Cambodia .retirement.
Discussion
We had a holiday in Vietnam and Camborne a couple of years ago.
Much preferred Vietnam.
We stayed in Phnom Penh and Siem Reap.
Siem Reap is dirt cheap for hotels. I think our 5* was about £40 a night B&B.
We found Cambodia had an "edge". I know they went through some pretty horrible stuff in recent years, but there was an underlying feeling that the world owes them. You need to have your wits about you.
Much preferred Vietnam.
We stayed in Phnom Penh and Siem Reap.
Siem Reap is dirt cheap for hotels. I think our 5* was about £40 a night B&B.
We found Cambodia had an "edge". I know they went through some pretty horrible stuff in recent years, but there was an underlying feeling that the world owes them. You need to have your wits about you.
We traveled to both Siem Reap and Phnom Penh December 24 and found them both pleasant enough. We much preferred the vibe of Siem Reap though - more of a big village atmosphere - certainly there is a very obvious expat community and the locals seem very welcoming. I did have wistful thoughts of retirement opportunities as the pace and costs of life make that attractive, but the reality of whiling retirement away drinking in bars would soon wear thin for me.
I lived in Siem Reap for a couple of years and saw much of the country in that time. Although I'd lived in Sri Lanka previously and spent a few months in India ages ago, I'd never been to southeast Asian nor been particularly inclined to. I've still never been to Thailand or Vietnam except for connecting flights, so I can't compare it to its neighbours.
You can rent a decent place and live comparatively cheaply. It's easy to explore the rest of the region from there. Monsoon season is spectacular. There are more bugs and bats than you could possibly ever wish to see, or eat, depending if you want to go native. Evenings spent sipping G&Ts at Raffles are reasonably civilised. Or you can walk five minutes down the road and mingle with the backpackers and paedophiles in Pub Street.
There are a lot of rackets designed to fleece naive foreigners. You're a walking ATM. It was notorious for "voluntourism". Naive foreigners paying to go and pretend to work in orphanages full of kids who actually go home to their parents every night.
Loads of Chinese-only hotels in Siem Reap, but it's nothing like Sihanoukville, which is basically a Chinese colony.
There's a big expat community. I wouldn't personally risk buying property there. The healthcare is pretty dire - Khmers with any money tended to go to Thailand for treatment.
Give it a whirl. It's a good idea to go for a few weeks or months first to really see if it suits you.
You can rent a decent place and live comparatively cheaply. It's easy to explore the rest of the region from there. Monsoon season is spectacular. There are more bugs and bats than you could possibly ever wish to see, or eat, depending if you want to go native. Evenings spent sipping G&Ts at Raffles are reasonably civilised. Or you can walk five minutes down the road and mingle with the backpackers and paedophiles in Pub Street.
There are a lot of rackets designed to fleece naive foreigners. You're a walking ATM. It was notorious for "voluntourism". Naive foreigners paying to go and pretend to work in orphanages full of kids who actually go home to their parents every night.
Loads of Chinese-only hotels in Siem Reap, but it's nothing like Sihanoukville, which is basically a Chinese colony.
There's a big expat community. I wouldn't personally risk buying property there. The healthcare is pretty dire - Khmers with any money tended to go to Thailand for treatment.
Give it a whirl. It's a good idea to go for a few weeks or months first to really see if it suits you.
Slow.Patrol said:
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We found Cambodia had an "edge". I know they went through some pretty horrible stuff in recent years, but there was an underlying feeling that the world owes them. You need to have your wits about you.
Yes. More than half the population were born after the war finally faded out in the late '90s. But, to put it diplomatically, they know how it still resonates, particularly with American tourists. We found Cambodia had an "edge". I know they went through some pretty horrible stuff in recent years, but there was an underlying feeling that the world owes them. You need to have your wits about you.
smifffymoto2 said:
Right learned friends, I m of next February and March to see if it s a place to retire and enjoy a slower pace of life at a reduced cost.
My focus is Siem Reap and if all goes well look to move late Autumn/early winter.
You lot have a vast wealth of knowledge so don t be shy.
I would say of all the countries in SE Asia (Laos/ Cambodia/ Philippines/ Thailand/ Vietnam/ Malaysia/ Singapore/ Indonesia/ Burma) it would be bottom of the list. It's a wounded civilisation compared to the others.My focus is Siem Reap and if all goes well look to move late Autumn/early winter.
You lot have a vast wealth of knowledge so don t be shy.
Try Indonesia (not Bali) or Malaysia. Cambodia has more than a whiff of Gary Glitter amongst it's 'retirees'
wisbech said:
smifffymoto2 said:
Cambodia has much simpler and hassle free visa arrangement,no reporting and no money tied up.
Thailand is getting steadily more expensive and less attractive to me.
Yeah, it s become the scam capitol of the world (Cambodia) as so easy to lure in marks. Thailand is getting steadily more expensive and less attractive to me.
smifffymoto2 said:
So,just because you live there it automatically makes you more susceptible to being a victim to scammers?
No, but the government turns a blind eye to the scam boiler rooms, that use the ease of visas to recruit and hold captive foreign workers. The times I have been there, just didn’t like the vibe. You asked for opinions and my opinion would be anywhere else in SE Asia. Philippines much friendlier/ English speaking for example
cambodia has changed so much in the last few years, it has gone from an amazing wonderful place to an edgy place.
I would think twice, SR is great for a few days, but its a bit like vegas not some where to live. IMHO Batambang is somewhere I would consider.
Vietnam would be my first choice of SE Asian place to retire.
I would think twice, SR is great for a few days, but its a bit like vegas not some where to live. IMHO Batambang is somewhere I would consider.
Vietnam would be my first choice of SE Asian place to retire.
smifffymoto2 said:
Cambodia has much simpler and hassle free visa arrangement,no reporting and no money tied up.
Thailand is getting steadily more expensive and less attractive to me.
I travel Asia quite regularly (twice a year usually) and I would seriously look at Thailand.Thailand is getting steadily more expensive and less attractive to me.
The reason its tougher now is because they are advancing quickly and there is a significant upside in quality of life in Thailand.
In the grand scheme of things its still really easy to live there - just pay a visa agent to sort it. The simple route is a Thailand Privilege Card.
I would also consider Vietnam as others have said - but in my eyes its a second option. The Philippines is also a possible. 3rd place.
The Philippines has the easiest retirement visa by far in SE Asia, dump $30,000 into a local bank account and away you go. Vietnam doesn't offer a retirement visa at the moment so your relying on border runs or opening up a business in Vietnam. If they tighten the rules on border runs like Thailand did recently, you could be stuck in an awkward position.
I would look at the Philippines as a main base for visa requirements, and then take extended breaks in countries like Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia etc.
I would look at the Philippines as a main base for visa requirements, and then take extended breaks in countries like Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia etc.
Yep kind of agree - English is spoken too which is handy.
The only reason I put it behind Vietnam is the people whilst generally nice they are a bit more "blingy" and you get a lot of Americans there too who have insane buying power as US salaries are 3x in the UK which can make it "expensive" for Asia.
The only reason I put it behind Vietnam is the people whilst generally nice they are a bit more "blingy" and you get a lot of Americans there too who have insane buying power as US salaries are 3x in the UK which can make it "expensive" for Asia.
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