🐑 From Clara & Fran
Safety was our parents' biggest worry when we announced we were moving to Kuala Lumpur. Three years and many conversations later, their concern has mostly dissolved — not because we dismissed it, but because we answered it with facts. KL is safer than Toronto by most metrics. Our neighbourhood in Mont Kiara has lower crime rates than Leslieville. We don't think about safety differently here than we did at home. The fear, in our case, was a product of unfamiliarity, not reality.
That's not the case everywhere. Some destinations on our site require genuine caution — and we'll tell you which ones and why. The goal of this post is to replace vague anxiety with specific, useful information.
Start Here: Canada Is Not the Safety Baseline You Think It Is
The implicit assumption in most safety conversations about retiring abroad is that Canada is perfectly safe and everywhere else is riskier. This deserves examination. Toronto had over 4,000 violent crime incidents in 2024. Vancouver's Downtown Eastside has among the highest rates of drug-related death and street crime in North America. Several Canadian cities rank poorly on global safety indices when drug-related violence and property crime are factored in.
This isn't an argument that Canada is dangerous — it's not, by global standards. It's an argument that the comparison isn't "perfect safety vs some risk." It's "one set of risks vs a different set of risks." Most Canadian retirees who move to Portugal, Malaysia, or Croatia quickly discover they feel safer there than they did in their Toronto or Vancouver neighbourhood. That experience is statistically supported.
💡 The Global Peace Index (GPI) is an annual ranking of 163 countries by peacefulness, produced by the Institute for Economics and Peace. It measures ongoing conflict, societal safety, and militarisation. Portugal consistently ranks in the top 7 globally — safer than Canada. Malaysia is in the top 30. Croatia is in the top 20. These are genuinely safe countries by any objective measure.
Safety Tiers: Our 20 Destinations Honestly Assessed
Here's our honest assessment of the safety tier for each of the 20 countries on our site. These reflect conditions as of mid-2026 — always check the Canadian government's current travel advisory at travel.gc.ca before making decisions, as situations evolve.
Very Safe
Comparable to or safer than Canada by most measures
🇵🇹 Portugal · 🇭🇷 Croatia · 🇲🇪 Montenegro · 🇲🇾 Malaysia · 🇻🇳 Vietnam · 🇦🇪 UAE
Consistently low violent crime rates. Strong rule of law. Most expat retirees report feeling safer than at home. Standard urban awareness applies (pickpocketing in tourist areas, traffic) but no elevated violent crime concerns.
Safe
Generally safe — standard awareness and sensible habits required
🇬🇷 Greece · 🇪🇸 Spain · 🇮🇹 Italy · 🇨🇷 Costa Rica · 🇵🇦 Panama · 🇮🇩 Indonesia · 🇵🇭 Philippines · 🇦🇷 Argentina
Millions of expats and tourists live safely. Petty crime (pickpocketing, bag snatching) in busy tourist areas is the main risk — avoidable with awareness. Violent crime against tourists and expats is rare. Research specific neighbourhoods before choosing where to live.
Aware
Safe in the right areas — neighbourhood selection matters significantly
🇹🇭 Thailand · 🇲🇦 Morocco · 🇰🇭 Cambodia · 🇹🇭 Thailand
Very large long-term expat communities live well in these countries. Specific concerns exist (scams in Cambodia, medina navigation in Morocco, road safety in Thailand) but targeted violent crime against settled expat retirees is uncommon. Know your area, build local networks, and apply consistent habits.
Research Required
Safe in specific cities/regions — requires careful location selection
🇨🇴 Colombia · 🇲🇽 Mexico · 🇪🇨 Ecuador
These countries have elevated national crime statistics that mask enormous regional variation. Medellín, San Miguel de Allende, Puerto Vallarta, and Cuenca are genuinely safe and host large established expat communities. Other parts of the same countries are genuinely dangerous. City and neighbourhood selection is critical — not optional. Always check Canada's current travel advisory for specific regions before committing.
Understanding Canadian Government Travel Advisories
The Government of Canada issues four levels of travel advice for every country. These are produced by Global Affairs Canada and reflect a conservative, risk-averse official position — which is appropriate for a government advisory but can be misread as more alarming than the on-the-ground reality for long-term residents.
Level 1
Take normal security precautions
The country is as safe as a typical international destination. Standard common sense applies.
Countries: Portugal, Croatia, Malaysia, Montenegro, Vietnam, UAE, Japan, Australia
Level 2
Exercise a high degree of caution
There are safety concerns but millions of people travel and live here without incident. This does not mean "don't go" — it means be informed. Many Canadians live their entire retirement in Level 2 countries safely.
Countries include: Colombia, Ecuador, Morocco, Thailand, Philippines, Indonesia, Mexico (varies by region)
Level 3
Avoid non-essential travel
Significant safety risks exist. Travel should only be for essential purposes. Not suitable for retirement relocation.
Applied to specific regions within countries, or entire countries with active conflict
Level 4
Avoid all travel
Active conflict, extreme danger. No country on our retirement guide list carries this rating.
Active conflict zones only
💡 A Level 2 advisory is not a warning not to go. Canada itself would receive a Level 2 advisory from some countries' governments, given urban crime rates in Toronto and Vancouver. Level 2 means "be informed and take precautions" — which is good advice in any city in the world. The key is reading the specific advisory text and regional breakdowns at travel.gc.ca, not just the headline level.
Tourist Safety vs Resident Safety — A Crucial Distinction
Most crime statistics and travel advisories reflect tourist experiences — people who are unfamiliar with the city, visibly carrying valuables, navigating unfamiliar areas, and making decisions they wouldn't make at home. Long-term expat residents have a fundamentally different safety profile.
As a resident, you develop local knowledge: which neighbourhoods are safe, which areas to avoid at night, which taxi services to trust, how to blend into normal daily life rather than standing out as a tourist. You build relationships with neighbours, shopkeepers, and local services. You stop carrying a camera around your neck. You develop the same pattern recognition and street sense that keeps you safe in Toronto or Vancouver. The transition from tourist anxiety to resident confidence typically takes 3–6 months. After that, most retirees we know say they think about safety less abroad than they did at home.
The Real Risks — What Actually Happens to Expats Abroad
⚠️
Manageable risks (common but avoidable)
Petty theft and pickpocketing in crowded tourist areas
Taxi and transport scams targeting obvious tourists
Online and phone scams (common globally, including Canada)
Traffic and road safety — a serious concern in SE Asia specifically
Food and water safety — fully manageable with basic precautions
Overpaying for services due to unfamiliarity with local prices
🔴
Serious risks (require research and planning)
Medical emergencies — local hospital quality varies significantly
Natural disasters — earthquakes (Ecuador), typhoons (Philippines), flooding
Political instability — rare but real (Thailand historically, Ecuador 2024)
Violent crime in specific high-risk areas (certain cities in Colombia, Mexico)
Financial fraud targeting foreign residents
Legal complications — understanding local laws and your rights as a foreigner
The most statistically significant risk to expat retirees in almost every destination is traffic — not violent crime. Road safety in Southeast Asia, parts of Latin America, and Morocco is genuinely poor by Canadian standards. Wearing a helmet if you use a motorbike, using reputable car services, and avoiding driving yourself in unfamiliar road environments significantly reduces this risk.
Country-by-Country Safety Notes — The Ones That Need Explaining
🇨🇴
Colombia
Research required
Medellín is genuinely safe and has transformed dramatically since the 1990s. El Poblado and Laureles neighbourhoods are popular with expats and very safe. Avoid Guayaquil (a different city) confusion — and stick to established expat areas initially. National GPI ranking is low, but Medellín's local conditions are significantly better than the national average suggests.
🇲🇽
Mexico
Varies enormously by region
San Miguel de Allende, Puerto Vallarta, Mérida, Oaxaca, and the Riviera Maya are popular expat destinations with large established communities and manageable safety profiles. Northern border regions and specific states have serious cartel-related violence. Never aggregate "Mexico" as a single safety assessment — the regional variation is extreme.
🇪🇨
Ecuador
Elevated since 2024 — improving
Ecuador declared a state of internal armed conflict in January 2024. Conditions improved significantly through 2025 and into 2026. Cuenca and the Andean highlands are considered significantly safer than the coast and Guayaquil. Check Canada's current travel advisory — specific regions are flagged. Most Cuenca expats report no significant safety concerns in their daily lives.
🇲🇦
Morocco
Safe — language and navigation awareness needed
Morocco is one of Africa's safest countries for expats. The main safety consideration is navigating medinas (old city centres) where tourists are more vulnerable to touts and petty crime — not violent crime. Living in a residential neighbourhood rather than the tourist medina core changes the experience significantly. Police presence in expat areas is strong.
🇹🇭
Thailand
Safe — traffic and scams are the main risks
Thailand is very safe for expat retirees in terms of violent crime. The main risks are traffic (use Grab rather than open roads on motorbikes) and tourist-area scams (gem scams, tuk-tuk redirects — irrelevant once you're a resident). Occasional political demonstrations are localised and almost never affect expat residential areas.
🇵🇭
Philippines
Safe in main expat areas — research specific islands
Manila, Cebu, and most popular expat areas are safe for residents. The southern island of Mindanao and parts of the Sulu Archipelago are specifically flagged by Canada as avoid non-essential travel — these are not retirement destinations. Stick to established expat and tourist areas on the main islands and safety is manageable.
The Healthcare Safety Factor — Often More Important Than Crime
For retirees, the most significant safety risk is often not crime — it's a medical emergency in a country with limited healthcare infrastructure. A heart attack or stroke in a place without adequate emergency facilities or with language barriers in the ambulance is a genuine risk that many retirees don't adequately plan for.
The good news: most of our recommended destinations have excellent private healthcare in their major cities. The concern is mainly in more rural or remote areas. The practical solution is two-layered: live in or near a city with good private hospital facilities, and carry international health insurance that includes medical evacuation coverage. Medical evacuation insurance covers the cost of flying you to the nearest appropriate hospital — which may be in a neighbouring country — if local facilities are inadequate. This is not expensive ($200–$400/year as a rider on most international health policies) and is genuinely critical for more remote destinations.
✓ The countries with the best private healthcare on our list: Malaysia, Thailand, Panama, Colombia, and Argentina have private healthcare systems that are genuinely excellent and internationally accredited. Portugal, Spain, Italy, Greece, and Croatia have EU-standard public systems. The Philippines and Vietnam have good private care in capital cities. Cambodia requires the most careful medical emergency planning.
Practical Safety Habits — What Experienced Expats Actually Do
🏘️
Choose your neighbourhood carefully — it matters more than the country
In virtually every destination, there's a version of "expat neighbourhood" that has been chosen by thousands of other foreigners for good reason. Start there. After 6–12 months you'll have enough local knowledge to make more adventurous location choices if you want.
🤝
Build a local network quickly
Local friends and neighbours are your most valuable safety resource — they know which areas changed recently, which services to trust, and where to go if something goes wrong. Expat Facebook groups, local coffee mornings, language exchanges, and volunteer opportunities all accelerate this.
📱
Use registered transport services
Grab (Southeast Asia), Uber (Latin America, Morocco), inDriver, and similar app-based services are significantly safer than hailing random taxis — the driver is identified, the route is tracked, and payment is electronic. This eliminates one of the most common tourist risks entirely.
💳
Keep the bulk of your money offshore and out of local accounts
Keep living expenses in a local account and savings in Canadian or international accounts. Carry only what you need for the day in cash. Use a travel-focused card (Wise, Revolut) for daily spending to minimise loss exposure if your wallet is stolen.
🏥
Know your local hospital before you need it
Before you need emergency care, research which private hospital or clinic near you is best. Put the address and emergency number in your phone. Know whether your health insurance pre-approves treatment or reimburses — the difference matters enormously in an emergency.
🇨🇦
Register with the Canadian Embassy
Register your presence in your destination country with Global Affairs Canada through the Registration of Canadians Abroad (ROCA) service at travel.gc.ca. It's free and ensures the Canadian Embassy can contact you in a national emergency or crisis. Takes five minutes.
🔒
Use a VPN and strong password management
Digital security is genuinely important for retirees managing Canadian financial accounts from abroad. A reputable VPN (NordVPN, ExpressVPN), a password manager (1Password, Bitwarden), and two-factor authentication on all financial accounts are basic hygiene that protects your Canadian savings from the other side of the world.
🐑 Our Honest Safety Assessment After Three Years
We've been splitting our time between Toronto and Kuala Lumpur for three years. In that time, we've had zero safety incidents in KL. We've had one car break-in in Toronto and two near-miss traffic situations on the 401. Our KL neighbourhood is quieter, better lit, and more walkable than most of Toronto. We genuinely feel safer in KL.
We're also aware that we got lucky in our choice of destination. We did our research, chose a safe country, chose a safe neighbourhood, and built a local network. If we'd picked a different country and a different neighbourhood without doing the same research, the story might be different. Safety abroad is not guaranteed — but it is largely within your control. The decisions you make about where to live and how to live there determine far more than the country's national statistics.
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Sources & Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. Safety conditions change — always check the Government of Canada's current travel advisory at travel.gc.ca before making any travel or relocation decisions. Global Peace Index data from the Institute for Economics and Peace 2025. Country safety assessments reflect conditions as of July 2026 and represent the authors' informed opinion based on research and personal experience, not official risk assessments. Individual experiences may vary significantly.