Vancouver - anyone...

[auntiebertie]

My partner may be offered a job in Vancouver - any one on line who can say what it is like to live in, costs, weather, safety etc please......it is no where that I have ever thought of going to be honest!! Thanks

[sddsddean]

Went there last summer , but only for 3 days!! We were very impressed, but more to the point, my mate moved out there for work about a year before and absolutely loves it! He showed us round the city one day...you can even walk amongst the winos and addicts with no fear, everyone is so nice. The public transport system is brilliant (they even have bike carriers on the front of the buses!). My mate now owns a share of a yacht, goes skiing, goes hiking/camping and reckons he'll never move back to the UK.

[trevHCS]

Not been yet, but according to a friend who used to live in Calgary I'd say sddsddean's reply is a very true reflection.

Living costs tend to be higher than much of Canada, although Calgary is catching up now. It's a lot more than eastern Canada, but less than the UK generally.

Weather is kindof on the slightly wetter side, but very little snow. Tends to be a lot dryer air than the UK (and eastern Canada), but it doesn't have LA type temperatures as a rule.

Safety - one thing you'll find about Canada is you can walk anywhere and not think about it. For example, I walked through the roughest part of Calgary holding an iPod and digi camera and people just smiled.

Everything else....well from what I hear, if you can afford the houses it's a very nice place to live. Oh and if you're coming from the UK, you can swap your driving licence in BC for a Canadian one without even taking an eye test.

[JoolsTwo]

My daughter lives there and it is a beautiful city, but has all the same sort of problems any city has. I wouldn't walk about alone where the addicts hang out, it is very rough in the area around Hastings. But the city is safe enough and there is plenty to do bars, resaurants etc. The weather is beautiful in summer, we were there last year and it can get hotter than the UK. The winters are very wet, we were there 3 years ago in November and it just rain continuously but was not cold. But then if you like skiing, while it rains in the city it is snowing on the slopes. There are a couple of ski resorts very close to the city. Grouse mountain and Cyprus. Whistler is close enough for a day trip. They have had some snow this year over the Christmas period but they don't get a lot in Vancouver.

I hope that gives you an idea of what it is like, but if you are considering moving there I would go and see it it first.

Good luck

[JoolsTwo]

I should just add - The cost of living is roughly the same maybe v/slightly less than the UK. Eating out is cheaper and the potions are much bigger but they do expect a tip around 15%.