Vancouver and Montreal among top 25 cities in the world

by Rob Peters | June 9, 2008 at 02:51 pm

7566 views | 9 Recommendations | 43 comments

Vancouver is the 8th most 'liveable' city in the world, according to international rankings put out by London-based Monocle magazine. Montreal was the only other Canadian city to make the cut, coming in at 16. Honolulu, Minneapolis and Portland were the only American cities to make the top 25.

Vancouver and Montreal are the only Canadian entries in a new list of the world's 25 most livable cities.

London-based Monocle magazine, a project of Canadian-born style columnist and jet-setter Tyler Brûlé, published the list this month.

Vancouver placed eighth - higher than any other North American city - while Montreal finished 16th on the list. Toronto didn't make the cut; nor did Winnipeg, where Mr. Brûlé was born.

Monocle lauded Vancouver for its role in fighting climate change, increasing building density and cracking down on drug use in preparation for the 2010 Olympics. Vancouver lost marks for its high crime rate, but jumped seven spots after placing 15th in 2007.

The magazine called Montreal "Canada's cultural capital." The city was credited for its strong arts community, booming gaming and aerospace industries and extensive network of free wireless Internet. It lost marks for its strained health-care system, poor recycling facilities and growing income disparity.

Mr. Brûlé, who once described the only mention of Canada in Monocle's first issue as "a dig about Calgary," wrote neither synopsis.

Monocle named Copenhagen the most livable city, on the strength of its green space and "sense of humour" - Mr. Brûlé wrote that synopsis. Munich, Tokyo, Zurich and Helsinki rounded out the top five.

Only three U.S. cities (Honolulu, Minneapolis and Portland) made the list, which also included 14 from Europe, three from Japan, two from Australia, and one, Singapore, from Southeast Asia. High-profile cities such as London, Rome and New York were not mentioned by the magazine, which looked at smaller, user-friendly cities with vibrant arts scenes, plenty of parks and a friendly face.

A similar livability study published by The Economist last summer awarded Vancouver first place, while Toronto - snubbed by Monocle - placed fifth out of 123 cities worldwide.

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Rhonda J Mangus

flagged this story as Good Stuff

at 15:17 on June 9th, 2008

Rob Peters, I like this story. It's good stuff.

Aaron78

at 03:38 on June 11th, 2008

Copenhagen gets my vote - but then I do live here!

Aaron78 has contributed a photo to this story.

munyui

at 06:51 on June 11th, 2008

This is the view across Harrison Lake in the Fraser Valley of British Columbia. Harrison Lake is located an hour or so east of Vancouver.

munyui has contributed a photo to this story.

DCI Photography

at 06:56 on June 11th, 2008

Victoria harbour from the quayside.
Photographed on one of those near perfect days on Vancouver Island.
Often cited as one of the top places in Canada to spend retirement, it has a vibrant artistic community, many of which can be seen on a walk along the harbour.
One of my favorite places in the World to visit.

DCI Photography has contributed a photo to this story.

Shirla

at 10:43 on June 11th, 2008

I could definitely live in Honolulu!

Beat 【ツ】

at 11:01 on June 11th, 2008

Long exposure of the "Urania" observatory in the center of Zurich, Switzerland.

Beat 【ツ】 has contributed a photo to this story.

Cranker

at 11:55 on June 11th, 2008

This City got everything: Beautiful Mountains in the background, a nice Lake in the middle and and a city with relaxing cafes and nice stores.

Cranker has contributed a photo to this story.

Stéphane Calvet

at 14:35 on June 11th, 2008

Bluesmile:)

at 14:47 on June 11th, 2008

Minneapolis is without a doubt a great city.

Bluesmile:) has contributed a photo to this story.

jmagnusphoto

at 14:59 on June 11th, 2008

Minneapolis and St Paul Minnesota, the Twin Cities, have extensive art and cultural centers and thriving economies. They are frequently listed among the best places to live and visit. In recent years, the are perhpas best known for the Mall of America, the largest shopping mall in the United States, and the second largest in the world.

This photo was taken along the Mississippi River and show St Paul in the foreground with Minneapolis in the background.

jmagnusphoto has contributed a photo to this story.

Spaceriot

at 16:16 on June 11th, 2008

A colorful interpretation of early spring leaves at the northern end of the line of five lakes running through central Copenhagen.

Spaceriot has contributed a photo to this story.

Lou Musacchio

at 17:04 on June 11th, 2008

Montreal is just a great cosmopolitan city. It has a vibrant nightlife and magnificent scenics. The city is alive all summer with festivals celebrating all cultures and and lifestyles.
Not to be outdone the winter time also has its' share of events both indoor and out as well as the venerable Montreal Canadiens hockey club to keep all its' citizens entertained.

Lou Musacchio has contributed a photo to this story.

debashis_pradhan

at 17:24 on June 11th, 2008

This was my 2nd time to Montreal. I simply love the city !!

debashis_pradhan has contributed a photo to this story.

LeezeK

at 17:31 on June 11th, 2008

Well on the early Sunday morning that I took these pictures, I grabbed my three kids and headed to Old Montreal around 6am ... to me thats the best time - there are no distractions and you can really take in the all beauty! The four (one in a stroller) roamed the streets for almost three hours, chatting and laughing, and of course taking a lot of pictures! Our journey ended with hot chocolate (coffee for me) ... it was a great morning ~ from beginning to end!

LeezeK has contributed a photo to this story.

chicagodom

at 17:34 on June 11th, 2008

We spent New Year's weekend in Montreal back in 2001. Absolutely wonderful town, and Old Montreal, which is what you see here, is not to be missed!

chicagodom has contributed a photo to this story.

ncbeets

at 18:58 on June 11th, 2008

I love Montréal

ncbeets has contributed a photo to this story.

Pooneh!

at 02:51 on June 12th, 2008

My photo was taken in Rome (or Vatican City, should I say). But yes, all of the architecture and great food, I personally fell in love with that city.

Pooneh! has contributed a photo to this story.

Geovani Αλέξανδρος (Aleksandr)

at 04:12 on June 12th, 2008

This photo was taken at about 11:00pm, it was a foggy night in Los Angeles, and my favorite city spot... "Little Tokyo"

Aleksandr.

Geovani Αλέξανδρος (Aleksandr) has contributed a photo to this story.

Nyctea67

at 21:22 on June 12th, 2008

[ about my photo ]

"Killer Street" - Aoyama Shibuya Tokyo Japan

This is the street where is one of gracefully places of Tokyo.

Contrary to unsettlingly name of the street there is very clean and calm atmosphere in comparison with the chaos around the Shibuya-station, and there is the living place for wealthy people, headoffice for small business in apartment buildings, some of embassies.

Nyctea67 has contributed a photo to this story.

airlambo23

at 04:28 on June 12th, 2008

City where you can still leave your car running while you nip into 7/11.

airlambo23 has contributed a photo to this story.

L'EspoirEmeraude

at 05:32 on June 12th, 2008

Not only does Minneapolis possess all of the varieties and delightful pleasures of city life, but the aesthetic impact of the skyline (especially by night) is absolutely breathtaking.

L'EspoirEmeraude has contributed a photo to this story.

meghavarshini

at 06:13 on June 12th, 2008

meghavarshini has contributed a photo to this story.

NP_1_742618

at 07:54 on June 12th, 2008

Sunset on Stanley Park, looking West towards the Lions Gate Bridge.
Flickr Aphex Twin http://www.flickr.com/photos/nsaunier/
License CC 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/deed.en)

NP_1_742618 has contributed a photo to this story.

blacktryst

flagged this story as Good Stuff

at 09:40 on June 12th, 2008

Rob Peters, I like this story. It's good stuff.

However, the criteria on the ranking of the cities are not specific enough.

Pyrrhos

at 10:24 on June 12th, 2008

The Minneapolis City Courthouse has always been one of my favorite buildings. I photograph it often from every angle possible.

Pyrrhos has contributed a photo to this story.

MrMass

at 11:11 on June 12th, 2008

What can i say Montreal i find is an amazing place for the mix of cultures and also the mix of history which this beautiful part of Canada Holds.

Old & New can work together to make some beautiful and mysterious at the same time. Enjoy!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/matteobruzzone

MrMass has contributed a photo to this story.

wertica_

at 11:26 on June 12th, 2008

This is a shot of the side of the parlament building in Helsinki.

wertica_ has contributed a photo to this story.

KoolJoe

at 11:48 on June 12th, 2008

Singapore is quite a colorful place having a multicultutral society with people living in peace. If you are a tourist in Singapore you will quickly play by the rules which are all for good reasons although it may sound like too strict, it does contribute to the development and stability of Singapore. Majoirty of people in Singapore live in high rise appartments. Overall its a nice place to live and work in.

KoolJoe has contributed a photo to this story.

zen-gaylife

at 16:34 on June 12th, 2008

This photo shows a quiet corner of Place d'Youville in Old Montreal. Locals and tourists alike flock to the old city to soak up the early nineteenth century atmosphere.

zen-gaylife has contributed a photo to this story.

ataq411

at 18:39 on June 12th, 2008

I took this photo from a room of Park Hotel Tokyo, Shoidome, Tokyo, Japan on June 6 2008. I wanted to take photos of Tokyo Tower. Night images were also beautiful.

ataq411 has contributed a photo to this story.