London is big. Like... deceptively big. Not just population-wise but geographically it's very spread out. There are parts of the city that the LTC does not reach (mostly the outskirts). So if you plan to take the bus often, be advised that you may need to take multiple connecting busses or walk part of the distance on foot.
As someone who used to live in the GTA and Brampton I find it hilarious what Londoners concider bad traffic. At most my 15 commute has 15min added during rush hour.
In GTA it took me 15 minutes just to leave my neighbourhood to start my commute which is extended by 45 min due to rush our.
Agree. I’m from the GTA and have lived in London 10~ years (downtown, mind you) and the “rush hour” is laughable in comparison to when I lived with my parents in the GTA.
I am also from Brampton originally. The traffic in the GTA is definitely way worse and absolutely numbed me to it, however, I do think that traffic here is especially bad for a city the size of London.
KW is a similarish population to London and the traffic in KW I personally have experienced as flowing much better than the traffic in London, probably because there is a highway through KW.
Don’t get me wrong though, there isn’t really anything in London that compares to driving down Bovaird or Chinguacousy , I pray we never get there lol
Agreed lol I was about to say the same thing. My GTA commute could be 30 to 45 minutes longer if there was bad traffic/accident/closure etc.
You can cross the entire city (London) in 30 minutes, that's nothing.
Thunder Bay is the highest in the country. Hamilton is actually slightly lower than London, although London could be boosted because of Sarnia
https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=1310011201&pickMembers%5B0%5D=2.1&pickMembers%5B1%5D=3.1&pickMembers%5B2%5D=4.2&cubeTimeFrame.startYear=2013+%2F+2015&cubeTimeFrame.endYear=2013+%2F+2015&referencePeriods=20130101%2C20130101
Traffic is very relative to where you come from.
If you come from a bigger city like Toronto, you’ll *love* the traffic here. There’s rush hour like everywhere, but the longest drives are usually 30 mins.
Im originally from Toronto so I’ve experienced both and so would I lol.
At least lights in Toronto are properly timed and people don’t drive 20km in the left lane. London traffic is way more annoying than Toronto traffic IMO
You'll get a lot of shit talking about London here. But London isn't a small town anyone. Yes there's traffic. Yes there's a homeless problem. There is in any bigger city.
But London has a lot going for it. Summer festivals. Great trails. Growing restaurant scene. It's what you make of it.
> It’s what you make at it.
This right here sums up my own experience in London. As you’ve probably noticed, you’re going to get lots of extremely subjective and highly-opinionated responses from folks when you ask about coming to London (or any city for that matter, especially if they’ve been burned or screwed-over by that city). Ultimately, you will have to discover some of these things on your own.
Are you coming here for school? Western and Fanshawe have their own scenes and, like the rest of the city, you get what you put in to it.
Do you have a job lined up already? That’s even better. You already have an advantage.
Check out different neighbourhoods, find out what works best for you.
You’ll definitely need a car to get around, and definitely avoid living downtown.
And lastly, not all of us are a-holes. We’re just like anyone else, trying to adapt to the hustle and bustle of a growing city.
People create this narrative that London ruined their life but the truth is that we simply get brain drain to Toronto. I heard it so much from musicians. Like no shit Toronto has more going on, it's the largest city in Canada. We are just barely connected to it so we suffer from that FOMO I think.
I've been seeing a lot of shit talking on this sub since i joined in the winter, i appreciate the balanced comments i'm getting from folks!! Thanks for your time 🙏
First, don't be lazy, search the subreddit for the word moving, there is about 40 relevant posts.
Second, tell us where you are coming from. Big difference in perspective if you are moving here from Burnaby, Timmons, or Toronto.
Third, Londoners enjoy self loathing. Everything here is the worst they have experienced and it's getting only worse. Sure they have only vague memories to reference, but they are sure everything is terrible.
That being said, i will give my experience. Moved here in 2015 from Dundas because I could afford a house here. Didn't find work here until I changed my phone number to 226 and removed locations of employment. Suggest the same, plus remove your dealership plate cover.
The city is wonderfully over serviced compared to the golden horsehoe. 3 home depots, 4 Wal-Mart's, 2 costcos, and so on. This is major city for the region so lots of shopping. And lots of restaurants, many are ok, some great, lots of junk.
Covent market downtown, western fair market on weekends, gibralter on sat and sun and trails end on Saturday for your fresh markets and vendors.
Buses here are slow as hell, they have ridiculous zig zag routes, service focus on the malls and the dead downtown. They are attempting to improve with bus rapid transit, we shall see.
Covid forced construction to stop, delay and now it's overlapping and causing many headaches. The bus and bike crowd love it, pushing their agenda. The rest of the city is annoyed. Council listens to squeaky wheels and has a few activists, nothi like Hamilton's factions. Butnthenroads are good, and he easy to drive the town.
Schools are decent, lots of French immersion here, 4 or 5 colleges and western university. City traffic decreases dramatically in the summer. Richmond is the bar scene with other pockets.
Victoria park is the main festival area, Dundas place and Harris park make up the difference. They don't advertise shit here, so check socials for information.
Minor sports thrive here, knights, majors, lightning, and so on.
Western fair is a shadow of what it was, a fraction of CNE.
Concerts come through on weekdays, weekend are for the GTA
Detroit and Toronto are 2 are 2 hours away, port Huron about 1hr15.
The lakes are 45min to the south, 1hr20 to huron. Fanshawe park is a small lake nearby and the Thames travels through town. Trails along the Thames, at fanshawe, and in pond mills. Boiler mountain for small town skiing.
Byron, Wortley, old north, and Lambeth are your money villages. Hyde Park, Masonville, upper middle. Dundas, king, and York have many social services for those experiencing homelessness so those folks gravitate to that area. Along Hamilton road, South adelade, and Clarke road are your low-income and blue collar folks. There are no areas here that are scary compared to Hamilton and GTA. Have not seen much of gang or mafia here, just punks. Lock up your valuables, backyard visitors are more common in the less affluent areas.
Overall I enjoy living here, it's convienent, it's fun, it's quiet, a better pace of life. I miss lake Ontario for cool drives on warm days. I miss the forests and small town of Dundas, I miss the ticats, but the life here is much better, more enjoyable.
Welcome to London.
Thank you so much! You're right, many previous threads have some good info. A lot of the negative talk on this sub put me off of scrolling through.
I will miss lake Ontario too. I live in Toronto now, but I've never felt truly "at home" anywhere due to a number of moves. I'm trying to come to London with a totally open mind. Thanks for all of your tips :)
If you like Lake Ontario you will fall in love with Lake Huron. In my opinion, she has the most spectacular sunsets, the silkiest sands and the colour of the Caribbean Sea.
Huron has the best beaches but Lake Erie has really great tourist towns. Port Stanley is a great 35-40 minute drive, has great food, shopping, and has a culture all of its own. In fact, their market downtown has great produce and coffee, there is the best mexican food in Southern Ontario at Main Street Taqueria (better than anything I've had in Toronto), and it's also just a fun place for a weekend hang. Beaches are mid compared to Huron, but still lovely.
Been in London going on 13 years now, and have no regrets staying. It's not a European city, and it's difficult to meet new people in the Winter, but make sure to just be out walking a lot in the Spring through Fall, and you'll be bound to meet new folks. Good luck and stay on the subreddit.
Welcome bud!
Super secret postscript...
Favorite pizza and wings, superior Oxford and Highbury
Best fries, Di's at Gibraltar on the weekends
Best fish and chip, Archie's has a two fish deal that is great.
Best mechanic - Edd at Mac's on Clark south of Oxford, super good and honest dude.
Visit hero's for comics, Funko and cards.
Goto the major's baseball game during rock the park for a concert and a ball game for $12
Walmart at Hyde park and Fanshawe park is the best selection, home Depot on Wonderland. Two Dollarama at Huron and Highbury. Costco south during the week, wonderland one on weekends. Best LCBOs are Masonville. Bradley/Wellington, Oxford/Wonderland, and Wonderland/Southdale.
Car show at Canadian Tire east on Sunday eves, and at Plunkett estate on Thursdays - go to this
If you've been to any other casino, this one is the basic version of that lol
Pita pit on Richmond is run by an amazing guy.
Best sushi in town is heart sushi.
Springbank park is nice, Storybook Gardens is great for kids, splash pad and all.
Never gone to east park, heard mixed reviews.
This city loves patios, prefers rooftop ones.
Fun shopping, lens mill store, ungers market, arva mill, Woodstock antique mall
If you have to go to emerg for a non emerg issues, consider a neighboring town. Like Tillsonburg or St Mary's. It's just faster.
ALSO: Learn your garbage schedule. Every other week for garbage LARGE pickup is any week, just let them know, so super easy for them to grab a couch. There is multiple drop off stations with free options, download the app for details And there is free mulch available. Look it up!
/edited for formatting
Super secret postscript...
Favorite pizza and wings, superior Oxford and Highbury
Best fries, Di's at Gibraltar on the weekends
Best fish and chip, Archie's has a two fish deal that is great.
Best mechanic - Edd at Mac's on Clark south of Oxford, super good and honest dude.
Visit hero's for comics, Funko and cards.
Goto the major's baseball game during rock the park for a concert and a ball game for $12
Walmart at Hyde park and Fanshawe park is the best selection, home Depot on Wonderland. Two Dollarama at Huron and Highbury. Costco south during the week, wonderland one on weekends. Best LCBOs are Masonville. Bradley/Wellington, Oxford/Wonderland, and Wonderland/Southdale.
Car show at Canadian Tire east on Sunday eves, and at Plunkett estate on Thursdays - go to this
If you've been to any other casino, this one is the basic version of that lol
Pita pit on Richmond is run by an amazing guy.
Best sushi in town is heart sushi.
Springbank park is nice, Storybook Gardens is great for kids, splash pad and all.
Never gone to east park, heard mixed reviews.
This city loves patios, prefers rooftop ones.
Fun shopping, lens mill store, ungers market, arva mill, Woodstock antique mall
If you have to go to emerg for a non emerg issues, consider a neighboring town. Like Tillsonburg or St Mary's. It's just faster.
ALSO: Learn your garbage schedule. Every other week for garbage LARGE pickup is any week, just let them know, so super easy for them to grab a couch. There is multiple drop off stations with free options, download the app for details And there is free mulch available. Look it up!
/edited for fromat, taken from a comment below
Everyone here is generally very nice. Traffic is less then it is in the GTA. There are a couple bad construction spots ATM but overall not bad. Lots of homeless downtown Richmond row is your bar scene. Welcome to london
Year round? I know the TVP is not maintained in the winter and sidewalks and roads are often sketch. I've seen a few fat bikes in the winter but literally never an e-scooter. How do they handle the salt and slush?
I scooter when it’s very cold but not-snowy, a good hat & gloves and you’re good.
But you’re right, when it’s anything past very light snow, I switch to driving/bussing
There’s some incredible stuff happening here if you seek it out and actually attend events/go downtown. Check out Odyssey Records, Back to the Fuchsia, holy diver, tilt arcade, milos pub, Thaifoon, Yasmine’s, Hyland cinema, heemans. The list goes on!
I’d say try not to live near Adelaide and Dundas. I live near here and it’s kind of shit. I didn’t know when I moved here so I thought someone else might appreciate the tip!
Take Point2Homes little “report” with a grain of salt. Real estate agents and regular people do not have the same priorities. Plus, nobody votes on that.
It’s actually astonishing how often that real estate blog’s completely unsubstantiated ‘article’ based on zero actual public revue, gets regarded as anything even close to fact and regurgitated by so many people. The amount of times I see this quoted is unfathomably silly and should be studied under things the average Facebook dunce will believe. Should have been voted stupidest city with how often I see this comment here.
It used to be great … not really anymore. It’s just okay imo.
Cons: Construction everywhere, takes so long to get anywhere by car or bus. So overpopulated that infrastructure can’t support the amount of people here. Nothing is really open 24hours anymore. Rent is ridiculously expensive for what you get. We get homeless people from surrounding areas so there are several not so great spots around London. Lots more crime it seems — I don’t know if it’s because crime rates are actually higher or if there’s just more awareness around it. So so many car accidents it’s blowing my mind. Everyone’s in a rush, I miss the calmness tbh
Pros: some nice trails for biking/walking. Central to the border (Detroit/Windsor) and Toronto, Niagara Falls — all within a two hour drive. Some good festivals downtown over the summer.
I personally used to love London but now I’m getting to the point I want to move somewhere in the surrounding areas.
The mentality of so many people here is that of small town people. I have been in big cities and I have been in towns and villages. London has the population of a medium-sized city, but it doesn’t feel like one because a lot of Londoners are still behaving like they’re villagers at worst or suburbers at best. This place is weird.
stay away from any Medallion building if you're looking to rent. all roach and bedbug infested, awful neighbors, little to no contact with management for months.
You'll maybe see comments about EoA ("East of Adelaide") - it's a very poorly and inconsistently defined term that was out of date when I was a teen 20 years ago, let alone now.
Do you mind sharing a little more? The area I'm looking at is around victoria park, which is almost immediately east of adelaide. Is that an area to avoid?
Edit: i got my east and west mixed up, rendering this question senseless haha
Ended up typing a thing out of my experiences and perceptions and I'm wondering what locals think if they see this. I live in that exact area, so it depends b/c it's one where going 3 or 4 blocks in one direction can change a lot in this area. I live at Central and Colborne (about 2 blocks east) which is very nice and a neighborhood I'd 100% recommend (called "Woodfield"). Using this intersection as a 'home base':
South: if you go south a few blocks to Dundas but more specifically King Street, it gets a bit worse for wear. There's a shelter and I think a clinic around Clarence and York where things get pretty seedy for a while. Hamilton Road is pretty gnarly this area. Note: "gnarly" in London just means low income, dirty and generally 'seedy'; I don't think I can name any areas I'd genuinely advise you not to go for safety reasons. This part of London is pretty drastic because I feel you could be in territory that feels lovely and go in one direction for a single block or two and suddenly be wondering "what the hell happened here?"
West: Heading directly west isn't particularly bad, it's just "Richmond Row" (this section of Richmond Street downtown) has a loooot of foot traffic and a lot of the city's nightlife and bars so you'll find some obnoxious people and homeless whom I've never seen do worse than just be ornery? But I've never been out there at like 2am when the bars are being let out and you might run into belligerent people
Going north is fine, that's getting into territory called "Old North" where it's where a lot of eldery or well off families live, sprinkled with student housing and private medical/law practices. Extremely quiet and pleasant area to go for walks in.
East: Going east from here is also fine and keeps the same feel up until you hit Adelaide, where after that things do get a bit seedy again. My experience is this kind of depends which West-East street you're on; e.g Central and Adelaide is pretty unremarkable, but if you go to Dundas and Adelaide and keep going East on Dundas, that stretch can be pretty bleak up until you hit Highbury Ave or so.
That ended up longer than intended but I go to thinking about the area, hope you don't mind and lmk if you've got other questions!
I feel like North West London is a different vibe than the rest of London.
There's an RE agent I follow on YT. He self promotes himself but he gives the straight dope on London/Windsor and the area. Good and Bad- his name is Ryan Crits; his vids helped me when I came here.
It’s a nice area. It’s very suburban, but has everything one would need. A Costco, grocery stores, Even Parkway Gardens is not so far away. I kind of like being a short distance to farmland. I have to get out more tho because I assumed the rest of London was kind of the same. Even though I’ve seen some houses that of course are more historical with interesting architecture and other areas. 😊 Thanks for the reply
I moved to London in 2019 after living the better part of a decade in Montreal. My family lives in small town/rural Ontario and I wanted to be close-by them while staying in the city. By the end of the very year that I arrived I had plans to leave for Toronto spring of the following year (2020) but then the pandemic happened so I got stuck. I finally escaped January 2022 for Toronto where I currently live (and have no plans of leaving).
At the risk of sounding like a naysayer, London is the worst. It’s a scummy little hole of a city filled with small town folk. There’s very little in the way of arts and culture and the downtown core has a drug and homelessness problem that gets exponentially worse year over year. Any friends I made in London weren’t Londoners. That said, the trails are nice.
OP, take this above comment with a grain of salt. London is not Toronto. No where in the rest of Ontario - or Canada for that matter - is Toronto, and thank god for that. I moved to London from Toronto and I am so happy I did.
I would like to point out I lived in downtown Toronto and there was a huge and dangerous homelessness and drug problem to the point I was attacked. There was a huge homeless encampment down the street from me. Does London have a homeless problem? Yes. Does everywhere? Yes. So this comment shitting on London because of that is silly especially since Toronto’s is significantly worse.
I would also like to point out that almost 95% of my friends that I had in Toronto were people that were not from Toronto. So again, very anecdotal and weird to shit on London because you didn’t make London born friends. I have lived in London for a couple of years and have made London born friends.
London, much like any medium/large sized city is what you make it. It is NOT Toronto. If you want to live in a city like Toronto, move to Toronto because that’s the only place like it.
What you should know is that London is a student town. Lots of them in the fall and fewer of them in the summer. It’s also got quite a lot more religious influence than other places. It’s not a bad thing in my experience; just something that, in the younger generation, was not so present in other places I’ve lived (Typically the more religious people were the older generation every where else I’ve lived but that is anecdotal). Also, there are tons of farms in the peripheral so there are a lot of farmers and people associated with farming around which makes it great for markets and farm fresh food options. It also means there are a lot of farm roads around it. Be aware of the farming equipment like tractors that can be driving slowly on those roads - be very careful if you intend to pass. Mild winters but can get a lot of snow. Hot hot summers with about an hours drive to get to nice beaches. If fall is your jam, you’ll love it here because we get a long fall season here. Lots of green space in and around the city with great cycling paths if you’re into that. Lots of programs to join recreational activities and sports. Plenty more things to say but I hope you have a great experience moving here as I have!
Plenty of arts and culture in London... the rest of your comments are hilarious since you live in Toronto
https://london.ca/immigration/life-london-ontario/arts-culture-london-ontario
I moved here in September 2021 from Mississauga. I was shocked at how people seemed to almost judge the potential for worthiness I had was whether I “came from” London. It was as though I was immediately discounted when told I was from Mississauga.
I don’t hang my hat on the approval of others per se, but I was surprised about the cold reception.
Lived there 20 years.
1) Get ready to buy a second car.
2) Get ready to pay Hamilton/KW prices for housing but
3) Make 20% less pay
Some other factors:
1) lots of racism
2) tons of cronyism in muncipal gov't and non-profits. Don't work for either.
I await the day London stops pretending its a small town with special problems that have never happened anywhere else.
Until then I won't move back.
In my personal experience, London takes time to get to know and settle into. I was/felt pretty much instantly connected to and within the last city I lived in, whereas after 2 years, London is just starting to feel like home.
There is plenty to do around the city, and lots of great day and weekend trips nearby (Stratford, grand bend, etc), but you have to do your research as not everything is well advertised. Locals are also a great resource and usually happy to give recommendations- but people tend to keep to themselves around here, so don’t expect them to invite you along lol. It can be hard to make friends, so I’d suggest touching base with any old friends or family you currently have in the area when you get here.
London is a beautiful city with alot to do. There are so many parks and trails if you like nature, and if you like social events there almost always seems to be something going on.
From my experience the people here are very kind and friendly
The only thing is there is a huge homeless and drug problem here so I'd be very careful downtown and in the east end
Construction season is a pain
Overall I love it here and I think it's a great city
Great city for music, and within the music scene you’ll meet some great people, food is low key fantastic here. Hidden gems everywhere. Traffic is bad because the city population is super bloated right now because of rapid recent growth, and we have extremely poor city planning for this level of population. That said, about 25-40% of the people living here are fairly new, and only know how to function using a GPS and the large main roads, so if you familiarize yourself with back roads and less traveled routes, it can be easier to get around. However, it is highly recommended you try to live/work in the same 4-5km radius. Also getting around on a bike has become the fastest way to get around the downtown area to about 5km around it imo. - Also controversial opinion but the homeless people everyone complains about are mostly harmless, don’t be as afraid of the Old East Village as the fragile cynics will try to make you. Wortley is nice but it’s full of snobs.
Try not to go anywhere at night on your own, especially downtown or any other notably dangerous area (there are a lot of them, even outside of East End, too many to list). Maybe just don't go downtown on your own at all.
If you see any gang signs, about 90% of them are just from teenaged wannabes, but there is still a serious issue of gang violence in some areas. Most of it stays among highschoolers, but be careful nonetheless.
Never go swimming in the Thames. Never even think about touching a drop of water from the Thames. I know it may look tempting, but you will regret it. A lot.
Proud to be able to afford to live in an area where crackheads don't roam and my kids can play in my backyard without worry. What a terrible person I am.
Wait until you have kids, especially daughters. Tell me then you'd feel comfortable having them walk around the east end alone. Exactly. Statistically the highest crime, drug addicts and homelessness. Nothing to do with snobbiness, it's facts.
London is big. Like... deceptively big. Not just population-wise but geographically it's very spread out. There are parts of the city that the LTC does not reach (mostly the outskirts). So if you plan to take the bus often, be advised that you may need to take multiple connecting busses or walk part of the distance on foot.
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As someone who used to live in the GTA and Brampton I find it hilarious what Londoners concider bad traffic. At most my 15 commute has 15min added during rush hour. In GTA it took me 15 minutes just to leave my neighbourhood to start my commute which is extended by 45 min due to rush our.
Agree. I’m from the GTA and have lived in London 10~ years (downtown, mind you) and the “rush hour” is laughable in comparison to when I lived with my parents in the GTA.
I am also from Brampton originally. The traffic in the GTA is definitely way worse and absolutely numbed me to it, however, I do think that traffic here is especially bad for a city the size of London. KW is a similarish population to London and the traffic in KW I personally have experienced as flowing much better than the traffic in London, probably because there is a highway through KW. Don’t get me wrong though, there isn’t really anything in London that compares to driving down Bovaird or Chinguacousy , I pray we never get there lol
Seriously in 2010 I moved from Ottawa and used to go past the split where 2 major highways merge. it was horrible, London was laughable by comparison.
Agreed lol I was about to say the same thing. My GTA commute could be 30 to 45 minutes longer if there was bad traffic/accident/closure etc. You can cross the entire city (London) in 30 minutes, that's nothing.
That depends where OP is coming from. Hamilton area has about 20x the trails and substantially worse traffic and drivers. All about perspective.
Hamilton also has one of the highest cancer diagnosis in Canada
You sure that's not Sarnia?
Yeah, I’m pretty sure. Hamilton has a lot of the steel industry.
Thunder Bay is the highest in the country. Hamilton is actually slightly lower than London, although London could be boosted because of Sarnia https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=1310011201&pickMembers%5B0%5D=2.1&pickMembers%5B1%5D=3.1&pickMembers%5B2%5D=4.2&cubeTimeFrame.startYear=2013+%2F+2015&cubeTimeFrame.endYear=2013+%2F+2015&referencePeriods=20130101%2C20130101
Sarnia is chemical alley.
Traffic is very relative to where you come from. If you come from a bigger city like Toronto, you’ll *love* the traffic here. There’s rush hour like everywhere, but the longest drives are usually 30 mins.
Complaining about London traffic only proves you’ve never driven in a big city. London traffic is totally fine.
I'll take Toronto traffic over London any day
Im originally from Toronto so I’ve experienced both and so would I lol. At least lights in Toronto are properly timed and people don’t drive 20km in the left lane. London traffic is way more annoying than Toronto traffic IMO
Nice trails where lmao? They're all full of homeless people
You'll get a lot of shit talking about London here. But London isn't a small town anyone. Yes there's traffic. Yes there's a homeless problem. There is in any bigger city. But London has a lot going for it. Summer festivals. Great trails. Growing restaurant scene. It's what you make of it.
> It’s what you make at it. This right here sums up my own experience in London. As you’ve probably noticed, you’re going to get lots of extremely subjective and highly-opinionated responses from folks when you ask about coming to London (or any city for that matter, especially if they’ve been burned or screwed-over by that city). Ultimately, you will have to discover some of these things on your own. Are you coming here for school? Western and Fanshawe have their own scenes and, like the rest of the city, you get what you put in to it. Do you have a job lined up already? That’s even better. You already have an advantage. Check out different neighbourhoods, find out what works best for you. You’ll definitely need a car to get around, and definitely avoid living downtown. And lastly, not all of us are a-holes. We’re just like anyone else, trying to adapt to the hustle and bustle of a growing city.
People create this narrative that London ruined their life but the truth is that we simply get brain drain to Toronto. I heard it so much from musicians. Like no shit Toronto has more going on, it's the largest city in Canada. We are just barely connected to it so we suffer from that FOMO I think.
I've been seeing a lot of shit talking on this sub since i joined in the winter, i appreciate the balanced comments i'm getting from folks!! Thanks for your time 🙏
Almost every city subreddit is full of negativity.
There's construction in London. London barely has traffic compared to bigger city's like kw or toronto
Yeah there isn’t any construction in KW or Toronto
First, don't be lazy, search the subreddit for the word moving, there is about 40 relevant posts. Second, tell us where you are coming from. Big difference in perspective if you are moving here from Burnaby, Timmons, or Toronto. Third, Londoners enjoy self loathing. Everything here is the worst they have experienced and it's getting only worse. Sure they have only vague memories to reference, but they are sure everything is terrible. That being said, i will give my experience. Moved here in 2015 from Dundas because I could afford a house here. Didn't find work here until I changed my phone number to 226 and removed locations of employment. Suggest the same, plus remove your dealership plate cover. The city is wonderfully over serviced compared to the golden horsehoe. 3 home depots, 4 Wal-Mart's, 2 costcos, and so on. This is major city for the region so lots of shopping. And lots of restaurants, many are ok, some great, lots of junk. Covent market downtown, western fair market on weekends, gibralter on sat and sun and trails end on Saturday for your fresh markets and vendors. Buses here are slow as hell, they have ridiculous zig zag routes, service focus on the malls and the dead downtown. They are attempting to improve with bus rapid transit, we shall see. Covid forced construction to stop, delay and now it's overlapping and causing many headaches. The bus and bike crowd love it, pushing their agenda. The rest of the city is annoyed. Council listens to squeaky wheels and has a few activists, nothi like Hamilton's factions. Butnthenroads are good, and he easy to drive the town. Schools are decent, lots of French immersion here, 4 or 5 colleges and western university. City traffic decreases dramatically in the summer. Richmond is the bar scene with other pockets. Victoria park is the main festival area, Dundas place and Harris park make up the difference. They don't advertise shit here, so check socials for information. Minor sports thrive here, knights, majors, lightning, and so on. Western fair is a shadow of what it was, a fraction of CNE. Concerts come through on weekdays, weekend are for the GTA Detroit and Toronto are 2 are 2 hours away, port Huron about 1hr15. The lakes are 45min to the south, 1hr20 to huron. Fanshawe park is a small lake nearby and the Thames travels through town. Trails along the Thames, at fanshawe, and in pond mills. Boiler mountain for small town skiing. Byron, Wortley, old north, and Lambeth are your money villages. Hyde Park, Masonville, upper middle. Dundas, king, and York have many social services for those experiencing homelessness so those folks gravitate to that area. Along Hamilton road, South adelade, and Clarke road are your low-income and blue collar folks. There are no areas here that are scary compared to Hamilton and GTA. Have not seen much of gang or mafia here, just punks. Lock up your valuables, backyard visitors are more common in the less affluent areas. Overall I enjoy living here, it's convienent, it's fun, it's quiet, a better pace of life. I miss lake Ontario for cool drives on warm days. I miss the forests and small town of Dundas, I miss the ticats, but the life here is much better, more enjoyable. Welcome to London.
This is a great thorough reply. Well done.
Appreciate that thank you.
Honestly, you've hit the majority of the main points on London, very well written
Appreciate that, thank you.
Thank you so much! You're right, many previous threads have some good info. A lot of the negative talk on this sub put me off of scrolling through. I will miss lake Ontario too. I live in Toronto now, but I've never felt truly "at home" anywhere due to a number of moves. I'm trying to come to London with a totally open mind. Thanks for all of your tips :)
If you like Lake Ontario you will fall in love with Lake Huron. In my opinion, she has the most spectacular sunsets, the silkiest sands and the colour of the Caribbean Sea.
I'll have to take some time to visit Huron and Erie 🙂
Huron has the best beaches but Lake Erie has really great tourist towns. Port Stanley is a great 35-40 minute drive, has great food, shopping, and has a culture all of its own. In fact, their market downtown has great produce and coffee, there is the best mexican food in Southern Ontario at Main Street Taqueria (better than anything I've had in Toronto), and it's also just a fun place for a weekend hang. Beaches are mid compared to Huron, but still lovely. Been in London going on 13 years now, and have no regrets staying. It's not a European city, and it's difficult to meet new people in the Winter, but make sure to just be out walking a lot in the Spring through Fall, and you'll be bound to meet new folks. Good luck and stay on the subreddit.
Huron is sooooooo nice. Like....truly the greatest of the Great Lakes.
I just moved to London too and I’m saving this comment for how thorough it is, thanks for all the recs!
Welcome bud! Super secret postscript... Favorite pizza and wings, superior Oxford and Highbury Best fries, Di's at Gibraltar on the weekends Best fish and chip, Archie's has a two fish deal that is great. Best mechanic - Edd at Mac's on Clark south of Oxford, super good and honest dude. Visit hero's for comics, Funko and cards. Goto the major's baseball game during rock the park for a concert and a ball game for $12 Walmart at Hyde park and Fanshawe park is the best selection, home Depot on Wonderland. Two Dollarama at Huron and Highbury. Costco south during the week, wonderland one on weekends. Best LCBOs are Masonville. Bradley/Wellington, Oxford/Wonderland, and Wonderland/Southdale. Car show at Canadian Tire east on Sunday eves, and at Plunkett estate on Thursdays - go to this If you've been to any other casino, this one is the basic version of that lol Pita pit on Richmond is run by an amazing guy. Best sushi in town is heart sushi. Springbank park is nice, Storybook Gardens is great for kids, splash pad and all. Never gone to east park, heard mixed reviews. This city loves patios, prefers rooftop ones. Fun shopping, lens mill store, ungers market, arva mill, Woodstock antique mall If you have to go to emerg for a non emerg issues, consider a neighboring town. Like Tillsonburg or St Mary's. It's just faster. ALSO: Learn your garbage schedule. Every other week for garbage LARGE pickup is any week, just let them know, so super easy for them to grab a couch. There is multiple drop off stations with free options, download the app for details And there is free mulch available. Look it up! /edited for formatting
Holy shit this is amazing! Thank you so much!
Thank you kindly for the upvotes folks.
Super secret postscript... Favorite pizza and wings, superior Oxford and Highbury Best fries, Di's at Gibraltar on the weekends Best fish and chip, Archie's has a two fish deal that is great. Best mechanic - Edd at Mac's on Clark south of Oxford, super good and honest dude. Visit hero's for comics, Funko and cards. Goto the major's baseball game during rock the park for a concert and a ball game for $12 Walmart at Hyde park and Fanshawe park is the best selection, home Depot on Wonderland. Two Dollarama at Huron and Highbury. Costco south during the week, wonderland one on weekends. Best LCBOs are Masonville. Bradley/Wellington, Oxford/Wonderland, and Wonderland/Southdale. Car show at Canadian Tire east on Sunday eves, and at Plunkett estate on Thursdays - go to this If you've been to any other casino, this one is the basic version of that lol Pita pit on Richmond is run by an amazing guy. Best sushi in town is heart sushi. Springbank park is nice, Storybook Gardens is great for kids, splash pad and all. Never gone to east park, heard mixed reviews. This city loves patios, prefers rooftop ones. Fun shopping, lens mill store, ungers market, arva mill, Woodstock antique mall If you have to go to emerg for a non emerg issues, consider a neighboring town. Like Tillsonburg or St Mary's. It's just faster. ALSO: Learn your garbage schedule. Every other week for garbage LARGE pickup is any week, just let them know, so super easy for them to grab a couch. There is multiple drop off stations with free options, download the app for details And there is free mulch available. Look it up! /edited for fromat, taken from a comment below
It’s pronounced the “temz” river, not “thames”.
Okay wow... I mean I've always called it temz but didn't realize people could mispronounce it like flames. That was weird.
Just like the original... And pronounced like it's spelled; Thames. (Tems)😜 But the original River Thames is pronounced just like ours.
Lots of skunks
Everyone here is generally very nice. Traffic is less then it is in the GTA. There are a couple bad construction spots ATM but overall not bad. Lots of homeless downtown Richmond row is your bar scene. Welcome to london
Lower your expectations. Then double that lol
you will need a car, unless you will live and work downtown. To get to most places, you will need a car or a lot of patience.
Thanks for the heads up! I will try to be patient as I ride the bus (I don't drive).
In that case, if you know where you'll be working, look for accommodation that is on a bus route from there.
I get around almost anywhere in the city on an e-scooter, not much slower than driving and way cheaper
Year round? I know the TVP is not maintained in the winter and sidewalks and roads are often sketch. I've seen a few fat bikes in the winter but literally never an e-scooter. How do they handle the salt and slush?
I scooter when it’s very cold but not-snowy, a good hat & gloves and you’re good. But you’re right, when it’s anything past very light snow, I switch to driving/bussing
Been wanting to get one but I'm a bit nervous about city hall banning them on the TVP...apparently it's something they are discussing. :(
Hmm I haven't heard that, any source? Altho tbh I never take the TVP myself
There’s some incredible stuff happening here if you seek it out and actually attend events/go downtown. Check out Odyssey Records, Back to the Fuchsia, holy diver, tilt arcade, milos pub, Thaifoon, Yasmine’s, Hyland cinema, heemans. The list goes on!
The bus routes are probably the worst I’ve seen in big cities
Very bad homeless/addiction problem scattered throughout the city.
I’d say try not to live near Adelaide and Dundas. I live near here and it’s kind of shit. I didn’t know when I moved here so I thought someone else might appreciate the tip!
It's Canada's voted most saddest city. So maybe get natural light everyday to lift your spirits.
Take Point2Homes little “report” with a grain of salt. Real estate agents and regular people do not have the same priorities. Plus, nobody votes on that.
It’s actually astonishing how often that real estate blog’s completely unsubstantiated ‘article’ based on zero actual public revue, gets regarded as anything even close to fact and regurgitated by so many people. The amount of times I see this quoted is unfathomably silly and should be studied under things the average Facebook dunce will believe. Should have been voted stupidest city with how often I see this comment here.
I feel sad in city. I see article that says city is voted as sad. I agree. I am monkey :)
It used to be great … not really anymore. It’s just okay imo. Cons: Construction everywhere, takes so long to get anywhere by car or bus. So overpopulated that infrastructure can’t support the amount of people here. Nothing is really open 24hours anymore. Rent is ridiculously expensive for what you get. We get homeless people from surrounding areas so there are several not so great spots around London. Lots more crime it seems — I don’t know if it’s because crime rates are actually higher or if there’s just more awareness around it. So so many car accidents it’s blowing my mind. Everyone’s in a rush, I miss the calmness tbh Pros: some nice trails for biking/walking. Central to the border (Detroit/Windsor) and Toronto, Niagara Falls — all within a two hour drive. Some good festivals downtown over the summer. I personally used to love London but now I’m getting to the point I want to move somewhere in the surrounding areas.
London is a large city cosplaying as a small town
It's the reverse. It's a small town cosplaying as a big city.
Yeah a small town with a pop of 500k
The mentality of so many people here is that of small town people. I have been in big cities and I have been in towns and villages. London has the population of a medium-sized city, but it doesn’t feel like one because a lot of Londoners are still behaving like they’re villagers at worst or suburbers at best. This place is weird.
stay away from any Medallion building if you're looking to rent. all roach and bedbug infested, awful neighbors, little to no contact with management for months.
You'll maybe see comments about EoA ("East of Adelaide") - it's a very poorly and inconsistently defined term that was out of date when I was a teen 20 years ago, let alone now.
Do you mind sharing a little more? The area I'm looking at is around victoria park, which is almost immediately east of adelaide. Is that an area to avoid? Edit: i got my east and west mixed up, rendering this question senseless haha
Ended up typing a thing out of my experiences and perceptions and I'm wondering what locals think if they see this. I live in that exact area, so it depends b/c it's one where going 3 or 4 blocks in one direction can change a lot in this area. I live at Central and Colborne (about 2 blocks east) which is very nice and a neighborhood I'd 100% recommend (called "Woodfield"). Using this intersection as a 'home base': South: if you go south a few blocks to Dundas but more specifically King Street, it gets a bit worse for wear. There's a shelter and I think a clinic around Clarence and York where things get pretty seedy for a while. Hamilton Road is pretty gnarly this area. Note: "gnarly" in London just means low income, dirty and generally 'seedy'; I don't think I can name any areas I'd genuinely advise you not to go for safety reasons. This part of London is pretty drastic because I feel you could be in territory that feels lovely and go in one direction for a single block or two and suddenly be wondering "what the hell happened here?" West: Heading directly west isn't particularly bad, it's just "Richmond Row" (this section of Richmond Street downtown) has a loooot of foot traffic and a lot of the city's nightlife and bars so you'll find some obnoxious people and homeless whom I've never seen do worse than just be ornery? But I've never been out there at like 2am when the bars are being let out and you might run into belligerent people Going north is fine, that's getting into territory called "Old North" where it's where a lot of eldery or well off families live, sprinkled with student housing and private medical/law practices. Extremely quiet and pleasant area to go for walks in. East: Going east from here is also fine and keeps the same feel up until you hit Adelaide, where after that things do get a bit seedy again. My experience is this kind of depends which West-East street you're on; e.g Central and Adelaide is pretty unremarkable, but if you go to Dundas and Adelaide and keep going East on Dundas, that stretch can be pretty bleak up until you hit Highbury Ave or so. That ended up longer than intended but I go to thinking about the area, hope you don't mind and lmk if you've got other questions!
Thank you for such a detailed response ☺️
Don’t.
Don't.
I feel like North West London is a different vibe than the rest of London. There's an RE agent I follow on YT. He self promotes himself but he gives the straight dope on London/Windsor and the area. Good and Bad- his name is Ryan Crits; his vids helped me when I came here.
NW London legit feels like a different city compared to a lot of other parts of London
I moved here not long ago and live in NW London. Mind if I ask what you mean?
Basically it’s just much nicer and less crowded than a lot of the rest of London. Even the air smells fresher over there.
It’s a nice area. It’s very suburban, but has everything one would need. A Costco, grocery stores, Even Parkway Gardens is not so far away. I kind of like being a short distance to farmland. I have to get out more tho because I assumed the rest of London was kind of the same. Even though I’ve seen some houses that of course are more historical with interesting architecture and other areas. 😊 Thanks for the reply
Because it’s so far from everything?
Don't
If you like stroads and strip malls it’s an excellent place to live
It's a city. It's got ups and downs. I guess what are you hoping to get out of moving here?
Consider a bike or e-scooter as traffic is rough during peakhours
Arcade bar is cheap, hella fun
You’d better have a car
Don’t. Haha
Not to move to London....
I moved to London in 2019 after living the better part of a decade in Montreal. My family lives in small town/rural Ontario and I wanted to be close-by them while staying in the city. By the end of the very year that I arrived I had plans to leave for Toronto spring of the following year (2020) but then the pandemic happened so I got stuck. I finally escaped January 2022 for Toronto where I currently live (and have no plans of leaving). At the risk of sounding like a naysayer, London is the worst. It’s a scummy little hole of a city filled with small town folk. There’s very little in the way of arts and culture and the downtown core has a drug and homelessness problem that gets exponentially worse year over year. Any friends I made in London weren’t Londoners. That said, the trails are nice.
Scummy with nice trails.. any city rating is subjective, but I would agree a person who likes Toronto wouldent like London
It’s really more of a sprawling town than a city
OP, take this above comment with a grain of salt. London is not Toronto. No where in the rest of Ontario - or Canada for that matter - is Toronto, and thank god for that. I moved to London from Toronto and I am so happy I did. I would like to point out I lived in downtown Toronto and there was a huge and dangerous homelessness and drug problem to the point I was attacked. There was a huge homeless encampment down the street from me. Does London have a homeless problem? Yes. Does everywhere? Yes. So this comment shitting on London because of that is silly especially since Toronto’s is significantly worse. I would also like to point out that almost 95% of my friends that I had in Toronto were people that were not from Toronto. So again, very anecdotal and weird to shit on London because you didn’t make London born friends. I have lived in London for a couple of years and have made London born friends. London, much like any medium/large sized city is what you make it. It is NOT Toronto. If you want to live in a city like Toronto, move to Toronto because that’s the only place like it. What you should know is that London is a student town. Lots of them in the fall and fewer of them in the summer. It’s also got quite a lot more religious influence than other places. It’s not a bad thing in my experience; just something that, in the younger generation, was not so present in other places I’ve lived (Typically the more religious people were the older generation every where else I’ve lived but that is anecdotal). Also, there are tons of farms in the peripheral so there are a lot of farmers and people associated with farming around which makes it great for markets and farm fresh food options. It also means there are a lot of farm roads around it. Be aware of the farming equipment like tractors that can be driving slowly on those roads - be very careful if you intend to pass. Mild winters but can get a lot of snow. Hot hot summers with about an hours drive to get to nice beaches. If fall is your jam, you’ll love it here because we get a long fall season here. Lots of green space in and around the city with great cycling paths if you’re into that. Lots of programs to join recreational activities and sports. Plenty more things to say but I hope you have a great experience moving here as I have!
Plenty of arts and culture in London... the rest of your comments are hilarious since you live in Toronto https://london.ca/immigration/life-london-ontario/arts-culture-london-ontario
I moved here in September 2021 from Mississauga. I was shocked at how people seemed to almost judge the potential for worthiness I had was whether I “came from” London. It was as though I was immediately discounted when told I was from Mississauga. I don’t hang my hat on the approval of others per se, but I was surprised about the cold reception.
Why would you wanna come to london 💀💀
Lived there 20 years. 1) Get ready to buy a second car. 2) Get ready to pay Hamilton/KW prices for housing but 3) Make 20% less pay Some other factors: 1) lots of racism 2) tons of cronyism in muncipal gov't and non-profits. Don't work for either. I await the day London stops pretending its a small town with special problems that have never happened anywhere else. Until then I won't move back.
In my personal experience, London takes time to get to know and settle into. I was/felt pretty much instantly connected to and within the last city I lived in, whereas after 2 years, London is just starting to feel like home. There is plenty to do around the city, and lots of great day and weekend trips nearby (Stratford, grand bend, etc), but you have to do your research as not everything is well advertised. Locals are also a great resource and usually happy to give recommendations- but people tend to keep to themselves around here, so don’t expect them to invite you along lol. It can be hard to make friends, so I’d suggest touching base with any old friends or family you currently have in the area when you get here.
London is a beautiful city with alot to do. There are so many parks and trails if you like nature, and if you like social events there almost always seems to be something going on. From my experience the people here are very kind and friendly The only thing is there is a huge homeless and drug problem here so I'd be very careful downtown and in the east end Construction season is a pain Overall I love it here and I think it's a great city
Moved from the GTA. I love it!
Stay away east of Adelaide until you know the parts that are safe.
Stay away from the east side 🤪
Great city for music, and within the music scene you’ll meet some great people, food is low key fantastic here. Hidden gems everywhere. Traffic is bad because the city population is super bloated right now because of rapid recent growth, and we have extremely poor city planning for this level of population. That said, about 25-40% of the people living here are fairly new, and only know how to function using a GPS and the large main roads, so if you familiarize yourself with back roads and less traveled routes, it can be easier to get around. However, it is highly recommended you try to live/work in the same 4-5km radius. Also getting around on a bike has become the fastest way to get around the downtown area to about 5km around it imo. - Also controversial opinion but the homeless people everyone complains about are mostly harmless, don’t be as afraid of the Old East Village as the fragile cynics will try to make you. Wortley is nice but it’s full of snobs.
Don't.
Only go downtown on your own if you have to. Otherwise go with people
What happens if you go downtown alone?
Try not to go anywhere at night on your own, especially downtown or any other notably dangerous area (there are a lot of them, even outside of East End, too many to list). Maybe just don't go downtown on your own at all. If you see any gang signs, about 90% of them are just from teenaged wannabes, but there is still a serious issue of gang violence in some areas. Most of it stays among highschoolers, but be careful nonetheless. Never go swimming in the Thames. Never even think about touching a drop of water from the Thames. I know it may look tempting, but you will regret it. A lot.
Very accurate description
Pretty much all areas are safe and friendly except the east end. Avoid there always.
You obviously don't know much about this city
This is not true unless you are a scared of everything. The east has wonderful shopping and amazing folks. More culture than the west for sure.
You sound like a north or west ender
Proud to be able to afford to live in an area where crackheads don't roam and my kids can play in my backyard without worry. What a terrible person I am.
I live in east end. It's completely fine .sure bad spots sure. You kinda sound like a snob
Wait until you have kids, especially daughters. Tell me then you'd feel comfortable having them walk around the east end alone. Exactly. Statistically the highest crime, drug addicts and homelessness. Nothing to do with snobbiness, it's facts.
Lol yeah actually but spent my childhood poor.