Best Places to Retire

It's time to update our list for the Best Places to Retire. When this HUB started we looked at the Best Places to Retire in 2009 as presented by International Living Magazine. Let's have a look at their 'Retirement Index' for 2010. It will be interesting to see the differences. BTW - I'll put last years rank in brackets so you can see the change.

Best Places to Retire 2010

1. Ecuador (1 - second year at #1)

2. Panama (3rd last year but was #1 for five years running before that!)

3. Mexico (2nd last year)

4. France (6th)

5. Italy (5th)

6. Uruguay (4th)

7. Malta (11th)

8. Chile (14th)

9. Spain (12th)

10. Costa Rica (9th)

So, not a lot of big changes but some interesting movement. It will be fun to look at the index this year, 2011 (it usually comes out in the fall) to see if there are any new surprises!

This past February International Living's monthly magazine suggested the World's Best Places to Retire may also be the Easiest laces to Retire. Of course 'Best' and 'Easiest' are subjective terms and of course the article is quite upfront in answering the question by saying, 'It depends.' Of course it depends on many factors. Some consider 'ease' meaning cheap. Others may consider accessibility. Still others how close they will be to family and friends. Regardless, IL does come to it's own conclusions about the Easiest Places to retire too and provides this list of criteria they use to determine their ranking:

• Has an established ex-pat community
• English commonly spoken.
• Modern conveniences readily available - i.e. phone service; internet; quality health care; variety of dinning and shopping options.
• Lifestyle: a variety of activities to keep you occupied and life interesting. Like: arts & entertainment; music; educational opportunities; sports and recreation.
• See below for the I.L. editors list of destinations they feel are the 'easiest places to retire' to.

International Living’s Top 30 Countries to Retire:

Ecuador

Mexico

Panama

Uruguay

Italy

France

Brazil

Argentina

Costa Rica

Australia

Malta

Spain

Belize

Chile

Nicaragua

Malaysia

Greece

New Zealand

Thailand

Portugal

Colombia

U.S.

Slovenia

Honduras

Dominican Republic

Ireland

Croatia

U.K.

South Africa

FAQ's - According to the I.L. Index:

What are the 10 Best Places To Retire:

Ecuador

Mexico

Panama

Uruguay

Italy

France

Brazil

Argentina

Costa Rica

Australia

Malta

The Best Place To Retire is: Ecuador

The Best Places To Retire may not necessarily be the easiest places to retire.

The Best Places To Retire Abroad really depends on where you are currently living. If you are living in the U.S.A. than basically the other 29 places would be considered abroad.

The Best Places To Retire Mexico: we will cover that in another HUB.

What are the Best Places To Retire Overseas? Again it depends on where you are currently living. Just reiewing the ist and looking at the places which are 'across the sea' from whereever you are will give you a pretty good idea.

The Best Places To Retire USA we will cover this topic in another HUB.

What are the Best Places To Retire World? See the list.

You can also check out Forbes Best Places To Retire.