How We Retired in Thailand: Our Story

Who We Are

We are David and Kim, a retired American couple living in the Hua Hin area of Thailand. Our YouTube channel, Almost Retired in Thailand, documents our real daily life: property tours, visa runs, restaurant finds, road trips, and the ordinary errands that make up retirement abroad. The name is a wink at how the adventure started, back when we were planning and dreaming rather than doing.

This website is the written companion to the channel. If you found us through a search rather than a video, welcome. The personal accounts here draw on our existing videos and experiences; separate editorial notes identify later research and sources.

Why Thailand, and Why the Hua Hin Area

We came from Arizona, and like a lot of Americans, we were looking for a warmer, more affordable, more interesting life than our retirement budget would buy back home. Thailand kept rising to the top of the list: the food, the people, the climate, the cost of living, and a large, welcoming expat community.

Our actual arrival was a pandemic era adventure. In 2021 we flew from Arizona to Thailand under the Phuket Sandbox program, a one way rental car to Los Angeles, a stop to see family in Oceanside, then a 16 hour Singapore Airlines flight, with our dog Bella along for the whole journey. We later settled in the Hua Hin area because it offered the balance we wanted: beaches, good hospitals, real restaurants, golf and hiking nearby, and a slower pace than Bangkok or Phuket.

From Koh Samui to a Home of Our Own

Our first chapter was on Koh Samui, where Dave ran his own long term rental search, mostly through Facebook Marketplace, and we learned the island month by month. Island life was a wonderful teacher, but eventually we wanted a more permanent base on the mainland.

We bought a house in Thailand as expats and filmed the experience. Later, we made the decision to sell it, and then we bought another home in Pak Nam Pran, the quiet fishing village area south of Hua Hin in Pran Buri. Our current home was built by Narada, a local builder whose work we knew and trusted. Buying, selling, and buying again taught us more than any property forum ever could, and it is why we always tell viewers: rent first, and do not rush.

Family, Here and Back Home

Family is a big part of our story. Our son Kyle and his wife Nadia have their own travel channel, DionsTravel, and Kyle has joined us on camera for meals like a beachside crab curry dinner at Jim Daeng on Sam Roi Yot beach. Kim also runs her own channel, Kimberley's Sandbox, with her own perspective on our life here.

Dave has a separate video about the biggest challenge of moving to Thailand from the United States. Watch that personal account for his answer. When considering a move yourself, include how you would stay connected with family and handle an unexpected trip home alongside your housing and everyday budget.

What Daily Life Looks Like Now

Most mornings, Dave is out early on the bike or running through Pak Nam Pran, often ending with breakfast at the Blue Butterfly cafe or a hike up Khao Kalok. We ride scooters for local errands (Kim bought hers at Tuk Motorbike Shop in Hua Hin, and we added a used Yamaha XMax 300), and we bought a used diesel Kia Grand Carnival in Bangkok for family road trips. Our dog Zoey keeps us grounded, and Pet Time Animal Hospital looks after her when we travel.

We stay active in ways that surprise people. We have hiked to Everest Base Camp in Nepal, and we traveled to Taiwan for our first Backyard Ultra marathon. Retirement in Thailand, for us, is not a hammock. It is a base camp for a bigger life.

There are ordinary rhythms too. We celebrate the Fourth of July with fellow expats at the Anantasila Resort, we argue happily about which night market has the best snacks, and we still get excited when we find a new restaurant worth filming. That mix of adventure and routine is what we hoped retirement would feel like, and most weeks it does.

Why We Make the Channel

Our mission is simple: show what retiring in Thailand is actually like, the good and the annoying, with real prices and real places. We tour homes at every budget, we film our immigration errands including Dave's one day visa overstay, and we share the restaurants and day trips we genuinely love, like our favorite Hua Hin restaurant, Som Tam Jae Phueng on Soi 102.

If that sounds useful, we would love your company. Watch a few videos, subscribe to the channel if you enjoy them, and browse the guides on this site. And if you are still in the dreaming stage, our advice is the same thing we tell ourselves: do the research, visit first, and keep your sense of humor. It works out more often than you think.