My son lived in Vancouver a few years ago. He thought he was going to love it as he had visited several times. Beautiful city, lots of activities and cultural life. But the cost of living was very high. And the sq. footage of apartments was much less than you could get here at comparable costs. So, based on his experience, I doubt it would be good to retire there. I don’t think I would like to move to a colder climate either.
I took a side trip to Vancover from Seattle a few years back. Honestly, was not that impressed. Especially when the clerk at the hotel front desk read me the riot act about how they weren’t responsible for my car. Apparently, guest cars were routinely broken into, vandalized or stolen. It was nice by the coast, but the rest of it looked like any other big [North American] city.