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Charlotte has more to do because it is a larger city. I personally don't find Raleigh that exciting, but I think it has a lot of potential as a city. I could never live there though.
Oh please, that same old tired "Raleigh doesn't have nightlife" proclamation?
Here's a list for the OP since the OP falls into the Millenial category.
Any list that recommends Detroit, Cleveland, and Albuquerque as desirable for young people is suspect.. Especially if their rationale is "high crime never stopped young people before".. I also laughed at the reference to growth of STEM jobs in Detroit...
Don't listen to the silly list and for the love of God don't read the other Raleeigh vs. CLT thread
The cool thing about Charlotte is sports also. In uptown you have Charlotte Knights, Charlotte Checkers, Charlotte Hornets & The Panthers and the Major league Lacrosse Charlotte hounds and we'll probably have MLS here sooner than later also with the name QCSC (Queen City Soccer Club).
We're able to host large events Such as the DNC which scored great reviews. In a couple years we'll have a completed 20 mile light rail line and 10 miles of street car.
LightRail will connect University City to NoDa (hip neighborhood with national reviews) to uptown to SouthEnd (really big public Transit Oriented neighborhood).
Charlotte is hosting Manchester VS. Liverpooland FC Barcelona with the German team, we are going to big on RNC 2020, Superbowl, NBA Finals, etc.
Uptown Charlotte continues to grow very fast and has a ton of potential to be an amazing destination with lots of shopping etc (retail is not plentiful now but it will be in a few years; bars, clubs, sundries, etc are plentiful)
Everything great and amazing about basically the entire Charlotte metro area is within a 10 mile radius from center city.
Last edited by Charlotte485; 02-03-2014 at 10:07 PM..
What are the Charlotte Knights and Charlotte Checkers? Never heard of 'em.
Basketball is way better in the Triangle. No question about that. I think anyone who is a real basketball fan would much rather watch Duke or Carolina than the Hornets. I'll give you the Panthers, but no great loss to me since I'm not an NFL fan.
You can't beat a Durham Bulls game for minor league baseball. And, of course, for the hockey lovers Raleigh has the Hurricanes, former Stanley Cup winners. Again, I'm not a fan so I don't care, but some people seem to.
Soccer...hmmm...college soccer is so good in the Triangle. We also have the Carolina Railhawks NASL pro team. The college lacrosse teams are consistently ranked at top. Duke is number one and UNC #3.
Not sure that the OP is interested in sports, but I'm unconvinced that Charlotte has anything but football and NASCAR on the Triangle there. The Triangle college teams are much more interesting than any college sports in Charlotte.
What I, personally, really like about the Triangle is the longstanding very vibrant and growing music and arts scene, especially in indie music. The Triangle is a major stop for most touring bands and with record labels like Merge based here the area has long been a generator of amazing sounds. I'm not much for top 40 pop music like Taylor Swift and Katy Perry et al, but we get those acts, too.
I don't think that Raleigh and Charlotte are so different, though, and I agree that you should visit both. I don't think either is likely to have a dance recital with religious themes — that sounds strange for Winston-Salem, too! There are plenty of churches in both places, but I'm sure there are plenty of non-church goers, too. All my in-laws live in Charlotte and they're died in the wool heathens and haven't gotten kicked out of the city yet :P . Charlotte has a little more of a "big city" feel with the pro football and Raleigh has a little more of an intellectual vibe with the three major NC universities in the Triangle, but really Raleigh and Charlotte are more alike than different. Visit both and see which one feels right to you and which one you can find a job in!
The sports (which are located in downtown) adds thousands of people uptown. Some weekends we will have Panthers game, Charlotte Hornets and the Checkers (minor league Hockey in the Hornets arena) along with the usual. How much does the Durham Bulls or The colleges add to Raleigh?
I'm not in college, I don't live in a dorm, I work. I have no ties to the triangle universities so I'm not sure were I to move there (as someone not big into sports) I'd want to go to a college to watch a game with college kids. I'm in my 20's so its not like I'm not an old fart....
I simply stated what I liked about Charlotte without mentioning Raleigh... I don't need to compare an entire CSA area just to state why I like our center city
Last edited by Charlotte485; 02-04-2014 at 08:36 AM..
Well, NC State is in the heart of Raleigh, so yeah, it adds a LOT.
The Durham Bulls are one of the premier triple A teams. I believe they won the league this year. There was that movie, too. The new DBAP opened several years ago and is a fantastic place to see a ball game. Many folks from all over the Triangle go to see Bulls games just like many people from Metrolina go to see Panthers games. The Hurricanes have a pretty big following, too. (I am so not a hockey person, though.)
Tons of people of all ages come to see the college games, including many folks who travel from Charlotte. Have you ever heard of March Madness? Carolina vs Duke ranks as ESPN's #3 best sports rivalry of all sports of all time. ESPN.com - ENDOFCENTURY - ESPN.com's 10 greatest rivalries No Charlotte teams are on that list. I think there's a lot more fervor for ACC basketball than there is for any sport in Charlotte including NASCAR and the Panthers. NC State vs UNC isn't a shabby rivalry either. I just always hear about Charlotte having better sports than the Triangle and I just don't think that's so. Better football and racing, I'll grant you, but nothing's better than ACC basketball—the Hornets (nee Bobcats) can't hold a candle to it—and for the other sports I think they're even or the Triangle comes out on top.
But, as I mentioned, I don't even know that the OP is the least bit interested in sports. I think the cultural offerings in the Triangle and Raleigh specifically are much more interesting to me personally than what's going on in Charlotte. My relatives live in Charlotte and I'm down there with some regularity and always have a free place to stay if I want to spend the night, but rarely do I ever hear about anything happening in Charlotte that would make me want to come down and see it outside of a sale at IKEA. Your mileage and the OP's might vary. In contrast, I do often see things happening throughout the Triangle that make me want to go.
I really think the OP needs to visit both areas and see what feels right, though. What I like and what others like might not be what the OP likes. I know a lot of people do love Charlotte. We, truly, would never live there. The spouse grew up in Charlotte and it would take an act of God to make us return. Maybe that has something to do with all the in-laws still living there!
Thanks guys! Very helpful. Starting to get a feel for what these areas are like. Although, I do have to admit, I have zero interest in sports. I'm more of a music and art cinema person. Also food, but that's a given.
Thanks guys! Very helpful. Starting to get a feel for what these areas are like. Although, I do have to admit, I have zero interest in sports. I'm more of a music and art cinema person. Also food, but that's a given.
That's unfortunate, since for the majority of native NC'ers, college sports are a major topic of conversation.
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