Said to be 37% cheaper than living in London, Swansea is not yet a startup hub, but becoming more and more popular. Coworking spaces are gradually appearing in this city that the poet Dylan Thomas referred to as being an "ugly, lovely town". It is the 2nd largest city in Wales and was the birthplace of actress Catherine Zeta-Jones, the other half of Michael Douglas.

Sitting at the mouth of the Tawe River, its Welsh name is Abertawe. Historically it is said that a Norseman built a fort in Swansea about 100AD as his base from which he would raid the rest of Wales. The phrase "Swansea Jack" puts a mere dog up on a pedestal as Jack, the dog, saved 27 people from drowning in the Tawe River during his lifetime between the years of 1930 and 1937.

The visual shortcomings of Swansea are made up for with its dynamic student population that have created pockets of uber coolness with funky bars to frequent and quirky but sublime bed & breakfast establishments where you can put your head on a pillow for a night or two. Currently the city is undergoing a regeneration that is slowly transforming this somewhat drab post-war city into a jewel more befitting that of its stunning 5-mile apron on the Swansea Bay.

If you need to run away from your laptop for awhile there is the National Waterfront Museum to explore with its' myriad of coal-industry artifacts and maritime paintings or you can stroll around the Swansea Marina and drool over the moored boats.
Recently named as the cleanest city in Wales, it is also Britain's wettest city; so make sure you have an umbrella.

Use the interactive map above to search coworking spaces in Swansea.