The Transition to Expat Life Is Easy at Lake Chapala Suzan Haskins and Dan Prescher - The Huffington Post
go to original July 6, 2016

See Magical Beauty of Ajijic and Lake Chapala Mexico from the Sky (Access Lake Chapala)

One of the most accommodating and charming places we’ve lived in our years abroad is on the north shore of Lake Chapala. In Mexico’s central highlands, this area is the most popular overseas retirement destination for U.S. and Canadian expats, and it’s been so for nearly 100 years.

About an hour south of Guadalajara (Mexico’s second-largest city and just about in the middle of the country) Lake Chapala is Mexico’s largest freshwater lake. The international airport at Guadalajara, halfway between the city and the lake, is less than a 30-minute drive away, and offers direct flights to at least 14 cities in the States, 21 cities in Mexico, as well as to Panama City, Panama.

This is a huge plus for us and for anyone who plans any significant travel to and from the Chapala area. (This past January on a month-long return visit, we flew to Guadalajara from Phoenix after a family visit in less than two hours. Both American Airlines and Mexico’s budget Volaris Airlines offer direct, low-cost roundtrip fares to/from Phoenix and more. During our month-long stay, we found lakeside, as it’s commonly referred to, to be as charming and as convenient as ever.)

Besides being close to the States (you can drive to the border at Nuevo Leon or Laredo in about 11 hours), another huge plus is the climate. At about the same latitude as Hawaii, but the same elevation as Denver, you’ll be hard-pressed to find better weather anywhere in the world. This, and the convenience of getting to and from the communities that border the lake, are two primary reasons this area is so popular with U.S. and Canadian expats.

Read the rest at The Huffington Post

Related: Are You Still Entitled to Consider Yourself an American If You Choose to Live Abroad? (Best Places in the World to Retire)

Related: 'We'd be on the Other Side of the Wall': US Expats in Mexico in the Time of Trump (VICE News)

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