Hi everyone. My daughter and I are thinking of visiting Galveston, Texas for a few days in May. We are looking for a nice place to relocate when my daughter graduates from college in Florida. We are originally from New York. We do not like Florida. Have heard Galveston is affordable and we would like to be by the Gulf in a nice area. However some are saying do not bother looking there because the water is dirty and it is not as nice as it looks. Would someone please help us decide what to do. Are we wasting our time? Is there a better place to think about relocating to? We will always love New York, but would love to live by the ocean. Any suggestions would really be appreciated!

Galveston is really a neat place, but you don't go there for the beach in the way you would to many other coastal towns. It's a very historic town with a neat vibe, so go visit in May-- I would love to hear what you think!

Just be careful if a black plastic trash bag washes up with something round in it...

Unfortunately, the beaches in Galveston are not as clean as the ones on the east side of the Mississippi River . . the mud from that river circulates into the Texas Gulf Coast and carries with it a lot of silt . . it does clear up farther south on South Padre Island.

That does not mean you should rule it out . . we go to a beach house on Galveston most years and love it . . it's worth a looksee to see how it strikes you

We love to go to Galveston but the water is definitely silty and can be muddy looking. There's amazing old mansions to tour like the Bishop's Palace, good seafood, some nice hotels like the historical Galvez and the newer San Luis, shopping on The Strand, and Moody Gardens is pretty cool. There are also a lot of rundown areas once you get away from the tourist areas. Clear Lake is a popular place to live, also Kemah if you want to explore those. We have friends with houses in Galveston, but they're mostly weekend homes for people who live in the city during the week.

Thanks for the advice everyone! Not quite sure anymore if this sounds like a place I would like to relocate to as I really want to retire near a nice clean ocean, never having that opportunity since I lived most of my life in New York and the past two years in Florida which I find is full of crime and way too humid all year round. However I think we will still visit for all the other reasons you all have mentioned. Sounds like fun. We will post back after our trip in May Jayne 1973! Thanks again everyone!

It will also be very humid. If you don't like that kind of weather, I think you could find it pretty oppressive for a good portion of the year.

Um,New York is right ON the ocean - much better than many other oceanside places.

And Galveston can be VERY hot and humid in the summer. (I have a friend with a house there and she comes back to NYC every summer to escape the worst.)

I think you need to do some checking of stats.

It should be nice in May. Looking forward to your report!

I visited Galveston 3 years ago in late March. I was warned here that the beach and ocean are not very nice and I found that to be true. If you are looking for a nice beach town I don't recommend Galveston.

Yeah, I'm from near Galveston, and the beaches are not pretty. The town is really, really neat though, probably one of my favorite smallish towns in Texas. If you love Victorian architecture and kitschy tourist shops, you'll love Galveston.

.....in Florida which I find is full of crime and way too humid all year round.....

That is kind of bombastic statement about Florida. I always viewed New York in the same light. If you can live with the crime in New York I am sure you live with it in Florida. The humidity level in Galveston and Florida will be about the same. The big problem is that is nearly impossible to beat the general quality of the gulf beaches in Florida. If you want good beaches, you will have to tolerate crime ridden Florida.