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Current residents, please do not take offense. This is just my opinion.
Let me preface this by saying that I've lived in Atlanta, San Jose and now Tampa.
I made my 2nd trip to the area a few weeks ago for a house hunting trip. I was excited and very much looking forward to our move. I've been reading the forums and doing a lot of research. It seemed perfect. However, I felt disappointed the entire trip. I felt like there was no edge, no flavor, no soul, anywhere I looked. Chapel Hill has a few restaurants, that close at 9:00? and a few shops. Carrboro is supposed to be the artsy part of town. Honestly, you couldn't pay me to live in that dump. Anyone else get that sense? Everywhere just else seemed cookie cutter. Even the people seemed to look alike. I came home and asked myself what in the hell was I thinking? Was I just having a bad week? Is RDU just to small of a town for me?
Yes, I know that Tampa is a dump too and that ATL is a sprawling nightmare. BUT, Tampa has the beach and ATL has a heartbeat. I sincerly ask, what does RDU have that I missed?
Current residents, please do not take offense. This is just my opinion.
Let me preface this by saying that I've lived in Atlanta, San Jose and now Tampa.
I made my 2nd trip to the area a few weeks ago for a house hunting trip. I was excited and very much looking forward to our move. I've been reading the forums and doing a lot of research. It seemed perfect. However, I felt disappointed the entire trip. I felt like there was no edge, no flavor, no soul, anywhere I looked. Chapel Hill has a few restaurants, that close at 9:00? and a few shops. Carrboro is supposed to be the artsy part of town. Honestly, you couldn't pay me to live in that dump. Anyone else get that sense? Everywhere just else seemed cookie cutter. Even the people seemed to look alike. I came home and asked myself what in the hell was I thinking? Was I just having a bad week? Is RDU just to small of a town for me?
Yes, I know that Tampa is a dump too and that ATL is a sprawling nightmare. BUT, Tampa has the beach and ATL has a heartbeat. I sincerly ask, what does RDU have that I missed?
You sound like you want to miss anything the area has to offer if it isn't what you already know.
If you think RDU is a dump, or even just not to your liking, no reason to move here. It isn't the greatest thing since sliced bread, nor it is going to be 'home' for every one.
I haven't found that to be the case at all. The area still (so far) has maintained that small city feel, yet still has some of the nicer features of a larger city. I think it helps that it's the state capital.
I absolutely love it here. I can think of a number of places that may have more of a certain item or feature (e.g., Boulder CO has better outdoor activities, Austin has a better live music scene, Pittsburgh has better museums, etc) but Raleigh nicely brings small pieces of all of them together in a place with moderate weather, good universities, stable employment base, and a relatively low cost of living.
I love it here but agree that Raleigh lacks the big city vibe. It is not as energized or necessary interesting as some big cities. However, it is perfect for raising a family, making wonderful friends, enjoying a high quality of life. It has low crime and an (IMO) unbeatable climate. I think it depends on what stage of life you are in and what is important to you on a daily basis. I have lived in big city and a very small town and I would not live anywhere other than Raleigh.
This area is noted for being suburbia. It is a series of small towns with aspirations, surrounded by suburban development.
Raleigh itself is one of the least densely populated state capitol cities, i.e., residents per square mile.
NC annexation laws somewhat encourage suburban sprawl.
As your topic title says, "Anyone from a larger city..."
I love the fact that we don't have the larger crime of Tampa or Atlanta. Sort of contributes to that rich "vanilla" taste. But then, I come from a much smaller town.
Might be better to compare the Triangle to cities and urban areas that are similar.
We shine!
If you are coming from a larger city that for the most part you've enjoyed, then yes, Raleigh can be a let down. It doesn't have the "wow" factor like some other towns, and isn't the type of city you'd put on your must see list as a tourist either. I think part of the reason there isn't a specific vibe or soul to it is the nature of how spread out things are between Raleigh, Durham, and Chapel Hill. There is a bit of competitiveness between the areas, and you can detect that just reading posts singing the praises of one vs the other. This inhibits any one area from developing a real feel to it - beyond the whole Carolina, Duke and State basketball thing. For this reason, I think until the area is built up so much that it becomes one - which is not so great either - it will never have what some other cities do, for better or worse.
That said, it depends on your reason for moving. Most who want a good job, resonable cost of living, lovely blooming Springtimes, and escaping lots of cold and snow, can be happy here. But, if you want a true city environment and one that evokes a unique identity (NY, SF, Austin, Chicago, etc), that's not Raleigh. Asheville and Charlotte have this much more, again partially because there aren't similar sized cities closeby sharing the spotlight.
This is suburbia and not everyone's slice of heaven. These forums can be very mesmerizing (I read about Colorado and drool over the majestic mountain views, dry heat outdoorsy summers... but I know there's pros and cons), and 60K plus on the NC boards is very persuasive. But listen to your gut before you make the move if this is voluntary and not dictated by a job or other committment.
I think Marigirl's post is true. The area does have "soul," but it's more quietly found here. It's more likely to be found in kind individuals and quieter forms of beauty.
I would agree with the posters above about the soul of Raleigh being a suburban, family-oriented area.
The western half of the Triangle -- Durham, Chapel Hill, Carrboro -- I think has more of an identity and a 'soul,' and a lot of that is based around being progressive communities. I'm intrigued that you found Carrboro to be a "dump," and yeah, compared to what is considered "nice places" in Florida... there's no big shopping center, no traditional "new developments." There are, however, co-op grocery stores/bakery; a non-profit that recycles old bikes; music jam sessions at Weaver Street; free bus service that is, on a per capita basis, probably the best-used transit system in N.C. if not the southeast. That *is* the vibe of Carrboro/CH, and to a lesser extent, parts of Durham.
I grew up in Orlando, home of a single arthouse cinema (for a nearly 2m person metro) and a symphony that closed in the 90s. There's more of that kind of soul in just Durham than all of Orlando. To say nothing of what happens when you include Raleigh, etc.!
Honestly, we're nothing like Tampa, Orlando, Atlanta... and I hope we never are. :-)
I would agree with the posters above about the soul of Raleigh being a suburban, family-oriented area.
Hey now....not all of it. The downtown & parts Inside-The-Beltline have almost just as much of a "soul" as Durham & Chapel Hill/Carrboro! It's North Raleigh that you're describing.
And I agree...anyone who'd call Carrboro a "dump" obviously did Not see much of it at all, or really got to know it. It didn't earn the nickname "Paris of the Piedmont" for no reason.
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The downtown & parts Inside-The-Beltline have almost just as much of a "soul" as Durham & Chapel Hill/Carrboro! 
It's North Raleigh that you're describing. 
