Moving to Winnipeg: Your Gateway to the West Relocation Guide

Located in the center of Canada and North America, Winnipeg is an attractive destination with rich history and cultural diversity. Manitoba’s capital city offers one of the best collections of late 20^th century buildings in North America. Also, the hundreds of lakes, numerous rivers, beautiful forests and picturesque trails present endless opportunities for outdoor activities throughout the entire year.

If you’re planning on relocating to Winnipeg, this moving guide will help you get a taste of this truly remarkable city.

Geography And Climate

Winnipeg is the largest city and the capital of the Canadian province of Manitoba. It is situated close to the longitudinal center of North America – at the confluence of the two major rivers – The Red River and The Assiniboine River. Being Canada’s seventh-largest city (663,617 people), Winnipeg represents 54.9% of the entire Manitoba population – the highest concentration in one city in any province in Canada.

The city is located on the edge of the Canadian Prairies and therefore has a humid continental climate with four distinct seasons. Summers are warm with numerous thunderstorms (an average of 27 per season). The highest temperature ever recorded in the city was on July 11, 1936 – 42.2 °C (108 °F). Winters are cold, dry and long, with an average low temperature of −20.2 °C (−4.4 °F). Due to the substantial snowfall and the flat topography (the city lies at the bottom of the Red River Valley), Winnipeg often suffers from severe flooding.

All seasons are characterized by an abundance of sunshine. On the longest day of the year (June 21), the city receives no less than 16 hours and 21 minutes of daylight.

You can follow the weather in Winnipeg on the following website.

Economy

Winnipeg is an economic center and boasts diversified economy – finance, manufacturing, transportation, government and tourism. In 2013, the city’s economy was ranked in fourth place (behind Toronto, Calgary and Regina) in a national survey of 25 city economies.

Government and government-funded institutions are some of the largest employers in Winnipeg. Tourism is another major economic factor – the sector employs more than 39,000 residents (the third-largest employer). In 2012, the city was visited by 3.5 million individuals: 2,612,000 from Manitoba (74%) , 672,000 from the rest of Canada (19%), 164,000 from the US (5%) and 70,000 from overseas (2%). The total visitor spending for that year was estimated at $635 million.

Also, Winnipeg is the home of the Royal Canadian Mint. Established in 1976, the plant produces all the coins currently in circulation in Canada. Interestingly, since its opening, the facility has also minted more than 55 billion coins for more than 75 countries around the world.

Winnipeg Neighborhoods

The city of Winnipeg consists of 236 neighborhoods. The most notable of them are:

• Downtown Winnipeg – it’s the financial and economic core of the city. More than 72,000 workers and 40,000 students at universities and colleges make this neighborhood the fastest-growing high-income one in the city.
• Exchange District – situated in the heart of Winnipeg, this National Historic Site has a spectacular collection of terracotta and cut-stone architecture, unrivalled in all of North America.. It is the original commercial and cultural center in the city. Today it offers a great variety of shopping and cultural opportunities.
• Osborne Village – in 2012, the Canadian Institute of Planners selected Osborne Village as “Canada’s Greatest Neighborhood”. It’s a hugely popular chic urban district with early 1900s architecture that consists of more than 175 unique shops, restaurants and businesses. It is the most densely populated neighborhood in the city where established dance studios and music venues fuel Winnipeg’s creativity.
• St. Boniface – founded in 1818 by Bishop Provencher, St. Boniface is home to one of the largest francophone communities west of the Great Lakes. The neighborhood offers more than 35 designated historical sites and is the birthplace of Louis Riel – the Metis leader who founded Manitoba.

You can learn more about Winnipeg’s exciting neighborhoods here.

Main Sights And Attractions

The Forks

With more than four million visitors each year, The Forks is the favorite tourist destination in Winnipeg. Designated a National Historic Site of Canada, for 6000 years it’s been the meeting place for early Aboriginal peoples, and later for European fur traders, Metis buffalo hunters, Scottish settlers and thousands of immigrants.

Today the 56-acre site is a multiple award winning area that offers something for everyone: parks, gardens, promenades, restaurants, shops and a wide range of attractions.

Museums

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  Manitoba Museum – it is the largest museum in the city and focuses on human and natural heritage. Its showcase piece is a full-size replica of the famous merchant ship Nonsuch.

• Manitoba Children’s Museum – it is a non-profit museum situated at The Forks. It consists of twelve permanent galleries that provide interactive learning experiences through the power of imagination and self-discovery.
• Canadian Museum For Human Rights – it is the first national museum to be built in 50 years and the first museum solely dedicated to the evolution, celebration and future of human rights.
• Western Canada Aviation Museum – it is the second largest aviation museum in Canada. Housed in an original Trans-Canada Air Lines hanger from the 1930s, the Aviation Museum narrates the history of aviation in Winnipeg and Canada through displays of transport, private, military and commercial aircraft.

Festivals

• Folklorama – it is the largest and longest-running multicultural festival in the world. Over 40 pavilions throughout the city present the cultural and ethnic diversity of people from different countries and regions. The event is held each August and runs for about two weeks.
• Festival du Voyageur (Festival of the Traveler) – it is the largest winter festival in Western Canada and is held each year at Winnipeg’s French Quarter – Saint-Boniface. Canada’s fur trading past and unique French heritage and culture are celebrated at this 10-day event.

Moving to Winnipeg

Professional help

When you’re relocating to Winnipeg, you’re encouraged to use the services of a licensed and trustworthy moving company.

Accessibility

Winnipeg can be easily accessed by air, road or rail.

• By air: Winnipeg James Armstrong Richardson International Airport handles 3.5 million passengers annually and is serviced by major and local carriers, including Air Canada, Delta and United Airlines.
• By road: The city is an easy destination and only one hour north of the U.S. border crossing at North Dakota.
• By rail: The city of Winnipeg is serviced by Via Rail, Canadian National Railway (CN), Canadian Pacific Railway (CP), Burlington Northern Santa Fe Manitoba and Central Manitoba Railway (CEMR).

Interesting Facts About Winnipeg

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  In 1914, the Canadian veterinarian Lt. Harry Colebourn purchased a small female bear cub in Ontario, named her Winnipeg (Winnie) after his hometown and took her to England as his regiment’s mascot. He left the black bear at the London Zoo before he was sent to France. A. A. Milne’s son Christopher Robin regularly visited the zoo and loved Winnie’s playfulness and gentleness so much that he changed the name of his own bear from “Edward Bear” to “Winnie”. Later on, this event provided the inspiration for his father’s stories about Winnie The Pooh.

• Sir William Stephenson – the Second World War’s most famous spy – was born and raised in Winnipeg. Also known as Intrepid, he served as the inspiration for Ian Felming’s 007 James Bond.
• Canada’s Royal Winnipeg Ballet is the oldest dance company in Canada. The Queen of England granted the “Royal” title in 1953 – the first such distinction in the world.
• The Winnipeg Art Gallery possesses the largest public collection of contemporary Inuit art in the world, including 11,000 works of sculpture, prints, drawings and textiles.
• The Prairie Theater Exchange is the only live theater in the world that is located in a shopping center.
• The Pan American Games, second in scale only to the Summer Olympics, have been held twice in Canada (1967 and 1999) and both times have been in Winnipeg.
• The 911 Emergency phone number was first developed in Winnipeg.
• The first national Aboriginal television network in the world (Aboriginal Peoples Television Network) is headquartered in Winnipeg.

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  More than a 100 languages are spoken in Winnipeg. 99% of Winnipeggers are fluent English speakers, 88% speak only English and 0.1% speak only Canada’s other official language – French.

• The largest remaining mature urban elm forest in North America is located in Winnipeg.
• The publishing giant Harlequin Romance was founded in 1949 in Winnipeg. Today, this publishing empire reaches 94 international markets and its books have been printed in more than 25 languages.

Useful information:

• The City of Winnipeg
• The Official Website of Tourism Winnipeg
• 101 Things To Do In Winnipeg
• The University of Winnipeg
• Maps of Winnipeg