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Some places are friendlier than others, and some demographics will encounter more friendliness some places than others. That said, I think if you want relationships that go beyond "friendliness," you'd be wise to choose an area where there are other recent transplants. In a very settled area, people tend to already have their established circle of folks, and even if they're friendly, they're less likely to be seeking new close friendships.
That brings back memories of when I was in the tire and auto service on the east coast of Florida. We used to get a lot of New York and New Jersey people that would come down for the winter. Whenever a car with Jersey plates would pull up, it was a contest to see who could disappear into the warehouse the quickest. Last person who was left up front had to wait on them. That was back in the 70s/80s
My favorite Jersey memory was the guy who stormed in the front door curse words flying and demanded I drop everything and look at a tire in his trunk. I walked out and sure enough there was a tire in his trunk with a tread separation. He demanded that I give him a new tire. I said that I could not do that. The F words rained down on me with again the demand for a new tire. Once again I said that I could not do that. Then I figured that I had better bring this to an end before he had a stroke.
I politely pointed out that, as indicated by the huge sign he was parked in front of, we were a Goodyear dealer and the tire in his trunk was a Firestone. Trunk lid slammed down, door slammed shut and he was on his way
Oh no! I hate when people live up to the stereotype!
I have to tell a little story here about the first time we visited the southeast US looking for a place to retire. We were checking into a hotel in Asheville NC, then we were going to go over the mountains to Knoxville, Tennessee (80 miles to the west of Asheville). We were in line in the hotel lobby behind a gentleman with a heavy southern accent who was complaining bitterly to the hotel clerk about how unfriendly and "downright RUDE I tell you" the people of Asheville were. Now we had found the people of Asheville to be quite friendly and accommodating so my ears perked up to listen to this exchange. He said indignantly "Where I come from people have manners and are kind to visitors!" The clerk apologized for whatever had happened and inquired sweetly "Where are you from Mr Jones?" "East Tennessee" he replied and set his chin, hand on hip. My DH and I had to turn away and cover our mouths so he wouldn't hear us laughing to each other. The thought that a distance of some 50 miles might cause people to behave differently and have "no manners" just struck us as hysterical. And the thought that there might be people in the world who were NICER and even MORE polite than we found North Carolinians was astounding. It made us even more anxious to go to east Tennessee to see these amazing people! It turns out he was right about the people of TN, but I suspect the people he found so rude in NC were probably tourists or transplants. The whole thing was just something I'll always remember, that pride of where you are from, and the almost competitive focus on being as polite and kind as humanly possible.
Anyway, I hope you found it amusing, and maybe revealing.
I'm in a summer tourist town. And I have found that people on vacation, no matter where they are from, are very friendly and talkative. I chalk it up to less stress, more relaxed atmosphere, they are away from their home turf so everyone is a stranger and they are just more chill.
I'm in a summer tourist town. And I have found that people on vacation, no matter where they are from, are very friendly and talkative. I chalk it up to less stress, more relaxed atmosphere, they are away from their home turf so everyone is a stranger and they are just more chill.
Unless you are from a totally different culture where things are done differently from the place you're visiting, which is true of much of the south.
Things tend to go at a slower pace, and people will take their time, and if you are used to the go-go pace of somewhere like NY or CA, you might find the southern way of life maddeningly slow. When I was young, I just didn't get it and was frustrated by it. Now that I'm older (and retired) and not in such a danged hurry all the time, I appreciate people's willingness to take their time. But you have to go at their pace, or you'll feel like you're trying to push a wet noodle and it's not going to end well. So now I settle in and go with the flow.
I'm in a summer tourist town. And I have found that people on vacation, no matter where they are from, are very friendly and talkative. I chalk it up to less stress, more relaxed atmosphere, they are away from their home turf so everyone is a stranger and they are just more chill.
Yes, and that also applies to hiking! In my experience, people you find on hiking trails are just so much nicer than most people -- or maybe they are just nicer because they are away from the city!
I would agree- Wisconsin is the friendliest. They also have a great park system for hiking and enjoying nature. Maybe that contributes to the friendliness?
I have to tell a little story here about the first time we visited the southeast US looking for a place to retire. We were checking into a hotel in Asheville NC, then we were going to go over the mountains to Knoxville, Tennessee (80 miles to the west of Asheville). We were in line in the hotel lobby behind a gentleman with a heavy southern accent who was complaining bitterly to the hotel clerk about how unfriendly and "downright RUDE I tell you" the people of Asheville were. Now we had found the people of Asheville to be quite friendly and accommodating so my ears perked up to listen to this exchange. He said indignantly "Where I come from people have manners and are kind to visitors!" The clerk apologized for whatever had happened and inquired sweetly "Where are you from Mr Jones?" "East Tennessee" he replied and set his chin, hand on hip. My DH and I had to turn away and cover our mouths so he wouldn't hear us laughing to each other. The thought that a distance of some 50 miles might cause people to behave differently and have "no manners" just struck us as hysterical. And the thought that there might be people in the world who were NICER and even MORE polite than we found North Carolinians was astounding. It made us even more anxious to go to east Tennessee to see these amazing people! It turns out he was right about the people of TN, but I suspect the people he found so rude in NC were probably tourists or transplants. The whole thing was just something I'll always remember, that pride of where you are from, and the almost competitive focus on being as polite and kind as humanly possible.
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We have lived in six different states and many areas within them, plus a lot of travel for business.
The most friendliest place we’ve ever lived in by far was Asheville, NC and it’s neighbor Black Mountain, NC. And actually all of western NC.
It’s not that it’s just easy to make friends there, it’s that the people are amazing and will truly give you the shirt off their backs if needed. And I agree the TN guy probably just ran into some tourists as there are a lot in Asheville.
We moved to a smaller town that has a large retiree population, many of which have moved here in retirement and are what we call "transplants". We find the others to be very friendly and welcoming and open to making new friends - in large part because most arrived in town knowing few people, if any. Many are newly retired and having more time is a delightful new thing for us and we aren't as rushed, so we take some time to pause and chat, as we just did with the salesperson at a local store. Many of the people are very open and also interested in you. We live in southern Delaware, but a friend who moved to a huge development of relocated retirees in South Carolina and is very happy as well. It can be a little more difficult to move into an area where people have family and established friends, but it's not impossible.
My husband and I are a little shy, but when we moved here, we vowed we would make the effort to try to make friends and even join group - and we've made good on that. I think one of the easiest ways to make friends is to join a group that does whatever you enjoy doing - whether it's biking, hiking, swimming, cooking, pickleball, tennis, reading, etc.
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