Is Flagstaff a Cool Place To Live?

[Big Ben]

Some people dream of living in Florida for retirement as a life long Midwest rust belt resident I dream about the high desert. Good golf? Good times? Just wondering....BB

[dcmidnight]

Some people dream of living in Florida for retirement as a life long Midwest rust belt resident I dream about the high desert. Good golf? Good times? Just wondering....BB

 

So I worked at an observatory in Flagstaff for three Januarys back in college. I was from the East Coast, small towns my whole life, I couldn't wait to get to "Arizona in January"...oh yeah, I had no idea it was at 7,000 feet and covered in snow LOL.

 

Its been a long time but I loved the area. Its absolutely stunningly beautiful.

[ws6]

If you're interested in Flagstaff, you should look at Bend, Oregon too. They are both nice places imho.

[One_Putt_Blunder]

There are two really really good private clubs up there. Forest Highlands and Pine Canyon, both may be budget busters though. Other than that not much good to great public golf. You do have Sedona/Oak Creek not too terribly far away with some more golf options. As far as living it is pretty much what you would expect, mountain college town. Outdoor lovers dream. aspen groves, fall colors, fairly mild winter for being above 7000 feet.

[Big Ben]

It's there a better town in proximity for the "older crowd"? Just wondering you start to think about this stuff when when you get older.

 

If you're interested in Flagstaff, you should look at Bend, Oregon too. They are both nice places imho.

I will check it out!

[One_Putt_Blunder]

It's there a better town in proximity for the "older crowd"? Just wondering you start to think about this stuff when when you get older.

 

 

 

Sedona and the Village of Oak Creek about 30-40 miles down the road. I would imagine cost of living in Flag is much better than Sedona, plus while beautiful Sedona is kinda weird unless you're into holistic stuff, vortex's and crystals. NAU is a small to mid size school so it is not like you would be moving to a place like Boulder CO.

[gr8blueheronbird]

My sister lives in Sedona. Its a great place to think about retiring to. It sits about 4500 elevation and some nice courses to play there. You will still get occassional snow. Another community to look at is Prescott. I have also been to Bend,OR and its very nice there. Way more golf courses than Sedona/Flag area. Remond,OR is very close to Bend and would be another city to consider.

[gr8blueheronbird]

Remond should be Redmond,OR

[Big Ben]

Cool! Thanks guys I will plan some fun visits and check places out. Would be a welcome change of pace versus the diehard Midwest. BB

[1puttTUT]

I've been to Sedona and Flag many times. Sedona is like something out of the roadrunner cartoon, it's visually stunning. Lot's of good bars and restaurants, but it's also very touristy. Flagstaff is like being in Colorado, it's crazy these two towns are only ~30 minutes apart because they feel totally different. The Flagstaff micro brew scene has been steadily growing from the first time I visited maybe 8 years ago.

 

My only gripe is the public golf scene. Sedona has a few decent resort courses (especially seven canyons). Flag has the high end private tracks blunder mentioned but not much for the average guy. I played Elephant Rocks last June and it was nice, but it was a long drive from downtown Flag. It sucks because the topography and views are great and there appears to be tons of undeveloped land. It would be such a great opportunity to build some high end public tracks. I'm sure they would get a ton of play from the summer Phoenix crowd too.

[1puttTUT]

Oh and I agree...Florida sucks. I would NEVER want to retire there. My in-laws live about 3 miles from the ocean and they maybe go once a year! What's the point then?

[mmoran]

Most people want to retire someplace warmer than Flagstaff, it's really much cooler than people think. It would be a great place to spend the summer, if you could go down the hill for the winter.

[fore_life]

Flagstaff has more annual snow and rain than Denver

[John9213]

Picture any mountain town in Colorado and that’s what flagstaff is like. Not many good options for golf unless you join one of the private tracks and it does get a lot of snowfall. Flag is growing rapidly and will continue but it’s a very fun and interesting town. But like previously mentioned, Bend Oregon is better in every way. I don’t much care for colder climate myself but I would live in Bend in a heartbeat. I’ve been to every state extensively except Maine so if anyone wants to know about a town or area, drop me a pm. Chances are I’ve been there, done that.

[W4LWQ]

STAY AWAY FROM FLORIDA !!!!! Already too many people here , just sayin.

[dcmidnight]

STAY AWAY FROM FLORIDA !!!!! Already too many people here , just sayin.

 

Agreed :)

 

I always get a kick out of hearing my friends say how much they hate Florida and when I ask them where they've been they say oh we went once, to Orlando to go to Disney, during the kids school vacation. Or we went once to Ft Lauderdale..but we ended up there during Spring break.

 

Its so cheap for us to get there that I am usually down there a couple times a year. Anything from the Destin area to Ft Myers for spring training to fishing in the Keys to the Jax/Ponte Vedre area. I'm not saying there aren't people who cant stand the place. But - IMHO - if you cant find a place in Florida that has the hobbies you're looking for....you aren't looking hard enough.

[1puttTUT]

Flagstaff has more annual snow and rain than Denver

 

Phx/Scottsdale people are such weather snobs lol

[fore_life]

Flagstaff has more annual snow and rain than Denver

 

Phx/Scottsdale people are such weather snobs lol

 

Don’t you dare lump me in with the scottsdale crowd

[FlyingLaw1]

My brother lives in Prescott, AZ so every other time (or so) I go visit him we spend at least a couple days in Sedona. What an awesome town. Amazing restaurants and bars and a bunch of stellar golf too. Weather is tough to beat, too.