Dh and I are trying to figure out which of these 2 places we want to be #1 on our PCS "list". We need to submit our list by Nov 6 or 7 and we'll find out by Dec 15 where we are actually going.
I'm not familiar with either of these areas and would love to hear any opinions that you girls have on either of them!
Also, if you have a really good realtor with a website can you send it to me? I'm having a hard time finding a good selection of rental homes in these areas.

TIA,
Teresa

DH has been at Camp Pendleton for 6 years now and we are about to leave for hawaii- I've lived in SO. Cal my whole life so I am partial to the area. You are between San Diego and the rest of OC/LA and there is a lot to do. If I had a choice I'd want to be sation down in San Diego for the rest of DH's career but I know my decision is purely based on my love for that area and the fact my family wouldn't be that far away....

We live down near San Diego and his sister is up there in Bremerton area. I personally would say go with WA! We are not big fans of California at all. Everything is expensive and if you like temperature changes...there's not much! We can't wait to leave. The only complaint I have heard about WA is the rain but I guess if you are a fan of rain it wouldn't be so bad. Not to mention I think that area is ten times more pretty than California.

I dont know..this is our first station and I came from Wisconsin so its very similar to me. I was hoping for more of a change. This area is really boring, I think, unless you go to seattle. The good thing is the girls here are awesome and we get together a lot! :)

Never been to Camp Pendleton but I LOOOVE WA. DH and I will be staying here when he gets out of the Navy next year.

I am partial because I grew up there, but I love WA. It's a beautiful state with tons of stuff to do, especially if you like the outdoors, and it has nice warm summers and cool crisp winters.

We live just about 25 miles south of Pendleton right now, and I hate that CA does not have seasons. The summers are fricken hot! Although it might not be so bad at Pendleton b/c it's right on the ocean. It is really expensive here though, and if you are looking to buy a place, I would definitely suggest WA. BUT, it is nice to be able to wear a tank top year round here, and there is tons of stuff to do (same with WA), but you don't have to travel far to do anything... We live in San Diego, but I kid you not when I say that I could go 10 miles in 3 different directions and hit 4 Targets.

Either way, good luck to you guys!

we are up in WA right now but bryan's last command was camp pendleton...i love the weather here and the seasons and the fact that there are so many outdoorsy things to do...but if given a choice, we would both want to go back to pendleton...there is just more to do down there...
really the summers here are nice and it stays light out till 10pm...but in the winter, it gets dark by 4:30...i don't mind it really but it can get depressing because we only have maybe 10 hours of daylight...but when it snows, it is so beautiful...it can get cold though..especially when the sun is shining and the skies are clear..you look out your window to a beautiful day but then it is like 30 degrees outside...but like i said, if you are into hiking and exploring, there really is alot to do here...
down at pendleton though, you have the beach, sea world, disneyland, magic mountain, and the san bernardino mountains are only 2 hours away..plus you have glamis or other areas if you are into dirt biking and such...
i just say between the two, if you like the fast paced life, go to pendleton..but if you want slower, come to WA

also for websites,
you can go to www.rentclicks.com and look up both bremerton and oceanside for some of the property managers in the area...or you can go to www.kitsapsun.com and look under the classifieds it also lists rentals in our area here...

Thank you all for your responses. It seems like WA may be more of what I'm interested in. It will be a big change from Las Vegas but dh and I are from a small town and won't mind not having much to do.

Do you have any suggestions for towns to live in that are close to Bremerton.. just in case we can't find anything we like in Bremerton. I've seen homes listed in Port Orchard and Silverdale. Are they pretty close to the base? I really don't want dh to have too much of a commute but I would kind of like a nice house.. and nice schools for dd. She'll be 4 when we move so we'll need to check out the schooling situation as well.

Silverdale and Port Orchard are about the same distance from the base in Bremerton. We are now in Port Orchard and used to be on base in Silverdale. Can't help you with schools really though.

Does anybody have any good realtors to recommend? I'm interested to know if there are any new housing developments coming up soon and if it would be worth it to buy a home there (or in the surrounding area).

DH has been at Camp Pendleton for 6 years now and we are about to leave for hawaii- I've lived in SO. Cal my whole life so I am partial to the area. You are between San Diego and the rest of OC/LA and there is a lot to do. If I had a choice I'd want to be sation down in San Diego for the rest of DH's career but I know my decision is purely based on my love for that area and the fact my family wouldn't be that far away....

I'm also very partial to the Camp Pen area because I grew up there. There's lots of places to go and lots of things to see. Housing can be pretty pricey, but if you really look you can find some great deals. I haven't lived in Bremerton, but I did go up there for a two week visit. It's really beautiful up there, but it was way too much rain for me.