How is it like living in Pensacola as opposed to other parts of Florida

[mimax1]

I am new here and not sure where to post this since there isn't a Pensacola forum per se. We are a military family moving to the Pensacola area. We have a daughter who plays the piano and is doing great; already attended her first competition.
We hate to part with her current , excellent instructor, and wonder if anyone has a recommendation in the Pensacola area. We are looking for someone classically trained with a degree in music, or affiliations with music professional associations, etc..
Thanks!

[darthmaulrob]

Pensacola is very old and run down. It has one of two things on EVERY street corner, someone preaching, or a homeless person peddling for money! I am counting the days down to graduate college and get out of here! The place is a hole! The ONLY thing it has going for it is the beach, other than that it is hot and humid, run down, with a bunch of religious fanatics and homeless people!!

[007.5]

Originally Posted by darthmaulrob

Pensacola is very old and run down. It has one of two things on EVERY street corner, someone preaching, or a homeless person peddling for money! I am counting the days down to graduate college and get out of here! The place is a hole! The ONLY thing it has going for it is the beach, other than that it is hot and humid, run down, with a bunch of religious fanatics and homeless people!!

We need to have compassion on the homeless especially those who are legitimately homeless thru loosing their job , and the homeless can and are found in every large city across America. I applaud those who try to reach others with the message of the Gospel of Christ that all of ones many sins can be forgiven by a loving holy God , and who try to point out the highly dangerous lifestyles that the lost engage in with Sexual Hedonism's 33 STD's shared among some 68,000,000 adult Americas / 15,000,000 new annual cases , leading the way of immorality. Such street Preachers dont get a commission check from Heaven the last Friday of the Month, and, they are genuinly concerned about peoples lives and where they WILL spend an eternity -- whether it be in utter regret is Ones very own choice in this life.

[dsas4ever]

We have a home in St Louis, in our early 60's, and are looking for a condo for the colder months in Mississippi, Alabama, or Florida. We have just started looking and have never lived in any of these locations. Initially, we wanted to stay close enough to Biloxi to be able to make daily commutes to the casinos, as my husband is an avid poker player. Our other big passion is doubles tennis, both mixed, men's, and women's.

Here's the question.
We are planning to take a 4-5 day trip for our anniversary near the end of September, and are trying to figure out a plan for our trip so we can at least come away with some idea on narrowing down our search of where to live, where not to live, and where to visit on this trip.

[PcolaFLGuy]

Pensacola is about 1.5 hours from Biloxi but has multiple busses each day to the Casinos. Lots of tennis here. Otherwise, you're looking at Baldwin Co, AL. or the part of Miss. that's being rebuilt after Katrina.

[nwc07]

Dsas--

Why not RENT? Try out the area with no committment. There are plenty of short term/long term furnished rentals in the area that way you can "test drive" and see for yourself! Living in Florida is not the same as visiting and you may find that NWFL has a very cold winter--no snow or ice but still very chilly. I RARELY see anyone playing tennis past November...

[Kewlkitty]

I just happened upon this forum...
Cdn also looking for a place for winter months to start then perhaps more....
Kinda researching right now.
I ride a motorcycle and have friends across US so would like a motorcycle friendly neighbourhood and a place where I am not on top of my neighbours ie no subdivisions. Looking at Panama City, FL and area, Az, Tx.
As above any feedback welcome. Thanks!

[PILMAN]

Pensacola is quite different from the rest of Florida. Pensacola is similar in culture to what you would find in fort Walton Beach, gulf breeze, destin and Panama city Beach perhaps into mobile Alabama. Most people assume Florida is all like Miami or Disney Land when that isn't true at all. Pensacola is one of the oldest cities in the US , it does have a old south feel to it. If you go south, you hit white sand beaches, if you go north, you find forests as if you were in Alabama.

Our food is different, more southern in style but starting to get more ethnic restaurants, its a very religious conservative area, more churches than McDonalds but there is also a very large progressive movement here now as well.

While it is small, we do have a nice university here uwf, there's a nice downtown area, a farmers market in the weekends, a flea market in the southwest , the navy aviation museum , only thing is jobs are scarce here. The biggest employers here I know of are he military and navy federal.

[moondoggy51]

My wife and I lived in Illinois for 30+ years before retiring and moving to the Pensacola Metro area. We opted to move to Pace, FL which is just east of Pensacola. We love the fact that we don't have to put up with the cold and snow anymore. We love the beach and Pensacola has so much going on all the time. Yes, there are downsides of living in a large, metro area but those to me are offset by the benefits. If you have kids, Pace has some of the best schools in Florida. Hope this helps.

[meo92953]

It sounds like I have to.put the Pensacola/Pace area on my retirement agenda. I'd ruled out Florida because of the heat but, after back surgery last year I don't know how my back is going to hold out in the winter.

The thought of a 'colder' winter than the rest of Florida actually is what put it on the list. My only worry about moving is that I am on Social Security & am currently in an income based senior building in a very small town. Here I actually have extra at the end of the month. I love the thought of being out of the cold, but not the thought of living on a shoestring.