Welcome to Ask a Local, Teleport’s question and answer forum for anyone who is simply curious about, in the process of moving to, or getting settled in a new city.
When you move to London, you would call up your old friend John there - but what if you don't know anyone there yet? That's what we want Ask a Local to be: your old friend you can always reach out to for insider insights about life in another city.
More than anything, this is a knowledge base built and updated by you, the users, for other users. The purpose is to collect quality questions and answers, covering a range of topics relevant to the community.
To make sure the community maintains its usefulness, now and in the future, we do have a few ground rules:
Ask a Local is a Q&A site, not a traditional message board. There are no free-form discussions, only questions and answers to those.
- Each new topic you start should be formulated as a question.
- Use proper grammar, capitalization, and make sure the title ends with a question mark.
- Use the main text box to add sufficient level of detail to your question. Very vague questions will be removed.
- Make sure you post your question in the right category. Do not post directly under “Ask a Local”, but rather in the appropriate city.
When replying to a question, make sure you add value. If there is not enough detail in the question to give a great answer, it is fine to ask for more details or provide a few options in your answer, acknowledging that it depends on what the original poster wants to achieve.
We hope to keep every thread concise and helpful for future users facing the same problem. We want them to get their answers quickly, and spare them from reading through the entire process of how the sausage was originally made:
- If any new details come to mind, or the original poster provides more details you can react to, please edit your past answer rather than adding additional replies.
- Instead of writing just “+1” or “I agree”, use the heart-shaped like-button.
- Make sure you stay on topic—instead of derailing a thread, post a new question.
Ask a Local is primarily about evergreen content. It’s not for time sensitive topics, news, or current events. Good questions and answers are ones that will stay relevant for years to come. Here are some examples of what’s okay and what’s not:
Not okay:
- What is going on in Berlin this weekend?
- Who’s going to the Katy Perry concert next Friday?
Okay:
- What are the biggest software conferences in Berlin?
- Which meetup groups should I join in Tokyo if I’m interested in 3D printing?
Time sensitive questions will be removed immediately. Questions that were acceptable at the time of posting may be removed in the future if they are no longer deemed relevant.
Before posting a question, ask yourself:
- Is it relevant for someone considering moving to the city and seeking to learn more about it?
- Is it relevant for someone going through the process of moving to the city?
- Is it relevant for someone who recently moved there, and is in the process of getting settled and getting to know the city?
If at least one of the answers to those questions is not a resounding “yes”, then Ask a Local is probably not the right forum.
Questions relating to job search, housing, neighborhoods, healthcare, family/children, education, visas, taxes, language, (co)working-spaces, safety, salaries, culture, living costs, budgeting, climate, people, transportation, business environment, connectivity, and related topics are usually acceptable.
If you are interested in a more personal service or just want to protect your privacy by not posting on a public forum, Teleport Scouts can—for a small fee—advise you on a range of moving related topics for many of our cities.
This is no place for racism, hate speech, personal attacks, political agendas, forceful religious views, discrimination, spam, or anything else offensive. If anything, criticize ideas, not people.
It is also no place for blatant self promotion. It is only okay to post about services, products, businesses, events or similar that you—or anyone you are affiliated with—offer in limited circumstances:
- The product/service should be relevant to the question being asked.
- Make sure to disclose your affiliation with the product/service/business/event, both if you’re directly affiliated, or if you’re affiliated through your friend, your aunt, your dog, or your dog’s aunt.
- Do not use any referral or affiliate links.
If you see any inappropriate, offensive, or unhelpful posts, please do not respond to them. Rather click the report button (click the three dots, then the flag) so someone from our team can take action.
Please help us keep a positive and helpful vibe in our community. That’s all we ask.
By using Ask a Local—or any of Teleport’s other products—you are agreeing to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy, so please read them. If you have any questions regarding those, the community guidelines, Ask a Local, or anything else related to Teleport, please write us at contact@teleport.org.
