Moving abroad is often a difficult decision – especially if you have children.
Living abroad can be incredibly enriching and open up new opportunities by introducing children to new languages and cultures.
But when you’re destroying not only your own life but also the lives of your children, you need to think even more about making these big life changes.
You may also need to consider additional factors if children are involved, such as: B. the cost of child care, whether there is enough outdoor space for play, and various health and safety concerns.
So if you are free to choose your destination, rather than being sent abroad for work or moving for family reasons, there is a lot to consider as some countries and cities are much more suitable than others.
According to a new report from life insurance company Reassured released earlier this month, Vienna is the best place to live in Austria, at least in Europe. Child care costs an average of just £223.14, about $270, per month in the central European city, while the average total monthly cost of living for a family there is £2,794.
Rent makes up a significant proportion of this, with the average cost of a house with at least three bedrooms being £1,356.69. The relatively low levels of pollution and crime also make raising children in the city more attractive.
However, the analysis found that there are only 44 parks there, which is significantly fewer than second-place Prague with 106 and third-place Rome with 148. Rome also offers the most child-friendly activities of the cities on the list, with 687 opportunities for play and learning are available in the historic city.
Both Prague and Rome also have lower total monthly living costs for families, at £2,682 and £2,677.70 respectively. However, monthly childcare costs are much higher at £787.43 in Prague and £407.36 in Rome.
Pollution levels in Prague, Czech Republic, are also more than twice as high as in Vienna, while in Rome they are almost four times higher. The Italian city also has a significantly higher crime rate, making safety an issue for families.
Austria also performed well as a country overall, with three of the top 10 cities located there. Salzburg, known for its culture and opera festivals, is in fifth place, while the winter destination Innsbruck comes in seventh.
Italy also has several cities in the top 10, with Trieste in the north of the country, near the border with Slovenia, coming in tenth.
However, Germany has the most cities in the top 20 most family-friendly cities: Nuremberg in sixth place, Munich in thirteenth place, Hamburg in fifteenth place and Hanover in twentyth place.
Although Vienna and Rome perform well, many other major European hubs lag behind slightly smaller, lesser-known cities on the continent. Finland’s Helsinki, in fourth place, is the only other capital to rank in the top 10.
Paris is the nearest capital in eleventh place. The monthly cost of family life there averages £3,184.80, just a few hundred pounds higher than in Vienna. However, average rental costs there are over £1,000 higher at £2,434.56, and childcare costs are more than three times higher than in Vienna at around £694.84 per month.
Paris also has a very high crime rate – but also the highest number of parks on the entire list, a whopping 306!
London doesn’t even make it into the top 20 most family-friendly cities in Europe, but comes in a distant sixty-ninth place. The report finds that the average cost of childcare alone in the English capital is £1,599.49.
The total cost of living for a family there is around £3,712.10 per month. One advantage is the 651 different kid-friendly activities to choose from in the city and 187 different parks, although this may not make up for the immense cost.
Source : www.cnbc.com