Central Edmonton is the most walkable area of the city. The neighborhoods are more pedestrian-friendly than those in the outlying suburbs and are easy to navigate due to the proximity of amenities and mass transit options.
For Central Edmonton, transit is divine. One can choose from:
The Edmonton LRT has 13 stations from Clareview in the north to South Campus that rip through central Edmonton, making it easy to get to various neighborhoods in a snap.
Neighborhoods
The following neighborhoods are a part of Central Edmonton:
Downtown
bound by 105 Avenue in the north, 97th Street in the east, 109th Street in the west, and 97th Avenue in the south is the arguably best known neighbourhood of Central. Downtown consists of four sub-neighbourhoods:Central Business District, MacKay Avenue, Warehouse District, and the Art's District. Downtown has a wide variety of retail, nightlife, and theater. It is also home to the Government Core and many high-rise residential buildings. All in all, downtown's got it goin' on.Rossdale
is a tiny residential neighbourhood on the River Valley Plain. It has gone through tons of reinvention over the decades. At first it was a tiny residential area with beautiful homes in the 1900s, then in the 1950s it got entirely rebuilt. In the 1980s it got a "suburban implantation" where suburban ideas were introduced. During this time the TELUS Field and Rossdale Plant opened. Now, today, it is a neighbourhood that is trying to go back to an urban setting with urbanism studies in place.Oliver
bound by 109th Street in the east, Groat Road in the west, the river to the south, and 107 Avenue to the north is the densest residential community in Alberta. Oliver has a broad range of things from nightclubs to gift shops, cookie cutter whatever restaurants to bachelor pad's. This area is the next Old Strathcona, with all kinds of up and coming things. The place still keeps its old charm with old houses and French revival buildings. It hosts 124 Street shopping area along with some fine cuisine. A short while ago, Oliver Square and Long Street and Area were developed on the north side of Oliver. This is a somewhat out-of-place suburban shopping area implemented in an urban zone, which features some nice stores and basic ones. The area has nice little parks and has 1 lrt station.Boyle
is just east of downtown and it was actually once called the downtown of the city. It is because before the current downtown was owned by the Hudson's Bay and no land could be developed really, when said land was sold to the city, it developed massively and had become downtown. This left Boyle empty, and today you can take a stroll in "old downtown" and notice the buildings haven't changed much. Pretty historical.McCauley
is the lively multi-cultural neighbourhood that is probably better known as Chinatown/Little Italy.Little Italy is 95 Street between 105 and 110 Ave a beautiful Italian neighborhood radiating the core of Edmonton. Coming here expect a influx of Italian immigrants/people and shops for all Italian foods of quality. Definitely great.
Chinatown is on 97th Street between 105 and 111 Ave NW. and is a vibrant Chinese Community. Coming here especially in the summer expect to feel in a small Chinese city with beautiful Chinese fruits, small outdoor markets, fantastic food stores, absolutely fantastic restaurants, and much much more. See Chinatown in the stay safe section.
Riverdale
refers to a small residential community south of Boyle.Westmount
is a neighbourhood split in two. This is in two ways, the first of which is because the eastern part dates back to the 1920s whereas the west side is from the 1960s. Two totally different architectural styles and design patterns. The other, is that it's in two districts. The older side is in Central, whereas the newer side is in the West. Groat Road is the dividing line. The area is known for it's charm and walkability, as well as Westmount Centre west of Groat Road.Glenora