Best places to retire cheap in 2018
Where’s the best place to retire cheap in 2018? Here’s my definite list for the year!
Here you go, in order:
#8 Cebu, Philipines: Beautiful forts, old architecture, mountains and beaches…..what’s not to love about Cebu? Also Cebu speaks English. They have great food, a mix of traditional and western can be found here no problems. The biggest problem with Cebu and why it only ranked #8 on this years list? Heat. It’s hottttttt, hot, hot here. Also spotty wifi, and roosters. Why are roosters a big con? They still have cock fighting here. So you are going to hear roosters all the time. One of the best things about Cebu though? The beaches, this will rank high for you if you love beaches!
#7 Bali, Indonesia: Tranquil beaches, and a very diverse culture. From Australian backpackers, to yoga pant wearing hippies reside here. I’ve been all around the world and this is one of the most diverse places I have found in the way of culture. The people of Bali, are also quite of mix. Regardless if you like yoga or all you can drink night clubs, there’s a place in the city for you. You’ll be able to get fresh fruit shakes for $1 CDN and big beers are $3. The biggest problem with Bali, is that it’s full of bugs. I don’t think I saw one traveller that was not covered in bug bites. I’d vacation here, but I don’t think I’d like to retire here. But I love the banana pancakes on the beach…..so good and definitely worth going for!
#6 Quito, Ecuador: Quito is one of the cities you’ll definitely visit in Ecuador. The reason you’ll visit is that it’s a airport hub and it’s close to the Amazon. Would I retire there? Yes, but it’s not as good as it’s sister city Cuenca. While Quito has several things going for it like Uber and more buses going to different parts of the country, it’s not quite perfect. Giant hills make walking around difficult, and while I’d recommend coming here, (It’s still in the top 10 in the world.) It’s neighbor Cuenca is just better for retirees. Another problem with Quito is like most of South America, people don’t really speak English. Great healthcare in Ecuador though keeps Quito in the mix! Also as a bonus if you’re staying in Quito, go check out the Blue Door Housing…fantastic place to stay.
#5 Chiang Mai, Thailand: Founded in 1296, this northern town in Thailand is a quiet place compared to Bangkok. The old town here is amazing, picturesque with temples and a feeling of peace. It doesn’t feel like a big tourist trap like Bangkok does. Saying that there are some reasons it’s ranked #5. No transit. The city has no good bus/transit/taxi. You’ll be taking Jeepneys everywhere. Recently it got GRAB, but cars are still relatively rare.
LINK: Great things about retiring in Chiang Mai
#4 Saigon, Vietnam: Saigon is a great place to retire cheap, because of the combination of great food and culture. LINK In detail review of Saigon
Banh Mi is my go to food here and even if I never retire here, I’ll need to fly back at least once a year for Banh Mi.
- Coffee 17,600 Dong ($1 CDN
- I’ve tried to give up smoking, but it’s been hard so I’ll usually have a smoke with my morning coffee. cigarettes are 25,500 Dong ($1.50 CDN) a pack.
- Gym 260,000 Dong ($15 CDN) a month.
- Vietnamese Sub, AKA Banh Mi, AKA delicious 15,000 Dong ($1 CDN). The funny thing about Banh Mi’s is that there are several stands all around my apartment. All of the Banh Mi’s are slightly different but they are all uniformly 15,000 Dong!
- My apartment was 4.4 million Dong ($250 CDN ) a month for high speed internet (43 Mbps), a maid once a week, power, water etc. (Shared with 2 other people).
- A bowl of Pho 40,000 Dong ($2 CDN)
Why did it not rate higher on my best countries to retire cheap list? Heat mainly, and the fact that GRAB is really bad here. Also the visa situation kind of sucks. You have to do paperwork ahead of time to get your Visa, and Visa runs are necessary every 3 months.
#3 Medellin, Colombia: Ranked #3 this is my #1 to place if I were just to judge it by it’s vibrancy and culture. I loved Medellin as soon as I stepped off the plane. The sounds, the sights (the women are beautiful) and the fact that everyone seems pretty darn nice. I fell in love with Medellin. Medellin is somewhere you definitely want to visit at least once in your life. Saying that it only ranked #3 for a a few reasons. It’s lively culture also includes, drugs, thieves and assaults. Every person I knew had either been mugged, robbed or pickpocketed (or personally knew somebody who had been). I personally had somebody try to pickpocket me, and my roommate was robbed at knife point. The safety factor drops this amazing city in Colombia to #3.
#2 Siem Reap, Cambodia: The city of temples! It’s got all the charm of Vietnam, and it has 50 cent beers! Food will cost more than Vietnam, but it balances itself out with cheaper beer/cigarettes. A great combination of international food, and $3 lunches. This is the only place where I found imported liquor cheaper than it is back home in Canada! That’s right if you’ve travelled around you know the price of international booze is always more expensive. In Siem Reap, Jack Daniels is actually 40% cheaper than it is at home in Canada. The only caveat to this is wine. Wine is double the price for no known reason.
Siem Reap is small enough to walk around, but if you get sick of walking there’s an abundance of Tuk Tuks. Safe, and with great English, this is a great place to retire cheap. Visa on arrival is no problem, and it’s super easy to get 6 month extensions. The only reason it didn’t make the top spot on my list? Hot! It’s hot, hot hot! If you like hot weather this place should actually move itself up to number one.
LINK TO SIEM REAP MONTHLY REVIEW
#1 Cuenca, Ecuador: Oh Cuenca, I love you. The beautiful architecture you would find in Quito, but not filled with giant hills. I’ve found the sleepy town, which is big enough to have massive malls, and yet small enough to walk to be perfectly in my wheelhouse.
Big beers are $1.25 CDN, and food is $2.50 a meal. There is a wide assortment of culture to be found here, but it’s not really a party place. Cuenca isn’t a place you want to visit for a vacation. There’s really not much to do here. It’s a place you’ll want to go to retire. A strong expat community also makes it an easy place to make friends.
The only thing about Cuenca that I’d love to see? It needs a better cab system. In Quito there was Cabify and Uber. Nothing exists like that in Cuenca.
Perfect spring like weather though all year, great people and a good sized population. Cuenca was #1 in 2017, and I am keeping it here for 2018.
It’s been a big year for me in 2018 and I love this travel blogging. Thank you so much for your support of it! If you have any questions about which countries to retire cheap the best way is to message me on facebook!