Braga, Algarve and Azores are among the 20 best European destinations for North Americans to live, invest and work, according to criteria such as quality of life and the health system.
The 2020 selection of the Best European Destinations organisation (Best European Destinations) was published by the North American magazine Forbes and is based on “various criteria, including the existence of an international school, quality of life, the health system, internet connection, proximity to airports with international flights, cost of living, active foreign community and a low crime rate".
Among the best 20 places for Americans to “live, invest, retire or create new projects”, which were distinguished among 120 possibilities, are two Portuguese regions and a city.
"Two important qualities" are mentioned, such as "openness and entrepreneurship", since there are several 'start-ups' and multinationals and the fact that the city has already hosted international events.
In defense of this destiny, the publication recalls that “the Portuguese people are qualified and hardworking and speak much better English than many of their European neighbors”.
The Minho city is the happiest in Portugal and “is on the podium of European cities with the best quality of life”, stresses the publication.
Also “the speed and efficiency” with which the district capital dealt with covid-19 are pointed out as an example of its “capacity for innovation and dynamism”.
Algarve and Azores
Portugal appears once again in eighth place, where the Algarve sun takes center stage, but also the existence of several international schools and good internet connection networks in many of the big cities are reasons to leave the American continent for the Algarve.
The list, which opens with a Portuguese destination, ends in the same way, with the Azores taking 20th place.
The “archipelago of nine incredible islands” is ideal for those who are planning to “leave the US to settle in New Zealand or even Iceland”, but are not particularly enthusiastic about “the temperatures or the cost of living”.
In this region, foreigners can benefit from a low tax burden, in a place that is among the European destinations with “the best quality of life and the best value for money in real estate”.
The magazine also highlights that “the nine islands of the Azores are well connected – at affordable prices – to each other by plane and boat” and have “daily direct flights to the Portuguese mainland and the United States”.
By LUSA