Come To Cork

Living in Cork

Cork has the perfect lifestyle balance – a vibrant, bustling city set in a county with some of the most spectacular natural beauty in Europe. The city itself is compact and free from the ravages of urban sprawl.

Many unspoiled mountains, lakes, rivers and beaches are just a short drive from the city centre, and even in the heart of the county, you are never more than an hour from the spectacular Atlantic coastline.

As a result of its rich cultural heritage, Cork was selected as European Capital of Culture in 2005 – a tremendous boost to a city that has more theatres, concert venues, arts centres and galleries per head of population than any other Irish city.

Cork is renowned for its annual festivals, with over 100 taking place across the county every year. Corkonians and visitors alike enjoy the fabulous sights and sounds of Cork International Jazz Festival, Cork Midsummer Festival, sailing at Cork Week, Kinsale Arts Week and East Cork Early Music Festival, click here for more. Cork International Jazz Festival is probably the best known of the festivals, attracting artists from all over the world to perform in front of tens of thousands of jazz lovers in venues throughout the city. 

But while the city may know how to host a good party – and does so frequently – Cork is not merely a visitors’ playground. Life here has its serious, hard-working side too, with more than a quarter of a million people working, studying and living their everyday lives in the thriving Cork Metropolitan area.

And they have a lifestyle that’s enviable by any standards. Cork has almost full employment with some of the world’s best-known companies such as Apple, Boston Scientific and Pfizer providing thousands of stable, high-quality jobs to a well-educated workforce that’s among the most highly skilled in Europe.

Cork’s prosperity spreads to every sector of life: housing is high-quality, plentiful and affordable; there are six public and private hospitals in the city, all with modern facilities and offering a high standard of healthcare; and community support services are available to all, as are primary, secondary and third-level education.

There’s no doubt that the work-life balance here is just right – a blend of industriousness, enjoyable leisure time and a strong sense of community.