should I move to Bath or Norwich......any one could help?

[dither72]

Advise on Wether to Move to Bath or Norwich......any one could help?
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dither72 Mon 26-May-14 19:26:52

I have been trying to relocate from greater London in search of a better quality of Life. I have job offers in Norwich and Bath. I can't decide which one I should go for. Anyone have any experience of either or preferably both. I like the ease of living in small cities but prefer town life to rural life. Most interested in cultural activities and a liberal environment. Keen to meet some new friends. Many thanks if anyone can help.

Access to London from Norwich is by train 1hr 50mins every half hour. When A11 dualling is complete will probably take1hr 30mins by car. We moved from London 7 years ago. Visit London very regularly.

We have a few friends in Bath and I much prefer Norwich for choice of shops, events and access to the coast.

Norwich must have something going for it because lots of people come here and never leave :) They city itself is lovely, and quite lively, and countryside around is Britain's green and pleasant land (is is Bath).

It is more isolated than Bath (probably - in that you have Bristol and Cardiff within easy reach) - and the main issue I think is employment - if your field is specialist there aren't many other choices (compared to say the midlands where they are lots of other cities around which might have similar job prospects).

I guess travel time to London (if that is of interest) is similar between the two.

£500K budget for a house would buy you a lot more than a 3 bed semi :)

I know both cities well and would recommend Bath - Norwich is great if you like a more rural life style but if you prefer town life to rural life (as you say in your first posting) I think Bath would offer you more. I lived in East Anglia for many years and it can be quite isolated but Bath is a lot more accessible.

Traffic is awful though .

I would move to Norwich for one reason alone. I come from the eastern part of the country, moved to Warminster (20 miles from Bath) in 1985 and it hasn't stopped raining yet. If you move to Bath you will definitely need to enjoy wet weather.

I grew up near bath but have lots of relatives in Norwich. I visit both regularly.

Bath: fab city, beautiful, lots to do but expensive. Good access to rest of country. Lots of good schools

Norwich: nice city a very very long way from anywhere else. The drive from m25 to norwich often takes 2. Hrs (traffic hideous). To get to london by train you usually have to go to cambridge first and change. Once you are in norwich it is cheap and has a lovely centre. Fewer cultural activities and less bohemian than bath, but that doesn't matter to many.

I would choose bath, primarily due to accessibility!

My cousins have had issues of wanting to move from norfolk for work but not being able to afford to buy anything in the rest of the south!

just to dispel a couple of misconceptions from the previous post

The drive from m25 to norwich often takes 2. Hrs (traffic hideous).

Due to improve very soon when the final stretch of the A11 is dualled.

To get to london by train you usually have to go to cambridge first and change.

not true - there is a direct line to London that goes via Ipswich and Chelmsford - takes about 2 hours and runs a least twice an hour (sometimes more often). No idea at all why you would go via Cambridge - the trip to Cambridge takes roughly an hour.

I think it is down to personal preference - and appreciating that your money may well go further in Norfolk, but you might feel a bit more isolated, and there is probably fewer alternative job opportunities (dependingon your field).

In all the time I lived in Norwich, I have never had to go via Cambridge to get to London by train, and I commuted for a fair while. Why would you go via Cambridge when there is a direct line?

I would say Norwich has a far more bohemian scene than Bath, which is actually very staid.

agree with Anne, Bath isn't bohemian at all, though the suburb of Larkhall is from what I've heard.
Er, why would you say that, Herc? no good access to the South-West? plenty of trains to Somerset, Devon etc - I've just been on that train on the weekend, also trains to Wiltshire and Berks. Big bus station with fast buses to places like Wells, Frome (also on train) - through countryside, not congested usually.

I say it because it's true. :) I live in the south west, the real south west (which doesn't include Somerset obviously) and it's a bugger to get to Bath, it's also a bugger to get from Bath to London. Anywhere that relies on FGW is not well served by trains. It's an immutable fact of life. Anywhere that relies on there being nobody trying to get to IKEA or cribs causeway (which has basically never happened except possibly on Xmas day) to travel on the roads is not well served by the road system.