I’m planning a reconnaissance trip to Canada starting late June and would appreciate any tips that those in the know could provide to help inform my itinerary. Basically this trip is intended to establish, as far as is possible based on a short-term visit, if Canada is really a place I could, and would, want to live and work.

I’m an accountant and most of my recent experience has been gained working in the finance functions of large international companies (e.g. Barclays Plc and E.ON AG). My first thoughts that the most likely places I’d find work is in, or around, one of the major cities. With Canada being so large and spread out I’m wondering if there are significant differences in regional employers. For example, is the ratio of finance jobs available in relation to the number of candidates in Toronto and the GTA known to be significantly higher than it would be in Winnipeg? Or is the ratio much the same even if the overall numbers come down? Any informed knowledge on the economic differences between the cities and regions would be appreciated.

My initial itinerary looks something like this:
Montreal – 3 Days – I’m assuming that as I don’t speak French I may struggle for work here so this is more about having fun with the Frenchies.

Ottawa – 3 Days

Toronto & the GTA – 8 Days

Winnipeg – 4 Days – The Manitoba PNP could be a realistic and cost effective route into Canada.

Edmonton – 4 Days – I’m really unsure which, if either, of Edmonton or Calgary would be better for my purposes.

Calgary – 4 Days – See above

Vancouver – 4 Days

Vancouver Island – 3 Days – Possible route into Canada via a Student Visa giving option to stay and work after completion.

Obviously finding out about the different places from a cost of living and employability perspective is important. However, it’s also important for me to try and find out if I would really enjoy living in the country. To this end any tips you have regarding inexpensive things to see which truly show off Canada would be appreciated (for example, if there was an exceptional Picasso exhibition in Toronto this would not interest me in the slightest but if there was a museum of Canadian history this would). Also of particular interest are outdoor activities, amazing natural scenery, good bars to hang out and mix with the locals and cheap, clean and centrally located accommodation.

Sorry for the length of this post. All tips are appreciated. In my experience of travelling the best advice usually comes from those people who live in the place as opposed to the guide books.

Yours,

GB_Griffiths.

That is going to take some serious advanced planning. If I was coming on a recce trip and if I had a number of meetings set up with potential employers prior to arriving, I wouldn't have time to do any real sight seeing or fun stuff while in Calgary. A trip to Banff will take a day, at least.

If you are hoping to turn up and schedule meetings, you are likely to be disappointed. Canadians are incredibly slow to return to those they know, let alone those they have never heard of.

I don't imagine you would struggle to find work in Calgary. My former accountant is a Brit and would likely be prepared to meet you for lunch to explain the lay of the land for you.

Best of luck.

We came to Calgary on a recce trip last may and got interviews lined up whilst here. We came for 7 days, and in my opinion that wasn't long enough, however, we fell in love with Calgary our first day here. Lol we knew from day one we wanted to live here. Luckily all went to plan and we moved here in September last year. Have you done a lot of research from home? When we initially decided in 2010 to make the move we went through every city in Canada looking at crime, education, schools, work opportunities, cost of living, weather etc, and we narrowed this down to approx 4 areas (this was out of over a hundred areas we started with initially) we chose Calgary for many reasons, and I honestly think we made the right decision.

I would say research as much as possible. Why those areas in particular have you chosen?

I agree with advice above that Canadians are in no rush to do anything,can take days to weeks for replies.

I would say calgary is on par with certain stuff from the UK price wise. However if you shop around you do have deals. Bare in mind too you have no council tax, car tax, mot, tv licence, petrol is currently $1.20 a litre (80p)

Out of the places you have chosen, I would say calgary has the "better" weather. We have the chinooks here which help.

If you want any further info just give me a shout, happy to help. It's a big thing. We don't regret anything with our decision and would do it again in a heart beat

... and snow in May and August.

I'm certainly up for a beer in Vancouver though I don't know much about the large corp scene (such as it is) here.

You have set yourself a pretty punishing schedule. As AC has said, there will not be much time for touristy things. In Vancouver you might want to rent a bike and cycle around the seawall. Also, take the ferry to Vancouver Isalnd rather than fly - have a mini cruise.

Cheap place to stay:

http://www.ywcahotel.com/

Not as cheap but perfectly functional in a great location:

http://www.sylviahotel.com/

In Victoria, the Royal BC museum has some great exhibits of BC history and culture both before and after contact.

We have had no snow in may, this month where we live in the NW we had 29 degrees, today raining though lol

Thanks for all the tips so far. The indicative itinerary is exactly that - indicative. I may eliminate a place or two or extend my time in a place or two if necessary.

However, to put into perspective, I have no expectations that this trip alone is going to result in a job offer or answer all my questions. If I decide that emigration is definitely for me then I fully expect to make another trip out there with a more focussed agenda. Even if I did that, I'm firmly of the belief that there's an unavoidable 'leap of faith' involved at some point.

Yet, there is almost always (past 7 years) snow in May.

Sounds like an encouraging tale. How did you manage to get interviews at such short notice - what sort of jobs were you looking for? We are expecting to be job hunting in Calgary by August so any tips gratefully received! Thanks.

Talk to a realtor or two. When we were on our recce trip we decided to look at some houses to see what our money would buy. The second town, the second realtor knew someone who knew someone in OHs trade, interview was lined up the next day, OH, walked away with a job offer.

we applied to several companies (who had good reviews) my partner is an electrician, so on the skilled list. He got offered the job where he is now on the spot, and we took if from there. We personally wrote to the companies (ie letter typed and physically posted in the mail) when we emailed companies we never got a reply, however the ones we wrote to we received replies via telephone and mail. In the letter we stated when we would be over in Canada and would like to arrange interviews for then, and luckily it all worked out really well. I work as an administrator, and applied for jobs once we landed, and got a job after 3 weeks. Happy to help if you have any further questions.

That does certainly sound like a punishing schedule. Having just come back from a recce trip on Vancouver Island (which basically involved most of a month, just on the island) I'd say I still didn't manage to get all of the info I would have wanted. Although, to be fair, a lot of the trip involved doing things with our son to get him used to the idea of moving - he went to cub scouts and football (the Canadian sort) training etc, and we tried to live as much as possible as we would if we lived there - buying groceries as normal, doing laundry as normal, stuff like that.

My advice would be to do as much research prior to your trip as possible - and I include in that talking to people (via email if easier) before you go, so you aren't wasting time once you get there. Everyone that I contacted before we went out was really great, and very happy to find time to talk to us. Time will be very precious when you are there. Depending on what is important to you in terms of lifestyle, make sure you have places lined up to visit and see if you like them - if you're into sports, check out what the local sports facilities and provisions are like, for example. Being able to do a particular style of Karate was really important for us, so we made contact with the local dojo before the trip and trained there during our trip so we could check it out properly.

I would also highly recommend that you talk to realtors. We found that incredibly helpful, not just for checking out real estate (which is a big thing, and you need to see several houses in your price range before you start to get a proper feel for what your money can really buy you), but you will also find that they have lots of local knowledge, and know LOTS of people who might be useful for you to contact.

Best wishes on your recce, gb_griff

This looks like an awesome trip - I'm so jealous!

I'm not sure how you came up with the number of days in each place. You'll get various opinions on whether it is too short, just right, or too long.

So do you have a plan (meet with prospective employers, look at neighborhoods, try the morning commute, tourist things, etc)? Or are you going to wing it?

In terms of finance, Toronto is the largest finance centre in Canada and is ranked #10 in the world. Vancouver (#17), Montreal (#18) and Calgary (#28) are further down the global list.

http://www.longfinance.net/Publications/GFCI%2011.pdf

Toronto/GTA must sees include Toronto Islands, Beaches, Niagara on the Lake, Niagara Falls, etc.

You might want to think about renting a house/apartment from www.vrbo.com. Or maybe renting a room from www.airbnb.com. This way you get to live with the locals in their neighbourhoods instead of staying in a downtown hotel.