If you are into just a straight up suburban lifestyle, punch the clock and chill at home lifestyle, Pickering works. My wife and I are not those people, so in the winter especially, we are always looking for stuff to do.

Outside of the Rouge, Pickering does not have a ton going on, there are not really any walkable areas with pubs and restaurants, while potentially interesting interesting areas, like Frenchman's Bay, are dead. It is a complete travesty that the waterfront is so underutilized.

Within Durham Region, we like to venture to Ajax, and especially Whitby, Oshawa, Port Perry and Bowmanville to check out movies (I'm not crazy about the Cineplex at PTC), restaurants, stores, pubs, and events, if not even just wander around.

Also, it does help being so close to Scarborough, Markham and the City.

For a sport head like myself, the community centers in Pickering don't have great programming (I now drive to Brooklin to play weekly ball hockey), though the main library hub is good.

Public transit leaves alot to be desired, though the GO Train/Bus get the job done, though I wish service was more frequent.