may be more bearable. I'd also post on the Delaware board (if you already haven't) for opinions.

Suggest you first key on hospital locations, then commuting distance limits and that should give you a final search parameter for possible housing/town location(s).

[CelticViking]

Bethany Beach?...not that it has a "vibrant" downtown necessarily...but it is centrally located to different areas. I think its a great place.

[Enzo_Guy]

Chesapeake Beach in Calvert County maybe. Maryland doesn't really have any major beach towns that aren't tourist hotspots. If you want a smaller, Southern hometown kind of feel check into places along the coast south of Anne Arundel County. Otherwise, if you want a larger town bordering on small city kind of thing on the beach, look elsewhere.

[diplomat74]

St Michaels Maryland one of Marylands best bay towns offers a good alternative. They call in the "Hamptons of the Chesapeake"

[CelticViking]

I was thinking ocean front when i answered. St Michaels is a great choice...Oxford is very nice too...not as vibrant of a downtown however.

[donie1]

I would think any beach area over the Eastern Shore but for the OP, what is vibrant to you? There are some places that are touristy and if they aren't then there's not much vibrant downtown area. I don't think you can get both - not touristy and vibrant downtown.

[(-)]

Originally Posted by diplomat74

St Michaels Maryland one of Marylands best bay towns offers a good alternative. They call in the "Hamptons of the Chesapeake"

st. michaels is great but i doubt you'd get any real estate on a RN salary. perhaps an RN married to an MD or an RN that happens to have a JD. st. michaels is expensive, especially on the water.

[ardita]

We are also leaving landlocked RDU for water/beach of DE/VA/MD. Lewes, DE is charming and affordable and not so touristy as Rehobeth or Ocean City, MD. Bethany Beach, DE sweet but may be too underwhelming. Great for summer family time.