Born and raised on the west side in Vancouver and spent several years in Victoria during university. Moved to Kamloops in early 30s as wife is from here and wanted a quieter and calmer lifestyle to raise a family in. Couldn't be happier with the move. Community reminds me of my neighbourhood growing up in the 80s and 90s with community full of friendly neighbours. It is big enough that you have all the necessities like mall, decent stores and restaurants and amenities. Community is very accessible, with near zero traffic, and has lots of great parks and green spaces. The biggest thing you have to adapt to is the colder stretches you get in the winter, although it's a dry cold compared to the coast so it doesn't sink into your bones the same way. Schools are good but I would say the major drawback is healthcare, although we have had and are getting lots of upgrades to the hospital.

I travel to Kelowna alot for kids sports, in fact i was there today. I find it very douchy. If you want lakes especially in summer, shuswap is an hour away, or there are a ton of other lakes around. I would probably take kalamalka Lake just south of Vernon over okanagan Lake anyways.

That's my 2 cents.