samtheman40

I am male and 40 years old. I have a very mild learning difficulty. So struggle a lot in the UK. I have been twice to Phuket and seem to fit in really well over there. Anyhow I am thinking of maybe moving to live in Phuket. I rent out a flat in the South East of the UK and get £1000 UK pounds a month in rent from that flat. Is that enough money to live well off in Phuket. Is Phuket a great place to live. Can you really have a great life living in Phuket? I have only stayed in Kata and Nai Yang in Phuket which I really liked but visited Patong which I did not like and Karon which was ok. So where is a great place to live if I want to be near to a few shops and restaurant and near a great beach and maybe a child out bar with chilled out action. Not really looking for lots of action as stopped taking alcohol and drums and smoking.

mikelincs

So, given up on Gibraltar already, or just increasing your options. There is a lot of difference between the two, the main one being you will NOT need a visa for Gib, but will for Thailand.

bakedbean

Hi and welcome to the forum

Thailand....it's horses for courses. We tried it for a couple of years on the retirement visa. It didn't really work for us, but others do enjoy it there.

As mikelincs has said, it's probably a non-starter for you because of your age. I am a bit out of touch with Thailand matters, but I'm pretty sure you have to be 50 to get the retirement visa.

nonthaburi

There is the elite visa which is 500,000 for a five year multiple entry, so he could do that at his age. 100,000 a year.

If I were the OP, I would take a long holiday in Thailand, maybe three four months. Spend a month in three different places. Being on holiday is one thing, having to get stuff done somewhere because you live there is another.

Don't commit to anything long term. You might want out sooner than you think.

Personally speaking, I've not been to Phuket in 16 years Ann's no plans to visit anytime soon. My wife took the kids last year and she liked it, but we like different things.

If I could combine the people of the NE with the landscapes of the South, Thailand would be perfect, but alas, it's not to be.

Thailand is a big country, why limit yourself to one place?

samtheman40

I have a few opinions of what to do. I have just moved to Cornwall so just stay there and try and make it work 2 I am half Kiwi so move out there as have my mums family out there. 3 try Gibraltar 4 get some teaching assistant work in a school in Phuket or Philippines or Bali and have live out there for a few months trial.
As said if I went at to live in Phuket I would try and get a job working as a teaching assistant in a school or something like that there are agencies in the Uk that can sort that out for you So lots to think about.

teejaydee

It seems you are also considering Malta:

http://britishexpats.com/forum/malta...-malta-874461/

Only you can decide which of these options is best for you. What suits one person does not necessarily suit another. There are many threads on this site where people have discussed the advantages and disadvantages of each of the countries you are considering. My advice would be to first read through these, make a short-list of one or two countries, and go and visit them for yourself. You have already spent time in Phuket, so you know what it's like. If you are genuinely interested in moving to a country, a personal visit for a minimum period of several months is a necessity.

nonthaburi

And even visiting the same place at different times of the year. Phuket is probably fairly constant in temperature all year round but other places in Thailand could go from pleasant to unbearable at certain times of year depending on your pad. Lot of rain in Phuket, that's something to think about. And with rain comes bugs.

bakedbean

And looong powercuts, or brown-outs which are just as bad. Imagine sitting all day in your lovely Phuket flat with no electricity (so better like reading a book) and cannot go anywhere 'cause the roads flood. During the big monsoon time May to October-ish, you'll get this maybe one or two times a week.....at least we did

samtheman40

I live at the moment in Cornwall and it rains a lot in Cornwall and it's cold and sunny now and I hate the cold weather even when it sunny.

InVinoVeritas

Yes you have to view it in context, I couldn't live in the UK again! Plenty of nice places in Thailand, some people even like Bangkok

I think in your shoes I would check out the less touristy areas as well.

samtheman40

Thank you for the info everyone. Will definitely be out in Phuket for a few months at the beginning of next year and might even try to get out there October/November time this year. Just one last thing can someone give me a ruff guess in UK pounds as to how much I would spend a month if I lived out in Phuket full time?