Moving to Victoria BC lots of questions ?
Mar 4th 2015, 12:01 pm
#1
Just Joined
Thread Starter
Joined: Sep 2014
Posts: 14
Moving to Victoria BC lots of questions ?
Hi all, so having moved from the uk in October 2014 to Quebec City. We are now on the move again to Victoria BC this is all due to my husbands work. We are lucky as they pay for all the moving etc. I have to confess I will be glad to move to warmer victoria having been in quebec for the coldest winter in 100+years.
The reason for my post is in after some advice with regards to best family areas to live in Victoria? And local elementary schools (my eldest will be due to start kindergarten in September)?
I would also like to know if there are any local mum and toddler groups I can attend (my youngest is 2)?
Also we have not changed our uk driving licences to quebec ones as yet and as we are moving before we need to do so we will probably just change our uk to bc licences is this an easy process?
Also will we need to open a new bank account? We currently bank with banque scotia her win quebec.
Thanks for any help
The reason for my post is in after some advice with regards to best family areas to live in Victoria? And local elementary schools (my eldest will be due to start kindergarten in September)?
I would also like to know if there are any local mum and toddler groups I can attend (my youngest is 2)?
Also we have not changed our uk driving licences to quebec ones as yet and as we are moving before we need to do so we will probably just change our uk to bc licences is this an easy process?
Also will we need to open a new bank account? We currently bank with banque scotia her win quebec.
Thanks for any help
Mar 4th 2015, 5:55 pm
#2
"In cruce vincam"
Joined: May 2010
Location: Mill Bay, Vancouver Island
Posts: 3,232
Re: Moving to Victoria BC lots of questions ?
Hi all, so having moved from the uk in October 2014 to Quebec City. We are now on the move again to Victoria BC this is all due to my husbands work. We are lucky as they pay for all the moving etc. I have to confess I will be glad to move to warmer victoria having been in quebec for the coldest winter in 100+years.
The reason for my post is in after some advice with regards to best family areas to live in Victoria? And local elementary schools (my eldest will be due to start kindergarten in September)?
I would also like to know if there are any local mum and toddler groups I can attend (my youngest is 2)?
Also we have not changed our uk driving licences to quebec ones as yet and as we are moving before we need to do so we will probably just change our uk to bc licences is this an easy process?
Also will we need to open a new bank account? We currently bank with banque scotia her win quebec.
Thanks for any help
The reason for my post is in after some advice with regards to best family areas to live in Victoria? And local elementary schools (my eldest will be due to start kindergarten in September)?
I would also like to know if there are any local mum and toddler groups I can attend (my youngest is 2)?
Also we have not changed our uk driving licences to quebec ones as yet and as we are moving before we need to do so we will probably just change our uk to bc licences is this an easy process?
Also will we need to open a new bank account? We currently bank with banque scotia her win quebec.
Thanks for any help
We live to the north about 40 minutes out of the centre, so we have a detached semi rural place with lots of garden. I don't really know much about the city schools. Around our neck of the woods we're really happy with them so far. Where is hubby's job going to be based? If it's to the west of Vic, going out towards Sooke is a nice part of the world (although historically the schools haven't been considered great).
Mar 4th 2015, 8:37 pm
#3
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Joined: Feb 2013
Location: BC, Canada
Posts: 3,874
Re: Moving to Victoria BC lots of questions ?
There are lots of retirees in Victoria and surrounds, and more flood in during the winter from other parts of Canada.
You should not have to change your bank .................
I presume Banque Scotia in Quebec is the same as Scotia Bank out here???
You will have to open a new account with the branch here, but they will then transfer everything over.
I should Google to see about schools, and Mum and Toddler groups ............. most places do have them, but it might need a bit of searching
You should not have to change your bank .................
I presume Banque Scotia in Quebec is the same as Scotia Bank out here???
You will have to open a new account with the branch here, but they will then transfer everything over.
I should Google to see about schools, and Mum and Toddler groups ............. most places do have them, but it might need a bit of searching
Mar 4th 2015, 10:05 pm
#4
Joined: Sep 2008
Posts: 12,830
Re: Moving to Victoria BC lots of questions ?
There is no need to open a new account at a branch within the same bank. One can leave it as it is with a new mailing address or get a local branch account manager and change your home branch. There is nothing to transfer over, just a change of address.
Mar 4th 2015, 11:16 pm
#5
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Joined: Feb 2013
Location: BC, Canada
Posts: 3,874
Re: Moving to Victoria BC lots of questions ?
Aviator ..............
I did know that, because 2 of our 5 accounts are in a different branch in Vancouver, and we have often accessed our accounts from other areas, including from Halifax and Montreal
............. but it seems a long distance from Quebec to Victoria to leave the account there when one is moving, rather than just visiting ..............
surely it is better in this case to have the account closer at hand?
That's why I didn't mention leaving it in the original bank.
The last time we asked to move our account from one branch to another ........... we were told they required us to set up as if we were new customers? Weird, eh!
Perhaps my opinion is coloured by the fact that many of our bank tellers in Vancouver are now immigrants from Asia .................. makes some sort of sense as we have so many non-English speaking immigrants here.
I don't know about Victoria ........ as I haven't been in a bank there for a couple of years.
What it means from the English speakers' viewpoint here is that ............... they often don't really know how things work.
Believe me, we've been through this exercise several times in the last few months!
I've never worked in a bank, but I do know that a bank draft is supposed to be the same as cash .........
......... until you meet an almost unilingual Chinese bank teller who insists that it will take 10 working days for the money to become accessible, then reduces the estimate to 3 working days after consulting with her slightly more intelligible supervisor
We've just been through the exercise of setting up an account that our daughter could access in Halifax via a branch of our bank ............ they use a different bank, hence my knowledge of the bank draft situation.
We are not yet ready to give her access to any of our existing accounts, which would have been the easy way ....................
On advice from the one long-time Canadian teller in the bank, we opened a new account in our 3 names ............ mine, OH, and hers.
it has taken 3 weeks to get it all sorted out ................ we think.
I transferred birthday money yesterday .............. we will find out soon if she managed to actually withdraw it without any problems
We decided to go this route after the bank draft problems last year between our bank and hers ...........
......... and the fact they go to Community Mail boxes this spring.
Surrey is Canada's centre for crime ............... especially breaking into Community Mail Boxes. Canada Post has not yet managed to find a box that the crims cannot break into, knock over, or drag away within a couple of days of them being installed.
I'm assuming that they will soon pass on their accumulated knowledge to crims in other regions
I did know that, because 2 of our 5 accounts are in a different branch in Vancouver, and we have often accessed our accounts from other areas, including from Halifax and Montreal
............. but it seems a long distance from Quebec to Victoria to leave the account there when one is moving, rather than just visiting ..............
surely it is better in this case to have the account closer at hand?
That's why I didn't mention leaving it in the original bank.
The last time we asked to move our account from one branch to another ........... we were told they required us to set up as if we were new customers? Weird, eh!
Perhaps my opinion is coloured by the fact that many of our bank tellers in Vancouver are now immigrants from Asia .................. makes some sort of sense as we have so many non-English speaking immigrants here.
I don't know about Victoria ........ as I haven't been in a bank there for a couple of years.
What it means from the English speakers' viewpoint here is that ............... they often don't really know how things work.
Believe me, we've been through this exercise several times in the last few months!
I've never worked in a bank, but I do know that a bank draft is supposed to be the same as cash .........
......... until you meet an almost unilingual Chinese bank teller who insists that it will take 10 working days for the money to become accessible, then reduces the estimate to 3 working days after consulting with her slightly more intelligible supervisor
We've just been through the exercise of setting up an account that our daughter could access in Halifax via a branch of our bank ............ they use a different bank, hence my knowledge of the bank draft situation.
We are not yet ready to give her access to any of our existing accounts, which would have been the easy way ....................
On advice from the one long-time Canadian teller in the bank, we opened a new account in our 3 names ............ mine, OH, and hers.
it has taken 3 weeks to get it all sorted out ................ we think.
I transferred birthday money yesterday .............. we will find out soon if she managed to actually withdraw it without any problems
We decided to go this route after the bank draft problems last year between our bank and hers ...........
......... and the fact they go to Community Mail boxes this spring.
Surrey is Canada's centre for crime ............... especially breaking into Community Mail Boxes. Canada Post has not yet managed to find a box that the crims cannot break into, knock over, or drag away within a couple of days of them being installed.
I'm assuming that they will soon pass on their accumulated knowledge to crims in other regions
Mar 4th 2015, 11:20 pm
#6
Forum Regular
Joined: Jun 2009
Posts: 93
Re: Moving to Victoria BC lots of questions ?
As rivingtonpike says, where you live depends on what you're into and what your budget is. We started out in the Mount Tolmie/UVIC area, which has lots of families, but just wasn't for us, as we'd come from inner London and it was a bit too suburban for us. So we moved to the Jubilee area - near Oak Bay and all its amenities, but more affordable. Gordonhead is popular with families, but I like to be able to walk to the shops, which you can't really do there. If you're happy to jump into the car to buy bread, you might like it. Fernwood is a slightly hippyish area near downtown with some cute old character houses and lots of families too.
I don't know the further out areas very well, but if you want a brand new house that doesn't cost the earth, Langford is the place to look.
I know families with kids at Doncaster, Margaret Jenkins, Willows, Campus View and Oaklands schools, and they all seem happy. But that's just my neck of the woods - not sure about elsewhere. Loads of the schools here do French immersion too, if you're interested. School district 61 covers Victoria if you want to look it up and check out the catchment maps.
You'll definitely find mum and toddler groups. We used to go to one at a local preschool and I know some of the schools, community centres and churches run them too. Probably best just to ask around once you're here.
Swapping the UK licence for the BC one took about 3 minutes - dead easy. They asked a couple of theory questions, and gave me the answer to the one I didn't know!
Victoria is a great place to bring up a family. I'm sure you'll love it here!
I don't know the further out areas very well, but if you want a brand new house that doesn't cost the earth, Langford is the place to look.
I know families with kids at Doncaster, Margaret Jenkins, Willows, Campus View and Oaklands schools, and they all seem happy. But that's just my neck of the woods - not sure about elsewhere. Loads of the schools here do French immersion too, if you're interested. School district 61 covers Victoria if you want to look it up and check out the catchment maps.
You'll definitely find mum and toddler groups. We used to go to one at a local preschool and I know some of the schools, community centres and churches run them too. Probably best just to ask around once you're here.
Swapping the UK licence for the BC one took about 3 minutes - dead easy. They asked a couple of theory questions, and gave me the answer to the one I didn't know!
Victoria is a great place to bring up a family. I'm sure you'll love it here!
Mar 4th 2015, 11:26 pm
#7
"In cruce vincam"
Joined: May 2010
Location: Mill Bay, Vancouver Island
Posts: 3,232
Re: Moving to Victoria BC lots of questions ?
As rivingtonpike says, where you live depends on what you're into and what your budget is. We started out in the Mount Tolmie/UVIC area, which has lots of families, but just wasn't for us, as we'd come from inner London and it was a bit too suburban for us. So we moved to the Jubilee area - near Oak Bay and all its amenities, but more affordable. Gordonhead is popular with families, but I like to be able to walk to the shops, which you can't really do there. If you're happy to jump into the car to buy bread, you might like it. Fernwood is a slightly hippyish area near downtown with some cute old character houses and lots of families too.
I don't know the further out areas very well, but if you want a brand new house that doesn't cost the earth, Langford is the place to look.
I know families with kids at Doncaster, Margaret Jenkins, Willows, Campus View and Oaklands schools, and they all seem happy. But that's just my neck of the woods - not sure about elsewhere. Loads of the schools here do French immersion too, if you're interested. School district 61 covers Victoria if you want to look it up and check out the catchment maps.
You'll definitely find mum and toddler groups. We used to go to one at a local preschool and I know some of the schools, community centres and churches run them too. Probably best just to ask around once you're here.
Swapping the UK licence for the BC one took about 3 minutes - dead easy. They asked a couple of theory questions, and gave me the answer to the one I didn't know!
Victoria is a great place to bring up a family. I'm sure you'll love it here!
I don't know the further out areas very well, but if you want a brand new house that doesn't cost the earth, Langford is the place to look.
I know families with kids at Doncaster, Margaret Jenkins, Willows, Campus View and Oaklands schools, and they all seem happy. But that's just my neck of the woods - not sure about elsewhere. Loads of the schools here do French immersion too, if you're interested. School district 61 covers Victoria if you want to look it up and check out the catchment maps.
You'll definitely find mum and toddler groups. We used to go to one at a local preschool and I know some of the schools, community centres and churches run them too. Probably best just to ask around once you're here.
Swapping the UK licence for the BC one took about 3 minutes - dead easy. They asked a couple of theory questions, and gave me the answer to the one I didn't know!
Victoria is a great place to bring up a family. I'm sure you'll love it here!
Mar 5th 2015, 12:13 am
#8
Born again atheist
Joined: Jul 2005
Location: Europe (to be specified).
Posts: 30,259
Re: Moving to Victoria BC lots of questions ?
Aviator ..............
I did know that, because 2 of our 5 accounts are in a different branch in Vancouver, and we have often accessed our accounts from other areas, including from Halifax and Montreal
............. but it seems a long distance from Quebec to Victoria to leave the account there when one is moving, rather than just visiting ..............
surely it is better in this case to have the account closer at hand?
That's why I didn't mention leaving it in the original bank.
The last time we asked to move our account from one branch to another ........... we were told they required us to set up as if we were new customers? Weird, eh!
Perhaps my opinion is coloured by the fact that many of our bank tellers in Vancouver are now immigrants from Asia .................. makes some sort of sense as we have so many non-English speaking immigrants here.
I don't know about Victoria ........ as I haven't been in a bank there for a couple of years.
What it means from the English speakers' viewpoint here is that ............... they often don't really know how things work.
Believe me, we've been through this exercise several times in the last few months!
I've never worked in a bank, but I do know that a bank draft is supposed to be the same as cash .........
......... until you meet an almost unilingual Chinese bank teller who insists that it will take 10 working days for the money to become accessible, then reduces the estimate to 3 working days after consulting with her slightly more intelligible supervisor
We've just been through the exercise of setting up an account that our daughter could access in Halifax via a branch of our bank ............ they use a different bank, hence my knowledge of the bank draft situation.
We are not yet ready to give her access to any of our existing accounts, which would have been the easy way ....................
On advice from the one long-time Canadian teller in the bank, we opened a new account in our 3 names ............ mine, OH, and hers.
it has taken 3 weeks to get it all sorted out ................ we think.
I transferred birthday money yesterday .............. we will find out soon if she managed to actually withdraw it without any problems
We decided to go this route after the bank draft problems last year between our bank and hers ...........
......... and the fact they go to Community Mail boxes this spring.
Surrey is Canada's centre for crime ............... especially breaking into Community Mail Boxes. Canada Post has not yet managed to find a box that the crims cannot break into, knock over, or drag away within a couple of days of them being installed.
I'm assuming that they will soon pass on their accumulated knowledge to crims in other regions
I did know that, because 2 of our 5 accounts are in a different branch in Vancouver, and we have often accessed our accounts from other areas, including from Halifax and Montreal
............. but it seems a long distance from Quebec to Victoria to leave the account there when one is moving, rather than just visiting ..............
surely it is better in this case to have the account closer at hand?
That's why I didn't mention leaving it in the original bank.
The last time we asked to move our account from one branch to another ........... we were told they required us to set up as if we were new customers? Weird, eh!
Perhaps my opinion is coloured by the fact that many of our bank tellers in Vancouver are now immigrants from Asia .................. makes some sort of sense as we have so many non-English speaking immigrants here.
I don't know about Victoria ........ as I haven't been in a bank there for a couple of years.
What it means from the English speakers' viewpoint here is that ............... they often don't really know how things work.
Believe me, we've been through this exercise several times in the last few months!
I've never worked in a bank, but I do know that a bank draft is supposed to be the same as cash .........
......... until you meet an almost unilingual Chinese bank teller who insists that it will take 10 working days for the money to become accessible, then reduces the estimate to 3 working days after consulting with her slightly more intelligible supervisor
We've just been through the exercise of setting up an account that our daughter could access in Halifax via a branch of our bank ............ they use a different bank, hence my knowledge of the bank draft situation.
We are not yet ready to give her access to any of our existing accounts, which would have been the easy way ....................
On advice from the one long-time Canadian teller in the bank, we opened a new account in our 3 names ............ mine, OH, and hers.
it has taken 3 weeks to get it all sorted out ................ we think.
I transferred birthday money yesterday .............. we will find out soon if she managed to actually withdraw it without any problems
We decided to go this route after the bank draft problems last year between our bank and hers ...........
......... and the fact they go to Community Mail boxes this spring.
Surrey is Canada's centre for crime ............... especially breaking into Community Mail Boxes. Canada Post has not yet managed to find a box that the crims cannot break into, knock over, or drag away within a couple of days of them being installed.
I'm assuming that they will soon pass on their accumulated knowledge to crims in other regions
Mar 5th 2015, 3:23 am
#9
BE Forum Addict
Joined: Feb 2013
Location: BC, Canada
Posts: 3,874
Re: Moving to Victoria BC lots of questions ?
oh dear
sorry about that
sorry about that
Mar 5th 2015, 4:49 am
#10
Forum Regular
Joined: Mar 2014
Posts: 214
Re: Moving to Victoria BC lots of questions ?
I moved to Victoria about 1.5 years ago after a few years in Vancouver Nd I can't say that I like it that much. It has a definite 1970s feel to it that makes it kinda grungy? Also as a single guy the dating pool is either university students or older woman (I'm 29 and have a date with a 45 year old this coming weekend, had a date the other week with a 19 year old)
I was living in the Rockland area and now in Oak Bay, I'd say both of them would be suitable for a family I guess. There are lots of organic and independent coffee places if you're into that (I had an awesome blueberry millet muffin on the way to work this morning) and the pubs are actually pretty decent.
But as I have nothing tying me here so I'll be moving back to Vancouver very soon.
I was living in the Rockland area and now in Oak Bay, I'd say both of them would be suitable for a family I guess. There are lots of organic and independent coffee places if you're into that (I had an awesome blueberry millet muffin on the way to work this morning) and the pubs are actually pretty decent.
But as I have nothing tying me here so I'll be moving back to Vancouver very soon.
Mar 5th 2015, 1:14 pm
#11
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Thread Starter
Joined: Sep 2014
Posts: 14
Re: Moving to Victoria BC lots of questions ?
Hi all thanks for your responses. So now it turns out that our moving/work company will be finding us housing or at the min I believe that's what is happening. So hoping it may be in one of the areas mentioned. I believe my husband will be working in downtown. So hopedully maybe fernwood for easy access to everything we need. I need to be within walking distance of a shop due to us only having one car. To be honest we lived in a very quite area of the uk before moving to quebec and I loved it.
We are also only here temporarly and intend to move back to the uk at some point ... That's not to say we won't stay if we love victoria but we have lots of family ties in the uk.
Thank you for the info regarding the bank and driving licences. Will I need to make an appointment for the licence? We will also need to register our car which is a lease car from quebec that we are taking with us so it currently has a quebec plate on it.
Can anyone also tell me are there and mixed martial art gyms in Victoria? My husband is a keen mma man and has been training in the uk and here in quebec.
Thanks.
We are also only here temporarly and intend to move back to the uk at some point ... That's not to say we won't stay if we love victoria but we have lots of family ties in the uk.
Thank you for the info regarding the bank and driving licences. Will I need to make an appointment for the licence? We will also need to register our car which is a lease car from quebec that we are taking with us so it currently has a quebec plate on it.
Can anyone also tell me are there and mixed martial art gyms in Victoria? My husband is a keen mma man and has been training in the uk and here in quebec.
Thanks.
Mar 5th 2015, 4:01 pm
#12
Forum Regular
Joined: Jun 2009
Posts: 93
Re: Moving to Victoria BC lots of questions ?
No need to make an appointment to get your BC licences. Just turn up. When I had mine renewed recently, I didn't have to wait at all (went on a weekday morning).
I have no idea about mixed martial arts gyms, but in a city this size, I'm sure there will be one.
I have no idea about mixed martial arts gyms, but in a city this size, I'm sure there will be one.
Mar 5th 2015, 4:45 pm
#13
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Joined: Feb 2013
Location: BC, Canada
Posts: 3,874
Re: Moving to Victoria BC lots of questions ?
again, all I can say is google "victoria Mixed martial arts gyms"
Mar 5th 2015, 9:57 pm
#14
Just Joined
Thread Starter
Joined: Sep 2014
Posts: 14
Re: Moving to Victoria BC lots of questions ?
Hi thanks. I know I can google but thought somebody on here might know of them and therefore know if they were any good or not.
Thanks again
Thanks again
Mar 5th 2015, 10:01 pm
#15
"In cruce vincam"
Joined: May 2010
Location: Mill Bay, Vancouver Island
Posts: 3,232
Re: Moving to Victoria BC lots of questions ?
There are loads of clubs all over the area for that sort of thing. You see advertising boards outside halls etc for them. I suppose when you know where you're going to live you can investigate what's closest and then go take a look. How long are you likely to be in Victoria for?