What are the most pleasant cities in the world? A study by The Economist Group ranked more than a hundred cities to answer this question.
Can you live in the city and do well? While large urban centers show advantages, particularly in terms of available infrastructure and accessible cultural activities, several other points often tarnish the picture: pollution, noise or lack of space… However, a study proves that living in large cities, particularly in the capitals, is not incompatible with a quality life.
According to The Global Liveability Index 2023 published by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), some European capitals are even among the ten cities in the world where life is the most pleasant, two of them occupy the first and second podium spot. A remarkable performance since no less than 173 cities are evaluated and listed in the ranking.
Vienna, the capital of Austria, was voted the most pleasant city in the world in 2023 for the second year in a row. Danish capital Copenhagen comes next, while Swiss cities Zurich and Geneva are the latest European locations to complete the ranking in 6th and 7th place. To arrive at such a result, the EIU study relied on five evaluation criteria: access and quality of health care, access to culture and quality of the environment, level education, quality of infrastructure and finally stability. This last point concerns the degree of good citizenship, the recurrence of troubles or even the crime rate. The analysis of The Global Liveability Index shows that European cities are failing on the criterion of stability, in particular because of strikes and civil unrest observed among populations. The war in Ukraine also affects the ranking of some cities.
If no French city has risen to the top of this list, the French can console themselves with the proximity of the most pleasant cities in the world. All four European destinations can be reached in just two hours by plane, some even less. So easy to go and taste the happiness of these capitals for a short stay and why not for a weekend?!
