Tampa vs Orlando (Jacksonville: rent, home, job market)

[^Eagle^]

A while back I tried to make a decision between orlando, tampa, and south florida. Unable to do so I chose Daytona because of cheap rent and seasonal events. I figured I could figure out which area I liked best while I was down here.

It didn't work out. I spent the first few weeks job hunting and then worked and played never feeling I had the money to check out other places. I visited south florida once and had fun, and I visited orlando a few times and had fun.

Now Im ready to finally make the move that I origionally wanted to make. Daytona is not where I want to be.

Orlando seems to have better nightlife then tampa but Im not sure it's as accessible. You guys seem to have a few major nightlife districts with affordable housing right next to them.

With Orlando you have to find a good spot downtown because they only have one district (although its damn good) and then of course there is citywalk and all that too.Its rare to find an affordable room or ANY room downtown, ive tried.

Beyond that I work in the restaurant industry.Seems like Tampa has a ton of sprawl for that stuff and between tampa and st pete I could find something. Orlando has restaurant jobs too but there seems to be fewer options.

Orlando seems to have a stronger and longer lasting tourist season though.

Help me out here. Should a server looking for easy access nightlife choose tampa over Orlando?

[gypsychic]

Originally Posted by ^Eagle^

A while back I tried to make a decision between orlando, tampa, and south florida. Unable to do so I chose Daytona because of cheap rent and seasonal events. I figured I could figure out which area I liked best while I was down here.

It didn't work out. I spent the first few weeks job hunting and then worked and played never feeling I had the money to check out other places. I visited south florida once and had fun, and I visited orlando a few times and had fun.

Now Im ready to finally make the move that I origionally wanted to make. Daytona is not where I want to be.

Orlando seems to have better nightlife then tampa but Im not sure it's as accessible. You guys seem to have a few major nightlife districts with affordable housing right next to them.

With Orlando you have to find a good spot downtown because they only have one district (although its damn good) and then of course there is citywalk and all that too.Its rare to find an affordable room or ANY room downtown, ive tried.

Beyond that I work in the restaurant industry.Seems like Tampa has a ton of sprawl for that stuff and between tampa and st pete I could find something. Orlando has restaurant jobs too but there seems to be fewer options.

Orlando seems to have a stronger and longer lasting tourist season though.

Help me out here. Should a server looking for easy access nightlife choose tampa over Orlando?

I'd pick the Tampa Bay Area (which includes St. Pete). There are plenty of districts with nightlife and restaurants with affordable housing nearby. I think you will have better oppportunities for jobs in the industry there as well. This is a good area to live, IMO. Orlando is just too hectic.

[^Eagle^]

I have a friend that will let me stay til i get on my feet. If tampa can keep me happy with easy access nightlife and an abundance of server jobs that can pay the bills then I could focus on tampa instead of commuting to orlando to set things up there.

[SkinsNoles21]

I'm a server also, and I will be moving to Tampa in August ... though I work at a chain restaurant for now and will likely transfer to a restaurant down there.

[^Eagle^]

Im staying in clearwater right now. Im going to look at craigslist and see if there's anything on there that I want to try to hit while Im here, otherwise I will commute to orlando tomorrow and put in some applications.

I'm going to stay here for a few days, the question is if I should stick around here and bypass the commute and look for work or just commute to Orlando. If I wanted I could also go visit and stay with my friend down in south florida and test THAT job market.

I've worked pretty hard on my resume and have a big background in the restaurant industry, but my latest job I was only at for 4 months. I could get into another one of the same chains most likely, but not sure I want to.

I like walkable easy access nightlife. Orlando seems to have more entertainment and on a grander scale, but Tampa seems to have very easy access nightlife with housing that is affordable close by.

With Orlando it's expensive unless you find a room (which is fine by me if I find like minded people) but the rooms are not really out there for right in down town orlando.

[DANNYY]

Originally Posted by ^Eagle^

I have a friend that will let me stay til i get on my feet. If tampa can keep me happy with easy access nightlife and an abundance of server jobs that can pay the bills then I could focus on tampa instead of commuting to orlando to set things up there.

Yeah, Orlando is one really nice city, if you see what it has to offer. It's also central Florida, you don't have to worry about water surges.

[^Eagle^]

Originally Posted by OmShahi

Yeah, Orlando is one really nice city, if you see what it has to offer. It's also central Florida, you don't have to worry about water surges.

Sounds like people are saying that despite the commute I should focus on Orlando. Is Tampa really THAT much worse of a choice than Orlando?

My priorities are:

1) Server job
2) Easy access nightlife
3) Friendly people
4) Easy to network
5) Good tech schools and colleges
6) Cool clubs
7) Abundance of choices for things to do
8) Population
9) Outdoor festivals, concerts, or events.
10) Beach
11) Great shopping and top notch malls

[DANNYY]

Originally Posted by ^Eagle^

Sounds like people are saying that despite the commute I should focus on Orlando. Is Tampa really THAT much worse of a choice than Orlando?

My priorities are:

1) Server job
2) Easy access nightlife
3) Friendly people
4) Easy to network
5) Good tech schools and colleges
6) Cool clubs
7) Abundance of choices for things to do
8) Population
9) Outdoor festivals, concerts, or events.
10) Beach
11) Great shopping and top notch malls

The things you listed in your list in numbers I'll put them into what both city can offer.

Tampa & Orlando Both have these: 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11

Tampa Only: 1, 5, 10

[^Eagle^]

Originally Posted by OmShahi

The things you listed in your list in numbers I'll put them into what both city can offer.

Tampa & Orlando Both have these: 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11

Tampa Only: 1, 5, 10

You see thats what I was thinking. Tampa has everything. I love orlando but it's such a commute to look for work from here. Maybe I should try out Tampa a bit especially to go for a quick score on the server job.

Im curious why did server not make the tampa and orlando list and only the tampa list? Do you feel it would be much easier for me to get a server job in tampa?

MAN you guys dont even KNOW how happy I am to be out of Daytona beach!!!!! At this point no matter what happens I really cant lose.

[DANNYY]

Originally Posted by ^Eagle^

You see thats what I was thinking. Tampa has everything. I love orlando but it's such a commute to look for work from here. Maybe I should try out Tampa a bit especially to go for a quick score on the server job.

Im curious why did server not make the tampa and orlando list and only the tampa list? Do you feel it would be much easier for me to get a server job in tampa?

MAN you guys dont even KNOW how happy I am to be out of Daytona beach!!!!! At this point no matter what happens I really cant lose.

World book online, Wikipedia, and there are other big name companies that are not only head quartered in Tampa, but also have their host servers there as well. Orlando is still trying to diversify it's economy, and I can say with 80% chance of assurance that they wouldn't have as many server field jobs as compared to Tampa.

Also, Tampa is home to many other computer based companies. It has a strong presence of computer based work there. Jacksonville has a stronger base than Tampa for that, but server wise I feel Tampa is better and IT/computer consulting, I would say Jacksonville, but they both should level out at about the same.