Relocating to Florida...where is the best place to live/dive

[DebbyDiver]

A great guide is Ned DeLoach's Diving Guide to Underwater Florida. You can buy it from Amazon. It provides a good discussion of the hundreds of dive sites through out Florida.

It is the Bible of Florida diving. Highly recommended.

The best diving is probably still in the Keys. South Florida from Miami to Ft Lauderdale to West Palm have great reefs and excellent visibility.

I beg to differ with your first sentence and I wholeheartedly agree with the second. Don't get me wrong. I LOVE the Keys. Been diving it since the mid-70's. Owned a home there and will retire there. But I love Broward and Palm Beach diving that much more.

Some day I hope to move to the Keys..

Now's the time to jump, they are giving away homes down there!!! The home I sold for $400K five years ago, if it were on the market now (it isn't) would go for about $189. Used to be you couldn't touch a mobile home down there for under $200 and now they are under $100.

Me? I used to think I'd buy another home down there, but now my retirement plans are to buy a nice sized travel trailer/third wheel and if I get neighbors I don't like? Hitch it up and move!

p.s. this thread really needs to be in the regular Conch forum.

 

[idocsteve]

now my retirement plans are to buy a nice sized travel trailer/third wheel and if I get neighbors I don't like? Hitch it up and move!

Think positive.

:cool2:

 

[drbill]

Now, Jeff... if you really want the best place to live and dive, you two are leaving it! Of course as my aging bones start creaking more, I too think of warmer waters with outstanding visibility and fantastic diversity. But then I'm thinking of Asia, not Florida... it was darned cold in Sarasota when I was there!

 

[Salmonboy97]

You should figure out WHAT type of diving you like best and relocate near it. If you like caves move to the north central part of the state. Clear water and high visibility the south east coast. The gulf side has good spearing and wrecks. Fossils? near Venice.
It really doesnt matter as long as you are here, none of these sites are more than a few hours drive from each other.
The west coast is probably a little cheaper to buy a home and live.
We can always carpool to the other dive sites!
Hope to see you soon!

 

[ancientdiver]

What they all said. Depends on what you like. If you like to do it all - drift dive, springs, Keys, then SE side of FL is probably the best place for a home base, somewhere between Palm Beach Gardens and Cutler Ridge. Second best place would be between north Tampa and Sarasota. I've lived in different parts of FL, off and on, for a total of 18 years. The overall quality of life is the highest in Sarasota - less traffic, minimal crime, awesome new bike trail that goes all the way to Venice Beach (rails to trails deal) nicer people (sorry to all you New Yorkers on the east coast of Florida, but laid back and easy going are not the adjectives anyone would use to describe the typical New Yorker, which is most of the population on the SE side of FL), lots of cultural stuff going on, number one school system, and a beautiful downtown area and bay front. The diving is 2nd rate most times - it does get top to bottom clear a few times, but not great viz. most times. You can get great conditions nearly anytime you want, but it is a long boat ride off shore. But wait, there's more! I am 4 hours from the northern most springs, 3 hours from Palm Beach diving, 20 minutes from great fossil diving off of Venice, and 5 hours from Key Largo, so it's a great compromise location for diving AND quality of life. Check it out before you buy. Good luck, and welcome to Gator Country!

 

[ABBIE35]

Huy! My personal favorite is Palm Beach County area because i have a lot of memories associated with it. Have fun.