The South's Best Places to Retire

Last week I posted Falling for the South: Chattanooga, TN. Unbeknownst to me, Southern Living's Octorber issue had an article on The South's Best Places to Retire (I copied that title for this post), and Chattanooga is the best all around place! I was totally excited. Now you understand why we've been here as long as we have!

You can click on the above link to read the entire article. The list is as follows:

Best All-Around: Chattanooga, TN
Best for Home Buying: Ocean Springs, MS

Best for Healthy Living: Beaufort, NC

Best Beach Town: St Augustine, FL
Best for Outdoor Enthusiasts: Abingdon, VA

Best for Food Lovers: Greenville, SC

Best for Arts and Culture: Savannah, GA

Best for Affordability: Huntsville, AL

Best for City Lovers: Fort Worth, TX

Best Mountain Town: Blowing Rock, NC

Best Access to Nature: Eureka Springs, AR

Best for Lifelong Learning: Lexington, KY

As with any list, you can take it with a grain of salt. We have visited several places on the list - Beaufort, St Augustine, Savannah and Huntsville - and love them. Allow me to stroll down memory lane and share our experiences with you.

Beaufort, N.C.

I do not have photos of Beaufort proper, but do have a clip of the music festival in downtown that spring. And how can we forget that rough night rocking and rolling at Cape Lookout in the Southern Outer Banks? Returning to Beaufort the next morning, we discovered Shackleford Banks, where we enjoyed several mornings of gorgeous sunrise. The shelling was amazing too. Read the rest of the story in this post.

Beautiful sunrise and shelling at Shackleford Banks, Beaufort

Cape Lookout

St Augustine, FL

Located in northeast Florida, St Augustine is the oldest European settlement in America. Beautifully restored buildings dating back as far as the early 1600s await you in the historic district. We called on St Augustine several times when we cruised up and down the East Coast. Mai Thai was usually anchored off the Castillo de San Marcos, the star-shaped Spanish fort built in the mid-1600s, the oldest masonry fortification in North America. 

Mai Thai anchored off Castillo de San Marcos National Monument 

Savannah, Georgia

Our first visit was in the spring, and the azaleas and jasmine were in full bloom. Century-old oak trees lining lovely homes and pretty squares charmed us. Up until then, we've never been to a St Patrick's Day parade/celebration, and we used to live in Philadelphia and Boston, where they have some of the biggest St Patrick's Day parades. The city sure knows how to host a party! We love Savannah so much we came back a few more times. 

Looking at one of many squares from a cafe

Huntsville, Alabama

Did you know some of the first rockets and satellites were built at Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville? You can learn more at the U.S. Space and Rocket Center Museum.  Huntsville experienced significant growth over the years, surpassing Birmingham to be the biggest city in Alabama. 

U.S. Space and Rocket Center Museum

Madison County Nature Trail

Tennessee River at Ditto Landing Marina

Greenville, Blowing Rock and Lexington are on our radar;  we hope to visit in the not-too-distant future.

Have you been to these places? Would you retire there?

This post is shared on Skywatch Friday Image-in-ing and Little Things Thursday.

 

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Falling for the South: Chattanooga, TN

Like many towns and cities across the U.S., Chattanooga has expanded left and right over the last decade.  Every where you look, hotels and residential buildings are popping up. Traffic congestion is becoming a huge problem, especially at the I-24/I-75 split, and west towards Nashville. 

Luckily, the downtown is not so bad as restaurants and hotels are not concentrated in just one area. A free  electric shuttle runs from the TN Aquarium to the Chattanooga Choo Choo with stops in between, so you can get to your favorite restaurants, shops and hotels easily. In addition to summer concerts and the annual Riverbend Music Festival, Chattanooga riverfront is also a port of call for cruise ships and the replica of Columbus' ship Pinta and hosts events like Ironman, paddling and rowing.

This week, with friends in town, we explored the North Shore, the bluff view art district and the south side.

Market St Bridge in the early morning

 The American Splendor docked in Chattanooga riverfront

Looking at the aquarium from the North Shore riverfront

Walnut Street Pedestrian Bridge connects the bluff view arts district to the North Shore

Hunter Museum in the bluff view arts district

Bronze statue of Woman in Dress with Star

Lobby of the Edwin Hotel (opened May 2018)

Chattanooga Choo Choo station, now a Holiday Inn

Recently, we kayaked at Raccoon Mountain (less than 10 miles from downtown), and took some friends up to the visitor center. The view of the Tennessee River Gorge is breathtaking, as always.

Tennessee River Gorge, as seen from the Visitor Center at Raccoon Mountain

picnic area at the bottom of Raccoon Mountain

launching area for boats and kayaks

As you can see, Chattanooga is a scenic city, with an abundance of outdoor opportunities for both kids and adults. We look forward to some of our favorite fall events on the Tennessee River - Chattajack31 (Oct 28), and Head of the Hooch (Nov 4/5). See you on the river!

This post is shared on Skywatch Friday and Image-in-ing.

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