Eva M. Says:
I’ve been an IL reader for about a year, and I love your articles. You talk about “scouting trips” to check out a country before moving there. What exactly are these and how would it differ from a regular vacation there?
IL Executive Editor Jennifer Stevens Says:
Hi Eva,
I’m happy to hear you’ve been with us for a year so far—and enjoying what you’re learning. Warms an editor’s heart! You have a great question regarding scouting trips and their importance.
It might be tempting to simply pick a location you’ve researched or once traveled to…and pick up and move there. But before you sell your home or unload most of your possessions, it pays to test the waters. There have been many people who always dreamed of living at the beach…because that’s where they’ve always vacationed. But once they stayed more than a few weeks, they discovered they didn’t like the heat and humidity…or the sand that always seemed to be getting in the house…or all the tourists. You want to find this out before you move.
This is easily done with an extended scouting trip to the location you’ve tentatively picked out. This is not a two-week vacation. Instead take two months—three months, if you can—to really get to know a place. You’ll have to rent a home or apartment, which you can usually do at affordable rates through a property-management company or individual owner. You can even ask Airbnb or VRBO hosts if they’ll cut you a deal for a long-term stay. (We have lots of specific guidance about how to do this coming up in your January 2023 issue, incidentally.)
Your job on this visit is to feel what it’s like to live in that location—not just pass through as a tourist. And to explore a bit, too, so that you can feel comfortable that the spot where you think you want to be based is, in fact, right for you.
It’s important to talk to locals and expats about their lives—the benefits and drawbacks of the place. You can go to expat meetups like Saturday morning breakfasts or sunset happy hours to find expats and get the scoop. Facebook groups exist for pretty much any locale with an expat population, and inside those you’ll usually find postings for meet-ups and gatherings.
Go grocery shopping in local grocery stores and farmers’ markets—see what’s available and what the prices are. Visit local medical facilities—do they have the specialists and medications you need? You can also check out the internet speed and reliability of electricity and water.
Are there local groups catering to a hobby of yours like crafting or poker or pickle ball? Figure out if you like the neighborhood where you’re based. Is it too noisy—or too quiet? Is the beach town too much of a party spot? Is the quaint mountain village you dreamed of actually too sleepy? Is there a big- or active-enough expat population for your taste?
With a longer stay, you have the time to explore different areas and neighborhoods of the town or city you’ve chosen, and then travel around the region or even country to see if another spot strikes your fancy even more. The idea is to experience life fully there to see if you could stay long-term and be comfortable. Again, an exploratory trip is not a vacation. But, I mean, it’s not exactly hard-labor, either. Still, you’ll want to head out with a checklist in mind of those things you want to accomplish.
To make the process easier, we’ve actually put together a bunch of scouting-trip itineraries for the top retirement destinations on our beat. Whether you want to scout out Spain, Panama, Italy, Portugal, or France, you’ll find our recommendations for communities to consider and pre-made routes we’d suggest if you want to explore a selection of them while you’re on the ground. They’re on our Bookstore right here.
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