Hola amigos, qué tal? Today we're going to look at the five best cities to work and live in here in spain in my opinion of course although spain is a country where it has not been easy for foreigners to work in the past times are changing and there are more and more job opportunities in spain for specialists in certain sectors for example it but even if you are not an id specialist the following five cities are the ones i would recommend today's video is sponsored by Skillshare and i'll tell you a little bit more about skillshare during the video the first city on my top five list is the southern city of malaga located in andalusia and on the shores of the mediterranean sea malaga has long been a favorite spot for tourists and retirees but high unemployment has meant that it was difficult to find work in the past however nowadays malaga is fast becoming a tech hub here in spain with more and more startups choosing to base their operations in this city in fact some people are even asking whether malaga will become spain's own version of silicon valley a recent survey by a british startup asked the question which is the most suitable city in spain to create new businesses and although malaga finished in third spot something interesting is happening in malaga so what makes this city an attractive city to work and live in well the biggest attraction for many will be its climate and leisure activities malaga has one of the best climates on mainland spain with mild winters and sunny days throw great restaurants and a fantastic night life into the mix and you can see why more and more companies are choosing this city to set up shop malaga also has first class infrastructure with well-connected motorways and it's joined to spain's capital city by high-speed rail and there's also an international airport that will let you travel to many international destinations so malaga definitely a city you should consider if coming to live and work in spain.
City number four on my list is the northern city of bilbao and although a lot different to malaga in terms of climate it is also a city that offers job opportunities located in the autonomous community known as the basque country bilbao and its surroundings were previously home to a lot of industry but in recent decades bilbao has been transformed into a modern city with some amazing modern architecture the guggenheim museum to name just one the basque country is one of spain's most important industrial centres and there is a solid manufacturing base also the key industries in this part of spain are energy automotive electronics and information and communications technology bilbao has a world-class public transport system and in my opinion it is one of the best in spain and although it is not yet connected to madrid by high-speed rail bilbao does have an airport with international flights and there are plenty of flights daily to other parts of the country close to rugged mountains and a rugged coastline bilbao offers many leisure alternatives from hiking to surfing if you are a lover of food and drink bilbao will not let you down the city has one of the best bar cultures in spain and the food on offer is second to none in fact basque cuisine is famous worldwide when it comes to the cost of living bilbao was not the cheapest city in spain but it is still relatively cheap when compared to other european cities so bilbao easily fitting into my top five cities here in spain when it comes to living and working the third city on my list is another city located on the shores of the mediterranean valencia valencia is spain's third largest city and is now one of the country's trendiest and most appealing cities and it's perfect for people looking for a bigger city than malaga or bilbao but who don't want to live in a city the size of madrid or barcelona if that makes sense and in 2020 valencia was ranked the number one city for expat living by the intonations group in their survey on the best and worst cities in the world for expats some of the reasons valencia came out on top with the plentiful leisure options and great weather that this city offers as well as quality of urban living cost of living is also something that makes valencia an attractive option with rents and co-working spaces still a lot cheaper than other european cities valencia is also a foodies paradise and the birthplace of spain's most international dish paella the city is also attracting a lot of new companies that see valencia as a vibrant and attractive place to set up their operations the city has 500 startups 33 investment funds 40 startup communities and 60 co-working spaces and an appetite for entrepreneurship statistics show that more than a hundred new startups are created in valencia every year valencia also has a modern public transport system and is connected to madrid by fast train that will get you to the spanish capital in less than two hours there's an international airport less than 20 minutes from valencia city centre so traveling abroad is also a piece of cake so valencia right up there when it comes to the best cities here in spain for living and working
Now we come to my number two city for living and working in this country barcelona could easily be the first city on this list but given the fact i live in madrid i'm a little bit biased barcelona is the third mediterranean city that i have spoken about today it's also the biggest of the three and the second largest city in spain with a population of around 1.6 million people barcelona is the capital of the autonomous community of catalonia and it is a popular city for both tourists and foreign residents alike the climate is temperate and sunny all year round the gastronomy is varied and culturally barcelona offers something for all tastes add breathtaking architecture and you almost have the perfect spanish city the city's transport system is efficient and cheap and its airport is one of the biggest in spain with flights to most parts of the globe there's also a fast train connection to madrid and also to paris so it ticks all the boxes when it comes to transport barcelona is undoubtedly one of the most international cities in spain and 20 percent of the workforce is comprised of expats or foreign residents there are also a large number of international companies in barcelona plenty of freelance work and it's also an innovation hub with 29 of all startups in spain originating in this city when it comes to quality of life barcelona ranks highly among cities not only in spain but also in europe and although barcelona is an expensive city compared to other spanish cities it is still cheaper than other comparable european cities and don't forget the weather gastronomy and architecture or have i already mentioned those so to sum up barcelona should be high on anyone's list should they be considering living and working in spain and now for number one and in my opinion the best city in spain to live in and for work opportunities is the spanish capital madrid madrid is the city that the rest of spain moves to looking for opportunity and in this city opportunities are great at least when compared with other spanish cities located bang smack in the center of the country it's the perfect place to use as a base to explore the rest of spain in fact you can get to virtually any part of mainland spain from madrid in around 5 hours or less by car and even quicker if you take high-speed rail and given that madrid is the capital of the country all large government institutions are based there and so are the majority of spain's biggest companies that means that business opportunities are bound and in recent years madrid's tech scene has also taken off and 30 percent of all spanish startups are based there although madrid is not on the coast and its weather is not mediterranean it makes up for these deficiencies with its cultural offer museums theatres art galleries and its fantastically diverse gastronomy add one of the best nightlifes in europe and you have spain's most dynamic and diverse city madrid's public transport system is one of the best in europe with both a fantastic metro and bus system and like barcelona it's relatively cheap madrid's airport is the most international in spain and you can catch a fast train to virtually any part of the country salaries in madrid are also some of the highest in the country but this also means that general living costs will also be higher there however given the fact that it is spain's biggest city also means that it has big city problems like crowds and traffic jams but in my opinion these cons are offset by the services that madrid offers so madrid my number one city when it comes to living and working in spain so there you have my top five cities for living and working in spain it doesn't matter if you are a highly skilled professional or an english teacher you should be able to find a job in one of the cities mentioned and enjoy your spain experience please remember that to enhance your job opportunities you will need to have a decent level of the local language and it's always a good idea to have an open mind when moving to a new country i hope you enjoyed the video and that the information will come in handy if you are already living and working in spain please tell us where you are and share your experience in the comment section below give the video a thumbs up if you liked it thumbs down if you didn't and i'll see you in the next one hasta luego
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