Originally Posted by CalgaryBlade

So, in the meantime I was looking for information to help narrow down the property search as well as giving us some pointers for areas to look at when we visit.

To give some idea of what we are looking for:

Interests: hiking/running, cycling, sailing (dinghy and yacht), kayaking, rowing (on water not with each other), restaurants, pubs.

Originally Posted by CalgaryBlade

Types of area:

"the straight swap" - We currently live in a inner-city residential neighbourhood which has restaurants, trendy shops, pubs etc and is a 20 min walk from downtown. Is there an area just outside the centre of Victoria which would mirror this?. We would still want a detached house, albeit smaller than present.)

Originally Posted by CalgaryBlade

"the smaller town" - Alternatively are there any smaller towns just outside Victoria which could be recommended? By this I mean living 10 mins walk or 5 mins drive from local shops and maybe a Safeway and Blockbuster :) , and a 20-30 min drive to Victoria. In this situation we would be looking for a medium sized house with a larger yard.

I think that's about as far from Victoria as we would want to be. We like to "get away from it all" but not "live away from it all".

Originally Posted by hot wasabi peas

Hiya, I'm from Victoria. :)

There's not much for hiking within the city but for running you have oodles of places. Along Dallas Road (a long coastal footpath runs along the ocean), throughout Beacon Hill Park there are a lot of cedar chip trails and a lot of people just run through various neighbourhoods. The central YMCA is excellent (well it's a little too small in term of it's facilities but ...) for runners - clinics, maps for routes etc. plus there are a lot of speciality running shoe shops in the city. If you like to torture yourself, a lot of people run up Mt Doug (I think it's actually Mount Douglas - shit I don't even know!). I myself don't run but I've walked in all these places... runners blasting past me. Also there are nice tracks up at the university.

The 96? Commonwealth Games were in Victoria - so there are a lot of excellent sports facilities.

There are fantastic places to hike on the Island. I can give you loads of info (I've hiked and still do a lot, it's one of my things) but some examples:

Pacific Rim National Park - http://www.pc.gc.ca/pn-np/bc/pacificrim/index_e.asp

East Sooke Park:
http://www.crd.bc.ca/parks/east_sooke.htm

Juan de Fuca Marine Trail (hugs the coast -awesome):
http://www.sookeoutdoors.com/juandefucatrail/

The West Coast Trail (brutal!) I'm planning on doing it this August :eek: :)
http://www.westcoasttrailbc.com/

Cycling:
[IMG]http://www.gallopinggoosetrail.com/[/IMG] (great for walking/running/blading)

Victoria is very bike-friendly (small and relatively flat). I barely use a car when I live there - bikes are often quicker. Very strict bike laws within the city for lights, helmets, not riding on the sidewalk, signaling etc.. A lot of cops are on bikes too.

Lots of people cycle 'Scenic Drive' - it's a marked route starting from the Inner Harbour and follows the ocean around Greater Victoria - very scenic, twisty hilly bits, pretty much no stops. Lots of people drive it on sunny days - or cycle or roller blade or skateboard etc...

Sailing:
Lots of it - varying from snobby yacht clubs to people in canoes with makeshift bedsheet sails.

Annual yearly sailing race off Victoria:
http://www.swiftsure.org/

Rowing:
There's some rowing in the Gorge and Inner harbour (they're the same body of water, the Gorge is just further inland). There's a lot more rowing out at Elk Lake between Victoria and Sydney (on the road that takes you to the ferry terminal - can't miss it). Also Dragon Boat racing is very popular and a hoot. There's a yearly race/festival - http://www.victoriadragonboat.com/

See also: Victoria Canoe and Kayak Club:
http://www.vckc.ca/

Restaurants to die for. I think the the entire globe is represented and there are many, many great places to eat. If you like Korean, Japanese, Chinese, Vietnamese, etc... you will be in heaven. And Victoria being an apparently very 'British' city (it aint!) there are the tourist trap British Tearooms for ya. If you want more info - let me know. When I live there I eat out nearly all the time. Also, coffee shops everywhere.

My favourite restaurant in the world:
http://www.rebarmodernfood.com/

If budget isn't a problem and you want something special (apparently... cos I've never been - I'm wating til I can belch the entire alphabet) you could try The Aerie.
http://www.aerie.bc.ca/

Pubs:
Well known brewpub:
http://www.spinnakers.com/

Swans - good beer if you can tolerate the yuppies.
http://www.swanshotel.com/pub.html

There are many more but it's not really my thing so...

All are non-smoking.



Here's the MLS map of Victoria proper:
http://www.mls.ca/map.aspx?AreaID=764

James Bay, Fairfield, Rockland are great areas. Imo, it would be very difficult to go wrong in any of them. Fernwood is great too - hippy-arty cool and funky but with some rough elements (would make an excellent investment imo as the rougher bits are being pressured out). Mayfair, Sears, Hillside - all nice enough but very suburban, imo. Central Park - nah. Songees - all condos. Rock Bay - being re-developed - mostly condos - same with Vic West.

Not shown on the map is Oak Bay to the east/right of Fairfield - It's its own city but part of Great Victoria - you can't really tell on the ground - they merge into one another. I personally think Oak Bay is beautiful but very boring, tweedy, snobby and very bland in it's atmosphere.



I personally don't like the outlying communities - the Western Communities - Langford, Colwood, etc Very strip mall, soulless and bland - big generalization to be fair but I just don't like it out there. Past there is Metchosin - I like Metchosin oh and East Sooke ... maybe a bit too rural and rustic than what you're after but neither place is very far from Victoria.

Warning! You do know that my insane family live in Victoria don't you? :eek:

Not sure what else to write - if you have anymore question, let me know. I'm planning on moving back (or at least to the coast) and have been 'researching'.

Originally Posted by CalgaryBlade

Many thanks for taking the trouble to write such detailed reply.

Originally Posted by hot wasabi peas

No problem. Also, there an older post of mine listing some of the cultural aspects of Victoria here: http://britishexpats.com/forum/showt...ight=festivals

Originally Posted by The Escapea

I've found that really useful too - so thanks wasabi; I'm moving out to Victoria in about 8 weeks, and having been looking at real estate around Oak Bay (which we really liked when we did a recce last month!) and James Bay (which would be walking distance from my office). Thanks!

Originally Posted by hot wasabi peas

A lot of people like Oak Bay. Aesthetically I like it. As a community to live in, it's not me.

I love James Bay and lived there for probably 10 years or so. The one negatives I can say about it is - it's a bit noisey. The Helijet 'airport' is there and the helicopters fly in and out all day. I personally love that noise so it doesn't bother me but it does bother some. In the winter are the fog horns. Well you have to deal with that in much of Victoria but because so much of James Bay is close to the entrance of the Inner Harbour there are a lot of horns. Again, I like that noise and find it comforting to hear in the middle of the night. The noise that pisses me (and most other people) off is the cruise ships in the summer - sometimes their PA systems (annoucements, muzak) and engine noises just echo throughout the neighbourhood. I believe the city did something about that but I'm not sure. I moved.

If you like James Bay and Oak Bay, also consider Fairfield and Rockland.

Should I send my family to welcome you when you land? :scared: :D

Originally Posted by The Escapea

Thanks for that tip - we'll start looking into Fairfield (looks like it's a bit better value than Oak bay!).
As for the welcomming committee - just a few flags and a bit of bunting will be fine...!! ;) And if they see a mad boxer (dog) bouncing around the neighbourhood they'll know we've arrived...!

Originally Posted by Londonuck

dont forget the sunshine coast. its a lot cheaper than bc ferries back and forth to victoria and much cheaper prices than van city and only 35 mins to langdale on ferry.

Originally Posted by Londonuck

my mistake then... im sure it was much more expensive to go horseshoe bay to the island than to langdale. langdale is only 35 mins compared with 90 mins to the island. u sure u got that right?

sorry about that.

Originally Posted by Londonuck

my mistake then... im sure it was much more expensive to go horseshoe bay to the island than to langdale. langdale is only 35 mins compared with 90 mins to the island. u sure u got that right?

sorry about that.

Originally Posted by CalgaryBlade

We're starting our research into our next "downshift", whenever that might be, and we're looking at Van island.

Last time we visited was 1994 and because of planned family visits and visitors I doubt we'll get over to V.I. until this fall.

So, in the meantime I was looking for information to help narrow down the property search as well as giving us some pointers for areas to look at when we visit.

To give some idea of what we are looking for:

Interests: hiking/running, cycling, sailing (dinghy and yacht), kayaking, rowing (on water not with each other), restaurants, pubs.


Types of area:

"the straight swap" - We currently live in a inner-city residential neighbourhood which has restaurants, trendy shops, pubs etc and is a 20 min walk from downtown. Is there an area just outside the centre of Victoria which would mirror this?. We would still want a detached house, albeit smaller than present.

"the smaller town" - Alternatively are there any smaller towns just outside Victoria which could be recommended? By this I mean living 10 mins walk or 5 mins drive from local shops and maybe a Safeway and Blockbuster :) , and a 20-30 min drive to Victoria. In this situation we would be looking for a medium sized house with a larger yard.

I think that's about as far from Victoria as we would want to be. We like to "get away from it all" but not "live away from it all".

We're not that bothered about paying the premium for a sea view, but it would good to be 5-10 mins walk from the coast/beach.

Any views would be appreciated.

P.S. Living in western Canada now I am well aware of climates and property prices, so it's just area info I'm after :)

Originally Posted by happylandings

Hi Calgary Blade,

May I ask what Calgary is like to live in? I realise you're moving on, but what did you think of it?
We passed through the place, and briefly saw some neighbourhoods - looks pleasant and clean, away from the main roads, peppered with restuarants, industry etc.

Sorry, this doesn't answer your question on Victoria - just wanted views from a Calgary resident.

All The Best.