My dd was accepted. We applied during the free application period and are from OOS. Plan to visit now that she is accepted. What is the area like? Is it rural or suburban? Do most students disappear on weekends? Is there any school spirit? Are there close in off campus housing options like apartments or just big houses? Is it a relatively safe area? Anything else to share would be appreciated. Thanks.
So I attended binghamton a long time ago but it is suburban, and when I was there they had fairly new apartment buildings for sophomores and up. Vestal is the town the school is in and Binghamton is close by. We never had an issue with things to do, I am sure there are people who have kids there now who have more UTD info.
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I’m really interested to see what people with more recent experience say. We lived there, not at all associated with the university, 15 years ago. (in fact, S24 was born there!) We have a number of friends who still live there, and from what I hear, it’s mostly the same, with some interesting new shops/restaurants.
I would definitely say that it has a suburban vibe, without a city attached to it. In the Binghamton – Vestal – Endicott – Johnson City – Endwell metroplex 
there was a nice variety of restaurants and stores. Very rarely did we need to go to Syracuse for something we needed. ETA: actually, we were more likely to go to Ithaca, which was 30-40 minutes away, if we needed some thing we couldn’t get in the Binghamton area, or if we wanted something more niche, or nightlife-ly, or unusual.
I will say that in the four years we lived there I never met or interacted with anyone who went to the university, which seems a little strange now. So, I can’t say anything about the campus culture. But the area overall is pretty nice & safe. One complaint is that it is extremely cloudy there. I think it has some thing like the third fewest days of sun anywhere in the continental US. At least that’s what people said when we lived there.
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Good point about the weather. 3rd cloudiest city in the US - or 7th, or 9th, or 12th depending on the source - cloudiest east of the Rockies according to one, and 10th rainiest according to another. To make matters worse for college students is the fact that the best weather is in the summer when students aren’t there. I know one couple who hated the weather so much that they moved out of the area even though it was a career ending decision for one of them.
The good news is that you don’t have to worry about hurricanes, floods, brutal heat, and the like. The cloudiness is not like the British Isles. And a sunny day is never sunnier than when there’s snow on the ground. 
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Congrats to your DD! I went to school there in the 80s, loved it, and my son just finished up his first semester there and is having a good start, is happy. He attends Harpur and lives in Mountainview.
The school is situated in Vestal, which is a suburb of Binghamton. Beyond the gates is Vestal Parkway which is a big, busy drag of strip malls with stores, restaurants, bars, and motels. You can walk to some stores but to get to Walmart, Target, and other key stores you can take the campus bus or the public bus (which comes onto campus). The broader area is known as the Triple Cities which consists of Binghamton, Johnson City, and Endicott though I would say they are more town-like than cities. As industries (IBM, Endicott-Johnson, Singer, etc.) left the area, the region has became more economically depressed. Not dead but depressed. Vestal is a busy, active area. Downtown Binghamton (about a 10 minute drive from campus) has revived somewhat with bars and restaurants and the school has expanded there. Endicott will revive somewhat thanks to the new lithium battery industry that will take a foothold there; the key scientist behind the technology teaches at Binghamton and is a Nobel prize winner. Another town nearby is Endwell which has a really nice Wegmans and is where the Oakdale mall is located. Like many malls, Oakdale kind of dried up but recently is set to be revived.
Overall the area is safe. The campus is definitely safe. Vestal is very safe. Downtown Binghamton, Endicott, JC all have their seedy parts but if you daughter keeps to the main areas she will be fine. The school also has a late night escort service though i can’t recall if it extends beyond the campus gates.
Students do not disappear on the weekend and there is definitely school spirit, way more now than when even I attended. There are D1 sports teams (and the spirit that comes with it), co-rec sports, tons of clubs, frats/sororities, etc. Each residential community also has its own vibe and unique spirit. There is fun to be had if one avails themself of it.
Good luck!
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My oldest is a senior there right now and my middle son is a junior.
They both LOVE it.
The campus is great - easy to navigate, a good size and a great setup with the academic buildings in the middle, surrounded by the residential communities.
My oldest was on campus for 2 years, my middle transferred after freshman year elsewhere and was on campus for 1 year. Three different residential communities, benefits and drawbacks to each. Some had AC, some were fairly new - and some definitely weren’t.
They both live in their fraternity house in downtown Binghamton now.
Downtown where the bars etc are (the “main” area) is generally safe. There are some fun bars and places to eat - I wouldn’t say it’s “cute”, but there are some cool things. Same advice as any other place - traveling with others is always a good thing. Plenty of “upscale” apartment buildings for students downtown. There are also some seedy/sketchy/not so safe areas of Binghamton - but those are easy to identify (and avoid).
Not much in the immediate vicinity of campus - at least nothing much to walk to. Across the street there are some chain stores, hotels etc and an urgent care that is walkable if need be.
Buses from campus go pretty much everywhere - downtown, to grocery stores, to target and wal mart. They run fairly frequently, have extended hours and are easy to navigate.
Overall - we are ALL happy they chose Binghamton. There are some cute restaurants when we visit and take them out to dinner, and there’s a wegmans (which we don’t have where we live).
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Just saw this post and can address some of your questions. I agree with all @Newyork3boya says.
The area as a whole has a suburban feel, but the downtown area definitely feels like a downtown. Downtown is really popular and there are a lot of people out and about.
Like any city, there are safe and unsafe areas. When students go outside the popular downtown areas at night, they should keep their wits about them. The campus is very safe. Buses run to campus until about 4 a.m. (I think) on Friday and Saturday nights. The buses are busy and popular.
There is plenty of school spirit. Many students and parents wear Bing gear. There is a respectable turn out from some sports events. I wouldn’t say sports are a huge part of Bing culture, but school pride is evident.
Most students do not disappear on weekends. It is not a suitcase school. I am sure there are a number of commuters, but that is not noticeable on campus.
As far as off campus housing, I believe it’s a mix of houses, apartments, both old and new. My son is in a frat but doesn’t live in the frat house. He lives in a duplex. His girlfriend lives in one of the newer apartment buildings, of which there are a good number. There is housing for all budgets. The campus dorms are generally excellent, and some of the newer ones, such as Dickinson, are exceptional. Far nicer than the places my eldest lived in while she was an undergrad at her private LAC, much to her chagrin.
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