Top 7 cities for retiring in Thailand

[benalibina]

Hua Hin? I like it. A welcome respite and very different world than much of Thailand. Free of the touts, hookers and thieving tuk tuks that plague places like Phuket and even Krabi.

Hua Hin attracts a better quality of foreigner, more mature in mind and body and they tend to be more civil, although aloof.

Hua Hin free of hookers??? First time I went to Hua Hin about 6 years ago I would have agreed. However after my recent visit Id say the bar area near Hilton Hotel is becoming Pattaya-fied. Loads of hookers and the odd Katoey-on-a-motorbike lurking in the dark alleys.

And re the 'quality of foreigner'? Well I would have agreed but I was accosted by an unbelievably drunk retired expat one night. He was mumbling a load of sh*te, falling about the place and being abusive and aggressive towards all the staff. Made my excuses and left.

The eyesightoperation after your Hua Hin visit 6 years ago....certainly has done wonders for you....

Some people on here....jeeeezzzz.

[northernphil]

Every place he mentioned is not inexpensive .... they all charge prices similar to Europe ... try booking into a reasonable hotel ...

food is not cheap ... unless you want noodle soup or rice with chicken.

You would be surprised by Hua Hin. There are multiple affordable eating places. I find the food to be less costly than Phuket and of better quality. Fewer western style places, but solid Thai restaurants that are clean and have polite staff. They are about the same price as what I paid in Udon Thani.

The article is about retirees. They typically book long stays. There are a few low cost long stays. The hotels are even relatively cheap if not in the center core and not at peak season. Have you been to Hua Hin? In any case, the pricing structure acts to discourage a certain demographic that doesn't do well in a place like Hua Hin.

I came to LoS in 2004 ,part of the bike tour was a couple of days in HH. In fact I met my wife to be in a little restauarnt in HH. But after 2 years there it was time to move. The vikings by then had taken over the little restaurants. Huge families of Swedes taking all the room up on the pavements. Went back to HH to give my grandchildren and eldests daughter a chance to see what I had left behind. Won't be going back ,never ,ever. Prices have gone up so much in the past 8 years.

i moved up north, between C/Rai and MaeSai. Love it here . OK no signs to tell you about bag grabbers , no pink ferlung wandering around clutching a tin of Chang.

My pub , 3 Leo - 189B. In HH 1 small Leo 80B.

[KittenKong]

Strange to write an article about the "top cities for retiring in Thailand" and not to include greater Pattaya which, as far as I know, has more foreign retirees than anywhere else in Thailand.

[CharlieH]

A quantity of posts , off topic, and petty "splitting hairs" posts regarding Ocean/Gulf or whatever, have been removed.

[Bernard Flint]

Top Places to in Thailand to Retire in ...

Let me see, ummmm, for a start the Baht is way too strong and everything far too expensive so living on a pension is getting much harder.

As for other issues ... well there's the crime, corruption, scams and the fact that Thais generally don't like foreigners so it's not exactly a welcoming place to retire.

Top places to retire ... anywhere but Thailand. Take your pick.

anywhere but Thailand.

Afghanistan, iraqm mexico, usa????

[Blackfox]

Every place he mentioned is not inexpensive .... they all charge prices similar to Europe ... try booking into a reasonable hotel ...

food is not cheap ... unless you want noodle soup or rice with chicken.

You would be surprised by Hua Hin. There are multiple affordable eating places. I find the food to be less costly than Phuket and of better quality. Fewer western style places, but solid Thai restaurants that are clean and have polite staff. They are about the same price as what I paid in Udon Thani.

The article is about retirees. They typically book long stays. There are a few low cost long stays. The hotels are even relatively cheap if not in the center core and not at peak season. Have you been to Hua Hin? In any case, the pricing structure acts to discourage a certain demographic that doesn't do well in a place like Hua Hin.

I came to LoS in 2004 ,part of the bike tour was a couple of days in HH. In fact I met my wife to be in a little restauarnt in HH. But after 2 years there it was time to move. The vikings by then had taken over the little restaurants. Huge families of Swedes taking all the room up on the pavements. Went back to HH to give my grandchildren and eldests daughter a chance to see what I had left behind. Won't be going back ,never ,ever. Prices have gone up so much in the past 8 years.

i moved up north, between C/Rai and MaeSai. Love it here . OK no signs to tell you about bag grabbers , no pink ferlung wandering around clutching a tin of Chang.

My pub , 3 Leo - 189B. In HH 1 small Leo 80B.

Jeez, quoting the differences in beer cost is a little off topic whatever the difference.

[lostoday]

I wonder how any sane person can recommend a refinery town for retirement.

[tlcwaterfall]

Top 7 Cities For Retiring In Thailand

removed

Thank you very much for this information.

I am heading to number 7 tomorrow.

I will try to avoid the oil spills and plastic litter though.

[lostoday]

Top 7 Cities For Retiring In Thailand

removed

Thank you very much for this information.

I am heading to number 7 tomorrow.

I will try to avoid the oil spills and plastic litter though.

Be aware that if your eyes and face start to burn it is probably a chemical spill and get to a hospital quick.

There are many refineries in the area and I don't think they report all of the leaks and spills. Bad PR, you know.

[cabralad]

How many retirees choose their destination for whitewater rafting etc? Think before you write this drivel..

White water rafting may not be a good example, but plenty of people retire in areas where they can enjoy their hobbies, be it white water rafting, kayaking, golf, trekking, swimming, sailing, etc... Why would someone want to retire to a place where there is f##k all to do?

[cabralad]

I just completed a 2,000 km road trip by motorcycle for the purposes of finding the ideal thai city to live in.

My checklist is

1: Clean air

2: Mountain views

3: Good facilities

4: Nearby cheap golf courses

5: Hassle free immigration

Conclusion, I found 2 towns of interest Jomtien and Nakhon Sawan.

[enufsaid]

For those expats living in or near Chang Mai & other northern parts of thailand , enjoy your retirement while you can because it won't be a long one with the pollution . No low cost of living is worth that & yes you can spout the virtues of culture & living with locals blah blah blah but that pollution will kill you quicker than the tax man can take your tax duty.

[lostoday]

For those expats living in or near Chang Mai & other northern parts of thailand , enjoy your retirement while you can because it won't be a long one with the pollution . No low cost of living is worth that & yes you can spout the virtues of culture & living with locals blah blah blah but that pollution will kill you quicker than the tax man can take your tax duty.

The answer is to travel during the smoke season.

[chingmai331]

Agree that travel takes us away from the CM area pollution due to the agricultural burning which we find for 2 months, now ending. But the CM traffic smog/acrid roadside air remains a real nuisance and health issue every day of the year. The CM unrestricted and uncontrolled traffic is by far the most negative aspect of CM.

[bendejo]

Haven't been to Hua Hin in a while. Do they still have horse riding on the beach? Nothing like the experience of swimming with horse plop in the surf .

[CharlieH]

Post removed and responses quoting it.

Forum Netiquette

1. Please do not post in all capital letters, bold, unusual fonts, sizes or colors.

[Craig krup]

Interesting. Pretty much nobody says Isaan, but it's dense with big cities and smaller places all around, and (I think) there's less of an air quality problem. It also seems very cheap.

I'm looking at Skyscanner alerts above this reply box - five weeks Isaan last year, and I'm quite close to giving it another go, but my colleague with a (now ex) Filipina wife says I should go to the Philippines.

From what I can see for retirement a lot of people would say, "Chiang Mai, but routinely bug out Feb-April", which might be interesting if you were i) single, and ii) either didn't have a lot of junk, or had a cheap place to store it. A six month lease for the non-smoky half of the year in Chiang Mai and six months elsewhere - or in a number of different places - might be quite mellow.

[Chao Lao Beach]

Thank Goodness Chao Lao Beach is not marketed like this and on the list

Please let the whore mungers stay in Pattaya.

[lostoday]

Thank Goodness Chao Lao Beach is not marketed like this and on the list

Please let the whore mungers stay in Pattaya.

Would you suggest a special passport stamp? WM visa extension good for Pattaya, Bangkok, Phuket and Chiang Mai only?

[mesquite]

Haven't been to Hua Hin in a while. Do they still have horse riding on the beach? Nothing like the experience of swimming with horse plop in the surf .

As they say, the good thing about Hua Hin is that you can ride horses on the beach. The bad thing about Hua Hin is that you can ride horses on the beach.

[northernjohn]

I think the "vacation areas" of Thailand are very nice for a vacation.

I do not think the "vacation areas" are the best places to retire or reside.

Unless you have a need to be surrounded by foreigners that are just like yourself.

I think it is better to live in and learn about Thailand.

and then visit the tourist areas when you need a break.

You are right to a point. There coes a tinme in some of are lives when we want to settle down with every thing near at hand as traveling is no longer enjoyable. Also we are really not interested in village activities.

that is one of the beautiful things abut Thailand you can have either one or a mix of both.

[thaibeachlovers]

What's happened to Nongkhai? It was once ranked no. 7 in the world for retirement!

This is the usual silly ranking nonsense. Everybody likes different things. To some people, Pattaya is heaven; to others, it's hell.

Unless I've gone blind, Pattaya wasn't even mentioned, yet it has to have a large retirement community.

Load of drivel.

[Craig krup]

What's happened to Nongkhai? It was once ranked no. 7 in the world for retirement!

This is the usual silly ranking nonsense. Everybody likes different things. To some people, Pattaya is heaven; to others, it's hell.

Unless I've gone blind, Pattaya wasn't even mentioned, yet it has to have a large retirement community.

Load of drivel.

Nong Khai is only ideal if your highest ambition is to spend every day getting inexpensively wrecked on the banks of the Mekong.

[dragonfly94]

Forget retiring in the cities.

Life is so much better in the villages, quiet , no noisy farangs drunk wearing vests, being loud borish.

Village life with only like minded retired expats like me will do for me.

But like the rest of the country, insects, soi dogs, noise and boredom. I would do myself in if I had to stay in an Issan village

[dragonfly94]

Unless I've gone blind, Pattaya wasn't even mentioned, yet it has to have a large retirement community.

l

Load of drivel.

Some standards have to be observed, Pattaya does not merit a mention in the 'top' category, it's place is bottom

Edited April 30, 2015 by dragonfly94

[lostoday]

Unless I've gone blind, Pattaya wasn't even mentioned, yet it has to have a large retirement community.

l

Load of drivel.

Some standards have to be observed, Pattaya does not merit a mention in the 'top' category, it's place is bottom

Good restaurants, good healthcare, good transportation, good shopping, great recreation, not smokey like CM or BKK. Immigration easy to deal with, good pizza, good German beer, Most of the people who go to Pattaya for shopping and recreation are Thai. Traffic not as bad as BKK. There are reasons that Pattaya is the number 1 attraction for many families from other countries.

[Craig krup]

I was advised against Pattaya - <deleted>. I'm guessing it's quite wearing if you don't actually want to partake of what the place is famous for, and just want to bimble about unmolested.

.

[thaibeachlovers]

I was advised against Pattaya - <deleted>. I'm guessing it's quite wearing if you don't actually want to partake of what the place is famous for, and just want to bimble about unmolested.

.

I'm guessing it's quite wearing if you don't actually want to partake of what the place is famous for, and just want to bimble about unmolested.

Rubbish. Unless returning from Walking street in the early hours, you can "bimble" about unmolested as much as you want.

[lostoday]

I was advised against Pattaya - <deleted>. I'm guessing it's quite wearing if you don't actually want to partake of what the place is famous for, and just want to bimble about unmolested.

.

Nothing in the world quite like it. Passing up a visit while coming to Thailand is just pure ___________ in my opinion. It would be like taking a trip to France ans skipping Paris because there are some streetwalker prowling a few streets. I lived in CM took and trip to Pattaya for a week and moved the next week (I was so impressed at the advantages over that city in the North.

Edited May 2, 2015 by lostoday

[Craig krup]

I was advised against Pattaya - <deleted>. I'm guessing it's quite wearing if you don't actually want to partake of what the place is famous for, and just want to bimble about unmolested.

.

Nothing in the world quite like it. Passing up a visit while coming to Thailand is just pure ___________ in my opinion. It would be like taking a trip to France ans skipping Paris because there are some streetwalker prowling a few streets. I lived in CM took and trip to Pattaya for a week and moved the next week (I was so impressed at the advantages over that city in the North.

Very interesting. I liked everything I read about Chiang Mai, but the air quality is a deal breaker, so I've pretty much fixated on Isaan. I ruled out Pattaya because it seems busy as hell and I've no interest in what it's famous for. However, there is a hell of a lot to be said for having a critical mass of westerners - if you want to have a good row about the 2015 election you're going to struggle in Nong Khai to find someone who gives a s***. It would be wrong to dismiss Pattaya on hearsay.

Mind you, there's part of me that thinks that Bangkok's transport system is so good that it's really a city of neighbourhoods. You don't have to walk too far from the end of the BTS line at Mo Chit to think, "This could be more than okay, cheap, and I can travel most everywhere else quickly and for peanuts".

I think it's an unusual person who doesn't need communication with people on the same wavelength on a regular basis. No matter how good your Thai is, you'll never share a worldview or a history, and you'll never really grasp the nuances and subtleties.

Edited May 2, 2015 by Craig krup