Comparing Orlando to Triangle (Raleigh, Durham: chapel, neighborhood, construction)

[Surf123]

Chapel Hill is particularly is on my radar when it comes to a place to settle down long term. I plan on visiting the area soon to learn more but hoping you can give some insight. I havent lived/visited many places but wondering if anyone who has ever lived in orlando (not just visited disney) can compare life in the two cities as to how similar or dissimilar they may be. If you cant compare then perhaps you can give me some additional input based on likes/dislikes

Likes

Older construction/ with sidewalks in a nice neighborhood I can walk in nightly
non chain restaurants
living close to where the main city happenings are (my budget is 350k)
places for kids- parks, indoor playgrounds, splash pads, museums etc
Outdoor street fests (love this)
Friendly people
scenic trails/jogging paths
Ability to spend a good portion of the year outdoors - not excessively hot or cold for 6 plus months
Young families
Water - though im pretty sure theres no body of water that runs through the triangle

Dislikes

Strip mall central - though I can deal with some strip malls
really long summers ( which i think NC might have)
lack of city pride/identity- ie no one in Orlando seemed to care about Orlando they just lived there
Materialistic / keeping up with the jones' type of people


Thanks for taking the time to provide input.

[poppydog]

I can't think of two places much more different than Orlando and Chapel Hill, but I've not lived in Orlando. Just really don't see any similarities, though.

Chapel Hill has more in common with Gainesville, both college towns. I have a friend who moved from Chapel Hill to Gainesville to run a rock club years ago.

[Surf123]

Interesting. I haven't spent much time in Gainesville but I get the jist

[poppydog]

Stay tuned. There are one or two regular posters who have lived in Orlando and a lot who have lived in Florida. Hopefully they can give you some real point to point comparisons.

[jenniferg72nc]

I grew up in Deland and lived in Orlando for a time. It's been awhile and I am not overly familiar with Chapel Hill, but I can compare the weather. And from everything I know about Chapel Hill from vising a few times, and living in this area for 18 years is that Orlando and Chapel Hill are very far apart. I wouldn't even put them in the same catagory. I've lived in Gainesville as well and completely agree with that comparison except that Chapel Hill is closer to a bigger city (Raleigh and Durham) than Gainesville.

The summers here are AMAZING compared to Orlando. People here complain about the heat but it is absolutely nothing compared to Orlando. It doesn't start to get really hot till late May and even then it usually cools off a bit at night and in the evenings so you can be outside. We get one to three weeks of Florida hot weather here, where it is miserable and it doesn't cool off at night. The humidity here is considerably less except for the one to three weeks, but even when it is Florida hot, it only lasts for a week or so then goes back to bearable. It starts cooling off here in early September.

The winters take some time getting used to and you will need new clothes. It was tough the first few years to get used to no leaves on the trees and the gray. But it's not too bad. It is like the summer it only gets really cold for a week or two before it warms up a bit. If you have never driven in snow then I suggest the first time it snows having someone drive you to an empty parking lot so you can get used to it. While it is very acceptable to simply say you dont' drive in any snow (even for work purposes) it is important that in case you ever get caught in snow you are used to it.

I love it up here. So much better than Florida. The people are much nicer and the weather is fantastic. It is really a good compromise. I can't imagine every moving back. Oh and it is so much prettier than Orlando with the rolling hills and trees.