In April 2008, editors of Best Life Magazine used public data from various sources and analyzed 257 American cities, in order to determine the best places to raise a family. Honolulu took the first place, followed by Virginia Beach and Billings (Montana).

If you are a parent, interested in good schools with above-average test scores and favorable student-teacher ratios for your children, if you want to raise your children in a safe area, with family-friendly neighborhoods and respectable budgets, check the list below. A good quality of life is also determined by a large number of museums and parks, and available pediatricians. Multi-hour commutes and expensive houses, as well as divorcing friends and neighbors, are not what you are looking for. Continue reading »

The 2007 Quality of Living Survey of Mercer Human Resource Consulting also provides a Health and Sanitation Ranking, with the top 50 cities in the world. According to this survey, Calgary (Canada) ranks first, followed by Honolulu (USA) and Helsinki (Finland).

The ranking considered basically factors for healthcare and quality of living: availability of affordable hospital services and medical supplies, absence or treatement of infectious diseases, water potability, troublesome and destructive animals/insects, waste removal, sewage and air quality, pollution. Continue reading »