Pros and Cons of Living in Salmon Arm, BC

Are you considering moving to Salmon Arm and are unsure if it is the right fit for you? Check out our Top 5 Pros and Cons of living in Salmon Arm, BC!

PROS:

One of the best things about living in Salmon Arm when you relocate here from a larger city is that there is almost no traffic here. If you are tired of sitting in traffic and commuting to work everyday, when you move here you will be so relieved to not have to deal with traffic anymore! Most destinations within the city of Salmon Arm take about 5 minutes to drive to, keep in mind that if you relocate to one of the surrounding areas you will be a further drive from the city and may experience traffic if there is highway construction.

The housing is more affordable here compared to larger cities, especially the lower mainland. You are able to get way more for your money here and it is still relatively affordable compared to the Okanagan.

The community in Salmon Arm is very friendly and supportive and there is always so much going on. We love going to different events in the city and you usually see the same people so you get to know people pretty easily here. We love our local businesses and the community here really supports one another.

It is absolutely beautiful here, we are in awe everyday with the stunning landscape of Salmon Arm and there are so many activities to enjoy out in the beautiful outdoors.

Salmon Arm is a very safe city and most crime here is related to theft/vandalism and not major crimes such as assault. In 2019, Salmon Arm was ranked the best place to live in BC and 6th best place to live in the entire country! (McLeans Magazine)

CONS:

There is a lack of nightlife and amenities here, we obviously have some great restaurants and things to do, however it is a small city so there are not a lot of options or always new things to try. Plus, it seems like most restaurants do close early around here and most people don’t go out after dark.

Transportation in the city is okay but certain bus routes only run once a week, and the latest bus is around 8:30PM so if you plan to live here and not have a vehicle it can be difficult. We have taxi services, but no ride share. For an airport, the closest one is a little over an hour away (Kelowna International Airport), they offer great flights but a lot of international destinations will require a layover in either Calgary or Vancouver and in the winter you can expect the flights from Kelowna Airport to be delayed often. So pro tip: Take your connecting flight the night before and stay a night in the connecting city.

The lack of diversity was something we considered when relocating to Salmon Arm. Armin is Iranian and grew up with constant access to Persian restaurants and grocery stores, plus just always being around people from the same culture who spoke his first language, Farsi. We love eating different ethnic foods like Japanese, Persian, and Korean and while you may find some of those restaurants here there is definitely a lack of options compared to diverse cities.

The extreme weather can be difficult when living here, however it seems like everywhere is getting more and more extreme weather cases with climate change. Be prepared for some -30°C days here in the winter and some forest fire smokey skies in the summer.

Our last con is not something that will affect your daily life while living here, but it is the waste treatment smell (AKA the poop plant as known by locals). The treatment plant is very close to downtown so this is something that you can smell while just out for a nice stroll on one of the bird sanctuary trails or walking downtown on a nice summer day. Some people are not bothered by this at all, but if you are - make sure you are not moving to a home right next to it!

We hope this helps, please feel free to reach out to us with any questions!