# where to live - Leeuwarden, Groningen, Drachten or in between



## greyfazer (Apr 1, 2014)

Hi,

I'm going to relocate to the NL soon (north of the country) and cannot understand how to choose a right place to live.
Area of imy nterest is in between Leeurwarden, Groningen, and Mappel.

List of my decision criteria is like this (in descending order):

1. I have a 7 y.o. son who will need to attend school. He does not speak Dutch at all, so school nearby should be expat-friendly and supportive, and has some experience in dealing with kids like him.

2. I don't really mind to live in a small town so far, so living in large cities like Leeurwarden is not really required. I don't mind to live in a small town.

3. Sport facilities (swimming, chess) for kids are important.

4. My wife won't probably be able to find a job because of inability to speak Dutch. So educational facilities and/or volunteer job nearby are important.

Any ideas / thoughts are welcome


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## Caglar (Aug 14, 2015)

Hi

Sorry If I disturb but I minght relocate to Drachten with almost similiar conditions with you

If you did already can have your comments about your concerns below

Regards
Caglar


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## cschrd2 (Oct 31, 2011)

Groningen is most international for sure as one of the major university cities. Drachten & Leeuwarden are nice places to live but less international for sure. 
Be aware that the people in the north seem to most people unfriendly, however if you adjust to the local habits it's great living in both provinces.


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## Dutchess (Jun 30, 2015)

I have nothing to add to what was written above. It is definitely the rural part of Holland and the inhabitants are known for their reserved nature. With about 200.000 inhabitants Groningen is probably the largest `city´ in the region and because of it´s university probably the most internationally oriented. However they will mostly be students, not expats.

Almost all Dutch schools offer `schakelklassen´, transition classes for kids who don´t speak Dutch yet. Some schools are bilingual and teach classes in Dutch and English. The best thing you can do is contact a few schools and visit them to see what they have to offer and where you want to enroll your son. It is very common for kids to visit an elementary school in their own neighborhood (walking or cycling distance). Dutch parents like the idea of their kids being able to socialize and play outside with their classmates after school and that would be more difficult if your kid goes to school on the other side of town.

Although you may not mind living in a small town, it may be difficult for your wife. Living in one of the ´cities´ offers her a lot more opportunities to go out and meet people, take Dutch classes, volunteer etc. I will leave that decision to you because it is very personal, but you should know that this particular area of Holland is a bit isolated compared to the rest of the country.


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