Who has retired to other Asian countries?

[georgegeorgia]

15 minutes ago, spidermike007 said:

The problem with Bali, is sooner of later you have to deal with the lower third of the island. It is like Manhattan at rush hour. 

 

And the PI feels like one huge Tijuana to me, the food is atrocious, the air quality is horrendous, due to the sooty diesel they use, it gets far too many typhoons, and you always have to have eyes in the back of your head. I do like the people. Too bad about the ghetto feel of the place and the violent crime.

 

I don't have to be concerned about that here. Thailand is like Beverly Hills compared to most of the PI, and there is very little crime committed on foreigners, it seems. 

I guess so,but I just spent a few months there mainly in the outer areas such as Daveo and Gensan and no one bothered me.

 

[lopburi3]

Would add noise as a major factor in PI - traffic/cocks/dogs/children/venders/whistle blowers/music coming out of every business.  This would rule out Duma for me as almost impossible to avoid - in Cebu/Manila/Angeles City you would have condo options to help.  And all have better medical facilities. 

 

Angeles has advantage of much better quality food (due many foreign run restaurants as well as good market with good access to mountain food growing areas).  I did live there 4 years in the 80's and found typhoons were very weak by the time they got there - only the volcano to worry about.  Believe it would be my first choice today as easy access to Subic for beach or Manila for medical and on site airport for travel.  And much better selection of food.  The only obvious negative from my view is the small trikes used there - but taxi is starting to become available.

[georgegeorgia]

12 minutes ago, lopburi3 said:

Would add noise as a major factor in PI - traffic/cocks/dogs/children/venders/whistle blowers/music coming out of every business.  This would rule out Duma for me as almost impossible to avoid - in Cebu/Manila/Angeles City you would have condo options to help.  And all have better medical facilities. 

 

Angeles has advantage of much better quality food (due many foreign run restaurants as well as good market with good access to mountain food growing areas).  I did live there 4 years in the 80's and found typhoons were very weak by the time they got there - only the volcano to worry about.  Believe it would be my first choice today as easy access to Subic for beach or Manila for medical and on site airport for travel.  And much better selection of food.  The only obvious negative from my view is the small trikes used there - but taxi is starting to become available.

They have uber / Grab there nowadays, 

As I'm getting older I think I have to rule out Cities 

 

An island somewhere would suit me , a condo or house near the beach , near shops ,not too expensive, I'm not into Phuket or Bali though 

 

Done Cebu in the Philippines too crowded for me too much traffic ,but strangely some farangs luv it,met a few Aussies in Cebu who go there every year ,not sure why there was nothing for me 

 

Maybe I should look at the island on the bottom of Australia called Tasmania?????

 

 

 

[Hummin]

34 minutes ago, georgegeorgia said:

I guess so,but I just spent a few months there mainly in the outer areas such as Daveo and Gensan and no one bothered me.

 

The difference is, you can travel all over Thailand and no one bother you. Police is friendly and not been a hassle to me even I have travelled around Thailand for 20 years  on motorbikes. Got a few speedtickets that was well deserved, thats all. On Phil I did not felt as free to travel where I wanted, and walkimg alone in the cities did not feel safe at all. A bit more like Brazil, you needed to know where to walk and not to walk. 

[georgegeorgia]

3 minutes ago, Hummin said:

The difference is, you can travel all over Thailand and no one bother you. Police is friendly and not been a hassle to me even I have travelled around Thailand for 20 years  on motorbikes. Got a few speedtickets that was well deserved, thats all. On Phil I did not felt as free to travel where I wanted, and walkimg alone in the cities did not feel safe at all. A bit more like Brazil, you needed to know where to walk and not to walk. 

True , I had that feeling in Angeles city , I felt unsafe ,no one did bother me but just strange people looked aggressive,has no smiles on their faces 

 

Yes without sounding racist I did find Filipino much much different to Thai people,they seemed more aggressive,maybe it was my imagination,but they seemed a bit rude pushing in front of you in shops etc 

[Sparktrader]

16 minutes ago, georgegeorgia said:

They have uber / Grab there nowadays, 

As I'm getting older I think I have to rule out Cities 

 

An island somewhere would suit me , a condo or house near the beach , near shops ,not too expensive, I'm not into Phuket or Bali though 

 

Done Cebu in the Philippines too crowded for me too much traffic ,but strangely some farangs luv it,met a few Aussies in Cebu who go there every year ,not sure why there was nothing for me 

 

Maybe I should look at the island on the bottom of Australia called Tasmania?????

 

 

 

Tasi is good for cold weather

[georgegeorgia]

3 minutes ago, Sparktrader said:

Tasi is good for cold weather

Yes a lot of British people retire to Tasmania it seems, I guess because it reminds them of Scotland.

 

 

[Sparktrader]

Just now, georgegeorgia said:

Yes a lot of British people retire to Tasmania it seems, I guess because it reminds them of Scotland.

 

 

Great place if you enjoy being bored

[scorecard]

1 hour ago, Hummin said:

For me from Europe it was 6 hours longer flights with two changes, and the infrastructure, safety, poor beggars as well food knocked me off. 
 

It doesnt apply to me to live in a country with so much poverty as Philippine or Cambodia. 

My many work experiences in Phils., put me off.

 

By company policy mostly stayed in contracted '5' star hotel in Makati, overall very poor service, tips expected for saying 'hello', always seemed to be laundry problems, food in the hotel poor quality and seemed to be problematic. Wait forever at lobby counter to check-in and more. Mistakes with cars ordered through the concierge.

 

My own office in Manila poorly run, female manager less than pleasant and abusive to staff and in one incident she abused several Snr. Japanese directors of the company (all spoke good English).

 

She was asked to organize a big van to take me and the Japanese directors and 4 Japanese snr petroleum process engineers to a processing site 1.5 hrs from Manila. She ordered a van way too small then pushed for the Japanese enginers to sit on the floor.

 

I pulled her aside and told her shut up and listen and reorganize the whole plan and be ready to depart in 2 hrs. She claimed it was not possible.

 

I called the GM of the hotel and asked could he organize a bigger van within 2 hrs and with a quality careful driver. He confirmed.

 

The van came to the company office 1.5 hrs laterwith a man from the hotel lobby to travel with us at no extra charge to ensure we were happy. Good trip, careful driver.

 

I charged the hotel bill to the travel costs of the Phils. office much to madams annoyance. 

 

Within next 6 mnths she was sacked, mostly for her abuse of company staff and customers. 

 

[coppywriter]

On 10/16/2022 at 2:15 PM, georgegeorgia said:

I'm surprised no Philippines retirees here ?

 

I'm in the Philippines in Cagayan De Oro on Mindano. I live in the countryside with the locals all of whom are very friendly and many speak English. Nobody has asked for money or help with family stuff, they just go about their daily life. 

My Filipino partner and I purchased some land and built a house, the relatives visit as and when but are not intrusive. 

No I don't like the food but that's OK as foreign food is available in the malls or cash and carry and my partner is a good cook. There are also westernised restaurants if you want them. 

I lived in Thailand over 10 years and yes the infrastructure is better there but once you get used to things here in the Philippines its easy to get used to a different way of living. 

The real bonus is the visa structure here, you can stay up to 3 years on extensions without leaving or you can apply for an SRRV (retirement visa) and never have to leave at all. English is widely spoken so no problems with communication. All in all it suits me fine, but each to his own

 

[Mad mick]

I'm in Philippines retired , if not for the woman l'm involved with would leave lived in most Asian countries only thing Philippines got anything as far as lm concerned is English,  IF you enjoy food Philippine food my opinion aould be rated the worst in Asia ,  produce poor state supermarkets if you enjoy twiddling your thumbs for 30 to sometimes an hour plenty staff not there fault don't have any customer service to really speak of polite thats it  yep only into 7 months here was told how friendly they are l beg to differ , infrastructure outside of possibly big City non excistant wifi expensive , mobile same , electricity expensive, food same as in the west US , AUS , etc,. Hard to find decent food especially green quality veggies , local food is sugary sloppy mess no taste fatty ummm , cafes for coffee same price as Aussie ONLY SAVING GRACE RENT THATS IT NOT MUCH ELSE GOING FOR THE PHILI..  Sorry tourist  visas major bonus can renew up to 3 years without leaving as for tourism dead beach you pay to go to few where l reside , nobeach cleaning,  recently went back to Vietnam 2weeks ago in all honesty would move and live there cheaper  leaner in all aspect draw back English and Vietnamese for its not easy to pick up ... Google translate is the go , 2cnd choice move back to Thailand.. some people just don't fit in certain Asian countries Philippines is mine I don't belong here ... if it was not for lovely woman I reside with , would not of come back to Philippines again , everything  you do island hoping lies forms ro travel show vaxx go shopping temperature test , masks on ++++ that's how desperate I was to get out of Australia will not go back Aussie after There  CCP style Lockdowns bs vaxx enter Philippines as of now 2 vaxx 1 apparently  still booster one health pass to be scraped but the Philippines  will replace it with something else 7000 + island moving around has restrictions attached buearacry crazy more so than Thailand.. bit of rant but I'm not sold on Philippines l guess you all got that if you bothered to read all my negative not much positive to really say .. 

[Mad mick]

I'm retired mactan island lapu lapu philipines if it was not for the lady I'd be gone . Deleted made mistake doubled up.on comment

[Burma Bill]

On 10/16/2022 at 12:27 PM, georgegeorgia said:

Anyone picked Cambodia to retire ,

Yes, me, a UK ex-pat. Having lived in Thailand for 20 years, and doing my "homework", I moved across the border to continue my retirement in hassle-free Siem Reap just before the borders closed at the start of the pandemic. Being a former country bumpkin living in the North of Thailand, I was becoming increasingly disillusioned with the way Thailand was heading, especially after Prayut's coup and all the bureaucracy that was being generated. I was a Tourist Police Volunteer but when our local Office formed a SWAT team and became "militarized" it was time to go. I could go on at great length discussing cost of living, medical facilities and accommodation but will mention how Siem Reap has improved during the last 2 years with major investment in infrastructure projects such as roads, parks, businesses, gardens and the Angkor Archaeological Complex itself. A new International Airport is due to open in 2023, albeit out of town. With reference to visas, "simplicity" is the word. None of the financial and other bureaucratic requirements as in Thailand. Once you have your visa/visa extension then that is it for one year - certainly no 90-day visits or having to keep money in a bank (in fact you do not need to have a bank account). I have just received my annual retirement extension which cost 290 US$.

[Sparktrader]

12 minutes ago, Burma Bill said:

Yes, me, a UK ex-pat. Having lived in Thailand for 20 years, and doing my "homework", I moved across the border to continue my retirement in hassle-free Siem Reap just before the borders closed at the start of the pandemic. Being a former country bumpkin living in the North of Thailand, I was becoming increasingly disillusioned with the way Thailand was heading, especially after Prayut's coup and all the bureaucracy that was being generated. I was a Tourist Police Volunteer but when our local Office formed a SWAT team and became "militarized" it was time to go. I could go on at great length discussing cost of living, medical facilities and accommodation but will mention how Siem Reap has improved during the last 2 years with major investment in infrastructure projects such as roads, parks, businesses, gardens and the Angkor Archaeological Complex itself. A new International Airport is due to open in 2023, albeit out of town. With reference to visas, "simplicity" is the word. None of the financial and other bureaucratic requirements as in Thailand. Once you have your visa/visa extension then that is it for one year - certainly no 90-day visits or having to keep money in a bank (in fact you do not need to have a bank account). I have just received my annual retirement extension which cost 290 US$.

Do you have to be over 55?

[Burma Bill]

2 minutes ago, Sparktrader said:

Do you have to be over 55?

55 years or older for a retirement visa. 

For other visas, information is available here:

 

https://www.movetocambodia.com/planning-your-move-to-cambodia/cambodia-visas/#types

[coppywriter]

7 minutes ago, Sparktrader said:

Do you have to be over 55?

Not for the extensions after the initial 30 day visa free entry, but for the SRRV you need to be 50+

[coppywriter]

11 minutes ago, Sparktrader said:

Do you have to be over 55?

Sorry I was talking about Philippines 

[lopburi3]

1 minute ago, coppywriter said:

Sorry I was talking about Philippines 

Few even bother in PI as the tourist visa is so easy (leave for a day every 3 years).  Suspect most retirement is those that have served in the PI (military/diplomatic) and as such have special reduced requirements.

[earlinclaifornia]

On 10/16/2022 at 2:46 PM, georgegeorgia said:

They have uber / Grab there nowadays, 

As I'm getting older I think I have to rule out Cities 

 

An island somewhere would suit me , a condo or house near the beach , near shops ,not too expensive, I'm not into Phuket or Bali though 

 

Done Cebu in the Philippines too crowded for me too much traffic ,but strangely some farangs luv it,met a few Aussies in Cebu who go there every year ,not sure why there was nothing for me 

 

Maybe I should look at the island on the bottom of Australia called Tasmania?????

 

 

 

How about Borneo? I met a student in SF CA USA who swore this is the very easiest retirement location in the world

[Onerak]

Pattay is the best place for me for my 6-month stay in a year outside the USA. Thailand has better infrastructure, good healthcare, variety of reasonably priced foods from all over the World, Jomtien beach for a evening stroll, malls  and plenty of options for sugar babies. I just hope the Baht stay weak vs dollar for a foreseeable future to keep me in good financial shape with my $3000 SS payment starting from 2026. 

[NoshowJones]

On 10/16/2022 at 1:07 PM, Fat is a type of crazy said:

I can put up with an imperfect government but the powers that be in Cambodia and Philippines and Laos are a  step too far as a place to actually stay long term.  

You mean they are worse than this Thai unelected PM and his Junta?

[NoshowJones]

On 10/16/2022 at 1:11 PM, Lemsta69 said:

why strangely? I plan on spending some time there in the future as I have some bule mates who live there. Bali's a great little place and easy to avoid the bogans if they upset you that much.

 

they don't worry me too much because I'm a bit of a bogan myself ????

What is a bogan?

[georgegeorgia]

1 hour ago, earlinclaifornia said:

How about Borneo? I met a student in SF CA USA who swore this is the very easiest retirement location in the world

Borneo ? ???? Doubt anyone has been there , near Indonesia?

[georgegeorgia]

22 minutes ago, possum1931 said:

What is a bogan?

Low class Aussies, usually tattoos ,live in housing department areas ,

[georgegeorgia]

When I was in Mactan island ) Cebu recently I saw a lot of farang expats no doubt living with their Filipino GF, 

I couldn't see myself living there ,crazy traffic ,horns beep beep beep continually 

 

 

 

[dddave]

On 10/16/2022 at 12:44 PM, georgegeorgia said:

Maybe, I never been to Siem Reap.

I wonder if anyone retired to Phomn Penh here 

 

Still not many guys on here who live in the Philippines yet I saw hundreds of farangs when I went there 

 

Yes Bali has a bad image ,I think of young shirtless drunken  tattooed Aussies 

There was a prolific poster on "Thai-Visa" who moved to Siem Reap maybe 4 years ago.  Posted several reports after the move but haven't seen any since.  I don't recall his board name.

[dddave]

On 10/16/2022 at 1:30 PM, lopburi3 said:

Anyone thinking of moving to PI would do well to view videos by "filipina pea youtube".  She goes beyond most videos and keeps it real.  As she is in Duma where there is a large expat population (due mostly to lower costs) there will be a lot of content helpful to those thinking of taking that route.  Main issue in PI will be accepting limitations - Thais are on time compared to PI.  Corruption is routine.  Things are often not available.  Food is much lower quality (although fast food may often be cheaper and if burger/fries person freshness may not be an issue).  Not a move for type A personality but if able to go with the flow there are plus points - English is known by most and signs will often be more readable.  People are mostly friendly and easy to get to know.  Crime is an issue but most expats are not victims (looks worse than it is with armed guards everywhere).  Much more interest in keeping marriage together if that is in the cards.  Much easier visa system for long stay. 

 

But anyone interested start viewing some of the Youtube channels from there as they can provide a great deal of good information.

I'm late 70s and the Philippine's shortage of decent health care options, especially outside of Manila is a deal breaker for me.  Personal safety also an issue.  I am comfortable walking in any area of Bangkok, even at night. Not true in Manila or really anywhere in the P.I.

[earlinclaifornia]

1 hour ago, georgegeorgia said:

Borneo ? ???? Doubt anyone has been there , near Indonesia?

The island is one third Indonesian one third East Malaysia and one third Brunei. My friend tells me the retirement visa is the easiest anywhere, more so than Thailand.

Third largest island in the world.

[JimTripper]

Goto the most expensive place you can afford would be good advice ????

[scorecard]

On 10/16/2022 at 1:49 PM, spidermike007 said:

The problem with Bali, is sooner of later you have to deal with the lower third of the island. It is like Manhattan at rush hour. 

 

And the PI feels like one huge Tijuana to me, the food is atrocious, the air quality is horrendous, due to the sooty diesel they use, it gets far too many typhoons, and you always have to have eyes in the back of your head. I do like the people. Too bad about the ghetto feel of the place and the violent crime.

 

I don't have to be concerned about that here. Thailand is like Beverly Hills compared to most of the PI, and there is very little crime committed on foreigners, it seems. 

So to avoid all these 'items', perhaps an uninhabited desert island?