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Cambodia Gets Nod As Retirement Destination


The_Munchmaster
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Cambodia gets nod as retirement destination

 

For the first time, Cambodia has entered International Living’s Annual Global Retirement Index, indicating growing global recognition of the Kingdom as a retirement destination.

 

The annual index, which was released at the end of 2014, is now in its 23rd year.

 

Cambodia has entered the list at the bottom of the index’s 24 countries that get the nod as most ideal for North Americans to retire to. But as International Living notes in its commentary on this year’s selection: “Remember, we measure here only the very best havens. So the country last on our list – newcomer to the Index Cambodia – is still one of the best in the world.â€

 

Cambodia might be new to the Annual Global Retirement Index, but its entry isn’t news to the increasing numbers of foreigners who are already living in other parts of Asia. Michael Thomas, 65, an American who has been living and working in Bangkok for 12 years, said he has decided to retire in Cambodia after having made a number of reconnaissance trips.

 

“Phnom Penh is a much better option now than Bangkok,†said Thomas, who cited the increasing cost of living in Bangkok and stricter visa requirements as disincentives to retiring in Thailand, while adding that “the charm has worn off†for him.

 

Among the categories used by International Living’s index are real estate, climate, healthcare, entertainment and amenities, ease of integration and cost of living. In terms of cost of living, Cambodia shares top place with Guatemala.

 

“I see Cambodia as a way to reinvigorate my life,†Thomas said. “There’s a huge variety of excellent restaurants, many streets I still haven’t explored, and Phnom Penh moves at a slower pace than Bangkok.â€

 

Harold Unland, 46, who runs popular watering hole and lodge Sundance Inn and Saloon, has seen first-hand that increasing numbers of retirees are choosing Cambodia as an option. But he says the majority at this stage are coming from Thailand, which has far more restrictive visa requirements than Cambodia.

 

“I hear more people currently based in Thailand talking about the move than actually making it, but I’m expecting a heavy influx,†said Unland, who also pointed to the emergence of “a real foodie sceneâ€, a vibrant live music environment and a proliferation of art venues as winning draw-cards for retirees.

 

Unland estimated there are as many 300 foreign-run restaurants in the popular districts of Phnom Penh, such as Riverside and BKK1.

 

“There are also more and more Western-standard condominiums under construction, and they’re getting more affordable due to competition, while local construction companies are getting better at building and outfitting apartments and condominiums to Western standards,†Unland said.

 

The website Retirecambodia.com echoes such sentiments, arguing that “Cambodia . . . is set to be the new Thailand.â€

 

Unland agrees that may well be the case – with easier visa rules and a lower cost of living – but he jokingly adds the caveat: “For some people, most of the cost savings involve the bad stuff.â€

 

“Every hour is happy hour when you live in a place where the bars serve one-dollar beers,†he said.

 

Source: http://www.phnompenhpost.com/real-estate/cambodia-gets-nod-retirement-destination

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It will take some years for PP to ramp up to the BKK level.

 

There has been talk for over ten years about farangs moving to Cambodia but very few have done it.

 

Even though BKK continues to get more expensive, it is still comfortable here. Easy to find apartments

and condos to rent, good transportation system and much variety of "entertainment" to be had.

 

I will give PP a look during the year as BKK is getting a bit worn for me...

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  • 2 weeks later...

I was in PP late 2012 and didn't see anything that would make me consider it over Bkk.

Same, although I haven't seen it since early 2010. I've said it before, and I'll say it again - I need infrastructure more than I need cheap beer and cheap jiggy-jig, and others have made the point that PP has a very long way to go before its anywhere near BKK in everything else. There are so many things that we take for granted in more developed countries that you really only miss when they are nowhere in evidence - for some, I guess that's part of the attraction ('it's like Thailand 30 years ago !' etc). Also strongly agree that the more Barang rock up expecting 'nirvana' the more likely they are to create another 'paradise lost'. About the only report I've seen on TV recently that made Cambo seem like an attractive option was from the guy who handed his passport and 250USD to a Cambodian official and had a no-questions-asked 12-month business visa in said passport when it was delivered to his hotel the following day. One can only imagine how many retirees in Thailand would have looked at that in dumbstruck awe and thought 'Now that's my kind of country !' ;)
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"About the only report I've seen on TV recently that made Cambo seem like an attractive option was from the guy who handed his passport and 250USD to a Cambodian official and had a no-questions-asked 12-month business visa in said passport when it was delivered to his hotel the following day. One can only imagine how many retirees in Thailand would have looked at that in dumbstruck awe and thought 'Now that's my kind of country !' ;)"

 

Which is why I'm in Laos - no hoops to jump through.

 

Oh and MLG of course….

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I made a short trip to Siem Reap last week and have to say I was impressed. My only other trip there had been 8 years ago when it put me in mind of Nakhon Phanom in 1974. It has come a long way since then. I doubt I would consider it as a retirement location for other reasons, but it has quite a few barang oriented shopping venues and you are starting to see up market housing blocks.

 

Rode past the Royal Angkor Internarional Hospital. It's managed by Bangkok Hospital and has an impressive modern building. The reviews on the care may be something else and the word in the English language tourist pubs is still to head fot Bangkok for anything serious.

 

Felt I was not unreasonably suicidal riding around in a tuk tuk.

 

There were no signs in cyrillic but a good many in Korean.

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