Arelldee

I finally moved to Slovakia with my wife and baby daughter in October 2021 having been a regular visitor to meet and see the in-laws for the best part of 10+ years. We built our own house between 2015 and 2017 and may eventually finish the garden as that is all that's left to do. Anyway was wondering if there are any other ex-pat Brits out there now living in Slovakia with Slovak partners and who would like to connect and share experiences/tips/etc.

All the best.

OrangeMango

Depending on where you are in Slovakia, I've noticed that the standard of living seems to be rather high in the Bratislava area, - among the highest in a former communist country. What I've noticed is the increased number of high rise construction in Bratislava, indicating a strong economic growth? As I don't speak the language I have no insight into the country, I am guessing that politics has a high amount of corruption still, but nobody cares as long as the economy is good....

Arelldee

We're about 20km outside Kosice, the second city. It's an industrial area in the main with US Steel being the dominant economic force but with other multinationals in the vicinity (Crown Packaging, Magna, etc.). The last time I looked, there was almost full employment locally and the average earnings were above national averages. Development in the city itself is happening but mostly commercial. There seems to be a growing commuter community with many city workers seeking housing in the nearby towns and villages where costs are much lower. We're serviced by an airport and a rail station but many people go on holiday departing from Budapest or Vienna where flights are more frequent and destinations more varied. Politics seems to be stagnating everywhere as the country relies on a proportional representation electoral system that has, in recent history, seen coalition governments formed from people with widely different standpoints. This creates an inertia where old practices are difficult to displace.

Travelkid0

As it is in all capital cities...same goes for Ljubljana - Slovenia, Zagreb- Croatia, Czech-Prague, and so on...This might not be true for Germany or Austria, but it is kinda of a rule in the eastern part of Europe I guess

Finknottle

Not really a particularly high standard of living in Bratislava (compared to other former communist countries), in fact old town with its large number of cheap cafés (but few restaurants) still has a communist era feel to it. Yes, there is economic growth in Slovakia and a lot of high rise building as Bratislava strives to achieve its capital city status (having played second fiddle to Praga for so long) - but it's getting there!