Greenville, SC: One of the Best Places to Live
December 18, 2019
Greenville, SC
Greenville, SC is located in the Northwestern region of the state known as the Upcountry. Nestled in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, Greenville is about equal distance between Atlanta, Georgia and Charlotte, North Carolina. There are roughly 30 other towns and cities named Greenville in the U.S, including one in North Carolina. So what makes this Greenville one of the best places to live?
According to Livability, Greenville ranked #10 on their 2019 Top 100 Best Places to Live. The most important criteria for people was affordability. This list was made with that in mind, median home value was capped at $250,000.
“There’s no getting around it: Greenville is having a moment. The city’s downtown is a premier destination for dining, shopping and entertainment, but outside of that, Greenville is home to an array of outdoor recreation opportunities thanks to its prime location in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains.”
U.S. News analyzed 125 metro areas in the United States to find the best places to live based on quality of life and the job market in each metro area, as well as the value of living there and people’s desire to live there. Greenville ranked #22 in Best Places to Live in the USA 2019 and #26 in Best Places to Retire in the U.S. 2020. (Kelsey Nelson – U.S.News)
Shopping/Dining/Entertainment
The main focal point of Greenville is its revitalized Downtown. The Main Street consists of approximately 100 retailers that include one of a kind and unique shops and art galleries. You’ll also see some of your favorites while walking along this 10-block pedestrian friendly street. What goes better with a day of shopping then a great meal. Greenville’s Main Street has become a foodie’s go-to. With 120, mostly locally owned, restaurants and bars to choose from there’s a wide variety of selection and prices to fit your mood and your wallet.
Fun Fact: If you get tired of walking just hop on the Downtown Trolley. It’s open air, wheelchair accessible, equipped with bike racks, and fare-free! Hours: Thursdays and Fridays from 6 p.m. until 11 p.m., on Saturdays from 10 a.m. until 11 p.m., and on Sundays from 1 p.m. until 8 p.m.
If you’re looking for some live entertainment Greenville has an abundance of options. The Carolina Ballet Theater (CBT) is a resident professional company that continues to contribute to the art community through education, entertainment and engagement. They, along with 4 other resident companies, perform at the Peace Center right in Downtown. Bon Secours Wellness Arena is conveniently located Downtown and serves as a state of the art arena for sports, live musicians and other performances. It hosts sporting events such as Greenville Swamp Rabbits hockey, World Wrestling Entertainment, College Basketball and more. Upcoming events include Greenville Swamp Rabbits, Harlem Globetrotters, Cirque Du Soleil AXEL and Monster Jam. Musical acts known for their craft and ones on the rise to fame perform here yearly. Upcoming acts include Winter Jam 2020, Michael Bublé, Adam Sandler and Dan + Shay. Local and famous comedians can be seen at one of the many Comedy Clubs throughout the city. To find out more information on Entertainment events, go to visitgreenvillesc.com.
Outdoors/Sports
If you enjoy the outdoors, an active lifestyle and want the best of both worlds then look no further. The city experiences all four seasons but with mild winters. Average temperatures are 70’s/High and 50’s/Low. This allows for year round outdoor fun for everyone. Biking, hiking, boating, swimming, camping, canoeing & kayaking, whitewater rafting, ziplining, golf & tennis and ice skating to name a few. You can take a stroll or ride a bike along the 22-mile Prisma Health Swamp Rabbit Trail along the Reedy River. For some of the more adventurous excursions a short trip to Saluda, NC provides ziplining and whitewater rafting. Looking for some Bermuda grass we’ve got you covered with 18 holes at The Preserve at Verde, just one of many golf courses available in or near Greenville. These are just some of the outdoor adventures that await you.
Fun Fact: South Carolina has hundreds of golf courses, over 360 to be exact.
Fun Fact: North Carolina and South Carolina share all their major professional sports teams (NFL, NHL and NBA), but they all play in North Carolina.
Don’t worry! There are more than enough sporting events to choose from in Greenville. The Swamp River Rabbits is a AA hockey league affiliated with the NHL New York Rangers. Home games of the ECHL (South Division-Eastern Conference) are played at the Bon Secours Wellness Arena. Starting 2019 the Greenville Triumph will begin their first season as a professional soccer team in the USL League One. Home games will be played in their new stadium located in the Westside. The residents of Greenville love their football, college football to be exact. There is a dividing line between people, the Clemson University fans and the University of South Carolina fans. If you’re more of a baseball fan the Class-A affiliates of the Boston Red Sox’s, the Greenville Drive, play at Fluor Field in the historic West End. Fluor Field is a minor league ballpark with a close resemblance to Fenway Park. You can catch a Drive game with the family and see the park’s very own Green Monster.
Greenville embodies the Southern small town charm with a close knit community while also offering many features of a major city. It’s this combination that has turned Greenville into a hot spot for tourists and established it as one of the best places to live.