Just now, NoshowJones said:

My IO office is about 60 Ks from where I live and there is no public transport to it.

What happens when I am too old to ride a motorbike that distance. This is one of the reasons that is going to force me back home to my home country.

Unless you leave the country you can use the online 90 day reporting. I hate it as well and see it as a waste of time but it takes me about a minute and a half to fill out the form and send it off. Usually get confirmation within 2 days.

31 minutes ago, Garouda said:

Here's where I live, no traffic, no pollution, in the middle of nowhere, still covered by my Thai Social Security, ประกันสังคม

https://youtu.be/IHNdzwHywnk

You are right my neighbour, you got pretty good air today! Is it in general better air in Loei than neighbour provinces ?

And if, why so ?

3 minutes ago, NoshowJones said:

This ridiculous 90 day reporting should be stopped, which other country does it? It is OK for people who have an IO in their town/city. My IO office is about 60 Ks from where I live and there is no public transport to it.

What happens when I am too old to ride a motorbike that distance. This is one of the reasons that is going to force me back home to my home country.

If you can't access the on line reporting system, chances are it's because your computer is too old (anyway that appears to be what prevented me from accessing the on-line system.) Besides, it was never a requirement that the report be made in person; mail-in reporting has always been an option. Once you access the on-line system, 90 day reporting is a breeze.

1 hour ago, wwest5829 said:

Hmm, many Expats ... perhaps. I live in Chiang Mai, 3 bed, 2 bath bungalow, two cars (ancient), motorbike with my Thai Wife and Stepdaughter. Quite pleased but ... well, I am an American so cost comparisons show I cannot afford the have such an earned working middle class retirement in the USE.

Sounds boring , I would rather be doing my research in Pattaya ,but some like the family and white picket fence and the dog in the backyard home life

Not for me

16 hours ago, IsaanT said:

. This is tonight's PM2.5 display.

Where did you get the map from?

On 2/7/2026 at 1:27 PM, Kyoto Kyle said:

This is a genuine question and not an attack on anyone who already lives here or loves it. But is Thailand really a smart place to spend the last third of your life?

A very valid question, which in my view is extremely depending of the individual's lifestyle, health, financial resources, and local connection (family).

The major fear for me – I have been here permant the last 20 years and I expect to stay put till the last – is dimentia. Will my long lasting lovely girlfriend look after me when I get even more grumphy and forget things, based on our "business-agreement": I take care of you now, and you will take care of me when I get old?

If you have no close local relationship of a kind that can and will look after you, and even be your caretaker, you're on your own. There are service old-age facilities available in Thailand, but they can be relative expensive; "relative" depending on one's ongoing retirement pension and own savings, for some such a private serviced solution might be impossible.

Health is an important factor to include when moving to Thailand for long stay. Helth insurance becomes more-and-more expensive the longer you manage to keep alive, and can for some become a financial burdon. There might even be exclusion if you are having pre-existing conditions or family/gene related health-risks. So, some level of own saving – even when you have health insurance – set aside in a "rainy day" account for the unexpected, should be part of one's planning. On top, we cannot predict the future: Something unexpected might happen – this can be both accident and illnes – and what is the plan in such case. Ans are you prepared to die in Thailand?

On the positive side is that Thailand can keep some of us gruphy old folks, healthy alive for longer time than we would in an utterly winter-cold home country, where family often don't have much time to caring and the public old-age-service oftens lacks, even having paid high taxes all through one's the working life. So, part of growing old and health condition in Thailand is also up to our individual life-style:

Do you eat kind of healthy food?

Do you drink too much alcohol?

Do you do some kind of exercise?

Do you keep your box above eye level mentally fresh?

Do you smoke?

Are you happy?

All of the above are up to individual preferences, but might be easier to do in Thailand than at home; of course depending of where your home country is. Even when dining out, you can choose affordable healthy food in local restaurants, rather the fast food, which we often are warned about to avoid. You don't need to drink alcohol – at least more than the few healthy glass of wine or units as often concluded by studies – a variety of non alcoholic beverage is available. It's more healthy to take a walk to 7-Eleven that a relative short motorbike ride; just walking as excersize can accoring to health-studies do a huge difference. Following what happens – AN might be a great help – and keep learning something new or otherwise activate the grey cells on your top floor, can be a major part of keeping distance to dimentia. Smoking is also stated to cut some years of one's life, apart from it can cause unpleasant illness. It's said that it's never too late to stop, and as it also has become difficult to be a smoker in Thailand, it might be worth a consideration to stop, if you're smooking – I did it 10 years ago, not was that difficult, actually made life more easy, not having to find a place to lit a cigaret and feling incomfortable if being somewhere, where I could not.

Even that some complains about Thailand, I still find it excellent – I may have chosen a ideal place close to "paradise" – and the government hospital is both useable and affordable. It's never too hot, neither too cold, where I decided to find "whole year summer and barefoot Xmas", I rarely use an aircon. Hopefully I have savings enough for some domestic help, when that time comes – apart from, it would always be nice to have a helping hand cleanings the house and doing small repairs; but "always look on the brigt side of life": It's also kind of exercise for me.

We are all different; so, what works for me – or might work, we can reopen the thread evaluate it 10 years and 20 years from now – might not work the same way for thers. The most important part is – in my view – to be happy. Do you wish longivity if you are not happy? For my father, a heppy life was what matters, and I use him as an example. He loved food – simple, made from good "rawmaterials" with many vegetables – and enjoyed a glass of wine or a beer with his dinner; he kept himself brain active from playing piano every day; he never smoked; he had been an ice-skating champion and still exercised by both walking – fast and quite long – and playing tennis at least twice a week, which he continued to do till he was 104 years old. Almist half a year after, he one evening saif to me: "Now it's not fun anymore, I need helt to too much". I know what it meant; he started to sleep much and died a week later 104½ years old – on the date – after a long happy life. Happiness is presumably a very important factor in growing old.

Mee to, I want a happy life, otherwise it's not worth living. I'll do what I can to live a happy life – one way or other. I love the sign next to the Lotus's shopping mall where I live, saying: "The purpose of our lives is to be happy"!

14 minutes ago, khunPer said:

The major fear for me – I have been here permant the last 20 years and I expect to stay put till the last – is dimentia. Will my long lasting lovely girlfriend look after me when I get even more grumphy and forget things, based on our "business-agreement": I take care of you now, and you will take care of me when I get old?

Care home 25kbht/month up my way.

And if you have dementia, it's not as if you'll care where they stick you.

5 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

Care home 25kbht/month up my way.

And if you have dementia, it's not as if you'll care where they stick you.

Dementia have many phases, and not a switch off, but rather where your mind slowly degenerates over the years, for some quicker when first obviously signes truly shows, while others more slow, on and off for years where some periods better and some worse.

Good caring homes can be a good solution, but who is going to handle the financials if you have no trusted person looking after you?

10 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

Care home 25kbht/month up my way.

And if you have dementia, it's not as if you'll care where they stick you.

I think this may be my only option and it isn't all bad. Maybe I get lucky and my wife lives longer than me and is sane enough to take care of me. See many old couples around here and they seem to be doing fine. Lots of affordable options here but I'm still 30 years away from needing them.

3 minutes ago, Hummin said:

Good caring homes can be a good solution, but who is going to handle the financials if you have no trusted person looking after you?

Good point and I hadn't considered the financials. THat is a difficult question and have to give that some thought. Definitely trust the wife but she may pass before me, being we are roughly the same age.

Just now, atpeace said:

Good point and I hadn't considered the financials. THat is a difficult question and have to give that some thought. Definitely trust the wife but she may pass before me, being we are roughly the same age. If I was only attracted to young women but that has its own risks.

6 minutes ago, atpeace said:

Good point and I hadn't considered the financials. THat is a difficult question and have to give that some thought. Definitely trust the wife but she may pass before me, being we are roughly the same age.

And if you got pension, you need to show you are alive every year to keep getting the pension?

21 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

Care home 25kbht/month up my way.

And if you have dementia, it's not as if you'll care where they stick you.

Thanks for your comment. Interesting with (only) 25k baht per month for a care home.

One may need service – if one get to a point of dimentia – but one may still care for how and where one lives. One of the care homes I saw mentioned costs about equivalent to £1,500 per month, which is the area around 60,000 baht and up – more than a modest British government pension covers, and also more that the basic Danish governmental retirement pension.

Link (you might need a VPS, as Daily Mail is sometimes banned in Thailand): https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12703563/Thailand-retirement-resorts-British-retirees-NHS-social-care.html

14 minutes ago, khunPer said:

Thanks for your comment. Interesting with (only) 25k baht per month for a care home.

One may need service – if one get to a point of dimentia – but one may still care for how and where one lives. One of the care homes I saw mentioned costs about equivalent to £1,500 per month, which is the area around 60,000 baht and up – more than a modest British government pension covers, and also more that the basic Danish governmental retirement pension.

Link (you might need a VPS, as Daily Mail is sometimes banned in Thailand): https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12703563/Thailand-retirement-resorts-British-retirees-NHS-social-care.html

https://baanlalisa.com/alzheimer-care-program-chiang-mai-thailand/

Baan Lalisa care home do dementia patients from 20kbht/month and up.

20k I believe gets you a place in a 4 bed room, then prices go all the way up to a private cottage.

I looked round the one in CM and it was great, nice gardens, swimming pool, plenty of nurses, free trips into town, free transport to gov hospital.

Downside being only Thai food included, and nursing staff spoke limited English, but Grab (et al) would bring you anything you paid for. (we stuck an old Nordic guy in there for a month after he broke his hip)

On 2/7/2026 at 7:38 PM, georgegeorgia said:

Unfortunately you may have overlooked one important and what my dear fellow would we perhaps call it ...faculty .....?

You overlooked one faculty ...housing

You see many if not ALL expats come from living in a house with a backyard to living in Thailand... to a shoebox condo or even any condo that is not in their normal living in farangland

And that my dear fellow can lead to depression, isolation.

NO! “ALL expats” in Thailand don’t live in condos.

I would wager that the majority of expats in Thailand live in houses in rural communities with gardens, pets, mom and pop stores selling beer at 65 baht per pint, an abundance of organic vegetables and a reasonable level of tranquility. Yeah, yeah, I know: the temples.

Condo in noisy, expensive city = coffin in the sky. No thanks.

1 hour ago, Hummin said:

And if you got pension, you need to show you are alive every year to keep getting the pension?

Yes, they send a proof of life form, a life certificate, out every year, asking you a few questions and needing a signature. If you're still at same address, any changes in your life. Some allow in person proof to a bank or government office.

2 hours ago, K2938 said:

Where did you get the map from?

Windy.com

On 2/7/2026 at 7:27 PM, Kyoto Kyle said:

This is a genuine question and not an attack on anyone who already lives here or loves it. But is Thailand really a smart place to spend the last third of your life?

Thailand gets talked about nonstop as a dream retirement destination. Cheap living. Easy food. Beaches. Warm weather. Services available for just about anything. Basically a soft landing for men with a bit of cash who are tired of the West and want an easier daily life.

But the older I get the more I wonder if people are only looking at the upside and ignoring the stuff that actually matters once your body is no longer forgiving.

When you are young or even middle aged you can shrug things off. Heat is annoying but manageable. Air pollution is just a bad month or three. Traffic is chaotic but you stay alert. Medical costs are hypothetical.

That changes later on.

A few things I keep coming back to.

Thailand consistently ranks at or near the top globally for road deaths. As reflexes slow and eyesight fades, is this really the environment you want to be navigating daily?

Air pollution is not just an inconvenience. For older lungs and hearts it can mean chronic breathing issues or worse. Burning season is not a meme when you are seventy.

Heat tolerance drops as you age. Long humid days that feel merely uncomfortable at fifty can become exhausting and dangerous later on.

Private hospitals are excellent but also brutally expensive if you do not have top tier international insurance. Public hospitals are another story and not always reassuring for complex age related care.

Social safety nets are thin. If things go wrong financially or medically, you are largely on your own in a foreign system as a second class citizen.

Long term care is rarely discussed. Assisted living, dementia care, and end of life support are not cheap or straightforward here.

None of this means Thailand is bad. It clearly works very well for a lot of people right now.

The question is whether it still works when you are no longer mobile, independent, or resilient. When the margin for error shrinks.

Is Thailand really a place to grow old in or is it a place that works best only while you are still healthy enough to enjoy the advantages?

On 2/7/2026 at 7:27 PM, Kyoto Kyle said:

But is Thailand really a smart place to spend the last third of your life?

I use to think so.

If one is dead set in their ways of being annoyed by nuisances, such as loud noises etc, loud music(bass beat), neighbors chihuahua dogs barking excessively in their car park 24/7 ,jungles turning into rooster farms after the land was cleared with their coops 20 feet away from your bedroom,which is in a residential community .

Today I just figured out after 6 years of complaining, to shut up about it.

Why ? It could get me killed.

I just watched a news video of a young boy killing his wife & her father,the police led him away smiling. My wife said he'll be out in 10 years. Think about it. Thai's or others bad behavior outside of jail could get rewarded by good behavior inside of jail.

6 minutes ago, riclag said:

I use to think so.

If one is dead set in their ways of being annoyed by nuisances, such as loud noises etc, loud music(bass beat), neighbors chihuahua dogs barking excessively in their car park 24/7 ,jungles turning into rooster farms after the land was cleared with their coops 20 feet away from your bedroom,which is in a residential community .

Today I just figured out after 6 years of complaining, to shut up about it.

Why ? It could get me killed.

I just watched a news video of a young boy killing his wife & her father,the police led him away smiling. My wife said he'll be out in 10 years. Think about it. Thai's or others bad behavior outside of jail could get rewarded by good behavior inside of jail.

Happens in the states as well. Some can kill someone and get out in 5 years, and are busted with drugs for themselves and get more. Justice systems all over are not run well, with money of course helping out. As far as the OP, there is sometimes a lot of noise out in the villages in the country, unless, like me, you live 1/2 kilo away. You can still hear the music but it's tolerable. It wouldn't be if I lived in the village itself. Dogs are everywhere, as they like me and visit my house, but poisonings, some from my ex's family, has killed over 30 in the last 8 years.

1 minute ago, fredwiggy said:

Happens in the states as well. Some can kill someone and get out in 5 years, and are busted with drugs for themselves and get more. Justice systems all over are not run well, with money of course helping out. As far as the OP, there is sometimes a lot of noise out in the villages in the country, unless, like me, you live 1/2 kilo away. You can still hear the music but it's tolerable. It wouldn't be if I lived in the village itself. Dogs are everywhere, as they like me and visit my house, but poisonings, some from my ex's family, has killed over 30 in the last 8 years.

I just google it,it rarely happens that convicted murderers in the states get out before 11 years.

However Thailand is different.

Google ai overview:

"Yes, it is possible for convicted murderers in Thailand to be released from jail in 8 years or less, though this is usually the result of multiple sentence reductions rather than an initial sentence of that length. While murder carries a penalty of 15–20 years, life imprisonment, or death, the Thai legal system allows for significant reductions through annual pardons".

4 minutes ago, riclag said:

I just google it,it rarely happens that convicted murderers in the states get out before 11 years.

However Thailand is different.

Google ai overview:

Yes, it is possible for convicted murderers in Thailand to be released from jail in 8 years or less, though this is usually the result of multiple sentence reductions rather than an initial sentence of that length. While murder carries a penalty of 15–20 years, life imprisonment, or death, the Thai legal system allows for significant reductions through annual pardons.

I lived there my first 62 years and saw many that got plea bargains and out in 5 years or less, especially in the NYC area. People rat out others and can walk fast, especially if those they rat out are huge offenders. They usually have to find a new place to live afterwards. It all depends on the charge, who's involved, prior records, plea bargains, overcrowded prisons, who you know, how much money you have. Some who have received life sentences have been released in 10 years or so. Some get 200 years and some 5. It's a very strange, corrupt, money involved system. Here in Thailand, if you admit guilt you'll get less right off. if you fight and lose, you'll get more. In California, for one state, 75% get off early, some in less than 15 years.

OP ! grow old in Thailand while spending as much money as you can afford to lose.

You just never know what life's unexpectancies will bring your way.

29 minutes ago, fredwiggy said:

I lived there my first 62 years and saw many that got plea bargains and out in 5 years or less, especially in the NYC area. People rat out others and can walk fast, especially if those they rat out are huge offenders. They usually have to find a new place to live afterwards. It all depends on the charge, who's involved, prior records, plea bargains, overcrowded prisons, who you know, how much money you have. Some who have received life sentences have been released in 10 years or so. Some get 200 years and some 5. It's a very strange, corrupt, money involved system. Here in Thailand, if you admit guilt you'll get less right off. if you fight and lose, you'll get more. In California, for one state, 75% get off early, some in less than 15 years.

Why do they give 150 to 300 year sentences? It is weird.

2 minutes ago, Harrisfan said:

Why do they give 150 to 300 year sentences? It is weird.

Stacking charges, especially for heinous crimes, is a way to ensure they have little chance to get parole, even through appeals. A ploy to make sure they never get out. Some have received sentences of thousands of years.

On 2/7/2026 at 1:35 PM, georgegeorgia said:

It's a dream in the sense that if your into compiling statistics and graphs then it can keep you busy , although the Philippines would also keep me busy in my academic hobby

I have had many universities and major companies asking for my statistical information and my academic reports

Thailand is great for that ,for eg one of my major self published academic works was on how many dental clinics in Pattaya have the word "smile " in their name

That report was a major project which took me all my time during my 4 weeks vacation so yes Thailand is great for that for me anyway

Why would anyone want to downthumb a post like that ;)

Many of the reasons why this previous resident now prefers to just visit annually.

Thailand isn't a smart place to get old, but it's a fun place to get old. Works for me.

It doesn't matter where in the world you live; you need a retirement plan, and that plan has to have a major section on the final years of life.

If you can only afford an extremely small condo, then you are going to be hard-pressed to afford a place to live anywhere in the world where a Westerner would feel comfortable. My large two-bedroom apartment overlooking the ocean is about a third of what I was paying to rent a place in the US and Mexico.

If you decide to live in a place in Thailand where the air quality is bad, then pollution is a problem, but there are places like Pattaya where the breezes off the ocean keep the air quality acceptable. Some days it is bad, but most people have air conditioning, so stay inside, and there are air filters that can improve on that. If you move to a place like Chiang Mai, the AQ is bad.

Yes, for some people, the cost of medical care can be too much. I am fortunate that my US health insurance will cover all of my medical expenses. But most people are not that fortunate. Before retiring here, this issue must be addressed.

Assisted living and full-time nursing care are available and extremely inexpensive by comparison to anywhere in the Western world. It is unfortunate that Thailand hasn't had more options for the last few years of life. But they do exist, and they are cheap. You can handle all the details of staffing yourself, or go to a place where the management handles all the details of staffing. If you want to have live-in staff, you can have this for a small percentage of what it costs in the US. But have a plan.

If the heat bothers you, then you are in the wrong country.

Thailand has not realized that retirees are a huge source of income for the country. Not only do we spend year-round, but we also encourage everyone we know to come as tourists. If Thailand wanted to encourage retirees they would make the retirement visa much easier to get. Charge a flat 25,000 baht per year and eliminate all the hoops. Use some of the money that is generated to develop an assisted living nursing home industry. It would provide good-paying jobs at least twice the minimum wage for in-home care, it would help support the private healthcare industry, and provide jobs for nurses. But Thailand hasn't decided that they want retirees here.

The TAT spends millions flying people all over the world to promote tourism, a great perk for employees, but they could make considerably more money more easily by building a website for people considering retiring to Thailand and providing them with solutions for retirees. Not all people retiring to Thailand spend their days getting drunk at girl bars in downtown Pattaya. We aren't retiring here because it is the only place we can live, because many of us could afford to retire anywhere in the world. I spend at least 125,000 baht per month, but I have a wonderful lifestyle living in paradise.

On 2/7/2026 at 7:38 PM, georgegeorgia said:

Unfortunately you may have overlooked one important and what my dear fellow would we perhaps call it ...faculty .....?

You overlooked one faculty ...housing

You see many if not ALL expats come from living in a house with a backyard to living in Thailand... to a shoebox condo or even any condo that is not in their normal living in farangland

And that my dear fellow can lead to depression, isolation.

So why not go and live in a house?

30 minutes ago, palmbeachblueeyes said:

I spend at least 125,000 baht per month, but I have a wonderful lifestyle living in paradise.

Were you also an ex member of the SAS/SEALs as well?