With non-essential travel outside the country limited due to COVID-19, many of the one million-plus retired and semi-retired Canadians are thinking about homegrown alternatives.

Florida’s natural white, sandy beaches… Arizona’s stunning desert scenery and peaceful vistas… California’s ocean fronts, dreamy views and amazing outdoor activities… These are just some of the sunny locations and luxurious conveniences that snowbirds can now only dream of.

Google Analytics, for example, shows searches for houses for rent in Florida were down 70 per cent last year compared to 2019, and for apartments for rent in Arizona, off 75 per cent.

Many Canadian snowbirds are hoping to make the most of the situation by looking within the country’s borders, according to point2homes.com.

Five cities in Ontario, four in BC and one in Nova Scotia appear to be the favoured destinations for snowbirds.

British Columbia is the place to be in Canada during the winter. Whether snowbirds look at minimum and maximum temperatures, number of days with snowfall or the actual quantity of snow in the area, Victoria, Vancouver, Abbotsford and Kelowna are the top options.

Near Ontario’s southern border and overlooking Lake Ontario, Toronto, Oshawa, St. Catharines and Hamilton have the temperatures and peaceful, relaxing water views that will help snowbirds get through the winter.

Alternatively, for snowbirds who would love to leave everything behind, Halifax offers reasonable temperatures, and plenty of wooded areas, trails and beaches.

BEST U.S. CITIES TO OWN A VACATION RENTAL PROPERTY

And when things do return to normal and borders reopen for Canadians to travel south, here’s a ranking of the 10 best – and 10 worst – cities to own a vacation rental property.

Best

Rank-City
1 - Shelbyville, Ky.
2 - Brooksville, Fla.
3 - Buffalo, NY
4 - Kissimmee, Fla.
5 - Bardstown, Ky.
6 - Sevierville, Tenn.
7 - Holland, Mich.
8 - Branson, Mo.
9 - Cleveland, Ohio
10 - Fayetteville, Ariz.

Worst

Rank-City
309 - Hyde Park, NY
310 - Orange Beach, Ala.
311 - Tuolumne City, Calif.
312 - Old Mystic, Conn.
313 - Kilauea, Hawaii
314 - Three Rivers, Calif.
315 - Peach Springs, Ariz.
316 - Wright, Wyo.
317 - Kohler, Wis.
318 - Bass Lake, Calif.

Source: LawnStarter