Cornish couple

Hi everyone! We are looking to immigrate to Nova Scotia but we are only at the early stages of investigating particular areas. We are planning to come over in April to investigate further and wondered if anyone could give us advice on areas particularly to avoid or areas that you recommend we check out? We have two young boys that love sport and love the great outdoors (parks, wildlife etc). I, myself, love to shop!!

If you can advise on an area, can you recommend a hotel that is real good value for money? We would appreciate any advice. Thanks.....

h_henry

Hi Cornish Couple. We too are thinking of NS! We haven't been on a recce trip yet but from what I can gather from previous posts the nicest spots seem to be the South Shore, Annapolis Valley and northern half of Cape Breton island. The only place I know to definately avoid is Sydney which is apparently quite economically run down. Not sure if this helps or not, but these are the areas we're starting with .

Cornish couple

Not sure if this helps or not, but these are the areas we're starting with .[/QUOTE]

Hi h_henry, thanks for your quick reply and advice, we will certainly look into these places. Good luck with your search & hope you get there.

Happydayz

Hi Cornish couple,
I think it depends on whether you need to be near the city for work or are looking for cheaper property out in the sticks. There are alot of places around the province that would be good for outdoor activities and not bad for shopping, if shopping is the priority then you'd have to live near Halifax.
For us, we wanted a property out in the sticks with land which was affordable but also close enough to a town to find work.We are a half hour drive from bridgewater. We overlook a large lake,have lots of trails around us for biking in summer and ski-doo or x country ski-ing in winter ,an hour from a Ski resort,and 40 mins from great beaches. I managed to do a 2000km trip around N.S last may looking for a place.I would say look at Annapolis valley,southshore(Lunenburg),Cape Breton,and of course Halifax and area.
Good luck. Tony

rgilbert

You lucky people. We went to NS last October for a recce and will not be going back for some time. Its a really lovely place. I would agree with the Lunnunburg and Cape Breton recommendation. On our travels we really enjoyed watching whales off the very northerly tip of Cape Breton and the Alexander graham bell museum in Baddeck is really interesting. I really want to move to NS but we are not sure how easy it will be for us to get jobs in our professional fields(Management Accountant and town planner). At the moment we are looking at Alberta because of the job situation but I keep dreaming of NS.

h_henry

It's a tough call isn't it?! Having a decent job goes a long way to making the move work, but on the other hand why move thousands of miles away from your friends and family to presumably fulfil a dream and not live in the place of your dreams? I think a lot of people probably change professions when they move to Canada, at least for a while. Fortunately my partner and I agree that we'd hate to move from where we are now (can see green fields from window) to a city just because we could get work there but we are fortunate in that at least one of us is able to work from home.

louisbourg

hi there
first off i must stick up for sydney !!!
our house is in louisbourg ( you must visit there , the fortress is awsome !!!)

and sydney is our nearest town , i know it probablly isn't ideal , for looking to live there of work there but it is town with all you need i guess it's a working town , not a touristy visity place

the cabot trail is fantastic ,P.E.I. (prince edward island ) . baddeck etc
we love cape breton
it all depends on individual needs , ie if you need to look at schools , jobs etc
we have no children , and the home we have in c.b has business premises with it , so we are hoping to work for ourselves as apose to looking for work

plenty of websites to check out and all the help you need is on here
but it is all depending on the individual
keep an open mind
best regards
sharon

rgilbert

Is there lots of industry in NS. Management accounts is generally being the accountant for the factories. If NS has industry my husband may be able to get work. I hadn't even thought of Sydney. What do you mean by a working town? If there are good areas to live around Sydney, that is a possibility because it is closer to Baddeck area where I could definately see myself weekending. Is there industry in the Halifax area?

We are at the start of the process so havn't really checked out job propsepects in the area yet.

BH PNP

I think the main point that is being addressed is proximity to work/industry. There are many very lovely areas of Nova Scotia, places you can easily fall in love with. BUT..... will that place be as appealing when work is scarce, activities, particularly for kids, are few and far between or travelling longer distances are required for shopping, a greater choice of activities etc... Will that be possible in, like today, 25 cm of blizzard snow with 100km winds??

HRM (Halifax Regional Municipality) has almost 40% of the population of Nova Scotia.

Don't get me wrong, from Sydney in the north to Yartmouth in the south, there are some superb towns, with ample facilities but please consider all aspects and try to picture life beyond a two week vacation.

Good luck with your choices.

Cornish couple

Hi, I just want to say thanks to everyone for your responses. My husband is really anxious about finding work and I do think this will be our key starting point, but we just wanted to find a couple areas that we liked, visit in April and then judge the job situation. Can anyone help with whether carpet fitters are in any demand in Nova Scotia?

AnyaT

By "working town," I believe Louisbourg means it is blue collar (steel and coal were its major industries until they shut down), and not really scenic with lots of tourist-related attractions. I know some cruise ships stop in Sydney but I can't imagine why, unless it is to do day trips around the Cabot trail and Fortress of Louisbourg (really one of Canada's best historic sites). One other thing to keep in mind is that Sydney has the highest rates of cancer in Canada, due largely to the pit of toxic sludge known as the tar ponds.

I don't know whether carpet fitters are in high demand, but if that is your line of work Halifax is probably your best shot. It has the most housing development going on in the province - I read yesterday that a new development in Clayton Park West is starting up. You can live outside of Halifax and still get into the centre of town very easily, which addresses both your points on access to the outdoors and shopping (be forewarned that NS is the only province which still does not allow Sunday shopping - it will eventually change, just a matter of time).

Regarding hotels, if you plan to rent a car you will have a much broader selection. There are a few around Bayer's Lake that are affordable, but as they are on the outskirts of Halifax are not really accessible by bus. If you aren't renting a car you are pretty much limited to central Halifax, where everything is accessible by walking. You can get the Doer's and Dreamer's guide that the NS Dept of Tourism puts out every year, mailed to you for free which has details on just about every hotel, inn, B&B and attraction in the province.

Andrea&Mark

Hi Cornish Couple,
We are also considering Nova Scotia and hope to visit in May or June this year. We have a 2 1/2 year old daughter and applied for Permanent Residency last June. What stage of the application process are you?

Andrea & family