Kitsilano

Kitsilano — Kits to locals — is the stretch of West-Side Vancouver between Burrard Street and Alma, bordered on the north by English Bay. It started as Vancouver's hippie neighbourhood in the 1960s (Greenpeace was founded here) and has since gentrified into the city's yoga-and-cold-brew core. The joke is that you can't walk a block on West 4th Avenue without passing a Lululemon or a stroller.

What makes Kits special is the combination most neighbourhoods don't have: beach access, genuinely walkable main streets (4th and Broadway), good public schools, and proximity to Jericho and Spanish Banks on the west. Character houses from the early 1900s line the residential streets and have almost all been turned into two- or three-suite walk-ups, which is how the neighbourhood still has a mix of income levels despite the real estate prices.

Rent is higher than East Van but lower than downtown. A one-bedroom in a Kits character house runs around $2,200–2,800, and a basement suite can sometimes be found for $1,600. The catch for newcomers: west of Burrard, transit is weaker — you'll need to walk 10 minutes to the nearest frequent bus. The Broadway Subway Project will change this when the Millennium Line extension opens.