Country Article / Postcards

Melbourne, Australia: The World's Best City for Expats?

Date: 12/29/2004

Dear International Living Reader,

This year's annual London-based Economist Intelligence Unit (www.eiu.com/) survey ranks Melbourne, along with Vancouver and Vienna, as the best cities for expatriates. The award is based on a survey of each city's infrastructure, access, education levels, crime rates, focus on the environment, culture and events, diversity, and how connected it is with the rest of the world.

The survey assesses the level of hardship for expatriates in 130 cities, using 12 factors including housing, education, recreational activities, health, climate, and terrorism. Cities are rated one to five in 12 categories, with one meaning no hardship and five indicating extreme hardship. Melbourne receives the perfect one in each category this year, including weather, to give it an overall score of one.

In the survey of 130 cities, the highest-ranked U.S. city is Honolulu (19th place); New York is 51st; and Washington ranks lowest of the 16 American cities in the survey (57th)--mainly due to a high risk of terrorism.

Paris ranks 28th; Dublin ties New York for 51st position; London comes in at 45th, along with Los Angeles, Madrid, and San Francisco.

An obvious advantage for visitors to Melbourne is the reversal of the seasons in the Southern Hemisphere, allowing you to dodge the worst of the northern winters by visiting anytime from spring (September) through to autumn (March, April, and May)--arguably the best time to visit Melbourne.

For more information on Melbourne, go to: http://www.visitmelbourne.com/

Mike Kennedy,
For International Living