Vancouver

Vancouver is the most naturally dramatic city in North America — mountain-backed, ocean-fronted, with Stanley Park's 1,000 acres of old-growth forest inside the city limits. It is also one of the most expensive cities in the world to live in, though visiting is more forgiving. The food scene reflects a massive Asian-Canadian population: the best dim sum outside Hong Kong, Japanese ramen at a level that surprises Japanese visitors, and a Punjabi-influenced South Asian community in Surrey that produces outstanding food. Skiing and snowboarding at Whistler are 1.5 hours north. The city itself has Grouse Mountain and Cypress Mountain for day skiing within 30–60 minutes. Stanley Park, the Seawall, and the North Shore mountains are the outdoor infrastructure that makes the city livable and the reason people who visit once spend years figuring out how to move here.