This paper focuses on Dutch families who moved to Hällefors (rural Sweden) in the early 21st century. It discusses contradictory and ambivalent discourses between life before and life after migration. As studied in this text, the direction of the move (north), the destination (a problematic municipality) and the structure for the decision process (provided by a municipality and an agency actively attracting incomers) are novel aspects to existing studies of lifestyle migration. The paper aims to examine the migration process of Dutch lifestyle migrants in Hällefors and their ambivalent attitudes towards returning. The main empirical question is ‘after migrating to Hällefors, what influences the Dutch families’ attitude towards returning?’ This question is addressed through an interview study, conducted in 2011. One of the findings is that long-term planning migrants show less ambivalence than spontaneous movers.