What Locals Honestly Love About Living in the Tri-Cities

The rivers. How quickly you can get just about anywhere in town. The farmers markets. It’s a wine-lover’s heaven. Truth is, there’s a lot to love about living in Tri-Cities, Washington. And even though I’ve shared some of what I love about this area, I thought you’d want to hear it from the community, too.

That’s what we did not long ago. We have a popular Facebook page called Everything Tri-Cities with thousands of followers, and we asked them to tell us what they love about living in the Tri-Cities. Here, in no particular order, is what they told us.

1. The weather: “Having four distinctive seasons”

The Tri-Cities’ weather was mentioned several times. One Tri-Citian loves that we have four distinctive seasons, which isn’t really the case over in Seattle/Tacoma, for example. Here’s what our local weather is like:

Summer: According to NOAA data, July is our hottest month with an average high of 91 degrees. It’s not unusual for temps to reach a little above 100 for portions of July and August. One Tri-Citian said they love “all the sunshine,” while another said “our summers.”

Winter: January is our coldest month with an average low temp of 28 degrees, according to the NOAA. Sometimes, we’ll get all the way down to the teens and, once in a while, we’ll reach single digits. Heavy snowstorms are a rarity, but they can happen. Most years, we get a few very light snowfalls where everything melts within a day or two. We average about four inches of snow per year and about eight inches of rain.

Spring and Fall: They’re both mild and sometimes windy. The average temperature in May is 75 degrees, and in October, it’s 66 degrees.

2. Easy to get around town

As one Tri-Citian put it, “you can get anywhere in about 20-25 minutes.”

That’s true. We have a pretty good road infrastructure here. Whether you’re using I-82, I-182, U.S. Hwy. 395, or State Hwys. 24 or 240, it’s pretty easy to get where you’re going. The morning and afternoon commutes to and from Hanford can get slow on Hwy. 240, but if you’re moving here from just about any larger city, you’ll laugh at what we call “traffic.”

3. “Our rivers,” as one local said (and many agree)

The Tri-Cities exist at the confluence of the “tri-rivers” — where the Columbia, Yakima, and Snake rivers come together. What that means is there’s a lot to do if you love water. From fishing to boating to cruises and more, this area is a water-lover’s paradise. If all you want to do is look at the water, there are plenty of great riverside trails where you can walk, run, bike, or just sit and relax while enjoying the slow sound of the water.

There are also several parks that sit alongside the rivers, which prompted one Tri-Citian to answer with, “Howard Amon Park and any of the parks along the river.” Howard Amon and Columbia Park are probably the two most popular riverside parks. They both offer playgrounds, trails, food options, places to picnic, and much more.

Oh, and let’s not forget that the Columbia River hosts our biggest annual event — the Water Follies, where hydroplane boats race during the last weekend in July.

4. Just the right size

As one Tri-Citian said in response to our question, “everything is just a little smaller and a little slower.” That’s a good way of putting it. As I like to tell people, we have most — but not all — of the amenities you get in much bigger cities.

We’re missing beloved shopping like a Trader Joe’s or an Apple Store, but we don’t lack for other options. We don’t get a ton of big-name concerts in town, but we do have some great local music festivals, and the Mid-Columbia Symphony is popular. We have a vibrant arts and theater scene, but sure…maybe not as many options as cities like Seattle or Portland.

The good news is that, when you do catch a concert or art event at one of our local galleries, you won’t have to pay for parking and sit in traffic on the way in or out.

5. Plenty of things to do

As I was just implying, the Tri-Cities has the reputation of a place where there’s not much to do. And I’ll agree with that as it applies to the younger folks around town — we don’t have a ton of great dancing/music/club options. There’s definitely room for improvement in that area.

But, as one of our locals said, “there’s actually lots of different places to go.” And that’s very true as long as you’re not looking to hit up a different club every night. Via our Everything Tri-Cities Facebook page, we regularly see and share all kinds of events and things to do — many of which we had no idea existed in the Tri-Cities. Truth is, if you look around enough, you’ll find lots of stuff to keep you busy.

(Speaking of things to do, one local said the thing they love most is “the fair in summer,” referring to the Benton-Franklin Fair every August.)

6. “The farmers markets”

I was so glad to see this get mentioned in the replies, because the Tri-Cities’ Farmers Markets are a McGee family favorite, too. No better place to get fresh fruits and vegetables directly from local farms. And we also love grabbing some homemade baked goods and other food from the local bakeries and vendors there.

7. “The animal-loving community”

Another one that I was glad to see someone mention, because there really is a strong support system here for pets and their owners. Our admin/office manager, Lisa, has been volunteering for years with Pet OverPopulation Prevention — and that’s just one of many local groups that help find homes for strays. And it’s not just dogs and cats. We also have organizations that help specifically with other “critters” like rabbits, birds, and lizards.

If you have pets, you’ll have plenty of great vets to choose from — including a couple emergency facilities that are open all hours of the day. Dog owners have a nice dog park in Richland, and a new one being built in Kennewick. So yeah…there’s a lot here for animal lovers.

8. Wine-lovers heaven

One Tri-Citian put it simply: “Great wine.” I would add: “…and lots of places to enjoy it!”

Local tourism officials often say there are…get this…200 wineries within a one-hour drive of the Tri-Cities. Many of them are producing best-in-class wines that compete with, and beat, some of the biggest wineries in the world.

I’ll confess that my husband and I aren’t huge wine drinkers, but we do love grabbing a meal with friends at some of the great wineries right here in town. Tagaris and Bookwalter, in particular, are known locally to have a couple of the area’s favorite restaurants.

9. “Our sunsets”

I’m not kidding, anytime we have friends or family visit from out of town, they always rave about the amazing sunsets we have here. My husband is a big fan, too. Back in 2012 when we were looking for a bigger house, he insisted on buying a lot with a direct western view so he could enjoy our sunsets without anything blocking the view.

If a picture is worth a thousand words, here are four sunset photos that are priceless.

10. “Our awesome community”

As one Tri-Citian said in reply to our question, “most of the people here are very friendly and nice!”

That’s certainly been my experience helping 600+ families buy and sell homes over the past 21+ years. And it’s been our experience running a local Facebook page over the past 4-5 years with about 8,000 followers today. Sure, there are always a couple bad apples in the bunch, but most of the people we come in contact with are friendly and nice. And that’s the thing that keeps a lot of Tri-Citians in the Tri-Cities.

Want more?

Now that you’ve heard what locals love about the Tri-Cities, you might also want to hear my thoughts as a longtime resident (since 1994) and Realtor® (since 2004). These links will help you learn even more about the area:

• Best high schools in the Tri-Cities? Here’s what US News & World Report says
• Moving to Tri-Cities, WA? Here’s 7 Things You Need to Know
• Pros & Cons of Living in Tri-Cities, Washington
• Is Tri-Cities, WA a Good Place to Retire?

If you have questions about the Tri-Cities, I’d LOVE to see if I can answer them! Reach out anytime. If text is your thing, use the TEXT US tool below — you’ll get an automated reply to confirm that your message reached us, then the next reply will be from a real person. If you want to chat on the phone, my direct line is (509) 430-5342. And if you prefer email, use this form below and I’ll reply first chance I get. (If you don’t hear from me pretty quickly, check your spam/junk folder.)

-Cari