Retirement in Cambodia compared to Retirement in Thailand

For a long time now when people thought of retiring to S. E. Asia they thought of Philippines with the many beaches or Chiang Mai, Thailand.

But things change and we have a new retirement destination that is relatively unheard of but yet we feel confident that it will become the most popular retirement destination in S. E. Asia overtaking both Philippines and Thailand.

To make idle boasts is one thing, but to live in different countries for a long enough time period and in a manner that one would live if one was retired gives us enough information and the credabilitiy to make these statements.

After having lived over 7 years in Chiang Mai, Thailand in a retirement capacity I know the good points and the bad points of living there. And I recognize the fact that our clients are happy in Chiang Mai and why they are happy.

But as I write this content I see things changing. Clients who have enjoyed their retirement in Chiang Mai recognize that it is a great place to retire but there are issues that need to be addressed and which have remained unchanged for many years.

One of these issues is the Retirement Visa. The financial requirement is putting in place over $ 26,000 U.S. in a Thai bank untouched for 3 months or having a pension in excess of $ 26,000 U.S. a year or a combination of the two amounting to $ 26,000 U.S.

After more than 5 years of helping people retire to Chiang Mai we have come across only a select few that have pensions exceeding $ 26,000 U.S. and most retiree's have to make up the difference or put up the entire $ 26,000 in cash when they arrive here in order to meet the Retirement Visa financial requirement.

The $ 26,000 is supposed to represent the cost of living in Thailand for 1 year. And I know I never came close to that amount and that my clients spend far less than that amount each year.

The financial requirement if it is supposed to represent living cost for 1 year plus perhaps unexpected medical is too high and should be reduced. And as retiree's tend to stay in Chiang Mai a long time why should they have to go thru the same process each year to re-apply for a new Retirement Visa?

That is one issue. Another is that of earning money in Thailand while retired.

Retiree's are not allowed to work under a Retirement Visa. But yet investing in stocks to me is work and not play, and many retiree's have invested in some sort of business and some involvement in a business in one manner or another and some are caught and given the boot from Thailand and others live in some fear of being caught.

Imagine being a millionaire and owning over 20 condo's and a villa and not being allowed to show your own properties for sale or rental.

Several sore points plus the fact we (retiree's) are not appreciated or given any credit for our contribution to the local economy. Take 25,000 retiree's out of Chiang Mai and the city will be a ghost town. Yet there is no one helping us retire here from providing us information we need or making it easier for us. An example is .. are we allowed to bring personal and household possessions here or not. Find me someone who can tell me in certainty what the answer is.

There need to be improvements and one would expect that Thai officials would recognize this fact and make the necessary improvements after consultation with retiree's. But no, this is not done and unheard of.

We feel we have a better retirement destination or even much better retirement destination than Chiang Mai, Thailand.

So convinced are we that we moved our head office from Chiang Mai, Thailand to Siem Reap, Cambodia.

Obtaining a long term visa is simple in Cambodia. Within a month of arriving in Cambodia I obtained a 1 year visa, opened a bank account, and found many lovely ladies that are interested in long term foreigners as boyfriends.

In fact I have a long term girlfriend and I bought here a ring for $100 US and we took a photo similar to a wedding photo and had 4 large photo's, one framed, plus makeup and clothes for the photo shoot (and makeup alone took an hour by a professional) before the photo's were taken. Total cost of $23 US.

The only negatives so far are that there are too many tuk tuk drivers and they are annoying but I understand that they need to earn a living also. Bank fees are higher here and if you can retire here and have funds wired directly to your account then that is the best way to go.

Our newest website Retire-on-650-month.com provides information about Siem Reap, Cambodia and we have staff on hand helping clients retire to Siem Reap providing visa advice, accommodations and more..

After living in Chiang Mai for over 7 years and living here for over 2 months I can say that it is as safe here, that it is much easier to get around here, nightlife in centered in one area and easy to get to, and that the cost of living here is the same or less than Chiang Mai.

The main selling points which I think make Siem Reap a better retirement destination are the long term visa, being able to work here and make money, and most importantly the ladies are lovely and unspoiled and will not make financial demands from you that are excessive.

As the key reason most retiree's go to Chiang Mai to retire is the single ladies then you better think twice about going there and consider coming here to Siem Reap as the ladies are more plentiful, more genuine and will not cost you an arm and a leg as they do in Chiang Mai.