MidWest vacation planning help

[disykat]

My DH wants to move to the midwest. We're talking about a midwest fact-finding vacation next summer. I was looking up info this afternoon and came up with a tenative itinerary that hits quite a few of the spots where employment might be available to him. I'm hoping some people from Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa and Wisconsin might be able to give me some ideas.

Here's what I was thinking:

Fly into Chicago, rent a car, sightsee, then
head to St Louis
check out Fulton/ Columbia MO area
head to Branson/Springfield - do tourist stuff
up to Kansas City
then to Omaha - visit relatives and check out several nearby areas
over to Cedar Rapids
up to Wisconsin - Door County
Back to Chicago

We'll have about three weeks. Does this sound reasonable? This tour would take us past about 10 spots that have places of employment that fit his qualifications. He is hoping to get a job he enjoys more and there aren't jobs out here for him. I've never really been east of Nebraska (except for flying to WDW, of course!). I realize we'll be putting several thousand miles on a rental car, but can't really imagine adding the drive from WA state onto it!

Any comments or suggestions? thanks!

 

[wdwfam]

Not exactly sure what line of work your DH is in, but Columbia, MO does have a relatively low unemployment record. We have three universities/colleges, several hospitals, and two major insurance area headquarters here. Housing is lower than St. Louis or K.C. We moved here over 18 years ago, and love it! It's very convenient to either K.C. or STL. The Lake of the Ozarks is a little over an hour away, too. If you have anymore questions about this area, let me know.

 

[sharbear]

I don't know what you're DH does (I wonder if it is in the computor/IT field from where you are from) but what about Michigan. I love Michigan, it's a beautiful place. If you don't live in Detroit the cost of living is low and the people are friendly.

 

[Smee]

With 3 weeks, I think it is do-able.

 

[Sonya]

Let me know if you have questions about KC. I love Omaha, but I haven't spent a lot of time there. Seems like a nice place, though.

 

[disykat]

Thanks for your replies! DH is a nuclear engineer - he currently works for the military(civilian employee) but is looking into commercial nuclear power. There are very few plants on the west coast - none in areas we want to live. Fulton, MO has a reactor, as does Burlington KS, Cedar Rapids and Omaha. There are also two north of Milwaukie and tons in Illinois. Michigan and Ohio have some too, but we really haven't looked that far east yet.

WDWfam, I've been researching Columbia and it does look great!

Sonya, do you know anything about Burlington? It is so small that I'm trying to eliminate it from our list - but we'd still like to hit part of the state on our trip!

On our trip, we're hoping to get a flavor of the midwest. Since dh already has a job we have the luxury of taking our time with this decision and wanted to see that part of the country before taking this huge step.

 

[LoriKay]

We recently moved to Kansas City after 20+ years in Omaha and, while we are really enjoying KC, I can probably comment more on Omaha...and I know just where that reactor is! Omaha is a wonderful city and not what alot of people would expect. It's very pretty with lots of trees and a terrific quality of life. It's a great place to raise kids, the cost of living is reasonable and there are a host of things to do. The zoo is among the best in the country and the arts are well represented. The restaurants are fabulous and the city is doing a wonderful job of bringing downtown back to life. There is an area called the Old Market which was a fruit & vegetable market years ago but now has hotels, restaurants and shops. Omaha is close enough to Colorado, Kansas City, Chicago and many more places that you can go for a weekend getaway and Eppley Airport offers reasonable airfare out of Omaha. In June Omaha's Rosenblatt Stadium (home of KC's farm club)hosts the College World Series which is quite an event. I've just scratched the surface but I'd better stop! I would suggest that you visit the websites for some of the cities you're interested in and request they send you out their informational packet...and don't forget to request one from Omaha! Any questions...just ask.

 

[Deb in IA]

disykat, if you are heading over to Cedar Rapids (just a stone's throw from me here in Iowa City), you may want to visit these places nearby:

http://www.jeonet.com/amanas/welcome/index.html

- the Amana Colonies, the #1 tourist attraction in Iowa, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and

http://www.coralridgemall.com/

- Coral Ridge Mall, our version of the Mall of America

In Cedar Rapids itself, you may want to check out the National Czech and Slovak Museum
http://www.ncsml.org/

or the Science Station
http://www.sciencestation.org/

You may find other stuff in the Cedar Rapids visitors bureau site
http://www.cedar-rapids.com/


Have a great trip!!

 

[Minnesota!]

What about Minnesota? We have Prairie Island nuclear here. It is a wonderful place to live! I think you should add us to your list of places to see!!

 

[luv2tvl]

LoriKay did a great job of describing Omaha! I've been here for 5 years (I grew up in Des Moines, IA) and it really is a great place to live. Cost of living is great, schools are wonderful, and the people are amazing! It's a good place to call "home".
Any questions, please feel free to ask.....
I think the 3 weeks would be fine for the itinerary you described! Have fun!!

 

[Lars624]

Gotta chime in with sharbear and say that Michigan is a great place to live!!!!

 

[Sonya]

Sorry it took me so long to respond disykat, and sorry, I don't know anything about Burlington.
Good luck though!

 

[becka]

I also live in Columbia, MO and I think it is a great place to live. The unemployment rates here are very low and there are a number of great places to work like wdwfam mentioned. I work for one of the insurance companies here in town and DH is a chemist with the University of Missouri.

Feel free to PM me anytime with questions.

 

[Dan Murphy]

Hey, this could be a reason for a summer Chicago DIS meet!!

 

[disykat]

Thanks everyone! I doubt we'll get as far East as Michigan (though there are some reactors in Michigan and Ohio), but I am tempted to try to add Minnesota to my list of stops. Too many years of watching Mary Tyler Moore and listening to St. Olaf choirs might make it irrestistable!