If you’re counting down the days until you can retire and you’re not currently partnered, it might be time to shop around for some new stomping grounds. AARP has drawn up a list of 10 “Great Cities for Older Singles,” where you get your kicks and relax at the same time.
Here’s are the org’s recommended towns, chosen mostly for “places with convivial locals, a solid percentage of AARP-age residents and, of course, a lot of things to do — either solo or with a date.” Read on for the picks and a bit about what makes these haunts so enticing for seniors:
1. Boston
“Boston manages to meld scrappy and intellectual — a relatively small city that is home to some of the most prestigious universities in the world, bolstered by culture, parks and a fine quality of life.”
2. Baltimore
“For older singles, the inclusiveness is evident in the corner pubs, the walkable streets of Federal Hill, Charles Village and Fells Point, and the lively Cross Street Market. Baltimore is a city of natives, a place with a sense of community that spans generations.”
3. Cleveland
“Consider this: The ‘older singles’ section of the online dating site Mingle2.com for Cleveland contains more than 250 pages of personal ads. And that’s only one marker of the possibilities for finding love and companionship in the self-anointed Rock ‘n’ Roll Capital of the World.”
4. Milwaukee
“Milwaukee is like Philadelphia with some of the rough edges sanded down – a manageably sized city populated by fun-loving locals, with a dollop of Midwestern wholesomeness stirred in for good measure. But Milwaukee isn’t lacking excitement: The city has matured nicely since the days when breweries and manufacturing ruled, with smart riverfront development and a slate of things to do to quench most tastes.”
5. Minneapolis-St. Paul
“The Minnesota Orchestra is regularly mentioned among the best symphonies in the world. The Guthrie Theater’s blue building on the riverfront heads up a list of theater companies and art museums so impressive that Minneapolis was recently included in a “where to go next” list by Travel and Leisure, right next to Rome and Montenegro.”
6. New York
“[W]hile New York is a capital of international trade and finance, it also is the place where you can take a $2.50 subway ride to the Metropolitan Opera or Yankee Stadium, then head into Greenwich Village for the best Italian meal this side of the Atlantic, then catch a live comedy or jazz set at a world-renowned club and still have numerous options for where to go next.”
7. Philadelphia
“Philadelphians are proud of their neighborhoods – from South Philly and Society Hill to Fishtown, Germantown and Manayunk — and proud of their local institutions. At the Reading Terminal Market in Center City, locals have jostled since 1892 for fresh meats, vegetables and fancy foods sold by Amish farmers and chocolatiers.”
8. Pittsburgh
“In the new ‘Burgh, you can enjoy a fine meal of locally sourced ingredients at Douglass Dick’s Bona Terra restaurant, drink award-winning craft beer at the Church Brew Works, and take in the ballet at the Benedum Center or an art-house movie at the Harris Theater. Or you could have a Primanti Brothers sandwich topped with fries before hitting Jack’s Bar on the Southside for $1.25 beer specials — and possible off-the-ice sightings of Penguins hockey players.”
9. San Francisco
“Maybe it is the mix of nature’s wonders and cosmopolitan allure that sparks romance: Whether you are strolling the wharfs, huffing up one of the city’s vertiginous hills, sampling sushi in the Noe Valley neighborhood or cycling across the Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco seems to shine – at least when it’s not blanketed in fog.”
10. St. Louis
“St. Louis contains more than six dozen neighborhoods, each with its own character. Some are more conducive to mingling than others. The Central West End is home to galleries and antiques shops, sidewalk cafes and bars. As the website Explore St. Louis says, the neighborhood is ‘a little European, a little New York and totally St. Louis.’ It also boasts the Cathedral Basilica of Saint Louis, which has the world’s largest collection of mosaic art.”
[AARP]
Follow Sexcerpts on Twitter!: @Sexcerpts_SK
