I'm sure I'll get shot down in flames here, but in my opinion, Airdrie AB is little more than some identikit housing estates thrown up in between RV dealerships and 'big-box' stores, all plonked at the edge of a major highway.

Kinda like a big giant service station, with houses.

Hi Lorrden
Bet your exicted about the big move, we are also 'landing' in April at Calgary,
we stayed over at the relative of a friends house in Airdrie last time we were in Canada and will probably call in on them again this time round, don't know the Airdrie area that well but it looked ok to me.

All the best and we'll keep a look out for you in Calgary
regards
Joinerboy

Hi Joinerboy, you will know me by my Big Dog! Good luck with your move

Who's doggy flying with? We have our 2 to take ( 1 lab 1 cocker )
and would be interested in who you are using

Regards
Joinerboy

The best one we have found is www.passportsforpets.co.uk a lady named Kirsten was very helpful, they were not the cheapest but they have guaranteed to match a like for like quote, it is going to cost us approx £1800 to fly Kara (who is a 54kg Newfoundland!) with all the fees, air kennel etc from Glasgow direct to Calgary. They are collecting her from my mums house about 1 month after we have left and then we will collect her at Calgary airport. We got 5 quotes in total and I liked the sound of these and Kirsten has phoned to see how we are getting along (Hard sale possibly), when I told her we had a quote £150 cheaper, she said that she would match it. We had 1 quote that wanted over £3000 and one firm want to drive to Edinburgh to Collect Kara and then drive Kara to Gatwick so she could fly from there, not a good idea! Hope this helps. If you need anymore info do not hesitate to give me a shout.

Lorraine

Many thanks for your reply/info
I'd can highly recommend forum user 'Sam-in-Okotoks'
regarding info on properties and relocation info on the Calgary area she's really helpful.
Hope this helps

Regards
Joinerboy

Hi there im so excited for you ,you do think youve loads to do but once u get here everything will just fall into place ,dont worry about ur driving license u can just change it over its only if u are from n ireland you have to sit your test again .We moved to Calgary near 2 years ago from N ireland well my other half is from Edinburgh ,we moved to se calgary an lovin it .well try not to panice and any questions il be happy to answer if i can

If I recall correctly, you need to show proof of Alberta residence to get both health insurance and driving license. We used the purchase contract for our house.

Thanks if I need any info I will give you a shout.

Congratulations on your move,

we`ve been here 3 years and live in Silverado in Calgary. Airdrie is quiter and if your going to be working down town it`s far to travel but then you`ll find you can`t just pop to the corner shop here lol. Houses are cheaper but people do move out of town to be a little further away. we are just selling up and moving back to the UK. You can just swap your licence here, have you got a letter from your insurance company back home? do you have no claims that will come in handy we used ours when we came here.

Hope it works out for you

I think everyone else has covered the medical and driving licence bit - all very easy. You will also need to go and get your SIM number (like NI number).

Re Airdre - each to their own but it wasn't for us. We do know of people who do live there and love it. Airdre is very big, so much so that it is actually a city in its own right now. It's also quite industrious and very flat. We live in Cochrane - about a half hour north west of Calgary and we love it. Largish town but feels like a small town and has moutain views, walks by the river etc. Less than an hour from the mountains too.

I absolutely agree 100%, I live in Airdrie in Scotland and its dire!!!! The only shops are charity, chemists and take-aways!!! It must have been some nutter from Scotland who named Airdrie in Calgary however there is one major difference - the amazing sking just up the road!!!!
Good Luck!!

That's a pretty apt description for the place. You can a big, new house there for cheap, and the flatness and blandness of it has a certain homey appeal to people moving in from Saskatchewan.

You can see the place for yourself on Google Streetview: Airdrie

To be fair, and from what I've seen, you're pretty much describing every suburban development thrown up anywhere in the country in the last couple of decades or so.

I'm inclined to agree though not having travelled Canada from E to W I can't comment for sure, but from what i've seen in AB that definatley seems to be the case. Not indifferent to the rabbit warren cloned estates of the UK.

Practical but soulless would sum them up.