Emigrating to Calgary
Calgary, known as the ‘Heart of the New West’ is the largest city in the Canadian province of Alberta. Home to around one million people, Calgary is a vibrant, cosmopolitan city which combines culture, an outdoor lifestyle and a western heritage to make it a great place in which to live. It’s proximity to the Canadian Rockies and Banff National Park mean that when you move to Calgary you’ll be able to get out of the city and enjoy the fresh country air at any time during the year.
Living in Calgary
When you first move to Calgary you’ll probably want to rent a property initially so you can find your feet and decide on which area is right for you. When you’re looking for a rental property you should consider price, neighbourhood, housing type, housing condition, the size of your family, distance to work and schools and proximity to services you might need.
Keeping all this in mind, some of the areas you might consider living in are:
- Hamptons / Edgemont – located in northwest Calgary, this area is around 25kms from downtown. Houses here are generally upscale, executive and non-gated single family homes and townhouse condominiums.
- Coventry Hills / Harvest Hills – also northwest of the city, these suburbs are around the same distance from downtown Calgary with similar housing but prices are more mid-range.
- Dalhousie / Varsity / Scenic Acres – still in the northwest but only around 16km from downtown, properties in these areas range from basic to deluxe single family homes to townhouse condominiums, with a limited selection of apartments.
- Downtown – if you’d prefer to be amongst the action you can expect to find apartments and townhouse condominiums ranging from the basic to the deluxe here.
- Mount Royal / Elbow Park / Bel Aire – only around 5-10 minutes commuting time to downtown Calgary, these areas are in the southwest of the city. Properties are mainly single family homes, with limited townhouse and apartment condominiums.
- Bonavista / Bonaventure / Willow Park – another popular southwest area, these suburbs are about 18km from downtown. Properties are mainly basic to executive level, non-gated, single family homes with limited numbers of townhouse condominiums.
If you plan to rent a property you will be expected to pay at least your first and last months’ rent prior to moving in. Utilities are not generally included in your rental contract. Once you’ve identified a property you like you will need to complete a preliminary application. Check with your estate agent as to the documents you’ll need to support this.
Getting around the city
If you decide to have your own car when you move to Calgary you’ll find the grid-like road system makes driving pretty easy – apart from the fact that you’ll need to remember to drive on the right-hand side of the road!
If you have an International Driving Permit you are allowed to drive using this for up to a year after entering the country. However, this licence won’t entitle you to get car insurance, which is a legal requirement of driving in Alberta. If you have Landed Immigrant status or a work permit you are permitted to use your existing driver’s licence for three months and then you must apply for an Alberta licence. Go to your nearest licensing/registration depot to apply for it.
If you’d prefer to make use of public transport then you shouldn’t have any problems. Calgary has a free, above-ground train called the Light Rail Transit (also known as the C-Train) which covers the whole city. An extensive bus system, called the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT), operates on regular roads around the city and has transit priority at all traffic signals. In addition, there is also a Park'n'Ride for transit customers who wish to park their cars at C-Train stations or mainline bus stations.