Best cities / towns for active retired person?

I read there are about 450 American expats living in Sicily.  In the southeast corner of the island (Siracusa, Noto), I count around eight American retirees in their 50s and 60s (myself included).  Pros: cost of living, cost of real estate, weather (unless there's a heat wave), fresh produce and seafood, slower pace, access to the beach, ability to participate in outdoor adventures.  Con: for really good health care, you may need to head to the mainland.  Very happy with my decision to move here, have no regrets!

@sfhoya That sounds really nice.  The more I consider different areas, I might want to stay closer to big cities for medical and other things, but Sicily really has a lot going for it.  I can see why a lot of expats are there.

@Dan_M I don't know the answer to your question (I'll be going to Florence for 3 months from October-Jan and then returning 3 months later) - but I did learn the hard way that navigating the visa situation is a lot more complicated than I imagined!

For me (now living in Colorado) I found out that the Italian Consulate wasn't taking ANY visa applications for the near future. There's a new visa system for the EU starting in 2024 which might be the cause. I spoke with a top immigration lawyer in Florence, but it still was way too difficult.

So - for now I'm going to do the 3-month on, 3-month off deal until I can get the visa situation settled (and figure out where I want to be long term). 

You may be way ahead of me and figured this out, but if not, let me know if I can help.

Brownell

@Dan_M Hey Dan -- I recently bought my third property in Italy, in Matera, Basilicata. It's a gorgeous city that's perched on a plateau. It's also a World Heritage Site. It's got everything you need in So. Italy -- not that far away from the Med, and pretty sophisticated for So. Italy. Other places to look at: Lucca, in Puglia -- it's got a great opera hall and a Grecian influence all it's own. My third pick is Campobasso, Molise. A great hill town/city with all the trimmings.

I've lived in Italy off and on for thirty years; there are so many places to see and explore. My suggestion to anyone who is *serious* about living in Italy to do the following: set aside a 60-90 day "window" of opportunity to see the entire country, or at least the areas you would consider. Don't fixate on Rome, Florence, Milan or Venice -- by all means, consider those if that's what you want. But I'm here to tell you that the real, true experience of living in Italy is the normal, everyday people you meet in the places I've mentioned, and lesser known areas in Le Marche, Umbria, Sicily, Campania, etc.

@BROWNELLLANDRUM

Hello Brownell,

Wow, that is really unfortunate about the Visa situation, but this is very good information.  Thank you!  I hadn't started the visa process yet [still in planning and prep stages].  This was going to be one of my next posts ... to try to get a sense of the challenge overall in relocation to Italy, including the visa process.  Especially if this process will be overhauled for 2024, maybe there should be a "sticky" thread entirely devoted to it.

Congratulations on your heading to Florence.  That is where I spent a good part of a vacanza in la primavera.  Such a nice city.  Beyond all the attractions, at times I found it great even just strolling through the streets and taking it all in.

... set aside a 60-90 day "window" of opportunity to see the entire country, or at least the areas you would consider. Don't fixate on Rome, Florence, Milan or Venice .... But I'm here to tell you that the real, true experience of living in Italy is the normal, everyday people you meet in the places I've mentioned, and lesser known areas in Le Marche, Umbria, Sicily, Campania, etc.
-@JohnWare

Hi John,

Good advice, definitely.  I'm not sure if I will be able to set aside that much time, but as a start, I was out there in the Spring and saw Florence, Lucca, Pisa, Chianti, then down to Puglia to see some of Brindisi and Lecce.  Also did a wonderful bicci ride down the coast from Santa Cesarea to Santa Maria Leuca, winding through several more great looking towns on the way.

Agreed, there are so many nice areas, and absolutely including the lesser known towns or cities.

One spot I've noticed on the internet and been curious about is Foggia, which looks fairly close to Campobasso actually.  It seems to have some good infrastructure as well, and being close to the coast would be really attractive.  Plus, by train or car, it wouldn't take much time to travel to Bari, Naples or even Rome.  Have you gotten a chance to see Foggia by any chance?  If so, I'm curious, what are your impressions of it?