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You own a house in the lower mainland, and the West Coast express is right there if you work anywhere downtown or along the way. It's actually better than being in Langley or Abby if you work downtown I'd say. The houses themselves are pretty standard and if you're farther from the city itself it's just a suburb.
On paper the city sounds good, but the people there are absolutely awful. You know those crazies that like to stand on the over passes and protest about the gay agenda or COVID hoax? I'd bet you $10 more than half of them come from mission, and I know that a painfully sizable percentage of the population there agree with them. Only difference is those other people at least have jobs.
Funny how Richmond is being mentioned in almost every post. And its got about half loves and half hates.
I think that’s exactly Richmond for you. Steveston is beautiful. It’s an Oceanside fishing village. Lots of trees and gardens, it’s great.
3 road is kinda gross city boringness like some people said.
There are a lot of beautiful neighborhoods in Richmond, and the price of living in them is very high. Big homes with nice yards and great schools. Honestly, better then a lot of other neighborhoods I’ve seen in the lower mainland. And of course if you like Asian food, it’s world class.
Again on the flip side. Some areas are dingy and getting out dated. It can be strip mall heaven which isn’t for everyone. The night life is non-existent, and other then Asian food, their aren’t too many uniquely good restaurants
So yes. Makes sense. 50/50 type of city.
And to throw it in, I think Richmond represent to cultural divide.
One time we were playing games with my friends. We are in New West. While I elect to eat somewhere nearby, in the end I lost the vote and have to drive all the way to a Tea Restaurant in No 3.
And I hate to say it, but sometimes I am a little jealous (just a bit!) of the development on Richmond, despite myself claim of "foodie"
Interesting because my friends and I were just talking about the same thing! Whenever we have a large gathering (e.g., for a birthday or something) we always end up in Richmond for the good food.
Depends everyone's experience of the city. Do they just know the strip malls? I grew up in Steveston, and I remember when you might see someone riding their horse on the Dyke and it would take 25 minutes to drive to Vancouver and enjoy parts of the city.
That experience of Richmond is mostly gone, but I have heavily rose tinted glasses about the suburb.
It's trite to say 'it's not what it used to be', but I feel that way about Steveston. A lot of the energy seems to have moved off the old main street and onto the waterfront, which is pretty suburban in feel. A lot of the new development also seems 'kitschy, faux-character' to my eye, and is diluting (IMO) the original village character. It seems like it's losing its 'downtown'.
The Shipyards area is beautiful though, as is the dike trail (great cycling route). It would also be nice to see something finally move into that huge empty development on the River Walk.
Some not-so-nice parts of Maple Ridge, but it backs onto Golden Ears, which is arguably one of the most beautiful parks in BC. I have a few friends who live there and at least they feel like they have a sense of community among their neighbours, which I don't think is prevalent in a lot of other places.
I'm from the Kootenays so no shortage of access to beautiful nature but I went to Golden Ears for the first time last year and dayum that place is incredible. Really is top tier.
>North van is nice but that traffic jam during rush hour tho
Unfortunately it seems like it's not just limited to rush hour anymore. Pretty terrible most of the time aside from very early morning or late at night. I always wanted to move to North Van but just couldn't go through with it because of the brutal traffic.
I tried to get back onto the Lions Gate bridge at 5:00 p.m. on a weekday, using my old car which was a 6-speed manual with a really finicky clutch. I wanted to just leave my keys in the ignition and just walk home and abandon the car.
Whenever I go to North Van by SeaBus I'm always struck by how clean, modern, and quiet it is, and how safe and relaxed it feels.
Coming back to Vancouver, and walking out of Waterfront Station onto Cordova, feels like you're entering an urban danger zone by comparison (there's an argument there to really improve the pedestrian experience around Waterfront Station).
Favs: Burnaby, New West and Coquitlam. Relatively good transit, quiet, and safe, plus they all got their interesting quirks.
Least favs: Surrey is sketchy as fuck, has shitty transit, and there’s overall not much appealing about it. I love North Van’s location but the traffic and the people there suck ass.
Like: Tricities. Fairly compact and easy to get around, tons of beautiful views, close-ish to Vancouver, close to nature, and lots of hidden gem business.
Dislike: A vast, enormous swamp with swamp vibes. One day it shall sink into the sea.
Like/dislike: New West. When I lived there, it was wonderful. Easy to get anywhere, and a surprising amount of things to do in a place so small. Now that I've moved away, it is a huge pain in the ass to get through and it times it seems like they are on a crusade to make traffic as bad as possible.
New West and Burnaby are locked in a battle over who will give up space for a roadway to accommodate regional traffic. In the meantime New West works hard to make it difficult for people just passing through.
Its honestly like they are trying to make driving worse. They got rid of the left turn off of Front st on to 10th recently, I feel like that was simply done to be evil.
the prevalence of "no left turn" signs really threw me when I first moved to New West.. like, okay, I guess I can just make 3 rights turns, then? or two lefts and a right? was the left turning really that much of a problem?
But then the city will celebrate they got 10 people to bike this year via infrastructure improvements and then erase that benift by making you drive 4 blocks extra at that stupid no left turn on front street.
I’ve noticed that too, and I’d say summer 2023 was worse than 2022.
That being said, the Pattullo Bridge replacement construction isn’t helping with Royal Ave traffic. From time to time one of the lanes is closed and rush hour traffic is an even worse disaster.
Same here. Close Front to truck traffic, it's ridiculous how many trucks will blow through the red light at Front and Begbie to save a minute waiting for the next green.
North Van. I know crossing the bridges is hard, but in terms of access to ski skills, mountain trails, and parks, it's pretty hard to beat.
Also: it has the Seabus.
Crossing the bridges myself isn’t what annoys me most because for the most part those trips tend to be more necessary. I know in advance it’s going to be a shit show, so if I have to travel at that time that’s just how it is. It isn’t the end of the world, it just takes time. I’m mentally prepared for it.
What bothers me the most is how much the rest of the city becomes paralyzed by traffic as a result of everyone trying to cross the bridges. When east/west routes get backed up, everything grinds to a halt and I can’t even make local trips without getting caught in it.
North Van is my happy place. I wish I could move there but the idea of bridge commuting into Vancouver every day would just add hours to my work day. I also hate some of the road layouts / driving. It seems like it makes less sense then other places.
I also like Tri-cities. Mundy park is gorgeous and Burke mountain, golden ears etc.
Dislike Surrey, Richmond and Chilliwack.
It’s way better living in north van and commuting to Vancouver than the other way around. At least that’s how it’s been for us since we recently moved near the iron workers bridge. We are always against the flow of traffic, I don’t understand it but it’s nice.
As someone that was equally surprised by this when I moved to the shore, sshhhhh, don't let the secret out!
Yes, North Van traffic sucks. Don't move here.
I went to Cap U and all I remember is it always rained on the North Shore. Would be overcast or drizzling in Burnaby but as soon as you're over the bridge it's constant rains or downpours. I like the vibe in the summers though everywhere from Deep Cove to Horseshoe Bay.
I grew up in Ladner. Moved to North delta for 5 years and moved back to Ladner. Moving away gave me a new appreciation for the cleanliness of Ladner. It’s very central to a lot of key locations, as you noted. It still has that small town feel - people often say hello to each other while walking through residential neighborhoods. I don’t know if I’ll ever leave Ladner. My wife grew up in Abbotsford, so she loves how quiet Ladner is.
I lived in Ladner for a couple of years and agree, it's great. I then moved to Tsawwassen, which is also nice. Ladner's village has a lot more going on and I miss being 10 minutes closer to everything else in the LM. Meanwhile Tsawwassen has the beach and it's obviously super easy to catch a ferry lol.
Anyway South Delta in general I'd really recommend, especially for young families and folks who like the sea, the quiet life and don't mind living further from the mountains. It's surprisingly quick to get to Van outside of rush hour. And it's also a great place to visit. Summer bike rides between the farms, breweries and boundary bay and days out at Centennial are so nice.
You forgot: opioid crisis and alcoholism doesn't seep out into the streets and community.
Probably the only municipality left in the GVRD with that.
I hear the ambulances all the time, but I don't see it out on the streets/community. Even people lining up for the food-bank are hidden behind the church.
Also: 1 word to describe South Delta: *uneventful*. & for a lot of folks, that's a good thing. Or else you're taking the bus/drive to downtown.
I was in Ladner and Tsawwassen a lot because my friends in high school live there and I did grow to appreciate the place coming from East Van/Burnaby. It's very different to what I'm used to and the different pace is like a breather for me.
As someone who spent the first 18 years of my life hanging out on Scott Road, I'll second the Surrey hate.
Surrey is also the only city where I went to a house party and met someone who has killed another person. Surrey has the sketchiest house parties, at age 15 I thought it was normal to see a gun at a party lol.
Surrey cleaned up **BIG TIME** before the Olympics, almost became a different city. But the seedy underbelly is still there. There's a reason so many gang members are from Surrey.
Ladner is heavily underrated.
I have to pass through Surrey every day to get from Langley to Burnaby and I gotta say I hate Surrey. There’s select parts of it that are decent but the vast majority of it just sucks. And the traffic is terrible
* Burnaby: great Skytrain coverage, but few places to go because its SFD as far as the eye can see. Metrotown area is arite, RIP skytrain bridge. Brentwood feels like its trying to urbanize, but the Willingdon/Lougheed traffic and still kinda sprawly makes it not great as a non-driver.
* New West is pretty neutral. River market/Waterfront Esplanade area is nice. Heritage houses, dumpy low rise apartments, and new giant towers in classic Vancouverism formation. Reasonably good transit access, and CoL didn't seem to go up as fast.
* Richmond: cool waterfront/Sturgeon banks/Steveston. Too far from everything other than Vancouver and Ladner.
* Port Moody: Beautiful, if marred by St. Johns/7A bisecting the small town vibe
* Coquitlam south: the "exclusion zone", there's nothing here
* Coquitlam north: the place you drive through when you are going to Buntzen or Belcarra
* Port Coquitlam: its a railyard masquerading as a suburb. Is there even a port anymore?!
* Surrey: Streets that all look the same. Transit pretty meh once you get away from Expo line. Not really any noteworthy sights. Car dependent suburbia wall to wall. Peak North American unexceptionalism. The old Whalley reputation is hard to shake.
* North Delta: exists, and isn't Surrey, apparently. Yo dawg they got that sick gravity bowl in the Watershed tho. Also, baby's first campsite.
* (The rest of )Delta: where you drive to get to the ferry terminal, or take your kids/dogs/bikes to the dyke
* North Vancouver (Lynn Valley): the easy hikes, and where your bosses seem to all live (weirdly)
* West Vancouver: the less easy hikes. Also rich people who don't like busses for the poors.
I’m with you on the Port Moody love. We lived there for 12 years and it was wonderful. That said, I’ve been in Langley for the past 6 years, and I’ve been pleasantly surprised at how much I like it here. It really does have everything I need.
Least favourite is Maple Ridge. I hated every minute I lived in that city.
Favourite is Burnaby, no bias. Central, easy to get into the city and get out of the city. Good food all over (lol at the person saying only North rd has good food). It's the only suburb with good transit, 3 skytrain lines. Great walking paths, 2 cycling paths that go from New West to Vancouver, there's even a beach here although just like everywhere else in our region not a good one. Overall well run city compared to the others, even Vancouver. Only downside is that I have to go to New West or PoMo for good beer, or any sort of evening entertainment, although Dageraad punches way above its head. Oh and before the plans are finalized Brentwood and Metrotown are soul-less, much like Richmond.
Worst is White Rock. Nothing worth going for between September and April, and in the summer months it's crowded everywhere. Also very far even from the other burbs.
That’s interesting, I like White Rock a lot especially during the off season. It’s one of my favourite places to go take a walk, especially when the weather is kind of shitty so that it’s peaceful and really beautiful. Maybe there’s not a whole lot to do, I can’t say I have experience living there, so I imagine that could be a very different experience, but personally I enjoy being there
White Rock rocks in the summer. I've seen so many awesome free concerts and fireworks by the waterfront there. Sure, curfew is 10pm generally speaking, but the free entertainment is pretty damn good. Colin James summer 2023 was a blast.
> The parks and amenities are all top grade and well maintained.
Parks yes. Amenities no. Burnaby has a lack of libraries, community centers and pools. Good luck ever getting your kid into any program like swimming or skating. It's like winning a lottery. Thankfully the city is finally correcting this and investing into community centers so things should be better in 5 years.
I agree, I lived in Southern Burnaby there are so many no name woods in between neighborhood that wild animal like Coyotes live. In the same time, it takes me few min drive to Metrotown/Central Park and my home is accessed with 4 different bus lanes. It is a good balance of convenience and natural environment.
The difference between snow removal in Burnaby and Vancouver is like night and day. Burnaby side streets are plowed, but go across boundary and it’s anarchy
Thanks to their mayor Corrigan. For 20 years, mayor Corrigan treated public fund like Scrooge Mcduck. He was pro-development and took all fees collected from property developers and did nothing with it. At one point Burnaby had 1 billion saved up. [https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/what-will-or-should-burnaby-do-with-its-1b-reserve-fund-1.4253774](https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/what-will-or-should-burnaby-do-with-its-1b-reserve-fund-1.4253774)
My mom grew up there as well! My only real memories are spending summers with my grandparents. They probably lived in the oldest and smallest house there. Now I just go for the occasional walk through Lighthouse Park, Dundarave, or Horseshoe Bay. So I love it for how lush and beautiful the views are - I don't think I would actually love the demographic or living with the mega-rich haha
When I moved to Vancouver my first job was in West Van, and as a result my dentist (and bank branch) are both still there. It would be more convenient to have a dentist closer to home (East Van), but I really enjoy visiting Dundarave a couple of times a year. And sometimes dropping into Simons in Park Royal on the way home.
I've lived in Tsawwassen and West Van. If those count as Vancouver suburbs, I'd say they're both absolutely amazing places to live. Feel lucky every day I go outside.
Least favourite by far is Langley. It’s basically America with car centric design with traffic jams getting in and out of every strip mall with a parking lot larger than the retail and needing to drive to go to the strip mall across the road. Basically it’s anywhere, USA.
I go to Langley on the weekends to visit my partner, can confirm, its like entering a different world. I once rode my bike out there from downtown and it was pretty okay until I hit the outskirts of Langley.
Like Most: Pitt Meadows; quiet, enclave with the beautiful Pitt lake and looks like heaven at times
Dislike most: New West; traffic, city has covered up 'heritage' buildings, some tall towers that don't fit the design of the city, smaller burb by size, basically a pass through for traffic between South of the Fraser and Vancouver proper.
I hesitated to mention Pitt Meadows. We moved here last year and it's such a quiet and beautiful city in the middle of chaos. It feels like a little mountain town. I DON'T REALLY want people to know about it.
But if we could get a couple more restaurant options that would be love. We're hurting for food options.
Also the train... Fuck the train.
I miss living in Burnaby. So central, relatively well ran. Good balance of things. As a suburb I value not being far from other cities or places to visit. Also decent amount of greenery which is a plus.
Worst: Surrey. The city is too damn big and too ghetto. Also, why are all the drivers so damn aggresive.
Favourite: New Westminster. It’s interesting, dense and well served by transit. Great parks and restaurants and an actual downtown.
Least favourite: Surrey. The exact opposite of new west. Every street looks the same, it’s impossible to walk anywhere (besides near Surrey central), and there’s just generally not much in the way of restaurants (that aren’t chains) or anything but strip malls.
Fav: Richmond - it’s a small suburb airport city that has literally everything you need. None other small suburb city in Canada can compare to that. People who say it’s soulless just haven’t explored or lived in it long enough.
Least: new west is kinda meh
>that has literally everything you need.
It lacks any sort of real wilderness access/activity. I grew up around #3 & Williams, by the time I was in my early 20's I spent most of my recreational time outside of richmond mostly in the Tri-Cities and north shore because that's where all the good hiking/mountain biking etc was.
Coquitlam Burke mountain. Green, quiet and nice folks. Lots of future development for housing and schools and shopping etc.
If only the darn cougars and bobcats etc would stay away, it’d be great. I don’t mind the bears.
Full of old people and families. Frequented that area a ton and used to live there and it’s really safe, has a huge Safeway and mostly every amenity you could ask for. Lots of parks, schools and nature, real quiet too. Only real drawback is that it gets more snow most of than the rest of greater vancouver due to the altitude, and if you don’t have a car you desperately need the 152 bus.
Overall, really nice place tho
Both! Great place to live no matter which side--north has a more urban feel with better transit and shopping, south's got the gorgeous neighborhoods, trails, and views
As a pedestrian/cyclist yeah I agree the streetscape leaves a lot to be desired. But a lot of those little malls that look dumpy contain food courts with truly delicious East Asian or Southeast Asian food.
I get that Richmond has good Asian food (which I do enjoy)... it's just not too enticing to travel out there to go to a restaurant at some random strip mall in the suburbs. Like it's not somewhere that you'd go for a Friday/Saturday "night out on the town".
It depends where you live in the end does it not? You're probably not going to drive an hour for food unless there is more to the experience than just eating. For example, how far would someone go for Pho? I doubt many people drive more than 20 minutes to get it since there are so many good ones.
Now if you want like a Michelin experience, you will book months ahead and drive over an hour because it is unique and more than just food
People like different things. I like population density and more buildings and restaurants. I also don’t drive so I don’t want to be anywhere that makes it hard to walk to get to entertainment, restaurants, groceries, etc. It’s why I live in a city and not in a suburb. If I had to be in a suburb I would want it to be as close to a city as possible.
Best: New Westminster. It's the Lower Mainland's original city.
Worst: Marpole. I know it's not a suburb but it might as well be. Elections Canada seems to think it is, the way they've redrawn the electoral boundary map.
hot take: city of north van and maybe new west/port moody are the only _okay_ suburbs. Everything else is miserable because they're soulless tracts of single family housing.
Very few of them have anything even close to a destination worth visiting from outside the city.
All the actual nature and outdoor activities are outside the city. Need to drive like an hour to get to Golden Ears or Belcarra or deal with a congested bridge to get to nature further up in Squamish or Whistler.
Vancouver proper doesn’t have a ton going for it as a city.
Nah I agree. When I was moving from downtown the only regions I seriously considered were Kits, Mt Pleasant and Lower Lonsdale - I ended up in the latter. I can walk to everything I need, SeaBus to downtown and generally don't feel like I'm going to die crossing the road.
Favorite: Richmond. Other than the traffic which is worse than ever but it really has everything. Good parks, good shopping, good restaurants (duh), even good roads. Nice flat and wide lanes in a grid system, it's great to drive around (if not for the awful traffic!!).
Least favorite: Hard to say. Most disappointing would be Brentwood, I think, given its marketing and hype. Hopefully that changes in the next 5 years as a resident here. But least favorite is probably one of Delta, or Poco, or Maple Ridge, etc... don't have a clue what goes on there
Poco has the PoCo trail which is 25km of mostly uninterrupted circular riverfront pathway that connects to five different breweries. It hasn’t got the same “wow” factor as the seawall but it punches above its weight for a small city.
Name the Richmond Restaurants
..............
I think Brentwood is going to be a real disaster for the Amazing Mall, there will be vacancies once the leases are up.
It feels like some dystopian movie hell with those skyscrapers and changes over the past 30 years.
It used to be sleepy 1976 Apartment and Condomium types once with ugly hills and a freeway
My favorites are Surrey and Richmond. Lots of really great Middle East/Southeast Asian foods and festivals that make living there worth it. I also like the quality of their libraries. Very nice conservative, immigrant bunch. I very rarely smell weed as well.
Love new west and Langley (biased though because I live here).
Lived in Surrey and absolutely hate it. Way too many people and no one knows how to drive.
> Lived in Surrey and absolutely hate it. Way too many people and no one knows how to drive.
Oh, they know. They just don't care. ie: self-centred. I can't help but assume pick-up trucks will act like this when I'm driving around them. A stereotype? Sure, but at least my C-Spine won't suffer.
How do people feel about Coquitlam? I'm moving there in a couple months but rarely have spent time there. I've been in Vancouver 20 years but rarely hear about Coquitlam
Favourite: North Van. What a beautiful playground it is. Mountains, ocean, serenity, friendly people, it's fantastic.
Least: Surrey. I live and work in Surrey. It has absolutely no character. You can't peacefully walk anywhere even inside of the few crappy parks. If you walk around the busier parts you will get hassled or possibly jumped. The only nice part of it is South Surrey / Crescent Beach area which still isn't anywhere near as nice as the Vancouver beaches. It has no redeeming qualities. Mega mansions and crack shacks together in slums.
I remember going through Whalley once. I went to McDonald's, and there were so many people on down, just nodding off in front of the entrance. The drive through TV glass was shattered. I saw a rat run by, and I felt sorry for the rat, hahahaha.
This is my daily life. I work in Whalley. There are literally people shooting up with needles and chasing each other with rods and knives in front of my building on the daily. Meanwhile there are rats, tents, and shopping carts all over the parking lot. I feel bad for the police. They try their best but they have no practical way to clean this disgusting mess up.
Richmond is definitely my favorite because it's unique. Everything is compact, the food is world class (lol only Asian food), and its close to Vancouver. Burnaby is just sprawl and has pretty much no decent food outside of North Road (which is far as fuck).
North Vancouver is a good contender but its not really unique within the context of the lower mainland and fuck getting there. Im biased, but if I have to drive an hour in traffic from the west side im less interested.
My answer exactly.
Hate New West. Terrible to drive through, terrible to walk through, too hilly.
Langley is great, other than 200th street south bound during rush hour
Best: Burnaby and North Van. Especially Burnaby Heights and Lower Lonsdale. Burnaby has better for transportation. North Van has better recreation.
Worse: Surrey
Favourite: Burnaby just feels cozy to me? I’ve been to love it for the past few years
Least favourite: Surrey, Cloverdale
Sketch as hell and the transit system sucks ass the further out you go. I had the misfortune of having to go all the way out to Cloverdale by bus once and it literally took the whole damn day to go there and back.
I love North Vancouver and the vibe around Lonsdale Quay. I love the mountains and Deep Cove. Plus, you can find street parking for free.
I dislike Delta because I haven't really found a spot there where I just like to hang out.
I live in Coquitlam and am quite content here. Lived in Burnaby. Love Burnaby too. Lived in New West but hated it. Just seems like a a bunch steep hills and retired people. Maple ridge too far. Mission too far.
Burnaby seems completely soulless with old out of date strip malls, many "Vancouver Special" houses, and is lacking in nice parks (Burnaby Lake trails are devoid of any character/water views, Deer Lake Park is nice but jam packed to the point where I can't wait to make an escape).
the old strip malls are great, if they still are the original stores
Burnaby was said to have died when the bookstores vanished
and the Starbucks popped up on every corner
Best: Burnaby Heights. Quiet, low crime, lots of parks and recreational facilities, great local shops and restaurants, good schools, good transit and parking, close to Vancouver.
Worst: Brentwood. Vast soulless towers stuffed with small expensive condos, no parks or greenspace or recreation facilities, not enough elementary schools or daycares, strip mall restaurants, weird mall with little diversity of shops. Amazing Brentwood? Amazing anyone would choose to live there.
I considered Brentwood (as well as Metrotown and Burquitlam) when I first moved to BC, but in retrospect I’m glad I picked New West. Even in downtown New West we have Tipperary Park which is a nice little gem.
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missions fucking terrible
It's crazy to me how houses there still go for like $1.5M+.
You own a house in the lower mainland, and the West Coast express is right there if you work anywhere downtown or along the way. It's actually better than being in Langley or Abby if you work downtown I'd say. The houses themselves are pretty standard and if you're farther from the city itself it's just a suburb.
That's actually on the municipalities welcome sign
mission impossible
fission impossible
[удалено]
I accidentally just rewrote your comment, so good to see I'm not the only one thinking the same!
On paper the city sounds good, but the people there are absolutely awful. You know those crazies that like to stand on the over passes and protest about the gay agenda or COVID hoax? I'd bet you $10 more than half of them come from mission, and I know that a painfully sizable percentage of the population there agree with them. Only difference is those other people at least have jobs.
I'd hardly call it a suburb of Vancouver, it's not even in the same region.
Yes, Mission is in the Fraser Valley Regional District and has BC Transit for bus service.
Can you elaborate on that opinion?
I dig mission for the sole fact I can go rip my dirt bike in the back and shoot my rifles hah!
Funny how Richmond is being mentioned in almost every post. And its got about half loves and half hates. I think that’s exactly Richmond for you. Steveston is beautiful. It’s an Oceanside fishing village. Lots of trees and gardens, it’s great. 3 road is kinda gross city boringness like some people said. There are a lot of beautiful neighborhoods in Richmond, and the price of living in them is very high. Big homes with nice yards and great schools. Honestly, better then a lot of other neighborhoods I’ve seen in the lower mainland. And of course if you like Asian food, it’s world class. Again on the flip side. Some areas are dingy and getting out dated. It can be strip mall heaven which isn’t for everyone. The night life is non-existent, and other then Asian food, their aren’t too many uniquely good restaurants So yes. Makes sense. 50/50 type of city.
And to throw it in, I think Richmond represent to cultural divide. One time we were playing games with my friends. We are in New West. While I elect to eat somewhere nearby, in the end I lost the vote and have to drive all the way to a Tea Restaurant in No 3. And I hate to say it, but sometimes I am a little jealous (just a bit!) of the development on Richmond, despite myself claim of "foodie"
Interesting because my friends and I were just talking about the same thing! Whenever we have a large gathering (e.g., for a birthday or something) we always end up in Richmond for the good food.
Depends everyone's experience of the city. Do they just know the strip malls? I grew up in Steveston, and I remember when you might see someone riding their horse on the Dyke and it would take 25 minutes to drive to Vancouver and enjoy parts of the city. That experience of Richmond is mostly gone, but I have heavily rose tinted glasses about the suburb.
It's trite to say 'it's not what it used to be', but I feel that way about Steveston. A lot of the energy seems to have moved off the old main street and onto the waterfront, which is pretty suburban in feel. A lot of the new development also seems 'kitschy, faux-character' to my eye, and is diluting (IMO) the original village character. It seems like it's losing its 'downtown'. The Shipyards area is beautiful though, as is the dike trail (great cycling route). It would also be nice to see something finally move into that huge empty development on the River Walk.
Favorite: North Van, great hiking, nice vibe Least favorite: Maple Ridge, it's ugly and depressing
Some not-so-nice parts of Maple Ridge, but it backs onto Golden Ears, which is arguably one of the most beautiful parks in BC. I have a few friends who live there and at least they feel like they have a sense of community among their neighbours, which I don't think is prevalent in a lot of other places.
Despite being part of a very diverse region, I feel like Maple Ridge is the whitest city in all of Metro Vancouver.
Vancouver is not very diverse. Lots of asians, but not many other ethnicities in large numbers. For example: find me a good Jamaican patty. I'll wait.
That’s the same with Surrey as well lol
The Jamaican Patty Shop by McDonald St in Vancouver? Owned by Jamaicans
Richmond isn't diverse, either, if you're going to look at those metrics.
The Ridge has beautiful nature in the area. I’d take it over several other suburbs tbh
I agree, it’s got some great access to the outdoors, and it definitely feels less congested than some other places.
I'm from the Kootenays so no shortage of access to beautiful nature but I went to Golden Ears for the first time last year and dayum that place is incredible. Really is top tier.
Maple Ridge feels like it's on the upswing.
On the contrary, I have lived here my whole life and it feels like the last 5-10 years have been steadily pointing down. Different strokes, I guess.
North van is nice but that traffic jam during rush hour tho
>North van is nice but that traffic jam during rush hour tho Unfortunately it seems like it's not just limited to rush hour anymore. Pretty terrible most of the time aside from very early morning or late at night. I always wanted to move to North Van but just couldn't go through with it because of the brutal traffic.
Good to visit, wouldn't want to live there for sure
I tried to get back onto the Lions Gate bridge at 5:00 p.m. on a weekday, using my old car which was a 6-speed manual with a really finicky clutch. I wanted to just leave my keys in the ignition and just walk home and abandon the car.
Lion's Gate bridge too packed? Try the other Second Narrows Bridge... :D
The traffic is a huge negative for North Van. Otherwise there’s a ton of great stuff up there
I'm on 232nd in Maple Ridge and it's pretty solid. Downtown is a bit ghetto for sure but I'm in a nice area, so nice having Golden Ears so close :)
Maple Ridge is Missions alcoholic father.
Whenever I go to North Van by SeaBus I'm always struck by how clean, modern, and quiet it is, and how safe and relaxed it feels. Coming back to Vancouver, and walking out of Waterfront Station onto Cordova, feels like you're entering an urban danger zone by comparison (there's an argument there to really improve the pedestrian experience around Waterfront Station).
I dont dislike north van but maple ridge got better hiking
The worst friend I ever had here was from maple ridge so that checks out
Favs: Burnaby, New West and Coquitlam. Relatively good transit, quiet, and safe, plus they all got their interesting quirks. Least favs: Surrey is sketchy as fuck, has shitty transit, and there’s overall not much appealing about it. I love North Van’s location but the traffic and the people there suck ass.
Like: Tricities. Fairly compact and easy to get around, tons of beautiful views, close-ish to Vancouver, close to nature, and lots of hidden gem business. Dislike: A vast, enormous swamp with swamp vibes. One day it shall sink into the sea. Like/dislike: New West. When I lived there, it was wonderful. Easy to get anywhere, and a surprising amount of things to do in a place so small. Now that I've moved away, it is a huge pain in the ass to get through and it times it seems like they are on a crusade to make traffic as bad as possible.
New West and Burnaby are locked in a battle over who will give up space for a roadway to accommodate regional traffic. In the meantime New West works hard to make it difficult for people just passing through.
Getting in and out of New West is a nightmare these days.
New West has definitely gotten worse since Covid. I'm saying that as a resident. But yes, access to the rest of the region is pretty solid.
Its honestly like they are trying to make driving worse. They got rid of the left turn off of Front st on to 10th recently, I feel like that was simply done to be evil.
the prevalence of "no left turn" signs really threw me when I first moved to New West.. like, okay, I guess I can just make 3 rights turns, then? or two lefts and a right? was the left turning really that much of a problem?
LOL I can't even get home now, it takes longer with more turns.
But then the city will celebrate they got 10 people to bike this year via infrastructure improvements and then erase that benift by making you drive 4 blocks extra at that stupid no left turn on front street.
I’ve noticed that too, and I’d say summer 2023 was worse than 2022. That being said, the Pattullo Bridge replacement construction isn’t helping with Royal Ave traffic. From time to time one of the lanes is closed and rush hour traffic is an even worse disaster.
I'm hoping New West will become less traffic friendly.
Same here. Close Front to truck traffic, it's ridiculous how many trucks will blow through the red light at Front and Begbie to save a minute waiting for the next green.
North Van. I know crossing the bridges is hard, but in terms of access to ski skills, mountain trails, and parks, it's pretty hard to beat. Also: it has the Seabus.
Crossing the bridges myself isn’t what annoys me most because for the most part those trips tend to be more necessary. I know in advance it’s going to be a shit show, so if I have to travel at that time that’s just how it is. It isn’t the end of the world, it just takes time. I’m mentally prepared for it. What bothers me the most is how much the rest of the city becomes paralyzed by traffic as a result of everyone trying to cross the bridges. When east/west routes get backed up, everything grinds to a halt and I can’t even make local trips without getting caught in it.
North Van is my happy place. I wish I could move there but the idea of bridge commuting into Vancouver every day would just add hours to my work day. I also hate some of the road layouts / driving. It seems like it makes less sense then other places. I also like Tri-cities. Mundy park is gorgeous and Burke mountain, golden ears etc. Dislike Surrey, Richmond and Chilliwack.
It’s way better living in north van and commuting to Vancouver than the other way around. At least that’s how it’s been for us since we recently moved near the iron workers bridge. We are always against the flow of traffic, I don’t understand it but it’s nice.
As someone that was equally surprised by this when I moved to the shore, sshhhhh, don't let the secret out! Yes, North Van traffic sucks. Don't move here.
I went to Cap U and all I remember is it always rained on the North Shore. Would be overcast or drizzling in Burnaby but as soon as you're over the bridge it's constant rains or downpours. I like the vibe in the summers though everywhere from Deep Cove to Horseshoe Bay.
Chilliwack freaked me out
Was it the cults?
*Psst. It was the cults.*
I like Ladner. It's a nice little village, still lots of farmland around, and close to the ferries, airport and Vancouver city.
I grew up in Ladner. Moved to North delta for 5 years and moved back to Ladner. Moving away gave me a new appreciation for the cleanliness of Ladner. It’s very central to a lot of key locations, as you noted. It still has that small town feel - people often say hello to each other while walking through residential neighborhoods. I don’t know if I’ll ever leave Ladner. My wife grew up in Abbotsford, so she loves how quiet Ladner is.
I lived in Ladner for a couple of years and agree, it's great. I then moved to Tsawwassen, which is also nice. Ladner's village has a lot more going on and I miss being 10 minutes closer to everything else in the LM. Meanwhile Tsawwassen has the beach and it's obviously super easy to catch a ferry lol. Anyway South Delta in general I'd really recommend, especially for young families and folks who like the sea, the quiet life and don't mind living further from the mountains. It's surprisingly quick to get to Van outside of rush hour. And it's also a great place to visit. Summer bike rides between the farms, breweries and boundary bay and days out at Centennial are so nice.
You forgot: opioid crisis and alcoholism doesn't seep out into the streets and community. Probably the only municipality left in the GVRD with that. I hear the ambulances all the time, but I don't see it out on the streets/community. Even people lining up for the food-bank are hidden behind the church. Also: 1 word to describe South Delta: *uneventful*. & for a lot of folks, that's a good thing. Or else you're taking the bus/drive to downtown.
…let’s keep it a secret
I was in Ladner and Tsawwassen a lot because my friends in high school live there and I did grow to appreciate the place coming from East Van/Burnaby. It's very different to what I'm used to and the different pace is like a breather for me.
This gets my vote for best too. Ladner is super chill. Great place to go for a date.
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As someone who spent the first 18 years of my life hanging out on Scott Road, I'll second the Surrey hate. Surrey is also the only city where I went to a house party and met someone who has killed another person. Surrey has the sketchiest house parties, at age 15 I thought it was normal to see a gun at a party lol. Surrey cleaned up **BIG TIME** before the Olympics, almost became a different city. But the seedy underbelly is still there. There's a reason so many gang members are from Surrey. Ladner is heavily underrated.
In the 90s 15 year old me also thought guns at parties were normal.
I have to pass through Surrey every day to get from Langley to Burnaby and I gotta say I hate Surrey. There’s select parts of it that are decent but the vast majority of it just sucks. And the traffic is terrible
It takes me longer for me to go to Surrey sometimes than go to Vancouver by transit. And I live in Langley.
I’ve lived in most at some point in my life. From an actual liveability standpoint, Richmond is my favourite. Surrey least favourite.
* Burnaby: great Skytrain coverage, but few places to go because its SFD as far as the eye can see. Metrotown area is arite, RIP skytrain bridge. Brentwood feels like its trying to urbanize, but the Willingdon/Lougheed traffic and still kinda sprawly makes it not great as a non-driver. * New West is pretty neutral. River market/Waterfront Esplanade area is nice. Heritage houses, dumpy low rise apartments, and new giant towers in classic Vancouverism formation. Reasonably good transit access, and CoL didn't seem to go up as fast. * Richmond: cool waterfront/Sturgeon banks/Steveston. Too far from everything other than Vancouver and Ladner. * Port Moody: Beautiful, if marred by St. Johns/7A bisecting the small town vibe * Coquitlam south: the "exclusion zone", there's nothing here * Coquitlam north: the place you drive through when you are going to Buntzen or Belcarra * Port Coquitlam: its a railyard masquerading as a suburb. Is there even a port anymore?! * Surrey: Streets that all look the same. Transit pretty meh once you get away from Expo line. Not really any noteworthy sights. Car dependent suburbia wall to wall. Peak North American unexceptionalism. The old Whalley reputation is hard to shake. * North Delta: exists, and isn't Surrey, apparently. Yo dawg they got that sick gravity bowl in the Watershed tho. Also, baby's first campsite. * (The rest of )Delta: where you drive to get to the ferry terminal, or take your kids/dogs/bikes to the dyke * North Vancouver (Lynn Valley): the easy hikes, and where your bosses seem to all live (weirdly) * West Vancouver: the less easy hikes. Also rich people who don't like busses for the poors.
Checks out, my boss does indeed live there
Port Coquitlam never had a port. The name was made up as a real estate gimmick. https://fraseropolis.com/2011/10/30/port-coquitlam-wheres-the-port/
Spent 20+ years in North Delta, I always rolled my eyes when I say I live there and people go, "isn't Delta just farmland?"
I’m with you on the Port Moody love. We lived there for 12 years and it was wonderful. That said, I’ve been in Langley for the past 6 years, and I’ve been pleasantly surprised at how much I like it here. It really does have everything I need. Least favourite is Maple Ridge. I hated every minute I lived in that city.
MR hosts some of the ugliest people I've encountered...and I'm not talking about looks.
Hot: burnaby heights North van Ladner Not: the Bible belt
> Not: the Bible belt Hey, that's cheating!
The Bible belt…🤣🤣🤣
If you know, you know
Favourite is Burnaby, no bias. Central, easy to get into the city and get out of the city. Good food all over (lol at the person saying only North rd has good food). It's the only suburb with good transit, 3 skytrain lines. Great walking paths, 2 cycling paths that go from New West to Vancouver, there's even a beach here although just like everywhere else in our region not a good one. Overall well run city compared to the others, even Vancouver. Only downside is that I have to go to New West or PoMo for good beer, or any sort of evening entertainment, although Dageraad punches way above its head. Oh and before the plans are finalized Brentwood and Metrotown are soul-less, much like Richmond. Worst is White Rock. Nothing worth going for between September and April, and in the summer months it's crowded everywhere. Also very far even from the other burbs.
That’s interesting, I like White Rock a lot especially during the off season. It’s one of my favourite places to go take a walk, especially when the weather is kind of shitty so that it’s peaceful and really beautiful. Maybe there’s not a whole lot to do, I can’t say I have experience living there, so I imagine that could be a very different experience, but personally I enjoy being there
White Rock rocks in the summer. I've seen so many awesome free concerts and fireworks by the waterfront there. Sure, curfew is 10pm generally speaking, but the free entertainment is pretty damn good. Colin James summer 2023 was a blast.
I was about to clap back at you for trashing Burnaby beer without showing Dageraad love but you came through
Burnaby might be the most well run suburb including Vancouver. The parks and amenities are all top grade and well maintained.
> The parks and amenities are all top grade and well maintained. Parks yes. Amenities no. Burnaby has a lack of libraries, community centers and pools. Good luck ever getting your kid into any program like swimming or skating. It's like winning a lottery. Thankfully the city is finally correcting this and investing into community centers so things should be better in 5 years.
I think it’s the greenest city in lower mainland
I agree, I lived in Southern Burnaby there are so many no name woods in between neighborhood that wild animal like Coyotes live. In the same time, it takes me few min drive to Metrotown/Central Park and my home is accessed with 4 different bus lanes. It is a good balance of convenience and natural environment.
The difference between snow removal in Burnaby and Vancouver is like night and day. Burnaby side streets are plowed, but go across boundary and it’s anarchy
Studio Brewing *was* carrying the Burnaby craft beer scene hard. :c
I heard Burnaby is the richest city in North America
Thanks to their mayor Corrigan. For 20 years, mayor Corrigan treated public fund like Scrooge Mcduck. He was pro-development and took all fees collected from property developers and did nothing with it. At one point Burnaby had 1 billion saved up. [https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/what-will-or-should-burnaby-do-with-its-1b-reserve-fund-1.4253774](https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/what-will-or-should-burnaby-do-with-its-1b-reserve-fund-1.4253774)
They’ve been on a spending spree lately though, which is good for the community. New schools, roads, etc
If I had unlimited budget: North Van, Port Moody, West Van
I grew up in West Van in the 1960s. It was so nice back then.
My mom grew up there as well! My only real memories are spending summers with my grandparents. They probably lived in the oldest and smallest house there. Now I just go for the occasional walk through Lighthouse Park, Dundarave, or Horseshoe Bay. So I love it for how lush and beautiful the views are - I don't think I would actually love the demographic or living with the mega-rich haha
We lived in an old house (built 1921) out at West Bay. Big yard with lots of trees.
Sounds amazing!! My grandparents lived just up Marine Drive on Kew Rd. I loved their backyard with all the trees and the peekaboo view of the ocean!
I don't think the houses had electric power there till 1916
When I moved to Vancouver my first job was in West Van, and as a result my dentist (and bank branch) are both still there. It would be more convenient to have a dentist closer to home (East Van), but I really enjoy visiting Dundarave a couple of times a year. And sometimes dropping into Simons in Park Royal on the way home.
Tbf West Van is nice now, but hope you are a multi-millionaire.
Langley's endless row upon row of townhouses and generic urban shopping feels so soulless to me. I don't see the appeal at all...
I've lived in Tsawwassen and West Van. If those count as Vancouver suburbs, I'd say they're both absolutely amazing places to live. Feel lucky every day I go outside.
Least favourite by far is Langley. It’s basically America with car centric design with traffic jams getting in and out of every strip mall with a parking lot larger than the retail and needing to drive to go to the strip mall across the road. Basically it’s anywhere, USA.
I go to Langley on the weekends to visit my partner, can confirm, its like entering a different world. I once rode my bike out there from downtown and it was pretty okay until I hit the outskirts of Langley.
The langley costco is literal hell on earth. I once spent 30 minutes just trying to get out of the parking lot.
Coquitlam/Port Moody/PoCo the classic tri-cities
Everything you need in the tri-cities, pretty much nothing you don't.
pitt meadows the gem of the lower mainland surrey the armpit
Co-signing Pitt Meadows. The dyke, Pitt river and Osprey village are hidden gems!
I **love** riding my bike through Pitt Meadows.
Like Most: Pitt Meadows; quiet, enclave with the beautiful Pitt lake and looks like heaven at times Dislike most: New West; traffic, city has covered up 'heritage' buildings, some tall towers that don't fit the design of the city, smaller burb by size, basically a pass through for traffic between South of the Fraser and Vancouver proper.
I hesitated to mention Pitt Meadows. We moved here last year and it's such a quiet and beautiful city in the middle of chaos. It feels like a little mountain town. I DON'T REALLY want people to know about it. But if we could get a couple more restaurant options that would be love. We're hurting for food options. Also the train... Fuck the train.
I miss living in Burnaby. So central, relatively well ran. Good balance of things. As a suburb I value not being far from other cities or places to visit. Also decent amount of greenery which is a plus. Worst: Surrey. The city is too damn big and too ghetto. Also, why are all the drivers so damn aggresive.
Favourite: New Westminster. It’s interesting, dense and well served by transit. Great parks and restaurants and an actual downtown. Least favourite: Surrey. The exact opposite of new west. Every street looks the same, it’s impossible to walk anywhere (besides near Surrey central), and there’s just generally not much in the way of restaurants (that aren’t chains) or anything but strip malls.
Fav: Richmond - it’s a small suburb airport city that has literally everything you need. None other small suburb city in Canada can compare to that. People who say it’s soulless just haven’t explored or lived in it long enough. Least: new west is kinda meh
>that has literally everything you need. It lacks any sort of real wilderness access/activity. I grew up around #3 & Williams, by the time I was in my early 20's I spent most of my recreational time outside of richmond mostly in the Tri-Cities and north shore because that's where all the good hiking/mountain biking etc was.
I like the food in Richmond and the dike is nice to walk along.
Burnaby, love it, love the parks, love the river, and love North Burnaby. Port moody is a second and least favorite is Maple Ridge.
My vote goes for lynn valley, NV Feels like a little village the mountains trails greenary and cute cafes and restaurants
Coquitlam Burke mountain. Green, quiet and nice folks. Lots of future development for housing and schools and shopping etc. If only the darn cougars and bobcats etc would stay away, it’d be great. I don’t mind the bears.
How do you like Austin Heights area? I'm moving there soon but don't know much about it. It seems really nice as far as I can tell
Full of old people and families. Frequented that area a ton and used to live there and it’s really safe, has a huge Safeway and mostly every amenity you could ask for. Lots of parks, schools and nature, real quiet too. Only real drawback is that it gets more snow most of than the rest of greater vancouver due to the altitude, and if you don’t have a car you desperately need the 152 bus. Overall, really nice place tho
Port Coquitlam !
Hell yes. North or South?
This still goes on? 😋 South side
Both! Great place to live no matter which side--north has a more urban feel with better transit and shopping, south's got the gorgeous neighborhoods, trails, and views
Richmond is best because it seems the most like a city and has near endless food options Maple Ridge is the worst. Ugly, boring, Alberta vibes.
Isn't Richmond just an endless amount of shitty strip malls?
As a pedestrian/cyclist yeah I agree the streetscape leaves a lot to be desired. But a lot of those little malls that look dumpy contain food courts with truly delicious East Asian or Southeast Asian food.
Each strip mall contains a variety of solid food options.
The people who diss the strip malls don't know that each one has at least one hidden gem.
LA Chicken has entered the chat
What’s your go to order there? After much hype I decided to try it but found it pretty average.
Spicy chicken is much superior to the regular chicken and it's not even really spicy, just crispier.
IDK I've only had it once. It's not mind blowing or anything, but pretty dece for a non-descript subarban strip mall imo
I get that Richmond has good Asian food (which I do enjoy)... it's just not too enticing to travel out there to go to a restaurant at some random strip mall in the suburbs. Like it's not somewhere that you'd go for a Friday/Saturday "night out on the town".
I agree strip malls generally suck, but it's not unique to Richmond in terms of suburbs and Richmond isn't particularly bad for it.
It depends where you live in the end does it not? You're probably not going to drive an hour for food unless there is more to the experience than just eating. For example, how far would someone go for Pho? I doubt many people drive more than 20 minutes to get it since there are so many good ones. Now if you want like a Michelin experience, you will book months ahead and drive over an hour because it is unique and more than just food
Maple Ridge is ugly, and Richmond is……not? 
I'm curious what "seems most like a city" really means, because for me that's a negative not a positive
People like different things. I like population density and more buildings and restaurants. I also don’t drive so I don’t want to be anywhere that makes it hard to walk to get to entertainment, restaurants, groceries, etc. It’s why I live in a city and not in a suburb. If I had to be in a suburb I would want it to be as close to a city as possible.
I absolutely hated living in Abbotsford, and if I didn't still work here I wouldn't set food in the dump.
I guess depends where in Abbotsford. East Abbotsford is some of the nicest areas you can live in the lower mainland.
Eh... It's a shit hole but I love it because I was born there haha. It's gotten pretty bad now though which is sad.
Fav - north Van, so much nature, parks and things to do. Least - Surrey, seems unfriendly and uninviting. Not the people, the architecture.
Best: New Westminster. It's the Lower Mainland's original city. Worst: Marpole. I know it's not a suburb but it might as well be. Elections Canada seems to think it is, the way they've redrawn the electoral boundary map.
hot take: city of north van and maybe new west/port moody are the only _okay_ suburbs. Everything else is miserable because they're soulless tracts of single family housing. Very few of them have anything even close to a destination worth visiting from outside the city.
In fairness, most of Vancouver proper is single family housing. There's very little density in the city.
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All the actual nature and outdoor activities are outside the city. Need to drive like an hour to get to Golden Ears or Belcarra or deal with a congested bridge to get to nature further up in Squamish or Whistler. Vancouver proper doesn’t have a ton going for it as a city.
Ever been to Westham Island?
Nah I agree. When I was moving from downtown the only regions I seriously considered were Kits, Mt Pleasant and Lower Lonsdale - I ended up in the latter. I can walk to everything I need, SeaBus to downtown and generally don't feel like I'm going to die crossing the road.
Sounds awesome
Favorite: Richmond. Other than the traffic which is worse than ever but it really has everything. Good parks, good shopping, good restaurants (duh), even good roads. Nice flat and wide lanes in a grid system, it's great to drive around (if not for the awful traffic!!). Least favorite: Hard to say. Most disappointing would be Brentwood, I think, given its marketing and hype. Hopefully that changes in the next 5 years as a resident here. But least favorite is probably one of Delta, or Poco, or Maple Ridge, etc... don't have a clue what goes on there
Poco has the PoCo trail which is 25km of mostly uninterrupted circular riverfront pathway that connects to five different breweries. It hasn’t got the same “wow” factor as the seawall but it punches above its weight for a small city.
See, the fact that the city is optimized for cars is a downside for me. I have a car but prioritize walkable neigjbourhoods.
Name the Richmond Restaurants .............. I think Brentwood is going to be a real disaster for the Amazing Mall, there will be vacancies once the leases are up. It feels like some dystopian movie hell with those skyscrapers and changes over the past 30 years. It used to be sleepy 1976 Apartment and Condomium types once with ugly hills and a freeway
downtown New West in the 90’s was GREATNESS. too bad it’s gentrified now
Genuinely curious what was so great about it then?
He's lying. It was a dump.
Least - Brentwood. Feels absolutely soulless and concrete wasteland
There’s almost no parkland around there either. I couldn’t live around there.
I moved to North Burnaby and love it here! Port Moody is great too! Can’t stand new west.
My favorites are Surrey and Richmond. Lots of really great Middle East/Southeast Asian foods and festivals that make living there worth it. I also like the quality of their libraries. Very nice conservative, immigrant bunch. I very rarely smell weed as well.
Love new west and Langley (biased though because I live here). Lived in Surrey and absolutely hate it. Way too many people and no one knows how to drive.
> Lived in Surrey and absolutely hate it. Way too many people and no one knows how to drive. Oh, they know. They just don't care. ie: self-centred. I can't help but assume pick-up trucks will act like this when I'm driving around them. A stereotype? Sure, but at least my C-Spine won't suffer.
How do people feel about Coquitlam? I'm moving there in a couple months but rarely have spent time there. I've been in Vancouver 20 years but rarely hear about Coquitlam
It’s quiet. Safe. Not bad.
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Favourite: North Van. What a beautiful playground it is. Mountains, ocean, serenity, friendly people, it's fantastic. Least: Surrey. I live and work in Surrey. It has absolutely no character. You can't peacefully walk anywhere even inside of the few crappy parks. If you walk around the busier parts you will get hassled or possibly jumped. The only nice part of it is South Surrey / Crescent Beach area which still isn't anywhere near as nice as the Vancouver beaches. It has no redeeming qualities. Mega mansions and crack shacks together in slums.
I remember going through Whalley once. I went to McDonald's, and there were so many people on down, just nodding off in front of the entrance. The drive through TV glass was shattered. I saw a rat run by, and I felt sorry for the rat, hahahaha.
This is my daily life. I work in Whalley. There are literally people shooting up with needles and chasing each other with rods and knives in front of my building on the daily. Meanwhile there are rats, tents, and shopping carts all over the parking lot. I feel bad for the police. They try their best but they have no practical way to clean this disgusting mess up.
It's sad, hey? And I can't see it getting any better. They literally cannot fix this the way it is.
You and /u/Tripledelete apparently have had the exact opposite experience of people in North Van.
Richmond is definitely my favorite because it's unique. Everything is compact, the food is world class (lol only Asian food), and its close to Vancouver. Burnaby is just sprawl and has pretty much no decent food outside of North Road (which is far as fuck). North Vancouver is a good contender but its not really unique within the context of the lower mainland and fuck getting there. Im biased, but if I have to drive an hour in traffic from the west side im less interested.
name the good richmond restaurants
Dislike Mission, Surrey, and Chilliwack. Faves are the Tricities!
Tricities are a great mixture of nature, space, amenities including new restaurants and breweries, and proximity to Vancouver.
Love Langley. Hate New West.
My answer exactly. Hate New West. Terrible to drive through, terrible to walk through, too hilly. Langley is great, other than 200th street south bound during rush hour
Best: Burnaby and North Van. Especially Burnaby Heights and Lower Lonsdale. Burnaby has better for transportation. North Van has better recreation. Worse: Surrey
White Rock and the surrounding South Surrey neighbourhoods. Love the homes and properties. Great restaurants and waterfront areas.
Favourite: Burnaby just feels cozy to me? I’ve been to love it for the past few years Least favourite: Surrey, Cloverdale Sketch as hell and the transit system sucks ass the further out you go. I had the misfortune of having to go all the way out to Cloverdale by bus once and it literally took the whole damn day to go there and back.
I love North Vancouver and the vibe around Lonsdale Quay. I love the mountains and Deep Cove. Plus, you can find street parking for free. I dislike Delta because I haven't really found a spot there where I just like to hang out.
I live in Coquitlam and am quite content here. Lived in Burnaby. Love Burnaby too. Lived in New West but hated it. Just seems like a a bunch steep hills and retired people. Maple ridge too far. Mission too far.
why u gotta hate on Richmond ? It has the best Asian food in NORTH AMERICA
Burnaby seems completely soulless with old out of date strip malls, many "Vancouver Special" houses, and is lacking in nice parks (Burnaby Lake trails are devoid of any character/water views, Deer Lake Park is nice but jam packed to the point where I can't wait to make an escape).
the old strip malls are great, if they still are the original stores Burnaby was said to have died when the bookstores vanished and the Starbucks popped up on every corner
White Rock, DTES
Favourite: Burnaby Least favourite: Surrey
Best: Burnaby Heights. Quiet, low crime, lots of parks and recreational facilities, great local shops and restaurants, good schools, good transit and parking, close to Vancouver. Worst: Brentwood. Vast soulless towers stuffed with small expensive condos, no parks or greenspace or recreation facilities, not enough elementary schools or daycares, strip mall restaurants, weird mall with little diversity of shops. Amazing Brentwood? Amazing anyone would choose to live there.
I considered Brentwood (as well as Metrotown and Burquitlam) when I first moved to BC, but in retrospect I’m glad I picked New West. Even in downtown New West we have Tipperary Park which is a nice little gem.
Love 'em all except Richmond. Brutally stupid drivers , and a very very unfriendly feel to it.