To think that town/ city life is often healthier than rural life?

[BoogleMcGroogle]

I've just been speaking on the phone to a good friend who has just made the surprising move of leaving their big, beautiful 'forever home' in the rolling countryside and moving into an unremarkable bungalow on the edge of a large commuter town. They are so much happier and she was describing how their quality of life has improved. They are healthier as its now safe to walk wherever they like ( their dogs are fitter than ever), they have more time because of a shorter commute and less maintainence, they know and like their neighbours and have joined a local political campaign group, have more money ( only one car now), eat better because of the improved shopping options and their kids are finally able to learn independence now they can use buses and pavements. I am so pleased for them, as they weren't certain about this choice.

Similarly, when I visit London, I'm always struck by the older people, students and kids enjoying the cultural and sporting opportunities ( and cheap transport).

I'm not ignorant of the issues in urban environments, especially for some people. I worked for years in children's services in an inner London borough, although I'm not convinced the issues were less in the large shire county, where social isolation can be devastating.

AIBU to think that for many, if not most people, and especially older people age families the chances of enjoying a good quality of life are better in urban/ semi rural communities, rather than trying to live the rural dream?

I was born and grew up in London...I remember when I started university outside of London, the students who had grown up in the countryside went wild in freshers week. I'd been going out clubbing in the west end for a year before going to uni so the campus and local towns bars and clubs were pretty dull and unimpressive to me in comparison whereas for them, they were really exciting.

As for cities being safer for women - in Bath I frequently had to go out to move my car late at night off single yellow lines to an official parking space. After one two many 'jokey' rape threats from drunk young men, I started moving it early in the morning. There is no one to threaten me here. We had a club open the end of our street that had a 'happy hour' that went on from 5pm to 9pm. The anti social behaviour got so bad that a lot of the older residents on our street felt they couldn't go out past 8pm - mainly because of drunk young men, pissed on cheap spirits, brawling.

I'd been going out clubbing in the west end for a year before going to uni so the campus and local towns bars and clubs were pretty dull and unimpressive to me in comparison whereas for them, they were really exciting

I can’t (and couldn’t when I was 18!) think of anything worse than clubbing

It depends where you live, I think.

I grew up in a market town and I think that was a good compromise - you had the amenities within walking distance (cinema, GP, shops, dentist etc.) but not all the mad traffic and pollution of the city.

I now live in rural NW England and while things are within walking distance (GP, shops, dentist) there is no cinema, swimming pool or bowling alley that you can access without a car. But we do have 5/6 beaches within ten minutes drive - there are several within walking distance too. I have mountains, lakes and the sea on my doorstep. I'm in open fields within 200m of my doorstep.

I'd rather live in the countryside.

It’s a personality issue. I’m yet to see any persuasive argument as to how city living is positive. I’m just as sure many people feel there’s no positive to country living.

I agree with this, I think. If you're into nightclubs, cinema, theatre and such, you'll love city life. If you prefer hiking, swimming, cycling and the great outdoors, you'll probably prefer the countryside. Different strokes for different folks.

I went to a city university and lived there for four years and I would never, ever go back to city life. I didn't feel safe at night on my own and everything was so expensive. Plus the pollution and the traffic! No thanks.

Countryside all the way.

I agree it’s a personality thing. I can step out of my door and be running along footpaths, or run in the woods 10 minutes away, but if you preferred road running to trails it would be no fun at all as there aren’t really many pavements. But there are lots of quiet back lanes to cycle on - I’d be too scared to cycle in town, but I love a bike ride along the lanes around here. But if you preferred big shops and cinemas and things to go to every day, you wouldn’t be happy here.

Cities might look dirty and have dirty air

I think air pollution is a big issue though isn't it? I don't think I've sat in a traffic jam full of cars belching out fumes apart from in cities. The air quality where we live is fantastic. I enjoy being outside and properly outside in wild places, not parks full of litter thanks. My dcs have huge busy social lives and learn to drive early. They can ride, they are fit, they can build a fire, grow things. They can't order takeaways though.

I think air pollution is a big issue though isn't it?

It is a big issue and I hope it gets tackled. My point is that per individual, the country dweller is actually having a bigger impact, it’s just less visible.

I grew up and still live in Cornwall, all my family and friends are here and I work here, would rather walk the coastal path and listen to the sea than listen to traffic and sirens etc.
As for longevity and loneliness my Gran was 98 when she died and knew everyone in this small town, and for child care yes we do have nurseries and very good schools so not a problem, also the train goes straight to Exeter or even London if you want to go but I don't like London and am very happy here so not bothered.

Different strokes for different folks

I think either option has it's issues. We live in a market town which has a decent selection of shops/pubs/schools, but is surrounded by plenty of countryside and 20 mins drive to the nearest small city with theatre/cinema/large shops. 40 mins on the train to a large city (train station is the next town over). So I kind of we have the best of both worlds. That said, we do fancy living in a big city for a while at some point, maybe when we retire. I like the idea of being able to have galleries/theatres/choice of restaurants within walking distance!

Town/city covers a huge range of different situations.

I would hate to live in a city but am perfectly happy in my small town where there are all the shops, transport links, amenities I need five minutes walk away in one direction and open countryside for miles in the other.

Some people like cities, some like being truly out in the sticks, some like the best of both worlds. You won't be healthy if you are living somewhere that you find stressful, but what you find stressful varies hugely from person to person.

Semi-rural is the way to go for me, I'm planning on moving to a large village with its own shop, cafe, pub and doctors, and you can walk for 10 minutes and be in the open countryside but also on the bus route into a large city. I live in London zone 2 at the moment and hate it, hate all the people rushing about, no where to walk, all the fumes. Feel trapped

I grew up rurally and will never, ever go back to living somewhere with no public transport. It was ok when I was a younger child, but God I hated it as a teen. I'm quite worried about it because my parents have talked vaguely about moving somewhere more practical as they age but refuse to consider this in a more concrete way and it's going to be a nightmare place for them to live once they can't drive. Mum's starting to get funny about driving at night and it's massively limiting her life.

It depends what you mean by rural.
Posters describe a large village with shops, pubs, schools and a community as rural. That would be my ideal place to live, though I would call it a market town.
I have lived for 30 years in a tiny village. No shop, no school no buses, no amenities at all in fact. We are half an hour in either direction from a city and a large town. You use the car for everything. DC need constant taxiing until they are 17 and can drive.
It was perfect when children were small. Not so much now and I long to move somewhere where I can walk to a destination without getting the car out.
Having said that I loathe cities with a passion and would never live in a city. They feel dirty, crowded and noisy.

LisaSimpsonsbff are you my DD? . I would LOVE to move but DH refuses because he loves the house. As do I, but not as much as I hate the village.

If you are my mum, skap, then tell dad to stop being so silly and move (and also ask him to come up with some useful ideas of what he wants wants for Christmas)

I think it is a personality and time of life thing. I lived in a city in my 20s, live in the country now and intend to go back to a city to retire. I loved the fun of city living when I was young but would hate it now, I love the peace and tranquility of rural living now but would hate the silence and isolation if I didn’t go to work every day. I want the ease and convenience when I am older.

I often wonder about those Escape to the Country programmes where people want to retire to rural isolation with a couple of acres. I sometimes wonder how they get on when it’s icy and the gritters haven’t been near them, they can’t get an oil delivery for a couple of weeks and a fox has done the chickens.

I agree OP and if I had the choice I'd live in the city and have day trips to the country not Vice versa. But DH is so against city life, so we live rurally and I sneak into London as often as I can. I do love the smell of the air, the walks and the wildlife where we are. But I miss the hubbub, the exhibitions, street life of London.

Our village really is small - it’s just got good facilities. I think we’re in a sweet spot where we’re just far enough away from larger places for things like GPs and the shop to survive - plus the shop in particular has made itself popular by having lots of local produce, Cook meals and a decent off-licence. It won an award recently. People don’t just go there for emergency top-ups of milk and bread, it’s a nice shop to go to for a treat as well. So it thrives.

If we were a bit closer to a town, I’m not sure there would’ve as many facilities, but we’re just far enough out for it not to be worth the hassle of travelling, so these things do well. That then makes the village an attractive place for families, which means the school survives, which means the PTA organises lots of the community things (fireworks display, quiz nights etc). It’s a virtuous circle.

I completely disagree. I lived in London, then in a village relatively near a small city, and now live properly in the countryside. The air quality alone makes it far healthier to live here. I walk loads more.

Quite a bit of our village has no pavement, but that doesn't stop people walking. There's a 20mph speed limit and not much traffic anyway. The area is a haven for outdoor pursuits. Everyone has dogs and walks loads.

We aren't 'stuck' here. We deliberately chose to move here (4hrs from nearest friends and family) for a slower pace of life, cleaner air, better schools, much lower crime rate, friendlier locals, far less traffic, a feeling of space, safer places for children to play and lower house prices. What's not to like?!

If you're the kind of person who's scared of walking without well-lit streets and pavements, then I can see why the countryside might not be for you. But that doesn't make the city healthier.

It depends what you want and more importantly where you can afford to live. We live in the countryside in a small village, MNs would hate it, no diversity. Fab local shop, fab pub, more fantastic eateries very close. Footpaths that go for miles outside our back door. The people are generally very friendly, we love it

We go dog walking, loads of commons, down, footpaths etc. I ride my horse. It is an expensive area for all the above reasons

We go to London occasionally, but find it so crowded, so much traffic and so polluted it is not a pleasure anymore. I would not live in London, too much crime

London so crowded with residents a

It depends on the person not the location. In my experience the people walking around major cities like Bham / Manchester / London are tourists / people living from outside those places, not locals. Most of the Londoners I know use the car / bus / tube for even short walkable trips and think a 1 mile walk is too much as ‘it isn’t safe’. But then these same people are same level of lazy when they come and see me in my semi-country home!

I don’t know about healthier but I am tired of some (SOME) country people sneering and looking down their noses and say they could never live in a city as it’s too crowded and bragging about how it’s so peaceful and quiet to live away from everyone, and then moan whenever there is a flood because nobody can get to them and they’re isolated.

'London' is unhelpfully vague, here. Greenwich, Ilford, Notting Hill, Wimbledon, Tottenham? The advantages and disadvantages of living in these places are very different - and when people talk about how crowded London is I think they often mean very central, tourist London, which isn't where most people live.