Best Places In The World To Retire

The things that you will be most happily surprised about when moving abroad is understanding that there is a lot of ways to organize your daily life. Most of the time, people get into a rhythm that they inherited from their parents, their community, their job, or their coworkers, and all of a sudden when that is gone, there is an opportunity to reinvent your day and organize based on your interests, or on what is happening in this new location in which you’re living. That is a...

The things that you will be most happily surprised about when moving abroad is understanding that there is a lot of ways to organize your daily life. Most of the time, people get into a rhythm that they inherited from their parents, their community, their job, or their coworkers, and all of a sudden when that is gone, there is an opportunity to reinvent your day and organize based on your interests, or on what is happening in this new location in which you’re living. That is a rebirth process that I think people might find refreshing.
 
As an example, once you move abroad, all of a sudden your day might revolve around a morning exercise because it is one of the times where it is cooler outside. So you might find yourself getting up earlier and taking advantage of that cool, fresh air, and really enjoying that time of your day, followed by maybe going to a little market and buying fresh produce. There might also be some volunteer opportunity at a primary school or a local community center, or there might be a language practice activity for a couple of hours.
 
If you live in a tropical zone, the middle of the day is quite hot, especially if you are on the ocean or the beach where there is not elevation. And if that’s the case, you might find yourself taking a nap in the middle of the day and then having the rest of your day organized after the weather cooled off a little bit. Who would have thought that they would decide to take naps for two or three hours a day? That is something that people gets to reinvent when they move abroad. They reinvent how they want to spend their day.
 
I think retirement is all about making choices about how you would want to live your life now that you have some freedom. You have a new cultural backdrop and you have all this time. It is very important to really reflect and experiment with what routine feels good for you.

 

(Picture: fresh fruit in the Tropics.)

What are expats like in Granada? Well, they are retirees, investors or seasonal tourists or people that live year round in and around Granada. Some have a tourist visa and others are either pensionado (retired) or inversionista (investor) and yet others are perpetual tourists leaving the country every 90 days to get a new visa for 90 days. Some speak fluent Spanish yet others have learned to make due without...

What are expats like in Granada? Well, they are retirees, investors or seasonal tourists or people that live year round in and around Granada. Some have a tourist visa and others are either pensionado (retired) or inversionista (investor) and yet others are perpetual tourists leaving the country every 90 days to get a new visa for 90 days. Some speak fluent Spanish yet others have learned to make due without really learning the language, but picking up a few words here and there. 

 

Some might own a home and or business and others rent. We have been here since 2015, and full time in 2016 after we purchased a home outside of Granada. Some expats love to live in Granada with its great colonial architecture, history, tourism, entertainment and ability to meet with other expats, and maybe to a degree people feel safer in Granada than in the smaller communities. Some expats are also involved in the arts, animal shelter, schools teaching English and more. But yet others like us live in smaller communities around Granada. We feel totally comfortable in Diria, very safe and quiet relative to Granada. But the quiet period is over in December or during other holidays. We feel that we have more opportunities to integrate with the local community than being in Granada. But as the saying goes, "different strokes for different folks".

 

We have a great mix of expats that are: French, German, Brits, Danish,  Dutch, Italian, Canadian, American, Chile, and more.....

 

There are expats here that have lived in Nicaragua for over 20 years and others for over ten years, which is the great majority. We have lived as expats in many countries in Latin America and other places. To us, Nicaragua is what the 80's was like in such countries as Venezuela and Colombia or even Mexico. Again, that's our view.

 

One thing you the reader needs to understand is that we all have different backgrounds and views on how we perceive Nicaragua and life in general in Granada. I would suggest don't take our opinion at face value but talk, listen, read and make up your own mind where to live and how to experience Granada and its surrounding areas.  

 

Come and visit. Some of you may decide to stay like we did!

 

(Pictured: Guadalupe church, Granada, Nicaragua.)

If you have a jubilado ​("retirement" or "pensionado") visa, you are entitled to discounts on doctor bills, hospitals and also medicines. Since July 2013, in most cases 22%. Nevertheless prices for surgery, for instance, can be very different. It is wise to check a doctor's reputation, which in Panama in general is excellent, but also the costs

 

I will give one example. A client of ours needed hip surgery and wanted a titanium...

If you have a jubilado ​("retirement" or "pensionado") visa, you are entitled to discounts on doctor bills, hospitals and also medicines. Since July 2013, in most cases 22%. Nevertheless prices for surgery, for instance, can be very different. It is wise to check a doctor's reputation, which in Panama in general is excellent, but also the costs

 

I will give one example. A client of ours needed hip surgery and wanted a titanium replacement. In David, she checked, with the help of Yarileth Gomez, three doctors of good reputation in three clinics. Price went down from $20,000 to $ 5,000. She had the surgery and was very happy with the quality of the work as well as the service and friendliness of the staff of the clinic. The only difference was indeed the cost. This is the same with dentists and ophthalmologists, as we heard from other clients. Do the check!