Manchester or Portsmouth

frezza_no_mo

Hi, I am a PA nestie.  MH and i are considering moving to NH and we are in the process of looking at areas.

Do you have a preference between the 2 cities?  Is there something that defines each? I work from home and he would be working remotely for his company so work stuff is less important than quality of life and things to do (we are DINKS).

Any info would be great - thank you so much!

 

frezza_no_mo

And i have posted more than 2 times - i just still use the old boards.  I hate the fresh start 

Quinnikati

We're moving to Epping which is 20 min to Portsmouth and 20 min to Manchester... there is a lot of new business growth right now however not any "night life" you'd have to go to either of the places mentioned previously.. Dover is a nice area... closer to Portsmouth, 45-50 min from Manchester... We're currently living in Derry which is also nice (as is Londonderry) and is only 10 min to Manchester...

BeckieC832

There both very different cities. Manchester is the biggest city in NH, definitely more city-ish in general. Portsmouth is much smaller and more artsy I would say. Lots of cute shops yet all the big stores of Manchester, too, plus the ocean  I grew up in the Manchester area and now live in the Portsmouth area, and I prefer Portsmouth.

frezza_no_mo

Thanks to both of you. I think we are going to come up for a week and divide our time between the 2. I am more of a small town/small city person tho what i have seen of manchester (picking up friends on the way to the white mnts mostly) was nice.

BeckieC832

What does DINKS stand for?

Have you ever been to NH?

frezza_no_mo

double income no kids.

I have been to NH but the white mountains area mostly.  MH is from RI and lived in Boston.  So we are kind of familiar with the NE area but not the ins and outs of the NH cities themselves.

frezza_no_mo

double income no kids.

I have been to NH but the white mountains area mostly.  MH is from RI and lived in Boston.  So we are kind of familiar with the NE area but not the ins and outs of the cities themselves.

BeckieC832

Ohhh, we're DINKS, too then

Well, if you want any info about what to see or do in the Portsmouth area I will gladly help! I love Portsmouth! I love Prescott Park, and Strawberry Banke, and the nightlife and restaurants...and the Music Hall always has something going on. The towns surrounding it are nice, too. The good thing about NH is your never too far from another place in NH really.

frezza_no_mo

 

thanks for your help!  i may have a bunch of questions once we start to narrow this down.  thanks and sorry for the double post above!

BeckieC832

your welcome, anytime! I have lived in both areas and I know lots of girls here have to!

LilBlueBoat

personally, its a no brainer.... Portsmouth or Portsmouth area.  I love being near the ocean, plus its about equal distance to Boston and Portland, Maine.

I live near Portsmouth and love the area.   I can be to the beach in about 20 minutes and about 50 minutes to some okay mountains.  There are lots of concerts, arts, theater, etc. all in the area too.  
 

nrkloveswrk

I personally would not want to live in Manchvegas.....I prefer the seacoast areas....(but we live inland in Barrington).  I think that Dover would suit your small town feel, but would be close enough to everything to be convenient.

Mommy&Tahoe_bri

We live outside of Portsmouth. I love this area....much more so than Manchester.

 

Tons to do here....beach, close drive up 16 to the mountains. Its a great place to live.

izzybella

Portsmouth!! Love it Way more expensive than Manchester though.

Jodi porter

I lived in Dover (near Portsmouth) for a couple years and LOVED it there. We now live in Hooksett (right next to Manchester) and I still wish we lived out on the coast. I miss it there. And shopping wise, Portsmouth is getting a lot more stuff than they had a couple years ago when I lived there. I could definitely move there and not miss the shopping in Manchester.

ChefSarah22

Given the option, I'd vote Portsmouth.  Manch is nice but I love Portsmouth.  Like PP said, it is more expensive though.

MilesOfSmiles

 As Beckie mentioned, both are very different cities with very different feels. However, I COMPLETELY agree with the poster who wouldn't prefer to live in Manchester... Portsmouth has most of the same ammenities, but is a small, charming, city (or large town). I just love Portsmouth. Dover is more affordable than Portsmouth, is only a few minutes away, and also has a cute downtown area. Come on here anytime and ask any of us Seacoast girls what there is to do and see in both areas when you come up! GL!

ann11/11

we lived in portsmouth for 4 years and loved it!! we miss it so much.  we moved to be closer to work and right now we are about in the middle between portsmouth and manchester.  if we could afford to buy a house in portsmouth we would but we cant right now.  beautiful downtown, great restaurants, great shopping, next to the Maine border and close to the Mass border as well.  hands down, we would choose portsmouth.

JNicMTek

I'll put another vote in for the Portsmouth area.  I live in Dover now and love it.  It's so close to everything, and Portsmouth is a great city.  I'm basically a farm girl so big cities scare me, and by big city, I'm talking Manchester.  However, we'll be moving to the Derry/Manchester area at some point because of the gas prices since it will be a shorter commute to work for us.

suchaclancy

I would recommend Portsmouth over Manchester.  MH and I lived in Manchester for about 2 years and really didn't like it.  It IS the largest city in the state but it did nothing for me.  Traffic downtown and near the mall is horrendous, and it seemed like no matter where we lived or where we were going, we had to drive for 10-20 minutes to get anywhere.  We've lived on the Seacoast now for about 5 years (first Epping and now Dover) and we LOVE it here.  If we could have afforded the house we want in Portsmouth we would have moved there, but Dover is wonderful and just a few minutes from Portsmouth.  Portsmouth has a super cute downtown with TONS of restaurants and shops, and there are always arts events in summer and winter.  If you want to know more about the area, there are tons of Seacoast girls on here, so ask away!