In this article, I’m going to cover the top five Air Force bases in the United States, at least in my opinion. If you guys disagree, feel free to comment down below. What would be your top five bases if you could choose? But I am to save the best for last, so you’re going to have to stick around and watch the whole video if you want to see all five.
McChord Air Force Base (Seattle, Washington)
Starting out at number five, I’m going to say McChord Air Force Base, which is in Seattle, Washington.
I’ve never met anyone that was from Seattle or Washington that did not want to move back there, which makes me believe that if you’re going to get stationed somewhere, that’s definitely not a bad place to be stationed. Seattle is a fairly large city and has a lot of opportunities for things to do, such as pro sports, which I’m a pretty big fan of, especially hockey. And they have the Seattle Kraken now. They also have an NFL team and they also have an MLB team.
There’s also a ton of tourism to go on there, and it’s also a pretty big hub for cruise ships. Plus, the scenery out in the Pacific Northwest is gorgeous, so there’s tons of hiking if you want to go out of town. There’s also tons of ferries that go to multiple islands right off of Seattle. Plus, you’re right next to Canada. So if you really wanted to go check out Canada, you’d be able to do that.
Now, if you’re reading this article, I’m assuming you’re either joining the Air Force, you’re currently in, or you used to be in, and you’re just curious about what my answers were for this. But either way, you probably know somebody that’s joining the military in the near future or you are yourself, so keep reading.
Joint Base Andrews (Washington, D.C.)
The fourth best base in the Air Force in the United States, in my opinion, is Andrews Air Force Base in Washington, D.C.
Now, I will admit I am not a big fan of the traffic in Washington, D.C. But what I did like is that there’s so much stuff to do and so much within a few hours’ drive. So it makes visiting multiple states really easy. You’re also fairly close to the ocean, so if you want to, during the summer, you can go to some of the beaches there.
You’re also fairly close to the Appalachian Mountains, so if you want to go on weekend trips to go hiking, it’s easily accessible. Plus, it’s one of the biggest tourism places in the United States, being that it’s our capital. So there’s a ton of history and museums that you can go and check out as well.
Schriever Air Force Base (Colorado Springs, Colorado)
Now, my third pick would be Schriever Air Force Base, which is in Colorado.
I actually have never met anybody that’s been stationed at this base, but just looking at the geographical area on a map of where this is located, I don’t think you can go wrong getting stationed there. Schriever Air Force Base is right outside of Colorado Springs, which is actually where the Air Force Academy is. So there’d be a lot of cool history there, and you’d be able to get access to the Air Force Academy and get to see all of that stuff.
But also, you’re in Colorado, where all the mountains are.
There’s great skiing, there’s tons of hiking. I’m actually building a campervan right now. So I think that would be an absolutely amazing place to be stationed. And that’s why it was number three on my list.
Randolph Air Force Base (San Antonio, Texas)
The second best base to be stationed at, in my opinion, would be Randolph Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas.
Now, Lackland Air Force Base is also in San Antonio, Texas, which is where Air Force basic training is. San Antonio overall has just always been looked at as a great place to live. There’s semi-affordable housing—until recently, as all the prices in the market have been skyrocketing. We’re trying to get a house in Las Vegas right now. It’s been ridiculous.
And that’s why Randolph is my number two pick. You get to enjoy San Antonio as a whole, but you don’t have to deal with the basic training aspect of San Antonio. I’m also a fan of warm weather, so that’s why this is number two over the other three that were on my list, because it’s in a warmer location.
Nellis Air Force Base (Las Vegas, Nevada)
That leads me to my number one pick on this list of best bases in the United States, in my opinion. And that is Nellis Air Force Base, which is actually where I was stationed my last three years in the Air Force. I have experience living in Las Vegas, Nevada, which is where Nellis Air Force Base is.
It’s on the northeast corner of Las Vegas, and it’s only about 15–20 minutes from the Las Vegas Strip. One of the things that I love most about Las Vegas is that everything in the whole city—no matter what part of town you live in, where you’re going, or whatever—it takes 20 to 35 minutes at most to go anywhere.
I’m in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, the second-largest city in Iowa. There’s about 150,000 people that live here, and it takes 45 minutes to drive across town because the infrastructure here is awful. Las Vegas? I became spoiled. Not only are things open almost all the time, but it’s convenient to drive anywhere in Las Vegas.
That is one of the biggest things that I love about living there, especially being that McKenna and I, in our marriage, have traveled to over 30 states together. We’ve never found a city that we felt was built better than Las Vegas as far as the infrastructure goes. Plus, it’s super warm.
There’s tons of hiking. We own a house there still that we’re renting out. And from that home, it’s no joke—30 minutes to go to a ski resort and 45 minutes to get to Lake Mead, which is actually outside of Las Vegas.
So I might be biased because I was stationed there for three years, so I have a lot more experience with that base over other bases.
If you guys have watched this video and you’re like, “No, dude, you are so wrong about what you just said about the top five stateside bases,” or if you think they absolutely were terrible and you were there, let me know in the comment section down below. At the end of the day, we all have our own opinions, and I think a lot of people would appreciate your feedback.
If you’ve been stationed somewhere or you’ve heard about people being stationed at certain bases, which bases, in your opinion, would be the best?
Stay Tuned for Future Articles
Stay tuned for our future articles because McKenna and I are both posting our:
- Top five jobs in the Air Force
- Top five stateside bases in the Air Force
- Top five overseas bases in the Air Force
You don’t want to miss those! And if we’ve already posted them, make sure you go back and read them because I’m sure they’ll have good information for you. Or at the very least, the comment section will be great because other people will hopefully comment what they think. That way, you can get a more well-rounded answer rather than just our opinions—you can get dozens of people’s opinions on where the best places are to be stationed and the best jobs to have in the Air Force.