Vancouver

Vancouver is a Pacific coast city in western Canada, hemmed in by mountains and ocean, with a housing market and outdoor lifestyle that shape the culture more than any single industry. It's smaller and greener than Toronto, closer in spirit to Seattle than to eastern Canadian cities, with a large Asian population, particularly Chinese and South Asian, that has shaped the city's food and business scene. Rain defines much of the year here, October through April sees frequent overcast days.

Fresh seafood, particularly spot prawns and salmon, is the local specialty, alongside a strong Asian food scene spanning Hong Kong-style dim sum to Japanese izakayas. The city has one of Canada's most visible Chinatown districts, dating to the 1880s. Locals dress for function over fashion here, expect Gore-Tex and hiking boots even downtown, given how often it rains.