Ideal location for living

Hello expat community!

My family is in a bit of an impasse on where we should live. I will be working in the city but the school she will be ultimately attending will be in the Vinhomes riverside area (BIS). My husband likes the aesthetics of the homes and he feels most comfortable with the transition to those villas particularly. Ciputra didn’t resonate with him for UNIS being close by. My daughter is 2 turning 3 and those are the only two international schools that will take her age and my company is paying for her tuition so we would like to send her to a top tier IS.

I don’t mind the Starlake area, it’s 15 mins to UNIS when daughter can attend there and not far from my company in Lang Ha. However it doesn’t seem like Starlake, from all the google I can do, isn’t as built out with the amenities as Vinhomes Riverside is and my husband will be the one at home mostly so he’s trying to fill his time as much as possible so amenities and community is important to him.

My daughter gets motion sick in the car so we have to limit her time in one as much as possible, that’s why we hope to live close to a school she would attend. 15 mins is her max before she starts throwing up. Hoping she grows out of it when she’s older but my husband still gets motion sick so who knows?

My main qualm is missing out on the cool restaurants and shops if we live out too far in the riverside area. I know it probably has its own type of scene but ideally I would love to live in the west lake area but we can’t afford anything that has 4-5 bedrooms there that’s not an apartment. I know if we live in the riverside area, my commute will be crazy and I’ll dedicate 2 hours a day in the car missing out on family time.

I guess I’m just looking for insight on communities and if anyone has any experience with choosing the right neighborhood with families in mind. Thanks for reading my rambling and any advice given.