JamesM

A friend of mine lives in Westdale in Hamilton. It's actually quite a nice area. Looks a little like Niagara on the Lake (trying to be old school) and leafy. There is some student populace that keeps restaurant prices and amenities nice and affordable too.

MarylandNed

All fair points and much depends the OP's situation in the UK (which we don't know). Maybe she lives within walking distance of the school and the doctor's office? Maybe she has friends or family members that help out? Maybe she lives in an area with really good public transit? Maybe she takes taxis? The OP can tell us how she currently manages without a car.

So, yes, it's possible to get by without a car (and many parents do) but the one big difference in Canada will be the weather e.g. standing at a bus stop in biting cold and wind, navigating snowy/icy sidewalks etc. My wife and I lived in Toronto for several years without children and without a car. We lived in an area with great public transit but it didn't take us long to get a car once the first child came along. I accept that other people may be more tolerant of not having a car than we were.

flyboy74

IMO, Hamilton and the surrounding area has lots to offer foodies - you just have to know where to look (it's much easier with a car, but there are certainly a number of decent places to eat that are relatively easy to get to by public transport)!

There have been many changes in Hamilton in the last 5 years, so I don't know that the chowhound article really applies any more. My take, FWIW, is that Hamilton has a bad reputation that may or may not have been justified in the past (I wasn't here then), but the vast majority of the articles I see about Hamilton don't do it justice. Which is probably for the best since if too many people decided it was such a lovely place to live, it probably wouldn't be nearly as nice!

SchnookoLoly

Someone linked to this podcast on Facebook - sounds like it would be worth checking out.

Discover #HamOnt Podcast

Here's an article about it:
https://cfmu.wordpress.com/2015/04/1...d-its-awesome/

DanielM

I lived in Hamilton for a year when I landed in Canada, the geography is a bit weird since there's a large escarpment dividing the city in two (it rises about 100 meters at a 45 degree angle) living up high is "on the mountain" and generally nicer than the lower areas to the north.
I lived in a "bad" area and it did have an air of desperation and was very rough around the edges, but I never felt afraid to go out and it still seems friendly by UK standards.
There are some really cool areas in Hamilton, the Bay front park is great for families with a cycle/walking path along the lakefront, the Bruce Trail is cool and there are tons of great waterfalls around the city.
Downtown is a mix of really nice areas and grotty bits (like Jackson Square mall) the Public transit is very good and the main Library is excellent, also the farmers market is well worth a visit.

I learned to drive in Hamilton and it takes a bit of getting used to, there are loads of one way streets and some quirks (you can turn left on some red lights) but the lanes are wide most cars are automatic and the city blocks make life easier than the UK.
If you do come over and want to drive here make sure you get your G1 as soon as possible (its just a theory test), it's like a provisional/learners permit and with it you can only drive with a fully licensed person in the car. To drive on your own you need the G2 license, your problem will be that to get a G2 you have to wait a year before you can do the road test, or 8 months if you do an approved driving course. If you have a UK license it can be transferred over but I think you need to show you've driven for a few years on it.

As for cost of living, electricity, gas, petrol, housing, electronics, take out food and cars are cheaper in Canada.
Food from supermarkets, mobile phone plans, bank accounts, internet and alcohol are all more expensive here. It kind of balances out in the end though.

Hope that helps.

fabulous

thanks Daniel and all others. Sorry for no show for so many days. We have still not received offer in writing, only verbal assurances. I have still no answers for your Visa queries. I hope some of you will be able to understand our anxiety. Not able to start any process until we get the contract.

Never mind, I keep lurking through the threads. About shipping our belongings, is it worth to ship white goods too? We bought new furniture and electricals just 2 months ago. We were honestly not expecting to move so far.

Thanks again. I really appreciate all help. It must be nice over there with so nice helpful people making a living there

SchnookoLoly

I personally would not bother with white goods. It's going to cost a lot to ship and you may have compatibility issues with installing them here - don't forget that the voltage is different here. You'll be better off getting new ones here - and if you decide to buy a house then in 99% of cases white goods are included with the house... chances are if you rent that white goods will also be there. So honestly, you're probably better off selling your white goods, annoying as it is, and then seeing how it goes when you get here and what your accommodation provides.

rivingtonpike

I would agree with SchnookoLoly on this. White goods invariably come with the house whether you rent or buy. All the other electrical stuff though I would bring. Despite what some may lead you to believe, lots of electricals will still work. For some you may need a step up transformer to get the correct voltage but these are cheap, readily available, and simple to use. We still use one in the kitchen for our breadmaker and I have one to power some of my music stuff. Of course, with time, you will inevitably replace stuff and no doubt buy the North American equivalent. Electrical stuff here seems to be cheaper than my recollection of UK prices, but if your UK version of whatever it is sill work either with or often without a transformer, why replace it?

SchnookoLoly

We brought stuff that didn't need a transformer, and decided that we'd just re-buy the handful of things that did need the transformer... most notable for needing transformers are things with heating elements and/or motors - hand blenders, toasters, kettles, etc. We didn't want to have to bother trying to install something in the kitchen to work with most of our stuff, and as rivington said, most of it is cheaper here anyway, so we decided to just keep things simple and re-buy a lot of the kitchen and bathroom stuff that required electrical input. The handful of pricier items we had in the UK, like our Nespresso machine, we were able to sell in the UK and then put the money towards the replacement here.

We just couldn't be bothered trying to sort out transformers and all the rest of it, so this was the simpler version for us. I guess part of it will just depend on how much faff you feel like going through!