6 reasons I left PEI after moving there from Ontario (and they're not what you'd expect)

Everything's a trek

Everything felt like a bit of a trek (if you don't live in Charlottetown). I didn't want to feel like I was living in my car just to run errands or go to a big box store. Things are definitely more spread out in PEI, and even on a small island, that can make everyday life feel very dependent on driving.

After a while, I found I wasn't really discovering new places in my day-to-day routine — just doing the same drives over and over. Even getting off the island meant another trip to Halifax or New Brunswick.

And eventually, that's what made me realize: you really do live on a small island, but your world can start to feel even smaller depending on how you move through it.

The LONG winters

I am not a winter girl. My ancestors might have come to Canada, but I could care less about our cold climate. Winters on P.E.I can feel long and harsh, but mostly just long for me. It wasn't even reliably above 10 Celsius in May, and summer didn't really feel like it properly arrived until well into July.

I don't care for six-foot snow drifts, unplowed roads, or snow days that sound fun in theory but mostly mean everything slows down. I just know I want to be outside more. I wanted a milder climate, which is ultimately why I ended up in Vancouver.

Life felt small for me

Maybe that reflects the size of the island, or the fact that — as I mentioned — you end up driving everywhere and eventually feel like you're not really seeing anything new or going anywhere new. That's how it started to feel for me after a few years of living there.

It wasn't that there was nothing left to discover — but my routine started to feel very familiar. I felt like I had already tried every new restaurant within my first year. The same spots, the same rhythms, the same routines. What once felt charming and peaceful when I first arrived eventually no longer felt stimulating for me.

I also didn't fully realize how much the island "shuts down" during the off-season. Summers in P.E.I are lively and beautiful, but winters felt much quieter and more isolating than I expected, with fewer events and less happening overall.

And while P.E.I has cultural highlights — like the Cavendish Beach Music Festival — it's not a major stop for concerts, sports, or big entertainment events. I did see Bryan Adams perform in a rec centre once — which honestly feels like the most P.E.I experience possible — but for bigger shows or games, you usually have to leave the island and head to Halifax, Montreal, or Toronto.

Eventually, I started craving more energy, culture, and constant movement around me.

It was hard for me to build community

While I made a few acquaintances, I struggled to really find a sense of community during my time on P.E.I. And it wasn't for lack of trying. I went to yoga multiple times a week, joined a gym, signed up for a rec sports league, and even spent time at an entrepreneurial coworking space. I did all the things people tell you to do to make friends as an adult, but for me, it still felt difficult to fully click socially.

Part of that, I think, is that P.E.I is very family-oriented, and many people already have long-established social circles and roots on the island. I also think there can sometimes be a subtle divide between locals and people who are considered "from away," even if no one means anything by it (or says it out loud – although some people do).

It was also just the stage of life I was in. A lot of people my age were already married, settling down, or focused on family life, while I was still looking for more social connection, networking opportunities, and a broader sense of community.

And to be fair, I fully recognize this may have been unique to my own experience — but ultimately, I realized I needed a different environment socially.

Life felt very slow for me

What initially felt like the relaxing pace I craved when I first visited the island in the summer eventually started to feel too slow for me personally. There's a reason people talk about "island time."

As someone who grew up in Toronto — and, admittedly, as a Capricorn who values efficiency and quick responses — I started to realize I struggled with the slower rhythm of daily life. Things like hearing back about household repairs, appointments, or getting certain things done often moved at a pace I wasn't used to.

For many people, that slower lifestyle is exactly the appeal of P.E.I. But for me, what once felt peaceful on vacation eventually started to feel frustrating in everyday life, because I naturally gravitate toward faster-paced environments and quicker results.

I wanted more progression

Part of P.E.I's charm is how quaint and old-fashioned it can feel at times. And at first, I really loved that slower, simpler atmosphere. But after a while, I found myself craving more progression and change in everyday life.

Whether it was city development, culture, healthcare, or even just the general pace at which things evolved, I sometimes felt like the island lagged behind what was happening in larger cities like Toronto or Montreal. For many people, that slower pace and resistance to constant change is exactly what makes P.E.I endearing. But for me, it eventually started to feel limiting.

I realized I wanted to live somewhere that felt a little more fast-moving, dynamic, and connected to new ideas and opportunities.

Ultimately, P.E.I felt like a place I really enjoyed visiting, but not necessarily the place where I wanted to settle down at that point in my life. There are still a lot of things I love about the island, and I always look forward to going back (especially since my parents still live there), but it just didn't fit with where I was — and still am — in my life, and that's okay.