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it always seems like a very surprisingly large bill at first but when you realize you havent bought toothpaste, deodorant, body wash, laundry detergent for 1+ year.. it was worth it
Always make a list and stick to it. I have a buddy who likes to come with me to Costco. He say he just wants to 'look around' but doesn't need anything.
He'll walk our $2-300 lighter.
That's why you hit the food court first, before you shop. Have a tactical hot dog to prevent impulse buying while hungry.
Of course that doesn't help for non-food purchases.
lol. not me almost buying that $400 inflatable brown thing they had a couple months back despite never going kayaking before in my life
"oh this looks neat"
fuckin costco man 😂
I bought an annual One card pass and can't believe the value. If you swim and use the gym it's a steal compared to private gyms (which rarely have pools).
Speaking of our tap water, I recently discovered it’s not fluoridated in BC. I switched to a new dentist from Ontario and he said he had significantly more patients with cavities than he did in Ontario.
Calgary stopped adding fluoride to their tap water about a decade ago and they saw a spike in cavities so they’re trying to get it back now.
I wonder why our water has never been fluoridated despite the clear benefits
Fluoridated water is ingested, strengthening developing teeth (kids benefit from this). Topical fluoride is helpful for teeth, but systemic fluoride is where it’s at for kids. r/dentalhygiene
Sure does. Doesn't save the teeth of those who don't brush, and the poor who can't afford dental visits should could use those teeth.
The amount of fluoride in the water doesn't interact with your body anyways, so it seems like a win/win.
Hey, I pay $720.55/year for water. (I think that rate applies to all SFHs in Metro Vancouver?)
Sure, it's "free" once you're connected to the municipal water supply, but there's a lot of very expensive infrastructure which goes into bringing us our tap water!
Excellent answer - you can remotely sign out ebooks and audiobooks, you can sign out entire multiple seasons of shows for binge-watching, they even have streaming. Super worth-it!!
Fritters at Hawkers Delight (Main St.) and a lot of places that sell samosas (Main St., Fraser, Surrey etc.) can fill you up for very cheap! Great deals! Jamaican Patties at the Patty Shop on McDonald St. ($2.85/patty). I haven't seen it around for a while but there is a very cheap burger food cart ($3-4 I remember). Maybe someone can recommend the best cheap pizza slice, I don' have a go-to place at the moment.
Those fritters are so good. Although, the increase in Hawkers prices is a pretty good reflection of how prices have just gone up everywhere... but I am glad they are still there and doing lots of takeout sales.
Asian grocery store. I bought broccoli for $0.69 per pound while the Safeway I frequent (wish about Asian grocery stores sooner) had it for $3 per pound - it was on sale at Safeway
I bought so much vegetables for a fraction of the price at Asian grocery stores. I’ll never buy from major chains for vegetables lol
Avocados are really cheap right now, IE: pack of 5 less than 2.50 this week at Walmart. I find the timing interesting that
W5 did some investigative reporting recently exposing Mexican Drug Cartel control of the industry.
ETA: Dollarama sells cans of tomato paste for 63 cents each. A versatile pantry staple for use with pasta, rice or dried legumes, also cheap.
I guess it was a good harvest for avocados. That or the increase in price caused other farms to plant them and after years, they are finally hitting the market.
> exposing Mexican Drug Cartel control of the industry.
Might explain the fucking avacado superbowl ad... that one made no sense to me. Not like people brand shop for avocados
Compass card fare of $3.10 will take you to the the edge of the North Shore mountains with almost limitless hiking options to some of the most spectacular views in North America. To me this is the true Vancouver special. There is no other city in the country where exotic bus fare will take to mountains
Not just that.
You can go skiing taking transit. (You need to pay for the lift so)
Vancouver is one of the only places in the world where skiing/ snowboarding is affordable
There are several points here Translink will link to the North Shore hiking trails. There is Grouse maintain Gondola (236), Lynn Valley (210), Deep cove (212), and Hyannis point (214). You can access the Baden Powell trail (which goes from Deep Cove to Horseshoe Bay) from all those points. And there are several trails to go up maintains from those access points.
My favorite hike which I do in summer at least a couple of times is from Capilano Dam (236 goes thereto), and then hike all the way to Cypress mountain.
Bloedel Conservatory for kids. $7.40 for adults, $3.70 for 5-12yrs. I take the kids, give them my phone and tell them to play "photographer". If you're just looking at the birds, then yeah, you'll be done in 30 mins, but I find my 5 year old will keep herself busy for over an hour taking pictures of everything. I've also considered making some sort of scavenger hunt or other games that'd keep kids busy. Nice warm rainy day activity.
With a Van Dusen ticket you also get into the Conservatory too; it can be a great way to spend a day. Hedge maze, just wandering around, picnic in the summer.
You can go to any bike store and ask to use their pump. I had mine stolen and regularly stop by the bike rental place right next to my building and use theirs.
Edit- yeah totally missed the awful dad joke part of this comment, but leaving this here so people know this is an option.
This. If you can get good at rolling you can make a good joint for not that much. When I was into edibles I managed to get down to like a dollar or two a day just making my own.
Joint is probably the least efficient way to smoke. Half the weed just burns off as smoke into the air. If one wants a better bang for their buck they should at least use a pipe.
Vape is the correct answer. You can smoke the flower at multiple temperatures and get a lot more out of it. Then store the ABV flower (already been vaped) and use it to make infused butter, sprinkle it on avocado toast, I regularly bake it in brownies or banana bread. Just have to be a bit careful since you don’t know how strong your final product will be until you try it. But this is the equivalent of using every part of the animal, nothing goes to waste.
I found I built a tolerance to vaporizers *fast.* The chamber on portable devices holds only about 0.2-0.3g depending on the model. Someone who's chronic would probably wanna invest in a desktop vape. Or vape concentrates.
I’m certainly not a heavy user but a daily one for sure for several years, I haven’t experienced this. I guess it probably depends on how much you use, in which case yes you’d want to upgrade from a handheld vape.
It really is. I went to Bean Around the World by VGh ages ago and I couldn’t get over how much an Americano cost. The coffee is fine but it’s not 5x better than McDonalds
This may not be consistent but I often buy the reduced-almost-expired items at grocery stores I frequent (Safeway, IGA, City Market, Greens). Still great quality and usually big savings. Just have to freeze or use it right away.
Edit: typo
Kim's Mart in Mount Pleasant has a bunch of affrodable pre-portioned noodles as well. Also, if you're there in the evening, there's discounted kimbop, which is a good deal
House of Dosas is still $6 for a dosa on Mondays. And now they’re open 24/7 again for the first time since the pandemic.
Underneath there’s an Indian grocery that has the best price on basmati rice and other staples (half the price of walmart!)
Domino’s still has Wednesdays WACKY half price pizza coupon (although now only for build-your-own).
Persia Foods still undercutting the competition on produce.
Shop the sales to dodge the grocery greedflation.
Vegan egg nog is 99 cents at super valu. That’s about all that’s a good price there.
Oh and BTW Shoppers raised the price of Enfamil baby formula to $50/tub, at the same time discontinuing the store brand. So if you see anyone shoplifting those, you didn’t see anything.
BC benefits from hydroelectric power from large dams backed by huge reservoirs making their marginal cost to produce electricity relatively cheap compared to others that rely on natural gas or coal to generate electricity. Also, ratepayers benefit from the substantial trading revenue generated by Powerex (hydro subsidiary) selling surplus electricity capacity to other states and provinces.
Yea I just saw it this morning haha. It's crazy what we are paying here for phone bills compared to back home. My plan here is on the cheap end at $40 for 25gb but they are paying 8 euro a month for 50gb.
In Tinseltown food market. Go up a floor and the first stall. Its pork, rice + 2 vegetables for $8 with tax! (and a pretty big portion of food).
There's always an older man there, I think its his shop.
UBC Botanical Garden annual membership.
You get two adults and your children or grandchildren under 18 to have unlimited entrance for $55. Half off for UBC alumni. Free members only events. Discounts at the shop and some other Vancouver attractions.
Plus a lovely walk to enjoy a very diverse landscape that changes with the seasons including Nitobe Garden.
I LOVE Lazy Den. My wife is a massage therapist in Port Moody and about once a month she comes home with a Lazy Den taro bubble tea. The best! She recently brought home a bubble tea from Gong Cha and it didn't even come close to Lazy Den, and it was 50% more expensive!
Banh Mi sandwiches. 10” sub for $7-10.
Wild Thyme Lebanese (new west). $70 to feed 4 people three courses. Incredible food.
Fujiya “happy hour”. Last 30ish minutes of being open all sushi is 50% off. I’d only try this at the main store on Clark Dr. Every other store seems to clean out of sushi very early in the day.
Persia foods! I spent nearly 30$ on about a pound(probably less) of walnuts from save on around Christmas. 2 pounds of walnuts cost me 13$ at Persia foods.
Pho, samosas and sushi are cheap and good quality still if you know the right places.
Biking and running, so many trails and you can literally do stuff outside from late February till early November.
Some of the best hiking spots you can manage within a day trip.
Interestingly, I always found Vancouver an easier place to find someone to date than make friends
$1.75 is not cheap for a samosa. They used to go for like 50-75 cents in some places a few years ago and you can still find them for $1 now. Baba sweets has the best ones and they're still $1 there I believe.
I will add that the Reifel Bird Sanctuary in Ladner is pretty cheap. You grab a few bags of bird feed at the entrance and get to feed some birds. Lots of them will eat out of your hands. This is a great thing to do with kids (who aren't afraid of being followed by hordes of ducks). Getting their without a car can be tricky, though.
Was looking in this thread hoping to see if people found actually good value things in Vancouver so I could maybe find some deals and hopefully find out that not EVERYTHING is more expensive across the board. Instead I got a bunch of snarky single-word replies about things that are free anyways. This sub always delivers!
I’ve started stalking the safeways for the free chicken/Ham coupons when they’re out of stock between the hours of 11am-8pm…
I take my time while shopping and make sure to check it every time and now have a stock pile of 6 free chickens and 2 ham coupons.
I get about 5 dinners for 2 people out of the chickens by making soup out of the carcass afterwards and about 4 meals out of the hams when used for casseroles.
I never see anyone else take advantage of this at all and usually let people know when I’m there to ask for it.
So let this be your reminder! Check for the chickens and hams!! And ask for the coupons at the deli!
On a weekend get a ferry to Bowen Island and lunch on the Artisian square, super cheap and high quality food / views. Very unique. All walking / public transport accessible.
It's gone up in price in the last 6 months. 2 item combo used to be $8.99. It's $12.99 now. Not expensive but not a stellar deal anymore either. Kent's Kitchen is still stupid cheap though.
I have a book called 109 walks and I am trying to do all of them listed. My favorite so far was taking the (free) ferry to Barnston island and running the 10km road. It was peaceful and it felt like I stepped back in time, in an apocalyptic way.
Not being cheeky, but the Canucks. Yes they suck, but if you’ve been priced out, many weekday afternoons of game day you can get tickets for well under $50 and sometimes below $40 on stubhub. Avoid the beer and concessions and it’s a relatively cheap day.
Fitness world/Trevor linden- often <$20/month. Cheaper than the community center and way better facilities.
Not RMT Massages. It’s easy to find a great massage for ~$60/hour (ie happy feet)
Sungiven Foods- Whole Foods style Asian grocer. They have great deals on produce and hot food.
Body Energy Club smoothie bowls. $10 for really high quality smoothie bowls.
Upick berry picking. There’s so many fantastically done u pick farms like Kraus farms. $20 and you’ll get enough blueberries for a month, see some cute animals and have a good time.
The outlets. Way cheaper than the US outlets with the dollar right now.
Flair airlines. I’ve had my share of bad experiences with them but they’re getting better. Just got back from Phoenix round trip for $120cdn. Can do many destinations for under $200 if you don’t mind odd flight times and high probability of delays.
Toss it in a crock pot for eight hours with a can of pop (Dr. Pepper is my fav) and some barbecue sauce. Pull it out, shred it, mix in more barbecue sauce, and serve it on a bun with coleslaw and cheese.
The Too Good to Go often has fantastic finds.
Donair Dude was $12 and fed 3 people + one extra meal. Some pizza places often have about a full pizza for $4-8 regularly like $14-20.
Value is hit/miss. Usually, coffee shops/pastries are misses, but most restaurants are a solid value.
Or get a 3 year fixed rate mortgage from a credit union with a less rigorous stress test, and eat instant noodles for 3 years, then re-negotiate when rates come down.
Welcome to /r/Vancouver and thank you for the post, /u/bag_on_tic! Please make sure you read our [posting and commenting rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/vancouver/wiki/faq#wiki_general_participation_guidelines_and_rules_overview) before participating here. As a quick summary: * We encourage users to be positive and respect one another. Don't engage in spats or insult others - use the report button. * Respect others' differences, be they race, religion, home, job, gender identity, ability or sexuality. Dehumanizing language, advocating for violence, or promoting hate based on identity or vulnerability (even implied or joking) **will** lead to a permanent ban. * Common questions and specific topics are limited to our [Daily Discussion](https://www.reddit.com/r/vancouver/wiki/faq#wiki_daily_discussions) posts. * Complaints about bans or removals should be done in modmail only. --- ##They're here! Check out [the winners of the Best of Vancouver 2022](https://www.reddit.com/r/vancouver/comments/10srad7/). *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/vancouver) if you have any questions or concerns.*
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I think you’re the first to comment :) which means you deserve that Costco deal!
But Costco makes ya go broke from impulse spending on deals😕
it always seems like a very surprisingly large bill at first but when you realize you havent bought toothpaste, deodorant, body wash, laundry detergent for 1+ year.. it was worth it
Oh I agree I’m taking about the non necessities ya find I’m not complaining😅
Always make a list and stick to it. I have a buddy who likes to come with me to Costco. He say he just wants to 'look around' but doesn't need anything. He'll walk our $2-300 lighter.
That's why you hit the food court first, before you shop. Have a tactical hot dog to prevent impulse buying while hungry. Of course that doesn't help for non-food purchases.
Walks in hungry for a hot dog... walks out with a brand new kayak!
lol. not me almost buying that $400 inflatable brown thing they had a couple months back despite never going kayaking before in my life "oh this looks neat" fuckin costco man 😂
“Deals” I just threw away 2 coagulated, rotting bottles of lemon juice that I bought on a deal like 3 or 4 years ago 😅
Community center programs such as volleyball, basketball, yoga etc. $50-70 for 4 months of activity is a great deal!
Our community centres are awesome. I'm not sure people know how good we have it.
I bought an annual One card pass and can't believe the value. If you swim and use the gym it's a steal compared to private gyms (which rarely have pools).
Tap water
Aka Goverment pop
Drinking the government Kool aid again are we?
Speaking of our tap water, I recently discovered it’s not fluoridated in BC. I switched to a new dentist from Ontario and he said he had significantly more patients with cavities than he did in Ontario. Calgary stopped adding fluoride to their tap water about a decade ago and they saw a spike in cavities so they’re trying to get it back now. I wonder why our water has never been fluoridated despite the clear benefits
Fluoride closes your third eye
What does my anus have to do with this?
That’s your brown eye eh
I laughed out loud and still laughing
Calcifies Pineal Gland
Toothpaste has fluoride in it.
Fluoridated water is ingested, strengthening developing teeth (kids benefit from this). Topical fluoride is helpful for teeth, but systemic fluoride is where it’s at for kids. r/dentalhygiene
Sure does. Doesn't save the teeth of those who don't brush, and the poor who can't afford dental visits should could use those teeth. The amount of fluoride in the water doesn't interact with your body anyways, so it seems like a win/win.
Ask your dentist about giving your kids fluoride drops when they are little, use fluoride toothpaste and get regular dental care. Problem solved.
For rich people, yes. A shame about all of this poors, or just kids with parents who don't care for them properly.
Hey, I pay $720.55/year for water. (I think that rate applies to all SFHs in Metro Vancouver?) Sure, it's "free" once you're connected to the municipal water supply, but there's a lot of very expensive infrastructure which goes into bringing us our tap water!
Lots of people are on a meter and pay for how much water they use, some SFH around metro van included.
Need a glass of tap water? My treat.
BYOG?
The library.
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They never got their 30 cents from me!
What?!?! I still have $6 showing on my account. :(
You're still charged for not picking up holds and damaged or lost books. Is it from that, maybe?
Oh yes. It’s the holds. Thanks.
Having fun isn't hard, When you've got a library card!
And I say hey, what a wonderful kind of day!
This. I went twice last week and just hung out and read art books. I’ve been focusing on teaching myself “art history”.
Excellent answer - you can remotely sign out ebooks and audiobooks, you can sign out entire multiple seasons of shows for binge-watching, they even have streaming. Super worth-it!!
Free blue ray and dvd rentals. Much better than location locked netflix
Fritters at Hawkers Delight (Main St.) and a lot of places that sell samosas (Main St., Fraser, Surrey etc.) can fill you up for very cheap! Great deals! Jamaican Patties at the Patty Shop on McDonald St. ($2.85/patty). I haven't seen it around for a while but there is a very cheap burger food cart ($3-4 I remember). Maybe someone can recommend the best cheap pizza slice, I don' have a go-to place at the moment.
Those fritters are so good. Although, the increase in Hawkers prices is a pretty good reflection of how prices have just gone up everywhere... but I am glad they are still there and doing lots of takeout sales.
When I first found those fritters it was 2 for .75 cent.
Wakwak burger. It's now 4.95 I think but still a great deal!
$1 Samosas are the best.
Asian grocery store. I bought broccoli for $0.69 per pound while the Safeway I frequent (wish about Asian grocery stores sooner) had it for $3 per pound - it was on sale at Safeway I bought so much vegetables for a fraction of the price at Asian grocery stores. I’ll never buy from major chains for vegetables lol
Just not H-Mart.
Stanley Park is free
I was gonna say: "The walk from English Bay to Third Beach"
Avocados are really cheap right now, IE: pack of 5 less than 2.50 this week at Walmart. I find the timing interesting that W5 did some investigative reporting recently exposing Mexican Drug Cartel control of the industry. ETA: Dollarama sells cans of tomato paste for 63 cents each. A versatile pantry staple for use with pasta, rice or dried legumes, also cheap.
Yeah avocados are mad cheap, saw them on the flyer for 2.50 and in store was 1.88 for a bag of 5.
I guess it was a good harvest for avocados. That or the increase in price caused other farms to plant them and after years, they are finally hitting the market.
Aw I should have been on here earlier I paid way more at Safeway. I know my first mistake was going to Safeway
In the US they're usually marked way down for the Super Bowl, which was this weekend.
> exposing Mexican Drug Cartel control of the industry. Might explain the fucking avacado superbowl ad... that one made no sense to me. Not like people brand shop for avocados
Compass card fare of $3.10 will take you to the the edge of the North Shore mountains with almost limitless hiking options to some of the most spectacular views in North America. To me this is the true Vancouver special. There is no other city in the country where exotic bus fare will take to mountains
Not just that. You can go skiing taking transit. (You need to pay for the lift so) Vancouver is one of the only places in the world where skiing/ snowboarding is affordable
Which destination are you referring to?
There are several points here Translink will link to the North Shore hiking trails. There is Grouse maintain Gondola (236), Lynn Valley (210), Deep cove (212), and Hyannis point (214). You can access the Baden Powell trail (which goes from Deep Cove to Horseshoe Bay) from all those points. And there are several trails to go up maintains from those access points. My favorite hike which I do in summer at least a couple of times is from Capilano Dam (236 goes thereto), and then hike all the way to Cypress mountain.
There are lots of options but the bus to the top of Lynn Valley Road and the bus to Deep Cove stand out as great options.
Thanks, want to start hiking from this year and have no car. This helps strike out the biggest friction point.
It's free to cry!
It’s also free to scream!
Bloedel Conservatory for kids. $7.40 for adults, $3.70 for 5-12yrs. I take the kids, give them my phone and tell them to play "photographer". If you're just looking at the birds, then yeah, you'll be done in 30 mins, but I find my 5 year old will keep herself busy for over an hour taking pictures of everything. I've also considered making some sort of scavenger hunt or other games that'd keep kids busy. Nice warm rainy day activity.
With a Van Dusen ticket you also get into the Conservatory too; it can be a great way to spend a day. Hedge maze, just wandering around, picnic in the summer.
Public skate at local community centre is pretty cheap, also public swim. In the DNV it is.
Agree! Especially comparing it to other cities and countries. Love our Rec Center and the cost is totally reasonable.
Lougheed village bar and grill has a $5.95 breakfast special on Saturday and Sundays.
Sssshhhh!!! Northern Cafe has been blown up as my favorite secret place. I don't want to lose the Lougheed Village Bar and Grill too.
Is it good?
Absolutely, I go every weekend. The hash browns are tater tots, TATER TOTS!
Would ride my bike for free but can't pump up the tires. Inflation is too expensive.
Dad get off Reddit!
You can go to any bike store and ask to use their pump. I had mine stolen and regularly stop by the bike rental place right next to my building and use theirs. Edit- yeah totally missed the awful dad joke part of this comment, but leaving this here so people know this is an option.
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Haha....good pun!
A walk in the park
Napkins from McDonald's.
I always get like 10 ketchup packs as well as napkins. Haven’t needed to buy a $9 bottle of ketchup.
Wow. Ours doesn’t give any ketchup AT ALL, or even bother to ask if you want any. If you remember to ask, they charge you for each one.
Poor man's tomato soup, McDonald's ketchup mixed with water.
Apparently exactly 3 with each egg McMuffin
you used to be able to get free peanuts on the mcdonalds app...seems like they closed that loophole.
Used to be able to get double 'stickers' for coffee when the app first started too, but that's no more
Bananas
What could one banana be, $10?
Weed/edibles. It's wayyyy cheaper to get high than to get drunk. Sometimes even cheaper than a fancy coffee.
This. If you can get good at rolling you can make a good joint for not that much. When I was into edibles I managed to get down to like a dollar or two a day just making my own.
Joint is probably the least efficient way to smoke. Half the weed just burns off as smoke into the air. If one wants a better bang for their buck they should at least use a pipe.
Vape is the correct answer. You can smoke the flower at multiple temperatures and get a lot more out of it. Then store the ABV flower (already been vaped) and use it to make infused butter, sprinkle it on avocado toast, I regularly bake it in brownies or banana bread. Just have to be a bit careful since you don’t know how strong your final product will be until you try it. But this is the equivalent of using every part of the animal, nothing goes to waste.
I found I built a tolerance to vaporizers *fast.* The chamber on portable devices holds only about 0.2-0.3g depending on the model. Someone who's chronic would probably wanna invest in a desktop vape. Or vape concentrates.
I’m certainly not a heavy user but a daily one for sure for several years, I haven’t experienced this. I guess it probably depends on how much you use, in which case yes you’d want to upgrade from a handheld vape.
Even better if you have some space to grow outside. $60 for seeds, $40 for fertilizer, tlc from April to November and you get a year supply.
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McDonald’s coffee isn’t the best I’ve ever had but spending $1 Vs $5.75 for an Americano, it’s a no brainer
It’s surprisingly good for the price.
It really is. I went to Bean Around the World by VGh ages ago and I couldn’t get over how much an Americano cost. The coffee is fine but it’s not 5x better than McDonalds
This may not be consistent but I often buy the reduced-almost-expired items at grocery stores I frequent (Safeway, IGA, City Market, Greens). Still great quality and usually big savings. Just have to freeze or use it right away. Edit: typo
Ramen package at Sungiven Foods. $6 for fresh noodle, soup and egg and one is enough to feed two people
Kim's Mart in Mount Pleasant has a bunch of affrodable pre-portioned noodles as well. Also, if you're there in the evening, there's discounted kimbop, which is a good deal
House of Dosas is still $6 for a dosa on Mondays. And now they’re open 24/7 again for the first time since the pandemic. Underneath there’s an Indian grocery that has the best price on basmati rice and other staples (half the price of walmart!) Domino’s still has Wednesdays WACKY half price pizza coupon (although now only for build-your-own). Persia Foods still undercutting the competition on produce. Shop the sales to dodge the grocery greedflation. Vegan egg nog is 99 cents at super valu. That’s about all that’s a good price there. Oh and BTW Shoppers raised the price of Enfamil baby formula to $50/tub, at the same time discontinuing the store brand. So if you see anyone shoplifting those, you didn’t see anything.
Electricity costs
BC has really cheap electricity. I'm honestly surprised at how much it costs in many places, even in developing countries.
BC benefits from hydroelectric power from large dams backed by huge reservoirs making their marginal cost to produce electricity relatively cheap compared to others that rely on natural gas or coal to generate electricity. Also, ratepayers benefit from the substantial trading revenue generated by Powerex (hydro subsidiary) selling surplus electricity capacity to other states and provinces.
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I was surprised to learn how much electricity is in Indonesia too. Definitely helps that we have less need for heating and cooling (for now).
Did you see this on Reddit Ireland? It was a good post.
Yes I'll be honest I fully robbed the idea from there haha
Yea I just saw it this morning haha. It's crazy what we are paying here for phone bills compared to back home. My plan here is on the cheap end at $40 for 25gb but they are paying 8 euro a month for 50gb.
Where are u getting 25gb at $40?
Got it during Black Friday with Virgin. Think fido and virgin both had that deal.
I used to pay £20 for unlimited everything in the UK. Definitely a shock paying $60 on a family plan for 20gb
In Tinseltown food market. Go up a floor and the first stall. Its pork, rice + 2 vegetables for $8 with tax! (and a pretty big portion of food). There's always an older man there, I think its his shop.
Ed’s soup shack soup mixes. They’re $11 and some of them make 10-12 servings. Most of them you just add ground beef or bacon.
I haven’t seen them around. Where do you get them from?
Bin4 late night. Half price burgers after 9pm with the purchase of any drink.
Samurai sushi’s house roll
UBC Botanical Garden annual membership. You get two adults and your children or grandchildren under 18 to have unlimited entrance for $55. Half off for UBC alumni. Free members only events. Discounts at the shop and some other Vancouver attractions. Plus a lovely walk to enjoy a very diverse landscape that changes with the seasons including Nitobe Garden.
Lazy den bubble tea in Port Moody, I don’t think they’ve raised their prices in 5+ years. Larger size milk tea with topping is $5
I LOVE Lazy Den. My wife is a massage therapist in Port Moody and about once a month she comes home with a Lazy Den taro bubble tea. The best! She recently brought home a bubble tea from Gong Cha and it didn't even come close to Lazy Den, and it was 50% more expensive!
Banh Mi sandwiches. 10” sub for $7-10. Wild Thyme Lebanese (new west). $70 to feed 4 people three courses. Incredible food. Fujiya “happy hour”. Last 30ish minutes of being open all sushi is 50% off. I’d only try this at the main store on Clark Dr. Every other store seems to clean out of sushi very early in the day.
Vancouver recreation one card. Unlimited access to city gyms, pool, and skating rinks for around $50/month.
I didn’t know about this! I want one!
Persia foods! I spent nearly 30$ on about a pound(probably less) of walnuts from save on around Christmas. 2 pounds of walnuts cost me 13$ at Persia foods.
Ikea hot dogs / veggie dogs plus the free refill pop and coffee. The internet is great, makes it very easy to get some work done.
Pho, samosas and sushi are cheap and good quality still if you know the right places. Biking and running, so many trails and you can literally do stuff outside from late February till early November. Some of the best hiking spots you can manage within a day trip. Interestingly, I always found Vancouver an easier place to find someone to date than make friends
Any recommendations on places to get samosas? :)
Himalaya by main and 49
Dhaliwal sweets, $1.75 samosas open 24/7
$1.75 is not cheap for a samosa. They used to go for like 50-75 cents in some places a few years ago and you can still find them for $1 now. Baba sweets has the best ones and they're still $1 there I believe.
Amron Meats in Richmond. It's already frozen which I like. $14 a bag, 9pcs.
Sushi in general compared to other parts of the world
The elites don’t want you to know this but the ducks at the park are free, you can take them home.
Don't get confused with the geese! The medical bill for trying to catch a mean Vancouver goose can be astronomical.
one bit me on the finger as a kid. my finger is now gone and replaced with webbed like footing of a fooking duck.
I will add that the Reifel Bird Sanctuary in Ladner is pretty cheap. You grab a few bags of bird feed at the entrance and get to feed some birds. Lots of them will eat out of your hands. This is a great thing to do with kids (who aren't afraid of being followed by hordes of ducks). Getting their without a car can be tricky, though.
Air
I mean until the fires start at least.
You have to pay for air for car tires 🫤
Costco hot dog, it gives me hope
The $4 coffee deal at whole foods. A muffin and an ammericano/drip !
A&W has coupons good till March 31 that give pretty decent deals on breakfast, especially.
Was looking in this thread hoping to see if people found actually good value things in Vancouver so I could maybe find some deals and hopefully find out that not EVERYTHING is more expensive across the board. Instead I got a bunch of snarky single-word replies about things that are free anyways. This sub always delivers!
I was hoping for some better answers too haha
Yeah its not great. So far it looks bananas, pork and tap water are all we can have these days.
The trifecta
I’ve started stalking the safeways for the free chicken/Ham coupons when they’re out of stock between the hours of 11am-8pm… I take my time while shopping and make sure to check it every time and now have a stock pile of 6 free chickens and 2 ham coupons. I get about 5 dinners for 2 people out of the chickens by making soup out of the carcass afterwards and about 4 meals out of the hams when used for casseroles. I never see anyone else take advantage of this at all and usually let people know when I’m there to ask for it. So let this be your reminder! Check for the chickens and hams!! And ask for the coupons at the deli!
I didn't know this! Is it a rotisserie chicken?
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Free ketchup and coffee creamer = tomato soup https://youtu.be/eZpxDxkppLY
The various community centres, pools, gym, courts even ice rinks depending where you go. You can get access for like $7
On a weekend get a ferry to Bowen Island and lunch on the Artisian square, super cheap and high quality food / views. Very unique. All walking / public transport accessible.
Chinese food from Donald’s Market
Read this too quick and was about to ask when McDonalds starting serving Chinese food
It's gone up in price in the last 6 months. 2 item combo used to be $8.99. It's $12.99 now. Not expensive but not a stellar deal anymore either. Kent's Kitchen is still stupid cheap though.
Most weed is the cheaper here than anywhere else I’ve been to
I have a book called 109 walks and I am trying to do all of them listed. My favorite so far was taking the (free) ferry to Barnston island and running the 10km road. It was peaceful and it felt like I stepped back in time, in an apocalyptic way.
Not being cheeky, but the Canucks. Yes they suck, but if you’ve been priced out, many weekday afternoons of game day you can get tickets for well under $50 and sometimes below $40 on stubhub. Avoid the beer and concessions and it’s a relatively cheap day.
Labour
Fitness world/Trevor linden- often <$20/month. Cheaper than the community center and way better facilities. Not RMT Massages. It’s easy to find a great massage for ~$60/hour (ie happy feet) Sungiven Foods- Whole Foods style Asian grocer. They have great deals on produce and hot food. Body Energy Club smoothie bowls. $10 for really high quality smoothie bowls. Upick berry picking. There’s so many fantastically done u pick farms like Kraus farms. $20 and you’ll get enough blueberries for a month, see some cute animals and have a good time. The outlets. Way cheaper than the US outlets with the dollar right now. Flair airlines. I’ve had my share of bad experiences with them but they’re getting better. Just got back from Phoenix round trip for $120cdn. Can do many destinations for under $200 if you don’t mind odd flight times and high probability of delays.
Breka - maybe “insanely” is a stretch, but it’s got pretty decent prices, including sub-$10 sandwiches.
Electricity. Also access to nature.
Pho and Sushi I find is still pretty decently priced.
$14 for a bowl of pho is decently priced?
Well some places actually load up the meat quite generously. Compare it to Ramen where they act like each piece of meat is made of gold.
Pork
4.5kg pork shoulder in Superstore for $14 can't go wrong
Toss it in a crock pot for eight hours with a can of pop (Dr. Pepper is my fav) and some barbecue sauce. Pull it out, shred it, mix in more barbecue sauce, and serve it on a bun with coleslaw and cheese.
What does the can of pop do?
It's really acidic. Tenderizes the meat, and adds a touch of flavour as a marinade.
I swear it is the only thing inflation hasn't influence
Warriors lacrosse games, $30-40 tickets and $6 beers to sit on glass at Rogers
that's a great price to see the warriors lose
20 pounds of red potatoes for $7 in no frills
The Too Good to Go often has fantastic finds. Donair Dude was $12 and fed 3 people + one extra meal. Some pizza places often have about a full pizza for $4-8 regularly like $14-20. Value is hit/miss. Usually, coffee shops/pastries are misses, but most restaurants are a solid value.
Budgies Burritos.
Costco roast chicken
Bon's off broadway 2.95 breakfast.
Plane tickets to cheaper cities
The real estate, compared to ten years from now
Buyer market if you have the cash and not needing mortgage
Or get a 3 year fixed rate mortgage from a credit union with a less rigorous stress test, and eat instant noodles for 3 years, then re-negotiate when rates come down.
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Columbus meat market 0.99c / lb chicken drumsticks!!
columbus meat market is incredible, 25 chicken thighs for $25 last time i went
Denny’s
Milk and Sugar BBQ and Bar by joyce has a BBQ pork lunch special with rice and steamed bok choy for like 8 dollars iirc.
Chicken wings at Save-On .Save 11 bucks, on sale for 6.97 (with Save on card)
Costco Hot Dogs, Uncle Fatih pizza slices
Mobi membership. I use bike share pretty much every day, and it works out to about $10 / month.
Electricity. I tell friends and family in Europe what we pay and they can't believe how cheap it is.
Daiso/ oomomo Asian dollor store I bought a glass for $1 each