Madrid, Spain

Madrid lives in its streets. Lunch is sacred and runs late; dinner is later; bars stay open longer than they reasonably should. Locals walk everywhere because the centre is dense and flat and beautiful. The summer is brutal but the rest of the year is the best urban climate in Europe.

The city is comparatively cheap for what it offers — major museums, an unbeatable food scene, a metro that puts Paris and London to shame, and rents still well below Barcelona. The Beckham Law gives skilled newcomers a flat 24% tax rate for their first six years, which has quietly pulled a lot of remote workers from London and Berlin.

Good for: people who like dense urban life with a slower rhythm, queer folks, anyone choosing between European capitals on cost.