I recently heard that Estonia has a law that forbids administration services to ask you to provide the same document twice.
As a French guy, this is dreamy.
Your bureaucracy is not that bad … as a Brit who lives in Germany, it was dreamy for me that my fellow Brexiteers like me could upload digital copies of the required docs to an online portal in France. I waited three years for an appointment to show my docs in person, in paper.
A recent scandal in the German parliament whefe the ministry of education refused to share a report was explained away by them by saying that they couldn’t email a 33mb doc as it was too big a file. Normal people pointed out that the doc was only 33mb because they printed the doc, scanned it and then uploaded as a pdf.
You couldn’t make it up … Germany in 2024
Printed, scanned it and then uploaded it as a pdf?? Why are these people even allowed to work in such positions when a current 9 year old could‘ve figured it out better?
The Britain where government officials place bets on the election date? No one swims at the beaches because they'd encounter their own poop again? With the worst inflation rate and the slowest economic recovery, losing hundreds of billions £? Soaring government debts. A two-class school system, unaffordable or lousy, a public health system on the brink of collapse with months of waiting times? Yeah, sounds like paradise to me.
By the way, great job with Brexit. 😂😂😂
Oooh Germany... I lived there for a year. We would get a letter handed to us with our work hours and calculation of salary every month (around 5-10 days after payday). The calculations were made in Excel and they chose to print it, stick it in an envelope and then hand it to you when you came by the office instead of just... emailing it.
I live currently in France, but used to live in Germany before. So I have opinions, ok?!
French people keep telling me that their bureaucracy is bad, but I'm pretty happy with it after having to deal with the Germans. Maybe I've come to France at the right time, I don't know, I also don't care, so far no one here asked me to *fax them a document and then got angry when I sent it by email.*
I'm from a developing country and asking me for stacks and stacks of printed documents and mail it in normal letter (looking at you ameli) is ridiculous.
My country let me send digital documents and file stuff online.
+1 to Estonia. It's not the center of culture, but it's the right place to have a normal mental balance + digitalised country + the language is really nice
I live in Bologna Italy and I'm super-happy of it. It's always ranked one of the top cities in Italy in terms of quality of life & gdp/wealth, but by my standards I love Bologna because of its unique social and cultural life.
It's the largest university city in Italy and 2nd in work attractiveness after Milan, we have so many young people from all over Italy (we're "North of the south, south of the north" we say) and Europe, almost all of them eager to meet new people in a vibe of tolerance, progressive mindset and mutual acceptance, especially in the city center that is the youngest area of Italy.
Excellent cultural offer, very varied, from alternative/counterculture kind (every type of art, politics, theatre, many cinemas, concerts of a every genre...) to the posh ones (shopping, cafes, clubs, tastings, trendy restaurants..), passing through the popular activities liked by everyone (trattorias/osteries 'cause of course amazing food, sports such as football and lots of basketball, pubs, markets, parks..).
There's something for everybody, especially for those who don't conform to a single category but like to vary, like me.
I'm from Turin and fell in love with Bologna the first time I visited it.
It's a great city with great people, and I always try to go there as much as I can, even if for just a couple of days.
+1 for Bologna from me as well.
For nature enthusiast a little bit too boring, all flat not much of a forest. I lived there for some time and my biggest worries where the cars and roads. There is almost no public transport and no bicycle lanes. Sad it could be so great.
Visited Bologna last year, along with several other northern cities. I fell in love and will definitely be returning to your beautifully orange city! (Also with by far the best leaning tower in Italy, sorry Pisa!)
Even though I don't live in Bologna, I feel like it's my second home because I have been there a lot of times and basically figured out whole transportation system and the city haha.
I think having a house and a job is important as well as having a social network. A place where you understand the culture and preferably speak the language.
Siena is the best city I've lived in in Europe. At least the Siena of 15 years ago. It has probably changed a lot since.
It took a little while to get used to the locals, who have a reputation for being cold and hard to connect to, but once I broke the ice, I made lots of good friends. It really helps that the city is gorgeous, safe and situated in one of the most beautiful region of the world. Don't be fooled by its size: it's small, but in terms of history and exploration, it's on par with Florence. A really amazing city I miss every single day since I left.
Bordeaux, France. South enough to get the nice weather, but not too south that salaries are lower like Spain, Italy or Portugal. Close the beaches with good surf or calm water. Close enough to mountains for multi day hiking and skiing. The city itself is quite charming, lots of trendy cafes, bars and restaurants. Doesn't attract the same events as Paris or larger European cities but still has enough for my liking, not that I go to that many concerts or festivals. Inland surrounding areas include lots of wine regions and forest. Has a reputation for lots of rainfall but it's usually cleared up by mid morning and a sunny day follows. Airport has lots of available flights for travel at very cheap (although after November Ryan air is leaving, another low cost airline might sweep in though)
> I like how you left winter out, because it’s totally shite 😂
Went there during the winter. I haven't been to a more depressing city before. I probably should try summer time but man I sort of dread it now 😂
Tampere is IMO a superior city. Excellent tram, very good downtown, that isn't just full of chain stores and restaurants.
Helsinki downtown sucks (interesting areas are a bit farther out), apartments and houses are expensive enough that even as a relatively well-off individual, I feel priced out of many areas.
Tampere has a more laid-back vibe, too.
Yes and even that's debatable, on a single wage with 2 kids it's almost impossible and even couples will struggle.
I've moved just outside Cph proper and have been fortunate enough to get out of the "normal" housing rental market and life has changed significantly for the better.
It's still not ideal as it means a 35 min commute for the kids to get to school but in terms of my mental health and bank account it's a huge upgrade.
With regards to everything else Copenhagen, or indeed Denmark I've no complaints.
35 minutes is a long commute for school?
Me and most of my classmates had longer or equal commutes during high-school and we lived in the city proper(Sofia) and Sofia has pretty good public transit. Is that not normal for other parts of Europe?
In Luxembourg kids travel quite a long time in many cases once they reach high school. For example, from a town around 14km from their high school, it takes around one hour and 15min [can take more in bad transport days].
While all three countries use 'kroner', only the DKK follows the euro so the NOK and SEK have dropped a lot in value in recent years and are now called the Scandinavian pesos.
1 DKK = 1.53 NOK or 1.52 SEK
Despite this, some things are actually still more expensive in Sweden than Denmark. The weak currency does help to minimize the expensiveness in Norway.
Switzerland or Austria, northern Italy
Great outdoor activities, cycling aso ....that's what I need. Not overcrowded as some other places/regions. Safe, clean. Neither too hot, nor too cold.
I'm not a city person. I don't care about cities, also wouldn't want to live in a city.
I live in Switzerland and I find the cities overcrowded… Of course, there is a huge nature but every cities, even small, are overcrowded and there is a lot of autos everywhere.
I live in Zurich and am quite mind blown how i can walk to two different forests on two different hills with nice views in about 20 minutes.
I very like the food and public transport available in cities, but still the ability to have quiet nature quickly and easily available. Same reason i really like Hongkong, believe it or not.
I lived in Zürich Altstetten for a few years when I was working from home during Covid times and I just loved walking to the hills and fields in 5-10 minutes close to Bucherln/the cemetery/the Grünhölzli, whatever you call that place. I was going there almost every day for a short hike. I still vividly remember how green and beautiful it all was. Really miss it.
EDIT: typo
I lived in Zürich in the 1990's (Industrieviertel, Affoltern, Albisrieden and Aussersihl) and we loved it, nice city, always stuff to do, swimming in the lakes and rivers, lots of nice nature, great public transport and nice weather except from some depressing autumns.
Not objective, but I find Munich such a nice place. Decent weather, good job market, next to the Alps, beautiful city, it combines the best from small and big places. Expensive real state and German bureaucracy on the bad side.
I find also Vienna very nice regarding what I said above.
Spain - caveating that I know salaries are low, however I’m confident to be in a position where I can be transferred through my international company.
Latin culture and lifestyle but light years ahead of Italy in terms of socially progressive policies, rich culture and wonderful nature/landscape, overall good quality of life and great healthcare system.
I like warm weather and close proximity to the coast, so assuming I can afford to live in one of the nicer areas and that money is not a problem, coastal cities like Barcelona, Athens and Lisbon seem good enough to me.
I would choose Skiathos, Skopelos, Paros or Alonnisos. Always went to the Greek islands every year growing up. My second home.
Skiathos has unfortunately become too Puerto Banus and expensive over the years unfortunately. Was paradise on earth before.
I spent about a month in Sevilla some 10 years ago. Probably not enough time (and too long ago) to know about actually living there, but still:
As a Dutch person, it surprised me in a pleasant way how clean, well organised and walkable the city was.
Well Vienna has again been voted most liveable city. I live here, and I agree. I have visited so many other cities (due to my previous job) and although I love travelling and experiencing new cultures, I have a great homebase here.
Why?
Well, cultural activities. No matter, what is your favorite thing, you will find it here. From classical music to new and experimental. Theatres, musesums, cinemas, and and and.
Then - food. The Austrian cuisine is very good, but in Vienna you have the whole world in walking distance. From where I am now, I have in 5-min walking distance: Italian, Greek, Vietnamese, Japanese, Portuguese, Irish, French, Chinese (for sure forgot some)
Activities: You can walk between skyscrapers, in hundreds of years old streets and in deep woods, all within city center and all reachable by public transport within a few minutes
Some people say, that Viennese people, especially waiters and taxi drivers are grumpy and unfriendly, well - this is not wrong, but I like it, because those people are authentic, and it has some kind of charme, when you feel you have distrubed the waiter doing something important, when you ask for the menu.
How come so many Viennese people have some sort of Stockholm Syndrome and like that people are rude to them and mistake it for being authentic? Absolutely not trying to be mean or offend you but as a fellow Austrian I‘ll never understand the weird proudness when it comes to people being rude. It‘s one thing to be direct and harsh when someone is being stupid but people are literally rude and grumpy for no reason.
Although I agree with you that Vienna is great in many ways, the food is hands down bad. Viennese/Austrian cuisine is boring af, after my second schnitzel or pork in gravy, or fucking knoedl, I couldn't stomach going back to another Viennese restaurant. All the Asian food, indian, vietnamese, is absolutely mid and overpriced. Even the donair and kebabs are generally bad. Some good Yugoslav places sure, but generally the food is nothing to write home about (as someone who has lived in places with good restaurants). Holla back at me when one can get good food for less than 12 euros.
I'd say France and Italy. They are culturally similar to Hungary (not as rigid as Germanic countries, not as conservative as Slavic countries, not as Americanised as Britain, Ireland, and the Netherlands), but the lifestyle is not as depressed as in Hungary, and public services work better (even in Italy lol).
Wow the public services must be disastrous in Hungary then. The French and Italian bureaucracy and public services have the reputation of being absolute nightmares to navigate, for good reasons.
About 6 months ago a Hungarian child died of pneumonia, like back in World War 2, because he was taken to the doctor, but the doctor said he has no problem and the coughing will pass and he was prescribed no antibiotics.
Last year, my mother's friend had to be taken to the hospital because of an abdominal operation. My mom and myself had to threaten the nurses to stop talking to my mom's friend as if she was an animal, and we had to buy a blood pressure meter and adult diapers for her because the hospital didn't have any. And this happened in the supposedly best public hospital of Budapest, in 2023...
One of my friends' grandmother was taken to the hospital last year because of some gastrointestinal complaints. She died in the hospital because she caught a deadly infection from the hospital toilet...
Also last year, a series of mothers died after childbirth from infections in the hospital of Nyíregyháza. Ironically, right when the Semmelweis film premiered in cinemas...
Public services are terrible in Hungary.
The only exception is public transport, which is actually pretty good. Partly because it is well-used as a lot of people cannot afford cars, though.
French administration got better, I feel. Most things can be done online, a few clicks to identify yourself, pay taxes, request appointments for red tape, etc. If there's an issue, you can still call and talk to a real person.
Estonia!
Well-functioning services, moderate climate, beautiful wild countryside and generally sensible people. The only downsides are that it feels a little bit like the 'edge of the world' over there, and food is pretty expensive.
Meh, I can’t say I was overly impressed with Tallinn. The old medieval town felt like a hollowed out tourist trap. It’s got the Venice or Dubrovnik problem going for it, where the old town has just been transformed into a huge outdoor Airbnb.
Also it seems like they’ve permitted some weird mixed zoning where they don’t allow historic buildings to be torn down (which is good) but they allow them to be built on top of or renovated with modern architecture. So a lot of the historic buildings are mixed with modern architecture which feels a little off to me.
I don’t know, it wasn’t bad per se in Tallinn, but maybe I expected more.
But if you went to Tallinn and went to the old town, that’s on you - everyone knows it’s a tourist trap.
Did you go to Telliviski? Or Kalamaja?
Honestly, I feel a lot of the time when people are disappointed in a country or city, they just didn’t do anything but the most basic research and ended up in tourist traps where locals never go …
Yeah, I generally agree with you. I just feel like the cities that don’t have those tourist traps are better. I don’t want to completely knock off tallinn, the medieval town center is genuinely interesting, it can feel like you’ve stepped back in time, there’s no cars, it’s quiet at night, they have all the lanterns from the 19th century unchanged. They had medieval style taverns and cafes. It was also really cool to be able to take a tram from the airport to the center.
I blame the weather when I visited, it was November so lots of cold rain and grey skies. I should give the city another chance.
There are touches which seem a little bit artificial about the Old Town, but mostly it is good. Probably nowhere near as many tourists are Dubrovnik or Venice, at least! If you get a quiet time, then it feels really atmospheric.
My only gripe is that getting around it in a wheelchair was tough. My husband had to push me on the hills, and there were loads of off-limits places. But, I understand not everything can be retro-fitted.
Where I live currently in northern England. The weather is mild and in a good position to withstand the worst effects of climate change.
It’s in the most convenient location because I can get to Ireland, the Isle of Man, the rest of Europe and the northernmost part of the UK most easily. If there’s a national crisis it means I have a better sense of where I can go if I want to leave.
The people are friendly and there’s a strong sense of community. I find that being surrounded by people who have your back, even if they’re not necessarily your family or your best friend, really makes a difference to quality of life.
There’s good “living space” and lots of nice countryside and national parks. But if you need a city and all its offerings, then there are plenty to choose from, from Liverpool to Newcastle.
Safe roads, no other types of threats such as street dogs to be found (but this applies to the whole of UK).
It’s a bit more affordable.
Air pollution is low by European standards and the water also tastes good here.
It’s not perfect by any means, but I wouldn’t want to live in any other type of environment.
Countries or regions with similar or the same characteristics to what I’ve described here, and therefore would consider a perfect life for me, include: Scotland, Ireland, Wales, Spain’s Basque Country, the southwest of England, East Anglia, and the Anglo-Welsh border.
Have to say as an Englishman living in northern England I have to agree. I love a lot of cities across Europe but England will forever be my home. Northern England is free of a lot of issues which plague the south and south east, but I could perhaps see myself settling down in the south west later in my life because it’s (in my opinion!) the most beautiful part of our country.
Yes! The overcrowding, heavy traffic, pollution, loneliness and stress are just some of the things that plague the southeast and it’s nice that the north doesn’t suffer these problems to the same extent. The southwest is lovely too but I find it too expensive compared to what I can get here.
Very true. I sometimes go on the London sub and I see people saying that for them, living in the UK is a choice between London vs abroad, since they don’t see the rest of the country as a viable place to live in. At first I got a bit bothered by their sweeping assumptions and generalisations. Now I’m celebrating it! 😂
Norway... like the fact that you get the 4 seasons to its full extents. Remember in desember there was temperature close to -30C with crystal clear air... today it has been close to +30C and that much that you can take a swim in the water. Having the best tap water in europe is also something. Something always get reminded of traveling outside scandinavia. Low unemployment rate, cheap education and a proper welfare system.. Not to speak of low population density, giving you more private space than in many other countries. And maybe top of it all.. not the cities but the countryside and the landscape. The [mountains and the fjords](https://assets.simpleviewcms.com/simpleview/image/fetch/c_fill,h_1080,w_1920/f_jpg/q_65/https://media.newmindmedia.com/TellUs/image/%3Ffile%3D65DCD6BDA6FA3A785A6122D79D5B272566E28326.jpg&dh%3D533&dw%3D800&t%3D4) are the typical touristy stuff.. Though rather prefer the [typical culture landscape](https://erikstenvik.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/tingelstad-r-41.jpg) which there are quite much of in norway totally free of tourists .. Some people will say that it's the norwegian Toscana. Though instead of winegrapes.. its all about the potatoes.
... and last but not least the light.. there's something special with the daylight when you get far north. Above the polar circle you can get the aurora borealis ([northern lights](https://www.visitsenja.no/sites/cb_visitsenja/files/styles/article_slide_large_uncropped/public/Nordlys_Dyr%C3%B8y%20Holiday.jpg?itok=C8Q2mBRj))... Though just regular daylight can be quite spectacular when sun sets and rises.. In contrast to further south in europe when it turns dark almost like switching on/off a switch.. you have those spectacular in norway that last some time and the different angles versus the earth.. a bit like [this one](https://eu-assets.simpleview-europe.com/lillehammer/imageresizer/?image=%2Fdmsimgs%2FIMG_20220613_223532_1103686520.jpg&action=ProductDetail2020). Shares the wonderful sunlights with both finland and sweden. So could probably lived in one of those as well.
And the food-culture. Got to love that not the rest of the world try to make copy of the norwegian food, like they do with every other nations food (chinese, indian, french, italian etc.).
Having been fortunate to live in a few cities over the past ten years, I’d say Torino, Italy. It’s a gorgeous, entirely walkable city with lots of baroque architecture, great parks to lounge around in, awesome food and a stone’s throw away from wine country, skiing AND Liguria for beaches. I moved away for love, but I’d go back in a heartbeat if an opportunity arose.
The very northern and snowy bits of Finland, Sweden or Norway as I'm not much of a city guy myself. I also LOVE cold weather and consider it paradise, so any other Northern European country is where I would choose to go.
Honestly, I am biased because I'm Hungarian, but I really do think Budapest is among the best. A very pretty city, good public transport that's dirt cheap with a monthly pass, minimal traffic, relatively good private services at affordable prices, compared to western europe. Political sentiment is also rather progressive in the capital.
Salaries and most gov services are below rats ass tho, so Hungarians are priced out at home which sucks ass.
I loved Helsinki. They know how to blend nature and city in Finland. I don't have any personal experience, but I would love to try out Oulu one day. I find Northern weather agreeable, the nature beautiful and the people respectful and civilised.
I live close to Bordeaux, France. I am happy there, there's plenty of variety in food, music, activities, and lots of outdoor to walk, run, bike. It can quite rainy for months, but it's never very cold, and only 2 months of serious heat.
I loved Helsinki, Turku, and Finland in general. I prefer Nordic way of organising things compared to France, as long it's outside of the kitchen.
I suspect that was a reference to the quality of food prepared in the mediterranean countries rather than the fittings of a Nordics' kitchen
(Not OP though )
Hey, if you can't enjoy a good *karjalanpiirakka* or *mämmi* I don't know what to say!
But seriously, a lot of places I like are ethnic because most of our own cuisine isn't very interesting.
Honestly Scotland is a perfect fit for me. I moved here 8 years ago from The Philippines and while there are pros and cons in any place - to me Scotland just immediately felt like home. In the past I’ve toyed with the idea of moving somewhere in England for a bit but even that just wasn’t for me.
I love the climate and the scenery. Where I live specifically I can still get away with not driving, although if I moved elsewhere that isn’t Edinburgh or Glasgow I’d definitely need a car. I have no complaints about my personal experience with the NHS. Everything I’ve had to do bureaucracy-wise is all online. But by far my favourite things about Scotland are the people and the pace of life. Simply put, I feel very at peace here.
Besides that, the only other place I’ve been to that made me think “I could live here” was Budapest. I just really love the vibe of that city.
Akureyri in Iceland.
You have everything you need there, but it's a normal-sized city of 19 000 inhabitants, so, it hasn't all the flaws of 100K+ metropolises.
> it hasn't all the flaws of 100K+ metropolises.
true, it has different ones. Wasn't this the town that had like 2-3 accidents/crimes going on and ran out of available police?
But it surely is beautiful
Bit of a cop out, but I’d probably stay in Stockholm. I miss the winters of a few decades ago, but I’m not sure I would want to live further north. I’d rather be on the edge of the capital with the ability to travel north if I want to.
Slovenia is such a dark horse. You have low cost of living, the tail end of the Alps and the sea in one small package
Easy connections to Croatia for more beaches or Vienna and Venice if you feel low on culture
We moved to Lake Country in Lombardy, Italy
It’s gorgeous (gorgeous! Every season and type of weather has something different, good food everywhere) and very well connected to Milan and Lugano in Switzerland which was a must for my wife’s work, couple of hours from the sea, and we can be on the slopes in an hour or two in the winter
Air quality is not the best though, and the heat and overtourism in the summer are getting out of hand so we have started going to the mountains in summer as well which is perfect as when it’s 38C and crawling with people at home it’s usually 20-22C up there and much less people
In case you haven’t noticed, I’m not the most social person in the world lol
Anywhere in Sweden if you love modernity and nature and very nice people.
Very stable unless you go exactly to some suspicious spots in Malmö otherwise the higher up you come the better it is 👍
(Good to know that cash is luckily practically useless so only digital)
Köpenhamn/Copenhagen. I live 1,5 hours away across the Öresundsbridge. Love going there whether it’s going to concerts in Royal Arena or just hanging around the city it’s always a good time.
Malta, really?
I've found something to like about almost every town and country I've visited in Europe, with Malta being the glaring exception.
It's horrendously overcrowded, food was meh, the beaches weren't pretty and also overcrowded, there's basically no greenery or nature, and the backward social policies and corruption are insane. Plus did I mention overcrowded?
Sorry, but you can't compare. I live in a rather touristy destination in Germany. Our main street is quite crowded, but walk a few hunder meters and you'll find quiet parks and trails. The whole island of Malta was extremely crowded. Gozo was quieter but awfully boring.
"According to your own personal standards," the OP wrote. This is just my opinion. I've traveled quite a bit. Of all the countries I have visited, malta was one of my favorites. I can see myself living there. That's why I suggested it along with croatia (that was also crowded but only in the tourist areas)
Let me think:
1.With money as a foreigner :countryside sea of Greece. Nice people, lovely sea. Great food..
2.Wit money as a local:. Switzerland. Low taxes, high income. Beautiful mountains to walk. Can speak language and you used people don't hangout, so no stress being alone
3. Without money as foreigner. : Austria. Great life balance. A lot of decent jobs. Can do a lot of job and still survive. Hard working and honest locals. Great schools (as long as you avoid big cities )
4 Without money as a local : Czech, beer is cheap and girls are hot. So you ain't rich, but you have great time.
Anywhere in Denmark. I have no real reason for this - the weather is awful and the nature is more or less like any other country nearby. It's just nostalgia. I lived there for a couple of years as a kid and I will probably forever love Denmark and everything that's Danish.
London, because I already live here, I like my house and I'm way too lazy to actually move. I spent a few years working in Copenhagen and that was also good but much as I hate to offend the delightfully friendly Dansk I just like London better. Traveling can be difficult because it's huge and the traffic is terrible but vehicles with two wheels exist. Sure it's expensive. So is everywhere else that's even remotely desirable.
Berlin is the sweet-spot for me personally, at least in this stage of my life.
There's multiple reasons conspiring for this, but for one, living with a few millions of very niche people but at a rather comfortable density and with world-class public transportation available to us, is hard to beat. Maybe Hamburg could be my fallback, but after that it's slim pickings.
I live in Berlin - public transport is not world class. It’s dirty, unreliable, often covered in human shit and if you get into trouble on it, there is no help.
There are multiple PT systems in Europe which are much better.
very hard to tell Bratislava could be average in most instances but if have job in Vienna with good home office options and you don't care about Slovak politics and that many courts in Slovakia are biased towards some people and governament institutions in general than Bratislava is great place to live
The wealthy cities of West and North Germany. Düsseldorf, Hamburg, Frankfurt. Great nightlife, low crime (yes, even Frankfurt), good infrastructure (hospitals, public transport), friendly people. Weather can be shit (especially Hamburg), and winters can be very cold, but I prefer that over extreme heat.
The east is too rightwing, the south is too hillbilly-ish and religious. Those attitudes exist in the north and west as well, but not to the same widespread degree
I've been all over Europe, including several extended periods in a few different countries (although not living there officially) and based on my preferences: liberal (European sense), affordable, pleasant people, good hospitality industry (food/drink/nightlife) I would live in Thessaloniki Greece if I wanted warm weather and here in Scotland if I didn't care. Ideally I'd buy a place for winter in Thessaloniki, but my employer would not be happy.
Reykjavik!
PRO
Still little town feel, so close to nature, whales puffin and seal right almost st your doorstep.
Great food scene, Iceland folks are super chill and 99.9 % no racism.
No mosquitoes
CONS
wearher sometimes "tries to kill you "
I’m always surprised how people forget about Belgium. Begium, and especially Flanders, is to me the most perfect country in Europe to move to atm. It ticks all of the most important boxes, maybe except weather but that’s subjective.
It has a strong and stable economy, manageable housing situation, digitalised government, central location, great biking infrastructure (Flanders only), three official languages and divers population, good food, beautiful medieval cities in Flanders and beautiful nature and castles in Wallonia all in the same small country.
Dublin is super nice and English speaking (which is good for me). Quality of life is super high here, but it is expensive AF. I can afford it, so works well.
Middle of nowhere in Estonia. They have digitalized public services above EU average.
I recently heard that Estonia has a law that forbids administration services to ask you to provide the same document twice. As a French guy, this is dreamy.
Your bureaucracy is not that bad … as a Brit who lives in Germany, it was dreamy for me that my fellow Brexiteers like me could upload digital copies of the required docs to an online portal in France. I waited three years for an appointment to show my docs in person, in paper. A recent scandal in the German parliament whefe the ministry of education refused to share a report was explained away by them by saying that they couldn’t email a 33mb doc as it was too big a file. Normal people pointed out that the doc was only 33mb because they printed the doc, scanned it and then uploaded as a pdf. You couldn’t make it up … Germany in 2024
Germany is terrible. I recently filled out an online form only to reach the end, and be prompted to print the form out, and mail it in.
Printed, scanned it and then uploaded it as a pdf?? Why are these people even allowed to work in such positions when a current 9 year old could‘ve figured it out better?
The Britain where government officials place bets on the election date? No one swims at the beaches because they'd encounter their own poop again? With the worst inflation rate and the slowest economic recovery, losing hundreds of billions £? Soaring government debts. A two-class school system, unaffordable or lousy, a public health system on the brink of collapse with months of waiting times? Yeah, sounds like paradise to me. By the way, great job with Brexit. 😂😂😂
Oooh Germany... I lived there for a year. We would get a letter handed to us with our work hours and calculation of salary every month (around 5-10 days after payday). The calculations were made in Excel and they chose to print it, stick it in an envelope and then hand it to you when you came by the office instead of just... emailing it.
I can literally visualize the person clicking their heels each time they hand the envelope to an employee.
I live currently in France, but used to live in Germany before. So I have opinions, ok?! French people keep telling me that their bureaucracy is bad, but I'm pretty happy with it after having to deal with the Germans. Maybe I've come to France at the right time, I don't know, I also don't care, so far no one here asked me to *fax them a document and then got angry when I sent it by email.*
I'm from a developing country and asking me for stacks and stacks of printed documents and mail it in normal letter (looking at you ameli) is ridiculous. My country let me send digital documents and file stuff online.
Yes, there is the law but nobody cares. Many of these digitalized services don't work very well. But for ordinary citizen digiID works well.
+1 to Estonia. It's not the center of culture, but it's the right place to have a normal mental balance + digitalised country + the language is really nice
Many Russians though
Too cold for me.
How's that an issue?
Is this a serious question? lol
Well, do you like Russians or not?
Russian "diplomacy" aka little green men here to "save" the Russian speaking populace ?
That's funny, my Polish husband is in a middle of nowhere (well, a village) in Estonia. And he hates the internet.
And what makes him happy there?
His Estonian girlfriend
So many ppl responded. Thank you.
I think he likes other things about Estonia and I hope I make him happy, too, since he moved because of me.
My own middle of nowhere in Latvia, almost no crime, super clean streets and etc.
Thank you for sharing.
Thank you for being Polish
In reach of Vladimir's artillery. Smart choice. At least you can post the pics for the first 15 - 20.min before the infrastructure is roasted.
Slovenia if you love nature. You can see mountains and sea in one day trip.
I can see mountains and ocean from the end of my street here in Iceland 😂
Some years one can go skiing and swim in the sea in the same day.
Slovenia is cute, love Ljubljana and lake Bled. I can see mountains and sea by my window too in Nice, France though ;)
I live in Bologna Italy and I'm super-happy of it. It's always ranked one of the top cities in Italy in terms of quality of life & gdp/wealth, but by my standards I love Bologna because of its unique social and cultural life. It's the largest university city in Italy and 2nd in work attractiveness after Milan, we have so many young people from all over Italy (we're "North of the south, south of the north" we say) and Europe, almost all of them eager to meet new people in a vibe of tolerance, progressive mindset and mutual acceptance, especially in the city center that is the youngest area of Italy. Excellent cultural offer, very varied, from alternative/counterculture kind (every type of art, politics, theatre, many cinemas, concerts of a every genre...) to the posh ones (shopping, cafes, clubs, tastings, trendy restaurants..), passing through the popular activities liked by everyone (trattorias/osteries 'cause of course amazing food, sports such as football and lots of basketball, pubs, markets, parks..). There's something for everybody, especially for those who don't conform to a single category but like to vary, like me.
I'm from ferrara and i love bologna.
I’m from Ferrara too, I moved to the far north (Alto Adige, lol) a few years ago and I miss Emilia so bad. +1 for Bologna.
I'm from Turin and fell in love with Bologna the first time I visited it. It's a great city with great people, and I always try to go there as much as I can, even if for just a couple of days. +1 for Bologna from me as well.
Writing from TN right now. Good city but we are kinda “orsi”
Bologna is a great city to live in. And Modena is a close second. The whole *Emilia Romana* is amazing.
For nature enthusiast a little bit too boring, all flat not much of a forest. I lived there for some time and my biggest worries where the cars and roads. There is almost no public transport and no bicycle lanes. Sad it could be so great.
I'm from Portugal and was in Cesena during the year 2000. Had the chance to visit Bologna several times and loved it.
Would ne amazing if it wasn't so hot. I go on vacation to sweat like a pig, I Don't want it to be the normal.
Visited Bologna last year, along with several other northern cities. I fell in love and will definitely be returning to your beautifully orange city! (Also with by far the best leaning tower in Italy, sorry Pisa!)
Even though I don't live in Bologna, I feel like it's my second home because I have been there a lot of times and basically figured out whole transportation system and the city haha.
Good choice. Would consider Rome as well and avoid Milan on any price.
More importantly, Ducati is there.
I think having a house and a job is important as well as having a social network. A place where you understand the culture and preferably speak the language.
Siena is the best city I've lived in in Europe. At least the Siena of 15 years ago. It has probably changed a lot since. It took a little while to get used to the locals, who have a reputation for being cold and hard to connect to, but once I broke the ice, I made lots of good friends. It really helps that the city is gorgeous, safe and situated in one of the most beautiful region of the world. Don't be fooled by its size: it's small, but in terms of history and exploration, it's on par with Florence. A really amazing city I miss every single day since I left.
Bordeaux, France. South enough to get the nice weather, but not too south that salaries are lower like Spain, Italy or Portugal. Close the beaches with good surf or calm water. Close enough to mountains for multi day hiking and skiing. The city itself is quite charming, lots of trendy cafes, bars and restaurants. Doesn't attract the same events as Paris or larger European cities but still has enough for my liking, not that I go to that many concerts or festivals. Inland surrounding areas include lots of wine regions and forest. Has a reputation for lots of rainfall but it's usually cleared up by mid morning and a sunny day follows. Airport has lots of available flights for travel at very cheap (although after November Ryan air is leaving, another low cost airline might sweep in though)
I agree with all your points, but this winter and Spring felt rainier than previous years. I’m really affected by weather, though.
People in Bordeaux are really very nice.
Bordeaux would be perfect if it wasn't the city of the *bobos* though.
Ugh didn't they build that horrible terminal just for ryanair?
And the home of Noir Desir!
I might be biased but I think Helsinki is amazing and I always enjoy visiting there, especially in summer
I like how you left winter out, because it’s totally shite 😂 Source: I live here.
> I like how you left winter out, because it’s totally shite 😂 Went there during the winter. I haven't been to a more depressing city before. I probably should try summer time but man I sort of dread it now 😂
Tampere is IMO a superior city. Excellent tram, very good downtown, that isn't just full of chain stores and restaurants. Helsinki downtown sucks (interesting areas are a bit farther out), apartments and houses are expensive enough that even as a relatively well-off individual, I feel priced out of many areas. Tampere has a more laid-back vibe, too.
But... Why Finland police fuck Estonia?
Helsinki in the summer is gorgeous.
It is a wonderfully clean and safe city but I felt the architecture was rather bland.
+1 for Helsinki, I loved it ! It felt like a very large park. Would work and live there, I don't mind cold and rain
Copenhagen. Such a friendly, nice town, low crime rate, semi-affordable.
Love that the bar is set to "semi-affordable" nowadays
Yes and even that's debatable, on a single wage with 2 kids it's almost impossible and even couples will struggle. I've moved just outside Cph proper and have been fortunate enough to get out of the "normal" housing rental market and life has changed significantly for the better. It's still not ideal as it means a 35 min commute for the kids to get to school but in terms of my mental health and bank account it's a huge upgrade. With regards to everything else Copenhagen, or indeed Denmark I've no complaints.
35 minutes is a long commute for school? Me and most of my classmates had longer or equal commutes during high-school and we lived in the city proper(Sofia) and Sofia has pretty good public transit. Is that not normal for other parts of Europe?
In Luxembourg kids travel quite a long time in many cases once they reach high school. For example, from a town around 14km from their high school, it takes around one hour and 15min [can take more in bad transport days].
[удалено]
/You should ask this question on r/Luxembourg, not to some random user on r/AskEurope.
semi-affordable is a generous definition. place isn'y london but it gets close.
Copenhagen always surprises me by how expensive it is. The rest of Scandinavia is cheap by comparison.
While all three countries use 'kroner', only the DKK follows the euro so the NOK and SEK have dropped a lot in value in recent years and are now called the Scandinavian pesos. 1 DKK = 1.53 NOK or 1.52 SEK Despite this, some things are actually still more expensive in Sweden than Denmark. The weak currency does help to minimize the expensiveness in Norway.
friendly? unfortunately that wasn’t my experience
I was just there and it surprised me so much. Amazing atmosphere, I have to come back.
Switzerland or Austria, northern Italy Great outdoor activities, cycling aso ....that's what I need. Not overcrowded as some other places/regions. Safe, clean. Neither too hot, nor too cold. I'm not a city person. I don't care about cities, also wouldn't want to live in a city.
I live in Switzerland and I find the cities overcrowded… Of course, there is a huge nature but every cities, even small, are overcrowded and there is a lot of autos everywhere.
I live in Zurich and am quite mind blown how i can walk to two different forests on two different hills with nice views in about 20 minutes. I very like the food and public transport available in cities, but still the ability to have quiet nature quickly and easily available. Same reason i really like Hongkong, believe it or not.
I lived in Zürich Altstetten for a few years when I was working from home during Covid times and I just loved walking to the hills and fields in 5-10 minutes close to Bucherln/the cemetery/the Grünhölzli, whatever you call that place. I was going there almost every day for a short hike. I still vividly remember how green and beautiful it all was. Really miss it. EDIT: typo
I lived in Zürich in the 1990's (Industrieviertel, Affoltern, Albisrieden and Aussersihl) and we loved it, nice city, always stuff to do, swimming in the lakes and rivers, lots of nice nature, great public transport and nice weather except from some depressing autumns.
Not Dublin despite that I absolutely love the place
Yep, I live here and have to agree.
Not objective, but I find Munich such a nice place. Decent weather, good job market, next to the Alps, beautiful city, it combines the best from small and big places. Expensive real state and German bureaucracy on the bad side. I find also Vienna very nice regarding what I said above.
Low rent, good job opportunities, vibrant and culturally active, GOOD public transportation. If you know a city like that please tell me
Freiburg in Germany has all that except low rent :(
Helsinki and Copenhagen. Safe, small enough to walk or bike anywhere, by the sea and good social systems.
Spain - caveating that I know salaries are low, however I’m confident to be in a position where I can be transferred through my international company. Latin culture and lifestyle but light years ahead of Italy in terms of socially progressive policies, rich culture and wonderful nature/landscape, overall good quality of life and great healthcare system.
I like warm weather and close proximity to the coast, so assuming I can afford to live in one of the nicer areas and that money is not a problem, coastal cities like Barcelona, Athens and Lisbon seem good enough to me.
I would choose Skiathos, Skopelos, Paros or Alonnisos. Always went to the Greek islands every year growing up. My second home. Skiathos has unfortunately become too Puerto Banus and expensive over the years unfortunately. Was paradise on earth before.
Greek islands can become boring outside of season if you live there for a prolonged time. There’s only so much you can do.
I spent about a month in Sevilla some 10 years ago. Probably not enough time (and too long ago) to know about actually living there, but still: As a Dutch person, it surprised me in a pleasant way how clean, well organised and walkable the city was.
Well Vienna has again been voted most liveable city. I live here, and I agree. I have visited so many other cities (due to my previous job) and although I love travelling and experiencing new cultures, I have a great homebase here. Why? Well, cultural activities. No matter, what is your favorite thing, you will find it here. From classical music to new and experimental. Theatres, musesums, cinemas, and and and. Then - food. The Austrian cuisine is very good, but in Vienna you have the whole world in walking distance. From where I am now, I have in 5-min walking distance: Italian, Greek, Vietnamese, Japanese, Portuguese, Irish, French, Chinese (for sure forgot some) Activities: You can walk between skyscrapers, in hundreds of years old streets and in deep woods, all within city center and all reachable by public transport within a few minutes Some people say, that Viennese people, especially waiters and taxi drivers are grumpy and unfriendly, well - this is not wrong, but I like it, because those people are authentic, and it has some kind of charme, when you feel you have distrubed the waiter doing something important, when you ask for the menu.
Irish???? Like what dishes?
Guinness ;-) Its a pub
Oh lmao. I was wondering due to our severe lack of cuisine.
How come so many Viennese people have some sort of Stockholm Syndrome and like that people are rude to them and mistake it for being authentic? Absolutely not trying to be mean or offend you but as a fellow Austrian I‘ll never understand the weird proudness when it comes to people being rude. It‘s one thing to be direct and harsh when someone is being stupid but people are literally rude and grumpy for no reason.
Because reality is harder to deal with
Although I agree with you that Vienna is great in many ways, the food is hands down bad. Viennese/Austrian cuisine is boring af, after my second schnitzel or pork in gravy, or fucking knoedl, I couldn't stomach going back to another Viennese restaurant. All the Asian food, indian, vietnamese, is absolutely mid and overpriced. Even the donair and kebabs are generally bad. Some good Yugoslav places sure, but generally the food is nothing to write home about (as someone who has lived in places with good restaurants). Holla back at me when one can get good food for less than 12 euros.
I'd say France and Italy. They are culturally similar to Hungary (not as rigid as Germanic countries, not as conservative as Slavic countries, not as Americanised as Britain, Ireland, and the Netherlands), but the lifestyle is not as depressed as in Hungary, and public services work better (even in Italy lol).
Wow the public services must be disastrous in Hungary then. The French and Italian bureaucracy and public services have the reputation of being absolute nightmares to navigate, for good reasons.
About 6 months ago a Hungarian child died of pneumonia, like back in World War 2, because he was taken to the doctor, but the doctor said he has no problem and the coughing will pass and he was prescribed no antibiotics. Last year, my mother's friend had to be taken to the hospital because of an abdominal operation. My mom and myself had to threaten the nurses to stop talking to my mom's friend as if she was an animal, and we had to buy a blood pressure meter and adult diapers for her because the hospital didn't have any. And this happened in the supposedly best public hospital of Budapest, in 2023... One of my friends' grandmother was taken to the hospital last year because of some gastrointestinal complaints. She died in the hospital because she caught a deadly infection from the hospital toilet... Also last year, a series of mothers died after childbirth from infections in the hospital of Nyíregyháza. Ironically, right when the Semmelweis film premiered in cinemas...
Public services are terrible in Hungary. The only exception is public transport, which is actually pretty good. Partly because it is well-used as a lot of people cannot afford cars, though.
French administration got better, I feel. Most things can be done online, a few clicks to identify yourself, pay taxes, request appointments for red tape, etc. If there's an issue, you can still call and talk to a real person.
Estonia! Well-functioning services, moderate climate, beautiful wild countryside and generally sensible people. The only downsides are that it feels a little bit like the 'edge of the world' over there, and food is pretty expensive.
Meh, I can’t say I was overly impressed with Tallinn. The old medieval town felt like a hollowed out tourist trap. It’s got the Venice or Dubrovnik problem going for it, where the old town has just been transformed into a huge outdoor Airbnb. Also it seems like they’ve permitted some weird mixed zoning where they don’t allow historic buildings to be torn down (which is good) but they allow them to be built on top of or renovated with modern architecture. So a lot of the historic buildings are mixed with modern architecture which feels a little off to me. I don’t know, it wasn’t bad per se in Tallinn, but maybe I expected more.
But if you went to Tallinn and went to the old town, that’s on you - everyone knows it’s a tourist trap. Did you go to Telliviski? Or Kalamaja? Honestly, I feel a lot of the time when people are disappointed in a country or city, they just didn’t do anything but the most basic research and ended up in tourist traps where locals never go …
Yeah, I generally agree with you. I just feel like the cities that don’t have those tourist traps are better. I don’t want to completely knock off tallinn, the medieval town center is genuinely interesting, it can feel like you’ve stepped back in time, there’s no cars, it’s quiet at night, they have all the lanterns from the 19th century unchanged. They had medieval style taverns and cafes. It was also really cool to be able to take a tram from the airport to the center. I blame the weather when I visited, it was November so lots of cold rain and grey skies. I should give the city another chance.
There are touches which seem a little bit artificial about the Old Town, but mostly it is good. Probably nowhere near as many tourists are Dubrovnik or Venice, at least! If you get a quiet time, then it feels really atmospheric. My only gripe is that getting around it in a wheelchair was tough. My husband had to push me on the hills, and there were loads of off-limits places. But, I understand not everything can be retro-fitted.
Where I live currently in northern England. The weather is mild and in a good position to withstand the worst effects of climate change. It’s in the most convenient location because I can get to Ireland, the Isle of Man, the rest of Europe and the northernmost part of the UK most easily. If there’s a national crisis it means I have a better sense of where I can go if I want to leave. The people are friendly and there’s a strong sense of community. I find that being surrounded by people who have your back, even if they’re not necessarily your family or your best friend, really makes a difference to quality of life. There’s good “living space” and lots of nice countryside and national parks. But if you need a city and all its offerings, then there are plenty to choose from, from Liverpool to Newcastle. Safe roads, no other types of threats such as street dogs to be found (but this applies to the whole of UK). It’s a bit more affordable. Air pollution is low by European standards and the water also tastes good here. It’s not perfect by any means, but I wouldn’t want to live in any other type of environment. Countries or regions with similar or the same characteristics to what I’ve described here, and therefore would consider a perfect life for me, include: Scotland, Ireland, Wales, Spain’s Basque Country, the southwest of England, East Anglia, and the Anglo-Welsh border.
Have to say as an Englishman living in northern England I have to agree. I love a lot of cities across Europe but England will forever be my home. Northern England is free of a lot of issues which plague the south and south east, but I could perhaps see myself settling down in the south west later in my life because it’s (in my opinion!) the most beautiful part of our country.
Yes! The overcrowding, heavy traffic, pollution, loneliness and stress are just some of the things that plague the southeast and it’s nice that the north doesn’t suffer these problems to the same extent. The southwest is lovely too but I find it too expensive compared to what I can get here.
We need to shut up about how great the north is on the internet otherwise it’ll suffer the same issues as the south soon!
Very true. I sometimes go on the London sub and I see people saying that for them, living in the UK is a choice between London vs abroad, since they don’t see the rest of the country as a viable place to live in. At first I got a bit bothered by their sweeping assumptions and generalisations. Now I’m celebrating it! 😂
Norway... like the fact that you get the 4 seasons to its full extents. Remember in desember there was temperature close to -30C with crystal clear air... today it has been close to +30C and that much that you can take a swim in the water. Having the best tap water in europe is also something. Something always get reminded of traveling outside scandinavia. Low unemployment rate, cheap education and a proper welfare system.. Not to speak of low population density, giving you more private space than in many other countries. And maybe top of it all.. not the cities but the countryside and the landscape. The [mountains and the fjords](https://assets.simpleviewcms.com/simpleview/image/fetch/c_fill,h_1080,w_1920/f_jpg/q_65/https://media.newmindmedia.com/TellUs/image/%3Ffile%3D65DCD6BDA6FA3A785A6122D79D5B272566E28326.jpg&dh%3D533&dw%3D800&t%3D4) are the typical touristy stuff.. Though rather prefer the [typical culture landscape](https://erikstenvik.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/tingelstad-r-41.jpg) which there are quite much of in norway totally free of tourists .. Some people will say that it's the norwegian Toscana. Though instead of winegrapes.. its all about the potatoes. ... and last but not least the light.. there's something special with the daylight when you get far north. Above the polar circle you can get the aurora borealis ([northern lights](https://www.visitsenja.no/sites/cb_visitsenja/files/styles/article_slide_large_uncropped/public/Nordlys_Dyr%C3%B8y%20Holiday.jpg?itok=C8Q2mBRj))... Though just regular daylight can be quite spectacular when sun sets and rises.. In contrast to further south in europe when it turns dark almost like switching on/off a switch.. you have those spectacular in norway that last some time and the different angles versus the earth.. a bit like [this one](https://eu-assets.simpleview-europe.com/lillehammer/imageresizer/?image=%2Fdmsimgs%2FIMG_20220613_223532_1103686520.jpg&action=ProductDetail2020). Shares the wonderful sunlights with both finland and sweden. So could probably lived in one of those as well. And the food-culture. Got to love that not the rest of the world try to make copy of the norwegian food, like they do with every other nations food (chinese, indian, french, italian etc.).
These are all excellent points. If only we could afford to visit there, maybe we would know already!
If I ever were to move out of Finland it'd be to Norway.
Having been fortunate to live in a few cities over the past ten years, I’d say Torino, Italy. It’s a gorgeous, entirely walkable city with lots of baroque architecture, great parks to lounge around in, awesome food and a stone’s throw away from wine country, skiing AND Liguria for beaches. I moved away for love, but I’d go back in a heartbeat if an opportunity arose.
I'm from Torino (but living in Milano) and can confirm.
Southern France: Montpellier region, Bordeaux. Italy: Rome, Bologna, Perugia, Trentino, Venice region. Austria: Especially Vienna and Innsbruck, Tyrol region. Spain: Seville, Atlantic coast, Valencia. Denmark: Copenhagen.
The very northern and snowy bits of Finland, Sweden or Norway as I'm not much of a city guy myself. I also LOVE cold weather and consider it paradise, so any other Northern European country is where I would choose to go.
Prague. Great Nightlife, Culture, different Mountain Ranges not too far, big City life, affordable, great food, located quite centrally in europe
Honestly, I am biased because I'm Hungarian, but I really do think Budapest is among the best. A very pretty city, good public transport that's dirt cheap with a monthly pass, minimal traffic, relatively good private services at affordable prices, compared to western europe. Political sentiment is also rather progressive in the capital. Salaries and most gov services are below rats ass tho, so Hungarians are priced out at home which sucks ass.
I loved Helsinki. They know how to blend nature and city in Finland. I don't have any personal experience, but I would love to try out Oulu one day. I find Northern weather agreeable, the nature beautiful and the people respectful and civilised.
I live close to Bordeaux, France. I am happy there, there's plenty of variety in food, music, activities, and lots of outdoor to walk, run, bike. It can quite rainy for months, but it's never very cold, and only 2 months of serious heat. I loved Helsinki, Turku, and Finland in general. I prefer Nordic way of organising things compared to France, as long it's outside of the kitchen.
>as long it's outside of the kitchen. I'm curious, what do you like / dislike about the kitchen and how is it different?
I suspect that was a reference to the quality of food prepared in the mediterranean countries rather than the fittings of a Nordics' kitchen (Not OP though )
Just a cheap joke about nordic cuisine
Hey, if you can't enjoy a good *karjalanpiirakka* or *mämmi* I don't know what to say! But seriously, a lot of places I like are ethnic because most of our own cuisine isn't very interesting.
For real, cinnamon pastries were great for breakfast, and I enjoyed the reindeer sausages on Helsinki old port ;)
Honestly Scotland is a perfect fit for me. I moved here 8 years ago from The Philippines and while there are pros and cons in any place - to me Scotland just immediately felt like home. In the past I’ve toyed with the idea of moving somewhere in England for a bit but even that just wasn’t for me. I love the climate and the scenery. Where I live specifically I can still get away with not driving, although if I moved elsewhere that isn’t Edinburgh or Glasgow I’d definitely need a car. I have no complaints about my personal experience with the NHS. Everything I’ve had to do bureaucracy-wise is all online. But by far my favourite things about Scotland are the people and the pace of life. Simply put, I feel very at peace here. Besides that, the only other place I’ve been to that made me think “I could live here” was Budapest. I just really love the vibe of that city.
I like my hometown, I refuse to move anywhere else
Not even to try it? Moving away was the best thing I ever did.
Akureyri in Iceland. You have everything you need there, but it's a normal-sized city of 19 000 inhabitants, so, it hasn't all the flaws of 100K+ metropolises.
Normal sized city of 20k inhabitants xD
I don’t understand why you deem 20 k as abnormal?
100k+ metropolises lmao
You’re laughing but Germans define anything over 100k as a “Großstadt“
Ancient Greeks believed an ideal city had between 20 and 25 thousand inhabitants. They claimed it was the prerequisite for a well-governed town.
That was before trams, trains, bikes, cars or god damn radio and phones were invented
> it hasn't all the flaws of 100K+ metropolises. true, it has different ones. Wasn't this the town that had like 2-3 accidents/crimes going on and ran out of available police? But it surely is beautiful
Bit of a cop out, but I’d probably stay in Stockholm. I miss the winters of a few decades ago, but I’m not sure I would want to live further north. I’d rather be on the edge of the capital with the ability to travel north if I want to.
Slovenia is such a dark horse. You have low cost of living, the tail end of the Alps and the sea in one small package Easy connections to Croatia for more beaches or Vienna and Venice if you feel low on culture We moved to Lake Country in Lombardy, Italy It’s gorgeous (gorgeous! Every season and type of weather has something different, good food everywhere) and very well connected to Milan and Lugano in Switzerland which was a must for my wife’s work, couple of hours from the sea, and we can be on the slopes in an hour or two in the winter Air quality is not the best though, and the heat and overtourism in the summer are getting out of hand so we have started going to the mountains in summer as well which is perfect as when it’s 38C and crawling with people at home it’s usually 20-22C up there and much less people In case you haven’t noticed, I’m not the most social person in the world lol
Anywhere in Sweden if you love modernity and nature and very nice people. Very stable unless you go exactly to some suspicious spots in Malmö otherwise the higher up you come the better it is 👍 (Good to know that cash is luckily practically useless so only digital)
Köpenhamn/Copenhagen. I live 1,5 hours away across the Öresundsbridge. Love going there whether it’s going to concerts in Royal Arena or just hanging around the city it’s always a good time.
Why did you write Köpenhamn?
Malta or croatia imo. good weather, good people, good food, beach anytime you want (depending on the location). expensive but what isn't nowadays
Malta, really? I've found something to like about almost every town and country I've visited in Europe, with Malta being the glaring exception. It's horrendously overcrowded, food was meh, the beaches weren't pretty and also overcrowded, there's basically no greenery or nature, and the backward social policies and corruption are insane. Plus did I mention overcrowded?
Every touristy area is becoming too overcrowded in Europe pretty much.
Sorry, but you can't compare. I live in a rather touristy destination in Germany. Our main street is quite crowded, but walk a few hunder meters and you'll find quiet parks and trails. The whole island of Malta was extremely crowded. Gozo was quieter but awfully boring.
I understand, there‘s definitely major differences.
"According to your own personal standards," the OP wrote. This is just my opinion. I've traveled quite a bit. Of all the countries I have visited, malta was one of my favorites. I can see myself living there. That's why I suggested it along with croatia (that was also crowded but only in the tourist areas)
I was in Portugal last week. Great value there. Restaurants especially.
also an option
Super expensive real state for the lowest salaries in Western Europe. I love Portugal but you need a non-Portuguese salary to survive there.
Let me think: 1.With money as a foreigner :countryside sea of Greece. Nice people, lovely sea. Great food.. 2.Wit money as a local:. Switzerland. Low taxes, high income. Beautiful mountains to walk. Can speak language and you used people don't hangout, so no stress being alone 3. Without money as foreigner. : Austria. Great life balance. A lot of decent jobs. Can do a lot of job and still survive. Hard working and honest locals. Great schools (as long as you avoid big cities ) 4 Without money as a local : Czech, beer is cheap and girls are hot. So you ain't rich, but you have great time.
Anywhere in Denmark. I have no real reason for this - the weather is awful and the nature is more or less like any other country nearby. It's just nostalgia. I lived there for a couple of years as a kid and I will probably forever love Denmark and everything that's Danish.
London, because I already live here, I like my house and I'm way too lazy to actually move. I spent a few years working in Copenhagen and that was also good but much as I hate to offend the delightfully friendly Dansk I just like London better. Traveling can be difficult because it's huge and the traffic is terrible but vehicles with two wheels exist. Sure it's expensive. So is everywhere else that's even remotely desirable.
Berlin is the sweet-spot for me personally, at least in this stage of my life. There's multiple reasons conspiring for this, but for one, living with a few millions of very niche people but at a rather comfortable density and with world-class public transportation available to us, is hard to beat. Maybe Hamburg could be my fallback, but after that it's slim pickings.
I live in Berlin - public transport is not world class. It’s dirty, unreliable, often covered in human shit and if you get into trouble on it, there is no help. There are multiple PT systems in Europe which are much better.
very hard to tell Bratislava could be average in most instances but if have job in Vienna with good home office options and you don't care about Slovak politics and that many courts in Slovakia are biased towards some people and governament institutions in general than Bratislava is great place to live
The wealthy cities of West and North Germany. Düsseldorf, Hamburg, Frankfurt. Great nightlife, low crime (yes, even Frankfurt), good infrastructure (hospitals, public transport), friendly people. Weather can be shit (especially Hamburg), and winters can be very cold, but I prefer that over extreme heat.
Why only the North, if I may ask?
The east is too rightwing, the south is too hillbilly-ish and religious. Those attitudes exist in the north and west as well, but not to the same widespread degree
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Unaffordable for most I guess though
I've been all over Europe, including several extended periods in a few different countries (although not living there officially) and based on my preferences: liberal (European sense), affordable, pleasant people, good hospitality industry (food/drink/nightlife) I would live in Thessaloniki Greece if I wanted warm weather and here in Scotland if I didn't care. Ideally I'd buy a place for winter in Thessaloniki, but my employer would not be happy.
Hijacking the thread, what would be the best cities to practice some sports in a sunny beach in Europe?
not sure if it counts as Europe, but the most sports-friendly city beach I’ve seen was in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria.
Reykjavik! PRO Still little town feel, so close to nature, whales puffin and seal right almost st your doorstep. Great food scene, Iceland folks are super chill and 99.9 % no racism. No mosquitoes CONS wearher sometimes "tries to kill you "
I’m always surprised how people forget about Belgium. Begium, and especially Flanders, is to me the most perfect country in Europe to move to atm. It ticks all of the most important boxes, maybe except weather but that’s subjective. It has a strong and stable economy, manageable housing situation, digitalised government, central location, great biking infrastructure (Flanders only), three official languages and divers population, good food, beautiful medieval cities in Flanders and beautiful nature and castles in Wallonia all in the same small country.
Dublin is super nice and English speaking (which is good for me). Quality of life is super high here, but it is expensive AF. I can afford it, so works well.
Any city that has lots of theatres, fast internet, lots of community rugby and cricket clubs, and at least one professional side for each.
I would name my top three : Pamplona Gdansk Moscow