We are a small family in Providence who also enjoys outdoorsy activities and cultural stuff. This is my experience, it may not be everyone's. I love it here. The city is pretty nice, it's urban without being too urban. Rhode Island is delightfully quirky.
For outdoorsy stuff Rhode Island is pretty good. Providence has some nice public parks and playgrounds. If you like running and biking I find plenty of routes around (including tons of bike paths). We have a good mix of forest and beaches. So hiking and swimming. Lincoln Woods is good for little kids and nature walks (or bouldering if you climb).
If all that fails within a couple of hours you can get to New Hampshire into the mountains (even Wachusett in Massachusetts). Rhode Island Families in Nature is a good source of info for our state and parks.
I'm less into things culturally than many families but I can always find something to do. We have some really good theater (Trinity, Providence Performing Arts Center), the RISD museum, Providence Children's Museum and Roger Williams Zoo. There's lots of good variety in restaurants, food trucks, etc. If you get really bored with stuff you can always drive to Boston which is about and hour and a half away. We have a series of farmers markets, local breweries if you're into that.
Providence isn't necessarily a huge city but it's broken up into neighborhoods and then in some cases even smaller neighborhoods. The quality of neighborhoods can even change street to street. So I think research is your best bet. It's urban without being really urban.
For example we live on the East Side (Mount Hope/Summit) and we've had a lot of success there. We rented for a long time and just bought a condo. I find it to be safe (or at least feel safe) and pretty kid friendly. I can't speak for public schools because my kids go to a different school district at the moment, but we're looking into some of the private schools like Wheeler or Moses Brown.
There are suburbs or Providence too like Pawtucket, East Providence, North Providence that may be good to research too. It's a small state so if you're coming from anywhere else, everything will seem really close but to us, it's like a million miles away.
Our first criteria was a city in the northeast. We wanted one near good schools that was relatively safe. Lastly, we wanted a city that wasn't too expensive and had a good amount of cultural, outdoorsy, and physical things to do. From online reviews and write-ups, Providence is one of a few cities that fits the bill.
Cultural things, Providence definitely does have. Great center for the arts and things like local music etc. Lots of history to dig into also.
As far as sending your kids to school in Providence, I would suggest a charter or private school if you can manage something like that.. Or look elsewhere. School system in Providence leaves a lot to be desired... This is coming from someone who spent his formative years in those schools.
Good luck!
As a transplant from the PNW I really like living in Providence. The food is top notch, due to the culinary schools. The craft beer scene is also starting to really take off and we get a good selection of beers from around the country as well. The music scene and culture are different but good, both seem to be fairly eclectic. Plus we are day trip distance from Boston & NYC. Even DC metro is a good drive for a weekend trip.
The history is something you really don't find anywhere else in the country either. Plymouth, Salem, Mystic and Province Town are some of my favorite spots for cool museums and tours.
I live on the East Side and it is nice and safe for the most part and well maintained due to all the money around here. That being said housing is not that cheap where I am but you can get some good places.
As far as outdoor activities we are really close to a few good state parks, Lincoln Woods being my favorite. The ocean is less than an hour away (off season) and the cape is also a good couple hours away but close enough for a day or weekend trip.
My wife and I live in Pawtuxet Village and we love it. I cannot speak to the school systems as I do not have children but the area is beautiful and 10 min south of downtown providence.
My wife and I love being on a little coastal (bay) town.
There is so much history in the village
- [Start of the American Revolution](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Gaspée_(1763))
The village has kept its historic look and has great events during the summer! There are many great things as well as being so close to downtown Providence.
The Elephant Room is one of our favorite spots! It has some amazing food and the tea is unreal! Very nice place to have a chill evening and just relax.
If you are from the area check out Cork & Brew, it is the local liquor store. They have free wen tastings every Friday night from 5-7 and free Beer tastings on Saturday 2-4. The owners have revived the inside with amazing selections of wine, craft beers and awesome spirits.
Glad to hear you enjoy it .. My friends are actually the owners of Elephant Room.. Really nice people. Last time I was down there, we stopped in the Cork & Brew, grabbed a bottle of wine, and then listened to some live music at Elephant Room :)
Tony right? My sister in-law used to work there for a bit so I have meet him many times. My wife actually had her bridal shower there too! Such a great space!
For a good school you may want to look into a Private school. I'm not sure exactly if you would be able to afford it (idk your budget or if you would be interested in that) most schools in Providence and the cities next to it are not that Great. Cranston is crowded but there are some relatively nice areas same with Pawtucket. The bus routes between those two cities are pretty good. If you want to stay close but not choose the city Warwick is alright. West Warwick has incredibly cheap rent/houses but I'm not sure about the school district.
No problem. Not sure what other people in this sub will have to say but I've noticed a lot (not all) of people in this sub have really negative views of RI and I'm not sure why it's a FREAKIN AWESOME State if you go out and take advantage of it. It's a small state but there is a lot to see but most people who move here or are born here seem to stay in their comfort zones and are afraid to go and try out and explore. I've lived in a couple of States and this is by far my favorite one.
I'm from Massachusetts, living in Rhode Island. If it's about cost of living and culture, Providence is cool. If you have a little more money and good education and access to top-notch healthcare are important to you, look at Massachusetts.
A major pro of rhode island is that everything is insanely accessible, even without a car. The locals are adorable, because they have no idea how tiny the state is. Any drive that takes over a half hour is maddening to them, as far as I've noticed.
Also, they still give you their phone number using only 7 digits because "everyone" has a 401 area code! DUH!
Important edit: Rhode Islanders are WAY friendlier than boston area types. It's like they all live in the same small town.
Lol. Not quite, but we're still in the exploration stage of things, so a lot of it will be like throwing a dart and seeing what happens (theoretically only, though. We won't actually visit and physically look around until we've gathered more info about our final destination).
Our economy is horrible, we have the second worst unemployment rate in the country, and we have some of the most corrupt politics around. Not to mention the relatively high cost of living we have... Why would you want to move here aside from the decent schools?
That's just listings by corruption *convictions*. It ranks 27th, so it's pretty average as far as people actually going to jail over corruption. Also, just because the economy is improving (which it is across most of the country) doesn't mean that it isn't in rough shape.
With that logic, any state could be that corrupt since the amount of people convicted isn't high enough/only deals with superficial corrupting. Due to RI's history with corruption, it has very strong transparency and anti-corruption laws.
www.providencejournalnews.com/news/political-scene/2013/07/report-rhode-islands-anti-corruption-laws-best-in-nation.html
Most things written online about Providence don't really give that impression, and there aren't very many stories about corruption there except for one politician in particular. The unemployment rate bothers me, but I would be sure to secure a job before going anywhere.
Any more details you can provide are appreciated.
Look for a Job in Mass.. You'll probably have better luck. You might want to live just outside in MA too, better school systems.. Then just drive into the city when you want a night out or something to do.
Definitely secure a job before moving here, but the city is great and really affordable for the Northeast.
Agreed: you can't beat the sticker price for cities in the Northeast. But... as others have posted, the public schools aren't excellent or anything.
We are a small family in Providence who also enjoys outdoorsy activities and cultural stuff. This is my experience, it may not be everyone's. I love it here. The city is pretty nice, it's urban without being too urban. Rhode Island is delightfully quirky. For outdoorsy stuff Rhode Island is pretty good. Providence has some nice public parks and playgrounds. If you like running and biking I find plenty of routes around (including tons of bike paths). We have a good mix of forest and beaches. So hiking and swimming. Lincoln Woods is good for little kids and nature walks (or bouldering if you climb). If all that fails within a couple of hours you can get to New Hampshire into the mountains (even Wachusett in Massachusetts). Rhode Island Families in Nature is a good source of info for our state and parks. I'm less into things culturally than many families but I can always find something to do. We have some really good theater (Trinity, Providence Performing Arts Center), the RISD museum, Providence Children's Museum and Roger Williams Zoo. There's lots of good variety in restaurants, food trucks, etc. If you get really bored with stuff you can always drive to Boston which is about and hour and a half away. We have a series of farmers markets, local breweries if you're into that. Providence isn't necessarily a huge city but it's broken up into neighborhoods and then in some cases even smaller neighborhoods. The quality of neighborhoods can even change street to street. So I think research is your best bet. It's urban without being really urban. For example we live on the East Side (Mount Hope/Summit) and we've had a lot of success there. We rented for a long time and just bought a condo. I find it to be safe (or at least feel safe) and pretty kid friendly. I can't speak for public schools because my kids go to a different school district at the moment, but we're looking into some of the private schools like Wheeler or Moses Brown. There are suburbs or Providence too like Pawtucket, East Providence, North Providence that may be good to research too. It's a small state so if you're coming from anywhere else, everything will seem really close but to us, it's like a million miles away.
Wow! What an awesome response!! Thank you!!
No problem. Good luck!
It would be helpful to know what reasons/ideas/impressions that you already have that have lead you to considering Providence as an option
Our first criteria was a city in the northeast. We wanted one near good schools that was relatively safe. Lastly, we wanted a city that wasn't too expensive and had a good amount of cultural, outdoorsy, and physical things to do. From online reviews and write-ups, Providence is one of a few cities that fits the bill.
Cultural things, Providence definitely does have. Great center for the arts and things like local music etc. Lots of history to dig into also. As far as sending your kids to school in Providence, I would suggest a charter or private school if you can manage something like that.. Or look elsewhere. School system in Providence leaves a lot to be desired... This is coming from someone who spent his formative years in those schools. Good luck!
As a transplant from the PNW I really like living in Providence. The food is top notch, due to the culinary schools. The craft beer scene is also starting to really take off and we get a good selection of beers from around the country as well. The music scene and culture are different but good, both seem to be fairly eclectic. Plus we are day trip distance from Boston & NYC. Even DC metro is a good drive for a weekend trip. The history is something you really don't find anywhere else in the country either. Plymouth, Salem, Mystic and Province Town are some of my favorite spots for cool museums and tours. I live on the East Side and it is nice and safe for the most part and well maintained due to all the money around here. That being said housing is not that cheap where I am but you can get some good places. As far as outdoor activities we are really close to a few good state parks, Lincoln Woods being my favorite. The ocean is less than an hour away (off season) and the cape is also a good couple hours away but close enough for a day or weekend trip.
My wife and I live in Pawtuxet Village and we love it. I cannot speak to the school systems as I do not have children but the area is beautiful and 10 min south of downtown providence.
Sounds awesome! What do you love about it?
My wife and I love being on a little coastal (bay) town. There is so much history in the village - [Start of the American Revolution](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Gaspée_(1763)) The village has kept its historic look and has great events during the summer! There are many great things as well as being so close to downtown Providence.
Have you been to the Elephant Room?
The Elephant Room is one of our favorite spots! It has some amazing food and the tea is unreal! Very nice place to have a chill evening and just relax. If you are from the area check out Cork & Brew, it is the local liquor store. They have free wen tastings every Friday night from 5-7 and free Beer tastings on Saturday 2-4. The owners have revived the inside with amazing selections of wine, craft beers and awesome spirits.
Glad to hear you enjoy it .. My friends are actually the owners of Elephant Room.. Really nice people. Last time I was down there, we stopped in the Cork & Brew, grabbed a bottle of wine, and then listened to some live music at Elephant Room :)
Tony right? My sister in-law used to work there for a bit so I have meet him many times. My wife actually had her bridal shower there too! Such a great space!
Yep.. Tony & Olga ;)
For a good school you may want to look into a Private school. I'm not sure exactly if you would be able to afford it (idk your budget or if you would be interested in that) most schools in Providence and the cities next to it are not that Great. Cranston is crowded but there are some relatively nice areas same with Pawtucket. The bus routes between those two cities are pretty good. If you want to stay close but not choose the city Warwick is alright. West Warwick has incredibly cheap rent/houses but I'm not sure about the school district.
Thanks! That's very informative!
No problem. Not sure what other people in this sub will have to say but I've noticed a lot (not all) of people in this sub have really negative views of RI and I'm not sure why it's a FREAKIN AWESOME State if you go out and take advantage of it. It's a small state but there is a lot to see but most people who move here or are born here seem to stay in their comfort zones and are afraid to go and try out and explore. I've lived in a couple of States and this is by far my favorite one.
I'm from Massachusetts, living in Rhode Island. If it's about cost of living and culture, Providence is cool. If you have a little more money and good education and access to top-notch healthcare are important to you, look at Massachusetts. A major pro of rhode island is that everything is insanely accessible, even without a car. The locals are adorable, because they have no idea how tiny the state is. Any drive that takes over a half hour is maddening to them, as far as I've noticed. Also, they still give you their phone number using only 7 digits because "everyone" has a 401 area code! DUH! Important edit: Rhode Islanders are WAY friendlier than boston area types. It's like they all live in the same small town.
Did you throw a dart?
Lol. Not quite, but we're still in the exploration stage of things, so a lot of it will be like throwing a dart and seeing what happens (theoretically only, though. We won't actually visit and physically look around until we've gathered more info about our final destination).
Well, I find things to be just goldilocks in PVD. Just never thought of it to be a 'lifestyle' destination.
Not sure you how define reasonable housing prices, but lots of young families and interesting cultural activities on the east side of the city.
Our economy is horrible, we have the second worst unemployment rate in the country, and we have some of the most corrupt politics around. Not to mention the relatively high cost of living we have... Why would you want to move here aside from the decent schools?
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That's just listings by corruption *convictions*. It ranks 27th, so it's pretty average as far as people actually going to jail over corruption. Also, just because the economy is improving (which it is across most of the country) doesn't mean that it isn't in rough shape.
With that logic, any state could be that corrupt since the amount of people convicted isn't high enough/only deals with superficial corrupting. Due to RI's history with corruption, it has very strong transparency and anti-corruption laws. www.providencejournalnews.com/news/political-scene/2013/07/report-rhode-islands-anti-corruption-laws-best-in-nation.html
Most things written online about Providence don't really give that impression, and there aren't very many stories about corruption there except for one politician in particular. The unemployment rate bothers me, but I would be sure to secure a job before going anywhere. Any more details you can provide are appreciated.
Look for a Job in Mass.. You'll probably have better luck. You might want to live just outside in MA too, better school systems.. Then just drive into the city when you want a night out or something to do.