Is Traverse City right for me?

December 22, 2011 3:19 PM

Tell me what it's like to live in Traverse City, Michigan.

I may be offered a job in Traverse City but I know nothing about the town. I've only been there once (for wedding, in early October) and found it quaint and charming, but I'm not sure if I could live there full-time. Do you like living there? What do you do for fun? Would you move there? Would you move away from there? Particulars about me: I am 30 years old, male, single and used to life in Michigan's most liberal college town. Thanks!

posted by anonymous to Society & Culture (4 answers total)

Hey, I grew up there, and still have family there. It is a great place, for the most part, especially once you have a job (not the easiest thing, but it sounds like you are not moving there without one, so that's good.)

The geographic location is way nicer the Ann Arbor, since it is not built on a former swamp, and there is actually a winter and water, and such. The big thing is that there is not a huge scene for single folks, and that can be kind of a drag. If you do stuff- like ski, or bike, or kayak, it doesn't take long to get into those communities pretty fast. I was a skier- all the nordic skiers know each other. You need to have something you like doing in the winter, because otherwise you will hate winter.

The restaurant scene is much, much better than when I last lived in TC long term, which was over ten years ago. TC has one of the most vibrant downtowns I have seen in the midwest outside of a college town, which is a great thing.

You will get much more out of the place if you live in the city limits, rather than in the subdivisions outside. The subdivisions are no different than anywhere else. Being able to walk and bike pretty much everywhere you need to go in the spring, summer and fall is a great thing. It is also really pleasant to be able to walk to a brewpub and then just walk home.

There are a couple big festivals, which are really very different from each other. One is the Cherry Festival, which is a big, but not super-exciting summer harvest festival. Parades, midway,lots of fried things, etc. There is also the film festival, which is totally excellent. Free movies each evening outside, tons of excellent films inside...cool stuff.

Would I move there? Maybe, if the right opportunities presented themselves, which is not likely. It is a great place to raise a family- I had a very happy childhood there. I know lots and lots of people in my demographic (late twenties) who are moving back to TC.
posted by rockindata at 4:24 PM on December 22, 2011

It does tend to get very crowded, thus very Ann Arbor-ish, in the summertime.
posted by megatherium at 3:16 AM on December 23, 2011 [1 favorite]

The winter is *brutal.* Way more so than Ann Arbor. But, it's beautiful there, and I miss the culture. I lived about 20 minutes away but worked right next to the airport.
posted by getawaysticks at 6:30 AM on December 23, 2011

rockindata covers a lot of ground. I haven't lived in TC full time in 18 years, but I still go back to see family often. For me it was a great place to grow up and I love to visit, but I'd need a really good reason to move back. I like things like cultural diversity. I like living in a city where I have my choice of stuff to do on any given night.

Appreciating living there is going to depend on what you value and to a certain extend whether or not you're the sort of person who is happy to search out the interesting parts to an area. As you probably already know, there's shitloads of natural beauty there. And more and more good wineries. A couple of great coffee roasters. But don't expect to find things like, I dunno, good chinese food. There are great restaurants if you want to splurge a little. If you are an outdoorsy sort of person, you'll enjoy it and meet other people that way. The population is something like 96% white, so be prepared for that if it's not something you're used to.
posted by mandymanwasregistered at 11:54 AM on December 23, 2011