Florida residents, do you agree?

[mondragon]

I could have written the same thing except about living outside of Philly!

I love being close to NYC, DC, Baltimore, the beaches of NJ and DE, beautiful lakes in PA and MD, historic landmarks, great theater access, some of the most amazing public gardens in the USA and outstanding dining options within minutes of my home. We also have access to some of the most advanced medical care in the country.

While I love visiting FL, I hate heat, humidity, bugs and the threat of hurricanes. I'd rather deal with the occasional snow than mildew, love bugs, flooding, wild fires and storm damage.

I don't deal with mildew here, love bugs is a central Florida thing (never see them here), does not flood (being here all my life I can't recall a single flood, maybe some deep puddles but nothing like the Midwest when a river crests), wild fires?? Maybe in the Everglades but not that often, last hurricane to hit Florida was Wilma and that was 2005. Nothing happened to my home.

 

[Minnesota!]

I enjoy going to Fl because it is so different than where I am from. If I had to live there, that uniqueness would wear off.
Sure, we have talked about living there - we LOVE the August heat and humidity, and we love the February weather, too. But, home is MN...no snakes, bugs, gators, hurricanes, overheated tourists, and we can escape to FL for a Disney bubble for a bit then come back to where we are truly comfy

 

[Xennia]

I CRINGE nearly every time I see what others are paying for their vacations!! I am frugal (sometimes excessively)....each Disney vacation we have taken has been less than $2000...and each trip was at least 7 days. That's the MOST I am willing to spend. I am not talking about applying "free" money to bring the total down, I mean the total is less than two grand regardless of where the money comes from!!! I read posts, and think "wow, these people are WEALTY!!!"

Exactly. This is what I'm thinking.
Florida is not crazy expensive to live unlike other states. We also have ports that take us anywhere we want to cruise and cheap air fare because we have major hubs. But dang. Disney is too expensive to visit all year round like I want too. If I lived In, Georgia I would still cry about fees. Every little bit counts.

We live where others vacation. It's beautiful here. But some things are so pricey and worth the Florida rates. Especially when you visit several times a month or year.

 

[Xennia]

We only visit WDW every few years, so it's a 'big' vacation for us. It does cost a lot, but on the in between years, we do local-ish driving vacations that are fairly inexpensive.

Its all a matter of perspective though, because you mention going to New York, and how much that is going to cost you...for us, that's a day trip, and one of the local-ish things we do a few times a year.

I didn't say anything about New York.

Maybe that was someone else.

 

[mondragon]

Exactly. This is what I'm thinking.
Florida is not crazy expensive to live unlike other states. We also have ports that take us anywhere we want to cruise and cheap air fare because we have major hubs. But dang. Disney is too expensive to visit all year round like I want too. If I lived In, Georgia I would still cry about fees. Every little bit counts.

We live where others vacation. It's beautiful here. But some things are so pricey and worth the Florida rates. Especially when you visit several times a month or year.

Exactly. Don't understand why many think it's very expensive to live here. I guess if you compare the cost of living in Florida to Oklahoma or Arkansas, then yes it is a lot more. I am within 30 minutes of Miami international airport where I can fly direct to Europe, South America, and many other countries. I can drive 20 minutes and be at 2 of the largest cruise ports in the world, drive 3 hrs and be at the turnstiles in disney. The weather down here is great. Was at the beach New Years. Now it's not cheap to live here but it's doable.

 

[Xennia]

Where a family lives is based on a ton of factors, of course. I know it would be nice to have a discount on Disney when we go, but I live in the Midwest, and I cringe when I see how much more it costs to live in Florida than my area. So there is a trade off--I pay less for every day living, but more for Disney vacations. And I'm okay with that.




I don't hate Florida, just don't want to live there. I actually love snow! I can't describe how wonderful it feels to be tucked into a cozy home with your family, fire crackling in the fireplace, soup simmering, and know you don't have to go anywhere because it's a snow day! I also love the distinct changing seasons we get, and I really dislike heat, humidity and bugs (we get those but Florida wins on quantity). So Floridians--enjoy your state and we'll come see you once in a while!

I loveeeeeeee Tennessee. If I had a choice In The matter I would live there. But I would miss Disney and the rates so much.

we live where other vacation. Each of us have one thing that we love or dislike about areas. It's all perspective.

But I would miss the rates and the views.

Disney nerd life

 

[Xennia]

Not everyone wants to camp out or cook all their meals in order to take a Disney trip. You seem to enjoy it, so that's all that matters for you. But some of us prefer to have a little pampering when we take a trip. A $2K budget (before "free money") for a Disney trip would not be a vacation in my eyes. I'd rather stay home if that's all that I could spend. So, if y'all want to cringe at the price tag for other people's trips and make assumptions about their incomes, that's on you. We all set spending limits that we're comfortable with.

I wouldn't cringe at cutting costs at home so you can have a vacation. Not everyone is making the same $$$ so to each his own.

We visit often. Several times a month several times a year. Because we are disnerds and love it. We make sacrifices and budget so we can enjoy ourselves. No shame in that.

 

[Xennia]

I love living in Florida but would never want to live near the parks having to deal with the tourists. Down near the Miami area we don't get the type of tourists you get in Orlando. Love the perks as far as discounts at the parks and love the idea of waking up early Saturday morning and driving to the parks in about 3 hrs. Don't understand why people hate Florida so much. Great weather, no snow, beautiful beaches, great food, tons of entertainment. Where else can you get that.

Preach it.


I'm with you. I'm in south Florida as well. I would never live in Orlando. And we had the chance. No thank you. But Miami and Fort Lauderdale. Yes please. All day every day.

Florida isn't for the weak. You got to have heat strength. Humidity strength and the perfect bathing suit.

 

[JoeyEmmaMomma]

Yes! I'm always thankful we get to pay Florida pricing.
Love FL.

 

[msb578]

Exactly. This is what I'm thinking.
Florida is not crazy expensive to live unlike other states. We also have ports that take us anywhere we want to cruise and cheap air fare because we have major hubs. But dang. Disney is too expensive to visit all year round like I want too. If I lived In, Georgia I would still cry about fees. Every little bit counts.

We live where others vacation. It's beautiful here. But some things are so pricey and worth the Florida rates. Especially when you visit several times a month or year.

I'm not arguing with you- I just happen to think this is an interesting topic (even if it's not entirely on-topic)

People vacation other places too. I see a heck of a lot of Florida license plates here in upstate NY during the summer. Our summers and your winters may not be 1:1 equivalent, but... all I'm saying is "great weather" is subjective.

Obviously, I do enjoy vacationing in Florida, just not in the summer

 

[Xennia]

Exactly. Don't understand why many think it's very expensive to live here. I guess if you compare the cost of living in Florida to Oklahoma or Arkansas, then yes it is a lot more. I am within 30 minutes of Miami international airport where I can fly direct to Europe, South America, and many other countries. I can drive 20 minutes and be at 2 of the largest cruise ports in the world, drive 3 hrs and be at the turnstiles in disney. The weather down here is great. Was at the beach New Years. Now it's not cheap to live here but it's doable.

I can't imagine living in Oklahoma or Kansas. that's way to far away. What do you do for ocean views or Disney fixes? No no no

I guess we are spoiled. I'm not mad.

 

[Xennia]

I'm not arguing with you- I just happen to think this is an interesting topic (even if it's not entirely on-topic)

People vacation other places too. I see a heck of a lot of Florida license plates here in upstate NY during the summer. Our summers and your winters may not be 1:1 equivalent, but... all I'm saying is "great weather" is subjective.

Obviously, I do enjoy vacationing in Florida, just not in the summer

Summer is the worst here. Not gonna lie.

We start getting the rain in April but full force June- oct. and the humidity and the heat will take you down.

Spring time is the best weather here. Maybe late dec and jan. but that is it.


Florida isn't for you if you can't handle the heat. I can barely handle it. I know. I feel everything everyone says about the weather. I can't disagree. Not one bit.

 

[mondragon]

Summer is the worst here. Not gonna lie.

We start getting the rain in April but full force June- oct. and the humidity and the heat will take you down.

Spring time is the best weather here. Maybe late dec and jan. but that is it.


Florida isn't for you if you can't handle the heat. I can barely handle it. I know. I feel everything everyone says about the weather. I can't disagree. Not one bit.

Yea summer is pretty brutal in south Florida and it seems to last forever. Does not break until late November. Basically you are not doing outdoor activities between 10am and 4pm. We go to the beach at 7am, leave at 9am. Not hot and the water is warm.

 

[Judique]

Florida isn't for the weak. You got to have heat strength. Humidity strength and the perfect bathing suit.

Lol! That leaves me out! The perfect bathing suit is not going to happen! That ship sailed away a long time ago!

 

[CalDisneyMomof2]

Preference of weather is completely subjective. I mean, we ALL know Southern California has the best weather so you can all quit arguing about whose weather is better I kid (kind of).

 

[JanaDee]

Exactly. Don't understand why many think it's very expensive to live here. I guess if you compare the cost of living in Florida to Oklahoma or Arkansas, then yes it is a lot more. I am within 30 minutes of Miami international airport where I can fly direct to Europe, South America, and many other countries. I can drive 20 minutes and be at 2 of the largest cruise ports in the world, drive 3 hrs and be at the turnstiles in disney. The weather down here is great. Was at the beach New Years. Now it's not cheap to live here but it's doable.

I don't think it is expensive to live in Florida outside of the metro areas. I still have no desire to live there.

 

[gap2368]

I think we can all agree that where we live is best for us I think any part of the county has its +- and disney gives so many discounts AP DVC FL am I missing some. so I think any one on a budget can get a good deal or at lest a discount if they take the time to look

 

[hsmamato2]

well, I love visiting Florida...and I like the sound of those disney discounts..... but....as others have noted,there are lots of great places to visit that aren't Disney,if you don't live nearby,and since we live in the NE a trip to Boston/Maine/NYC/ etc etc is cheap and easy so I guess when we save money visiting local (for us) we can save it for bigger trips like Florida.... it all balances out.... Heck we visited DC for a long weekend last month to see the cherry Blossoms....it was a cheap trip for 9 people and we had a blast!

 

[mondragon]

I think we can all agree that where we live is best for us I think any part of the county has its +- and disney gives so many discounts AP DVC FL am I missing some. so I think any one on a budget can get a good deal or at lest a discount if they take the time to look

Exactly. We don't live in Florida for disney. To be honest I think it's crazy to move to Florida for Disney. Unless you were hired by disney for some sort of corporate position, there is no reason to move here for the parks. Orlando/Kissimmee is not that great of an area. Thankfully I have a great job in Florida and was born and raised here. I am far enough away from the touristy things.

 

[girli565]

I would cry if I had to live in Florida!

LOL, I love living here! I guess to each his own. I adore my annual pass and the monthly payment plan that affords us the ability to go to the parks whenever we want!