Retiring to Siem Reap

Hello All


I am planning to retire  to Siem Reap and I have a few questions that I havent been able to get an answer to in th UK so I thought and would ask on here. I am a 60 year old male who has had an amputated leg and T1 diabetes.


  1. I am looking for a single storey home 2+ bedrooms with easy access for a wheelchair, do any any of you know of a reliable agency who I can approach?
  2. Medical care! Is there either a national insurance scheme for healthcare.
  3. How easy is it to get an automatic car suitable for adaption with hand controls and is there a company who can complete this for me?
  4. Everything I have read about Siem Reap and come to the conclusion that it may be a suitable location I have already lived and worked in the far east and south east asia so life may not hold any real surprises
  5. Local and central authorities? How difficullt/easy are they easy to deal with and whats the level of corruption when dealing with them
  6. How easy is it to get a maid? In hong kong I used to have a live-in maid is it a similar situation here and how much should i expect to pay to retain reliable services.

Thats about it for the moment all I need above and beyond this is a Prosthetist who I have only been able to find in PP


Any comments/information would be welcome.

Medical care is available for a price, its such a wide range from $15 a night plus $30 consulting fee for decent but basic care to $thousands at bigger clinics. I doubt if you will get affordable insurance with your pre-existing conditions.

Maids - no problem, usually around $150 a month for daily service or live-in.

House with wheelchair access may take a while to find, although I have friends in ground -level apartments which would be suitable, depends how much you want to pay. Most 2 bedroom places start around $300 a month.

You would be advised not to think about driving here with a disability. Finding a suitable vehicle would be a major problem, let alone keeping safe and sane on these roads. You may even be better off with an automatic scooter!

Anyway, although I have been here 4 years I am probably not an expert in the matters that interest you, but good luck anyway.

Hi. I don't want to sound negative but you have some very detailed requirements. I think you could find a house as you want here and a maid to help out. Some of the medical things seem challenging here in Siem Reap. You could find health cover at a few health insurance agencies online and get a quote from them. I won't link them because the post will get moderated. I honestly think for your requirements and the things you need you would be better in Phnom Penh. I think you should list the things in order of importance and see what are the primary things. If you have visited Siem Reap before the pandemic, it is much different now to me. For the better. I just think you would be able to find all these things as well in Phnom Penh. Really though, I wonder why you would not also look at places like Malaysia and Thailand. I won't ask how financially well off you are but perhaps you should widen the net a bit and look around.


Visiting here may help so you can get a sense of things. One thing is from Siem Reap to Phnom Penh is roughly one hour flying or 5 hours in a minivan. A bus will take slightly longer.


it is best to find what the highest level requirements you have are and list them in that order and then see whether Siem Reap will offer what you need. It may be it does not. I am not sure. Some things can be done but I would be concerned about the health concerns. The last part about finding a specialist but only in PP would be something to consider.


Best regards. Hope you can make the choice by visiting a few places if possible. It is really hard to advocate for Cambodia in your case and I would strongly advise you to visit a few places.

@hdgh29 Hi


Thanks for getting back to me :) On the subject of driving I have driven in places from Afghanistan through to Zimbabwe? Is there anything unique about Siem Reap that I should be aware of? I know traffic police can be a bid odd but I cannot think of anything that would hinder me as the Cambodian govt have removed restrictions on disabled people driving.

@mpmilestogo  HiThanks for the advice! Unfortunately Thailand is far too expensive due to it being infested by sexpats. Back to the medical side of things is there a hospital there? Not to bothered about the cost side of things and if it too serious I can nip across the border to Vietnam or Thailand.I can find lotof protestic specialists around PP but it a bit of a ride if you just want some adjustments, I have recently come across an NGO who deals with this kind of thing "exceed-worldwide.org" who may have a prescence in Siem Reap.On the subject of cars is it actually worth having one? Any major travel would be by air and the previous poster has made me itch a little and I'm beginning to question the validity of owning one.Mark

@markarmstrong75 I don't think cars are worth having here. I'd never own one. I don't even own a scooter here because I walk everywhere. The cost of flights from Siem Reap to PP is about $100 one way and I think there are two flights per day. We don't do flights ever since the bus and minivan service works reliably for us. I have flown though a few times from SR. In January I flew direct from SR to Saigon and it took less than an hour and it was very nice. I also have flown before the pandemic back and forth from PP to SR.


There are hospitals here and I think if you wanted to find a health plan you could. there are at least two companies that sell annual plans I know of. Both will offer quotes by filling out a form and then sending the application back via email. I believe a few of the people on this forum have visited hospitals here in SR. I only went once last year for a relatively minor issue and I felt I was treated very well.


I still feel you should settle in a place which meets the majority of your needs. It may not be Cambodia. I am not sure. I just go by what you write. There are other countries not  in Southeast Asia you could consider. They also offer retirement visas along with residency. If you want to live here in Cambodia, I'd suggest starting your search in the place where you find the majority of your needs. I think that is Phnom Penh.


Just my feelings though and you may find SR to be very easy to get around with the other requirements you have like housing, maid service, etc. I would still be concerned about health and medical issues and perhaps look at similar housing in Phnom Penh that would fit your needs.

Hi


Thanks for that but big cities and me don't get on so PP unless theres a quiet part of it wouldn't suit. The health thing isn't really an issue because if the bills more than 10000usd i'm probably dead :)


Mark

@markarmstrong75 mate, bring medication with you. I travel for six months all the time. I am Australian, and I get them before I leave. I have a letter from my doctor saying what they are and what they are for. I have an ER Class visa (retirement visa) in Cambodia, and I have never had issues bringing meds in. Maid rates vary depending on the time needed and tasks required. Rent is another thing with your strict requirements. I would say 350 plus a month with an average of 450 for what you want. To get around, I use a Tuk-Tuk with an app called Grab. To get the Grab app, you will need a local mobile number. I use Cellcard (4$ a month plan). Good luck.