Harrisburg/Carlisle Pa - Possible move to area - Advice

ItsmyAlias

Any forum members here live in this area of Pa? 

I'm considering moving to this area from a large city (5 million+) and don't know anything about the area, the quality of life and what to expect.

Are there any awesome areas?  Is it really small town?  I grew up in a small town but that was 20 years ago.  Not sure I could go back to that life style if it doesn't have some ammenities and convenience of shopping/restaurants/etc. that I can find in the city (Toronto).

Anybody in the area have some perspective?

hapster

You'll love it... More importantly, there are plenty of eggers around in PA

Dcgriller

I went to school there. The town of Carlisle has some great small food spots. It's been going downhill since the addition of Walmart/target/etc...beautiful area once you get a little out of town.

TexanOfTheNorth

Three Mile Island

DMW

I'm about 1 hr from that area. From there you can reach almost 3/4 of the US population within 3 or 4 hours driving time. I think that's the right statistic. You also have rural farming country. IMHO PA is one of the best places to live. I know @cortguitarman‌ and @Tjcoley‌ are close to the area you have mentioned.

Tjcoley

I'm across the river from Harrisburg - same side as Carlisle.  Definitely not 'big city', but a great place to live.  Less than 2 hours from Philly, Baltimore, Washington DC.  3:15 minute train ride to NYC.  3 hours from Pittsburgh.  Ever evolving restaurant/club scene in Harrisburg (20 plus bars/clubs within a few blocks - very popular and draw folks from Philly)  10-15 years ago there was nothing, but Harrisburg and the surrounding areas have evolved and a lot of great local restaurants as well as some newer chains.  2 or 3 good places in Carlisle, but if I had a choice I'd pick somewhere closer to Harrisburg. 
Compared to Toronto, Harrisburg is small town city. 
Shopping - locally the usual chains, small malls - not a lot locally.  Only 90 minutes from King of Prussia Mall, the largest shopping mall in the US - very upscale.  Under 2 hours to Tysons Corners outside DC - another upscale large mall (12th largest)
What I like is the small town feeling, with easy access to all the East Coast big cities and everything they offer. 
Local Minor League Baseball Team - Harrisburg Senators - Double A farm team for Washington Nationals.
AHL Team - Hershey Bears - oldest AHL team out there, so we got hockey.
Speaking of Hershey - 15 minutes away - Town smells like chocolate, huge amusement park, simulated factory tours.
Sounds like I'm on the Central PA Chamber of Commerce.  I'm not, just like living here.
Bunch of Eggers in the area.  A few of us cooked in a local Eggfest last month.
Don't hesitate to PM me with questions. 

plumbfir01

I Lived in Mt joy Pa...Lancaster Pa for 2 years when stationed up there. I lived in carlisle for a couple months and its booming now... down carlisle pike and it has every store you need.. You can get up into back country from carlisle pretty quickly. Beautiful land and  pretty good people. 

cortguitarman

I live just outside of Hershey. Lots of things to do in Hershey. Hersheypark, Chocolate World, Etc. Hersheypark and the Giant Center have big ne concert venues. Being from Toronto you may be into Hockey. The Hershey Bears are the local AHL team and they are huge in the area. I have a dairy farm at the end of my neighborhood but can be at in the city in 20 minutes. Also, you are only 3 hours from NYC and 1.5 hrs from Philly. I really like the Harrisburg area. I am into boating. I can have the boat in the water on the Chesapeake Bay within 3 hours of leaving my house. Only a 2.5 hour drive to the Elk River and North East River. (The upper Cheaapeake Bay). It's also only 2 hours from Baltimore and 2.5 to DC.

NervousDad

If you like beer you'll have an excellent brewery (Troegs) about 20 minutes away