Starting to think about where to move for retirement . . . .

I retired in Arizona

Just a heads up. I am from southern Indiana. I like it here in AZ, I brought a dying wife out here because I promised I’d get her out here after we retired. The people are great out here. No complaints, BUT

Southern Indiana is better 10 months out of 12. In every way. Even healthcare. Running, scenery… everything

So think about it. Take your time.

Are you sure you want to move? My mom moved after she retired -- 3 different times (so far). She basically hasn't found a place she likes as much as where she lived when she was working.

Durango (19k people) is home to Fort Lewis College (3.8k undergrads) and Pueblo CC - Southwest (1k students).

Durango indeed fulfills your hospital desire and is central to the same towns I previously listed. But while it is a young town it may not be the prosperous and equally motivating youth town you envision it to be. Degeneracy can be a problem in more ways than just one so you may get annoyed with the people of Durango.

It is important to realize the distinction between "remote mountain town" and "immediate access to pristine wilderness". They are not the same.

The ultimate Colorado dream is to have lots of alpine sun, flowing water from creek or river in your back yard, a view of the mountains and access to basics amenities (grocery store, entertainment). But you also want to be far enough away that you are not severely bothered by influxes of tourism. Whether in downtown Aspen or in a pass thru city / base city like Glenwood Springs, during the holidays or July you will feel the burn.

Montrose also has the regional airport.

Read: you dont want to be in earshot of the highway or at the heart and center of a mountain town. Off the beaten path sounds cliche but it is worthy advice.

I still strongly consider Delta-Montrose to be the last best of what is available in Colorado and where you'll get the most bang for your buck. Being 30 miles away is nothing unless you need medical attention often. There is Montrose Regional Health? Unsure how serious your dependency is.

Also, throw your contemporary notion of preserving mileage out the window, trying to pinch round trip mileages in a map. While important the main function of the vehicle is as a tool to get you around. It wont last forever, I-70 is nuts, Colorado people can be clumsy, snow plows, semis and garbage trucks are reckless.

To retire someplace else I would have to sell my Southern California foothills home with a second house on 20 acres that my kids would like to have. But, I do see an opportunity to live elsewhere from time to time and return home. Once can satisfy the grass is a greener itch, and try new places without all the upheaval and remorse risk.

I was in Arizona a fair bit over the winter. I find it to be a bizarre state that merits no further visits. I was in Tucson, Mesa, and up into the mountains (Miami?) a bit. There were unhinged, unhoused drug addicts all over the place. I mean, everywhere. There were some beautiful places, but then you'd crest a hill and find some jackass looking compound ruining an otherwise beautiful vista. I'll give it this -- they have excellent Mexican food that you can literally buy in a gas station. So that's a plus.

Feels like that would narrow stuff down quickly depending on how serious you are. Would a place like TN really have good enough skiing? Feels like you are off in the western states(ca, ut,co,or,..) and select parts of the upper Midwest and NE. And if you actually want an airport that isn’t a 2 hour connection from everything, the list might get really short.

I would also suggest you might think of it more as where do I want to be for the next 15 years versus the last 15. A lot of people are pretty active from 55-75 and then slow down. That cabin in the woods might not be appealing at 75..

Move to South America. Plenty of retirement communities where the employees speak English and you can live like a king for very cheap.

Flagpole, I really think you’d enjoy living in far suburb of Seattle where real estate won’t be too expensive. Or, like Vancouver, WA which is suburb of Portland, OR but on Washington side. Or, place like Bellingham.

weird how no one here is mentioning majority black/hispanic areas

isnt this a progressive website

So you think Costa Rica is white? Good to know… granted given the Nordic skiing requirement, I do wonder what drugs that guy was on…

Edwards CO is just about as expensive as Vail. Even a near dump like Gypsum is getting very expensive.

I would second this and was going to post it. Lots of trails, college type town close by, airports 25 min, skiing drive 2 hours north. only downside is that it will often be cloudy in the winter.

Hanover NH area would work. Dartmouth Hitchock - Hospital.

Manchester NH Airport is 75 minutes away

Close to few different Nordic Ski areas.

We’re in the process of trying to map out a Florida exit strategy and ‘somewhere in the vicinity of Fort Collins, Colorado’ is the current leader. There’s a Level ! Trauma center in nearby Loveland, which we’re using as a proxy for ‘will have reasonably good access to higher level health care as needed nearby’. If you don’t need the Fort Collins zip code, there are some decent small town housing options nearby for $500K or less. A lot of other cost of living metrics seem lower than Florida once you get past the housing costs- I’m looking forward to not paying FL homeowner’s insurance rates. All kinds of recreation opportunities- an hour from Denver one way, and an hour from Rocky Mountain National Park the other direction. We like the vibe of Ft. Collins- it felt more like home than Boulder did. Shopping and restaurant amenities are ample enough that you don't have to go into Denver for much.

I grew up in West Michigan (Grand Rapids) and it's hard to beat Midwestern summers along the Great Lakes. And while Michigan doesn't have much in the way of mountains until you get into the far western UP, lots of lovely rolling forest land. The down side is that you will not see the sun from about November through March- the lakes create their own weather complete with serious winter gloom. My parents still live there and Dad will mention that, hey, they got 37 minutes of sunlight this January level of gloom. On the up side, cost of living is reasonable, outdoor recreation options abound, and there's world class health care in downtown GR.

2 hour drive is a deal breaker for a lot of people. OP needs to figure that out..

But far from the grandkids . . . . . so South America will likely get a pass.