checked out bc
 

this was the last big trip to reccie out parts of bc , our application should be through by nov ,(filed last nov) and have a good lawyer in david thomas marine drive vancouver , email me and i will happily pass on details

we travelled for a month , myself my wife gillian and three boys aged 17 ,14,11

10 days of RV , i had no idea 5th wheelers were so big and apologise for anyone who lost wing mirrors in the last month

we went from vancouver to merrit

nice town but needs to grow a bit for us but within 2 hrs or vancouver so worth a look 7/10

then onto kelowna , lovley area , lakes , vineyards etc , but had the feel of a retirement town 7/10

banff next , loved it , for me this and jasper were ideal ,rural ,enough tourism , and comunity feel with all the wilderness you can handle 9/10

jasper , see banff 8/10

kamloops , thought it looked a bit run down ,i can imagine it being busy during ski season but lots of areas we felt edgy about 6/10

then onto tofino west van island ,loved it rural really nice feel but could imagine going stir crazy in the winter , still for summer feel and sobo cafe it gets 8/10

then back to kits beach vancouver ,9/10 for atmosphere ,friendly people ,great sunsets and mohito cocktails in the watermark restruant
wets van looks great for schools acess etc but prices are a bit high


we have checked schools out etc along the way and vancouver still looks best for us , its only one familys thoughts but i am glad we did the trip , i now know not to look at a map and guess distances , (kelowna to banff 8hrs) nearly a divorce there !!!

property is booming in all the areas i mentioned,it is due a slowdown as an accountant pointed out they expect a few intrest rate rises over the next year.

if anyone wants more details happy to give you our thoughts

gordon

Re: checked out bc
 

Hi Gordon,

Glad to hear you enjoyed your recce trip.

Just in case people get excited about your 9/10 rating for Banff and 8/10 rating for Jasper, I'll point out that the average person cannot buy property in those towns. Since they're located in national parks, the federal government restricts their development. You can only live in those towns if you have what is classified as a legitimate reason (you're a park warden, you work in the hospitality industry, or something along those lines). Jasper is a maintenance depot for the Canadian National Railway, so some of the people who live there are CNR employees.

Re: checked out bc
 

thanks judy ,i didnt know that , this may help explain how beautiful they are , keeping property developers at bay definatley helps.

Re: checked out bc
 

Glad you had a good trip - it's well worth putting in the mileage, literally.

But

We were there a few weeks ago - on a Friday night - and felt the exact opposite - I think we were at least 20 years to old to be allowed out :p Now I'm not sure if that was a fluke, summery evening, but the peeps a couple of decades younger than me were out in force and your kids would have loved it.

Re: checked out bc
 

I am heading there for 4 days this weekend.

Can you recommend any restaurants?

I already have our vineyard visit planned. :thumbup::)

Re: checked out bc
 

There is an excellent curry house but you have to book ahead!

Can't quite remember the street or name....


Dawett Fine Indian Cuisine
1435 Ellis Street, Kelowna, BC V1Y 2A3, Canada
(250) 717-1668

Re: checked out bc
 

Any clues??? :huh: ...........I would LOVE a curry. :thumbup:

Re: checked out bc
 

It really was good - went there a couple of years ago on the recommendation of a bloke we met in a cafe in Revelstoke, got there at 5.30 pm and was shown the table next to the toilet....thought this is a bit strange, by 6 pm, the place was heaving.

Re: checked out bc
 

Mission Hill I hope.

Re: checked out bc
 

Yep :)

Re: checked out bc
 

Thanks :thumbup:

Re: checked out bc
 

Hi Edinburgh

What a great trip. You've probably seen more of BC than most native BC'ers.

We're in Vancouver, although orginally offered jobs in Kamloops but feared what you have confirmed. We're young professional couple so want the downtown lifestyle, but we are thinking of Kelowna for when little ones come along.

I LOVE Toffino, but think I would get a bit bored of storm watching in the winter, and really p!ssed off with tourists in the summer, although Vancouver has that potential too!

We broke down coming back from a ski trip to Big White in Kelowna in the winter so had to spend the night in Merrit. Apparently got a really big drugs problem and loads of people claiming the dole. Probably most likely place you'll see a redneck Chav in BC.

Are you limited with where you can work?

As for Vancouver, West Van - most affluent part and where many expat family live, so all too easy to just stick with making expat friends and not fully integrate into Canada. Kits - I always liken to Clapham in London. 2 co-workers and 1 friend are just moving from there as they find it way too pretensious. Friend is moving from trendy Kits condo to middle-class suburban Burnaby house to start their 2.4 children.

If you want the combination of city but quiet, have you looked at Victoria, although a fair amount of retirement there as well?

Remember to check out the weather all year round as where is lovely and warm in the can have really harsh winters http://www.theweathernetwork.com/weather/cancitiesbc_en

Re: checked out bc
 

What??????? Which bit did you visit?

Granted if you visit A & W in the morning it's usually full of wrinklies but have a look down Gyro Beach and the city waterfront to name but two places where youngsters hang out.

Retirement town it aint!!

Re: checked out bc
 

While your summary makes for an intersting read, it is pretty broad in its generalisations, and as pointed out by others, not necessarily totally accurate.

Kamloops, for example doesn't really get any busier in the ski season - Sun Peaks is 50 mins away and has a wide enough range of accommodation to mean Kamloops isn't swamped with tourists.

It's not overall as 'pretty' as Kelowna, for example, (did you see Victoria St, Riverside Park, Rose Hill, Barnhartvale....?) but you've got to realise it's probably 10yrs behind the expansion that Kelowna's experienced, and is experiencing its own huge growth, hence the current big difference in housing prices. Kamloops is forecast to grow at a greater rate than almost anywhere else in BC over the next few years, so if you're looking for a good bang for your buck, it's a great place to invest before prices reach the levels found elsewhere in the Okanagan (we've seen 45% growth in 2yrs since we moved here).

There's broadly only one area of the city that's likely to make you feel vaguely 'edgy' - other than that there's nowhere I worry about walking around at night, and I've never lived in a town of more than 20,000 people before.

A fly-through trip, as you did (and as I did several years ago) can never really give a true impression of somewhere as a place to live, but best of luck with wherever you choose to settle.

Re: checked out bc
 

Kamloops is a 'working man's town' as pointed out to me by my barber. You need a 4x4, cap, & steel toe capped boots to feel at home.

City slickers stay well away ;)


Says the man who is putting on a suit for an interview tomorrow

Re: checked out bc
 

Hi,

What's wrong with K/town? :confused:
It must have been early when all the oldies are up and about.
They are all in bed by 7pm.:zzz:
There are plenty of things to do and a few young people live here too.:cool:

Re: checked out bc
 

i realise these are just our impressions based on a flying RV trip ,but sometimes first impressions are the ones you come back to .

didnt realise merrit had a bad drugs problem and i am sure kamloops will catch up with kelowna .

everyone has there own idea of ideal so its just a broad brush comment on a trip ,i think vancouver has what we need to keep the family happy

endless yoga (24hrs nearly) for my wife
bike parks , skateboard parks ,beach volleyball , for the kids
hills and lakes and sea for me

and sunsets for all of us

oh and mohitos !!!!

as we were leaving we had second thoughts about the big move for the family ,but 2 days before we went seeing a flaming car being driven into glasgow airport helped clear the doubts

john smeaton the luggage handler who knocked out one of the terrorists as of today has 1700 pints behind the glasgow airport bar!!!hes keeping half and giving the cash value of half to charity

850 pints that should take a fortnight to clear

Re: checked out bc
 

The best restaurants ARE the vinyards! Would definitely recommend Quails' Gate; it's not far from Mission Hill but, for us, has a nicer atmosphere (not quite so showy and expensive but the quality is fantastic). Need to make sure you book though!

I love Kelowna :)

Re: checked out bc
 

My vote the winery to visit is Summerhill :cool:
http://www.summerhill.bc.ca/

Re: checked out bc
 

thaks for your message ,we liked victoria but our oldest boy has his heart set on art uni in vancouver , for the mid term i think vancouver will be for us
i do agree with your comments and think west van is too european and i looked for other areas on the north shore , i think we will probably wait fro the paperwork to get through then rent for a bit before deciding whats best.

Re: checked out bc
 

Oh the choices ......... thanks, they all sound great.

I think I am going to like Kelowna. A town surrounded by several vineyards and a great ski resort near by ! It sounds like my idea of heaven. :):p

Re: checked out bc
 

Kelowna is beautiful, but it does have issues. It is a popular holiday destination for American students and in July and August the beach party rocks for 20 hours a day. Great if you are on holiday but maybe not ideal for the residents. It also has an increasing drugs and homelessness problem with a rise in associated petty crime. You can argue this is the same for every interior city, but it is rumored that the Hell’s Angels have set up a chapter in Kelowna so its not likely to get better any time soon.

Two places I BC that I would seriously consider living in are Nelson and Gibsons.

Nelson is the regional centre of the Kootenays. It is a pretty town built on the hillside above one arm of Kootenay Lake. The main street is composed of 19th century buildings (almost pre-historic by BC standards) and, unlike most interior towns, is an attractive and pleasant place to rest. Within minutes of Nelson are pristine Alpine parks.

Nelson is the home of a thriving artistic community and still has a live commercial theatre. In the 60s it was on the hippie trail. The influence is still there with several backpacker hostels, new age shops and a large, a thriving whole food/organic supermarket. I am reliably informed that the bud from the area is the best that can be had in North America.

Gibsons is a very attractive small town on the southern tip of the Sunshine Coast. It is a spectacular 40 minute ferry ride from West Vancouver. If you need to have easy access to the big city, but prefer the small town feel this is an ideal place to live. You can actually afford to buy a house with mountain and ocean views.

Re: checked out bc
 

Nelson???????????

I think if you search there are a lot of comments on here about Nelson and not too may recommending you live there. Also it's miles from anywhere.

As for beach parties, well maybe it's a problem if you live on top of a beach, but if you do you probably have enough money to buy several homes!!

As for the Hells Angels i beleive they have been associated with the place for a long time.

Re: checked out bc
 

... and besides, it's just a motorcycle club. ;)

Re: checked out bc
 

It's just an opinion. Miles from anywhere can be an advantage.

Re: checked out bc
 

Of course. I hope nobody thought I was suggesting otherwise ... err ... honest ... err ...

Re: checked out bc
 

I'm sending the Penticton Punshers & Costco Crushers 'old crew' your way mate!!!!! :rofl:

Re: checked out bc
 

The Angels are soon to be outrun by the Independant Soldiers. The H.As have run Kelowna now for sometime, keeping out other gangs such as the Triads, but the soldiers are a totally new breed. They recruite mostly depressed down on their luck people and promise them all sorts of 'richs'. At the moment it's all fine, but when the ISs take over things will change for sure.
http://www.mapinc.org/newscfdp/v06/n1397/a04.html