College Grad Moving to Port Charlotte! (Miami, Tampa: hotel, house, movie theater)

[rockies33]

Hey Everyone,

I am a recent college grad from California who is getting ready to move to Port Charlotte for a full-time job in the area. I expect to be here for at least a year. With that said, I have never been to Florida before. I am moving with an open mind and given that there is a beach in the Englewood area, I can't complain about that.

Other questions:

What can I expect weather-wise in the summer? I know it gets pretty hot/humid.

I am a single male, so are there places for me to go out and meet women my age? Or is it pretty much restaurant bars? I'm going with no given the % of 60+ that live in the area, but hopefully I have at least a couple of options. If not, is Tampa too far away to spend a Saturday night?

What are some of the areas I should be familiar with (Venice, Sarasota, Bradenton, Englewood, Port Charlotte, etc.) and what are some defining characteristics of each one?

I will have a car so getting around won't be an issue.

Any other things I can expect? I know Port Charlotte is not a hustle and bustle big city that I would prefer at my age, but I am looking forward to the move!

[TamRE]

When are you making the move? Port Charlotte has some bars and hangouts – Gators Bar & Grill, Chubbyz 2 Tavern, Boomers, and a few others. There is also a comedy club called Visani’s. Are you into sports? We have the Charlotte Stone Crabs and there are lots of places to play golf, tennis, biking, walking, kayaking, fishing, boating, etc. There are also some sports bars around. The closest beach is in Englewood, but it also isn’t too far to go to Venice or Nokomis Beach or even Boca Grande.

The best way to meet people is to join a club or social organization. For instance we belong to the Corvettes of Charlotte County Club. There are a lot of organizations such as golf, boating, pets, etc., depending on your interests. You may want to try going to places up in Sarasota or down in Ft Myers as well rather than Tampa.

The summer time weather is sunny with a chance of a quick rain shower almost daily. The temps are in the low 90’s during the day and 70’s in the eve. You do get kind of tired of the constant heat, but you get used to it and it is bearable. We get a light breeze most of the time from the Gulf, which helps a lot. We use our pool more in the summer than the winter.

Another thing we have a lot of down here is parks. Here is the county web site: http://www.charlottecountyfl.com/CommunityServices/index.asp

There are always events going on in this area such as car shows, boat shows, music, Italia Fest, Chili Festival, Boat parade, 4th of July events, Wine & Food Festival, Charlotte County Fair, and lots of other festivals. The Charlotte Harbor Event Center also has events.

There really is plenty to do if you just get out and enjoy.

For the latest events and activities in Charlotte County, visit:
Tourism - http://www.charlotteharbortravel.com/events/
Parks and Recreation Centers - http://www.charlottecountyfl.com/CommunityServices/calendars.asp
Libraries - http://www.charlottecountyfl.com/Library/Calendar/
Historical Center - http://www.charlottecountyfl.com/Historical/events.asp
Family Services Events - http://www.charlottecountyfl.com/HumanServices/FamilyServices/calendar.pdf
Economic Development - http://www.floridaedo.com/events.shtml
eExplore Activities - http://eexplore.charlottefl.com/Activities/Activities.asp
Keep Charlotte Beautiful - http://www.keepcharlottebeautiful.org/events.htm
Chamber of Commerce - http://www.charlottecountychamber.org/calendar/index.php
Charlotte Harbor Event Center - http://charlotteharborecc.com/

[SoFLGal]

TammyRe gave some great advice. I wanted to add a few other places/options. If you're looking for a younger crowd you might want to travel a little north and check out The Beach Club or Daiquiri Deck on Siesta or possibly Gators on Main St downtown.

Sarasota has a pretty active young professionals club, which might be a place to meet others your age. Then you have meetup.com, a website geared around different hobbies and/or interests.

If you could tell us what kind of things you like to do we might be able to give a little better direction.

Good luck and welcome to the area!

[mr&mrssunshine]

are you into soccer ? I coach at NPFC and good coaches are always welcome

[apifony]

Unfortunately, I didn't do my homework before relocating to Port Charlotte, FL. If you are a younger, single person (and looking), there are not a lot of activities to socialize with younger crowds. Tampa is an option if you stay overnight. Miami is further South and my preference when I miss thriving social scenes. In PC, the Perfect Caper happy hour is a good upscale, place to mix and mingle with professionals (but many of them are older and married). Perfect Caper also has a trained, chef (a rarity in these parts). They do offer jazz on Thursday nights. There are quite a few rock/country 'biker bars' in the area (Gators in one of them) if you're into that sort of scene. Boomers has a younger crowd during weekend evenings but it's a late crowd. On Friday they play 'island' music, and rap/R & B is played on Saturday nights. It is definately not an upscale establishment. It's a shame younger single professionals must take weekend trips to have a social life if they reside in the area. If you find some hidden gem in the area, please let me know!

[TamRE]

Here are some bars in the area: Goal Post Sports Bar, Joe Cracker Sportsgrille, Celtic Ray Irish Pub, Gators, Boomers, Ice House Pub, Coyote’s Bar and Grill, Chubbyz 2 Tavern, Visani’s Comedy Club, Wyvern Hotel. If you like bowling there are Port Charlotte Bowland and Treasure Lanes. There is the movie theater in Port Charlotte Town Center Mall. There is the skate park in North Port. There are parks, recreation, events, and more in this general area. If you want a constant younger crowd you may want to try a college town or a large city. There are local meetup groups you can join that do social activities all the time. They meet at different places. www.meetup.com