Thread: Relocating Somewhere Tropic / Best Bang for the $$$?

I have the good fortune of being able to work remotely assuming I can get a reliable internet connection with decent speeds. I'm a fairly young buck and have always wanted to live near the ocean or somewhere tropical (I live in Nebraska right now). I need input on where you guys might recommend relocating domestically or abroad that would tick off as many of my requirements as possible while getting great value for the $$$.

Needs:
- Reliable Internet
- Time Zone remains in EST/CST/PST - basically North America to coincide with American business hours.
- Good Value for $$$ (Rent/Property/Food)
- Want to be somewhere that I can sail, surf, scuba if possible.
- Safe
- Native language skills not 100% necessary.

Don't Need:
- Wild nightlife
- Fancy amenities

I just want someplace that's going to be a bit of an adventure for myself to get me out of my comfort zone a bit and put me in a gorgeous warm place. Doesn't have to be international - i'm just thinking that places on the coast in the U.S. tend to be outrageously expensive. I've heard places like Buenos Aires are fantastic value for $$$ but i've never traveled internationally and don't know if i'm getting in over my head.

Thanks for the input guys!

Cayman Islands are beautiful year round. Very short flight from Miami. Don't know how much of a value it is to live there, but my father was scoping out property maybe 4-5 years ago after the hurricanes. Might have been different times. Sail, surf, scuba? Definitely sailing and diving. As with most of the Caribbean, safety relies on the person and not their surroundings.

Other beautiful places to consider are the Turks & Caicos Islands, as well as the USVI, BVI and Netherlands Antilles.

Save your money for when they finally open the borders of Cuba!

Yeah what he said ^^^^

Cayman Islands sound intriguing - what about the British Virgin Islands? Are they any cheaper?

Originally Posted by Sheldon07

Save your money for when they finally open the borders of Cuba!

Cuba will never be the country it once was.

Cayman Islands are expensive. But beautiful and laid back. Take a look into Roatan, off Honduras.

Roatan is over run with tourist and cruise ships now. Crime is going up and it's not really a great place any more. I'm from Utila about 45 mins away by boat. You need to check on USVI and BVI mainly. I would see if you can afford St. Maarten

Originally Posted by Bigdaddy

Cayman Islands are expensive. But beautiful and laid back. Take a look into Roatan, off Honduras.

Originally Posted by DINOONE

Roatan is over run with tourist and cruise ships now. Crime is going up and it's not really a great place any more. I'm from Utila about 45 mins away by boat. You need to check on USVI and BVI mainly. I would see if you can afford St. Maarten

Roatan is beautiful but this is precisely why I did not recommend it. Last time I visited we docked at the Town Center pier before it was even developed (2008). They had about 1-2 ships calling a week in the slow season, and 3-4 in high season. Now Carnival has built up Mahogany Bay and has ships calling multiple times a week there as well. The island saw a gigantic infrastructure boom with the cruise lines, as well as an economic push. But with that comes a price, from what I've heard the island is overrun with tourists. Much like Cozumel and Nassau. The other thing that worries me about Roatan is the political instability of the country itself. You won't get an authentic experience in Roatan, sorry to say.

With that said, you will find a great share of cruise ship guests on Grand Cayman and St. Thomas as well. If it's an issue, I'll retract on that...however Tortola, even though it does get ships is not a major port of call in comparison to the three above. And the Turks & Caicos are cruise ship free with the exception of Grand Turk.

Hawaii?