Thinking of moving to Hartford but worried it might be too quiet. Thoughts?

Submitted by rotterdamn8 t3_10limbb in Hartford

I'm from NY and now living in Philly. I am thinking of moving to Hartford for a job and have visited but it seems not so busy.

I also visited West Hartford, which is kind of nice. But I prefer big cities, and Hartford is a decent size but wondering where the action is.

Are there neighborhoods or streets with a lot of businesses and nightlife?

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ThatsALotOfOranges t1_j5x853j wrote

I think your first impression was correct. It is a very quiet city. Not much is open late.

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gromit266 t1_j5xf9dk wrote

Not much in the downtown area itself. The social scene has mostly moved to West Hartford. Also, hope you have a car.

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Fennel_Daph t1_j5xfcks wrote

Also from New York and there is not much going on in Hartford. If your looking for a lively restaurant and bar scene Hartford doesn’t really have it.

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bultrey t1_j5yqxll wrote

Probably not commutable to your job, but you might prefer New Haven, which actually has a night life and much bigger cultural/arts scene. But, if you need to be in the Hartford area, the West Hartford square does in fact have the best night life scene in the area. Hartford has some things but they're not really concentrated in any one area.

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drolo07 t1_j5y2int wrote

I'm from Jersey and spent plenty of time in Philly in my life. If youre looking for a big city, Hartford is not it.

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ThePiperMan t1_j5y432u wrote

Yeah, probably better off going somewhere else.

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popcornstuffedbra t1_j60yldn wrote

I live in West Hartford. Hartford is a ghost town. It's eerie.

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acevedobri t1_j6eoe5g wrote

It's not that bad. People always find a way to bad mouth Hartford: "it's too quiet", "it's too dangerous," etc. As another poster said above, "Hartford has some things but they're not really concentrated in any one area."

And don't trust what people say about West Hartford. It's a big suburb that fought integration for years and years until progressive politics became trendy for white suburbanites. It's not that freakin' great—especially for someone moving from a big city.

Give Hartford a chance!

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rotterdamn8 OP t1_j61cjat wrote

I saw the busy center of West Hartford and it’s pretty cool. What’s the rest like? Residential?

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popcornstuffedbra t1_j63j2bo wrote

Yes, the hub is centralized in terms of "city life". Correct, the rest is residential.
The closest city vibe we offer would be New Haven - I love that city.

I've lived in Toronto and all the NY boroughs except The Bronx, so I get what you're after.

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Own-Tomato4335 t1_j5zjg5s wrote

For comparison purposes, Hartford has a population of 120,000 and is 18 square miles.

Philly 1.6 million, 141 sq mi. NYC 8.5 million, 300 sq mi. I’ve lived in Philly and NYC and now love living in Greater Hartford. Plenty to do in the area but takes some searching and is not concentrated in one spot. Hartford is by all means a small city (not a decent size one).

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CityBird555 t1_j679pkj wrote

Thank you for including Hartford by the numbers. I can’t stand the constant comparisons to cities that are six and 20 times our size (Boston and New York). It’s apples and oranges.

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happyladpizza t1_j6ml6da wrote

hahahaha there is action here, but it is kept a secret to keep the newbies out.

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