For the fifth year in a row, International Living magazine selected Ecuador as the worlds top retirement haven.

"You’ll have dinner out for $2.50, an hour-long massage for $25…a beer costs $0.85 and I know couples living on less than $900 a month excluding rent. And if you want to keep busy with work, it’s one of the best countries for an expat start-up. There are expats here running restaurants, gyms, schools and making money through import-export," the article reads.

Last years edition highlighted Quito, Ecuadors capital, for its friendly people, landscapes, climate, restaurants, shopping, and low cost of living.

Ecuador, they write, only has two seasons: wet and dry. And its difficult to decide which is better: the clear sunny days of the wet season or the cool, foggy nights of the dry.

In Quito, they recommend the historic downtown, which was the first World Heritage site named by UNESCO, for being the largest colonial neighbourhood in America.

Art lovers will love the "Capilla del Hombre," where painter Oswaldo Guayasamins works are preserved. For night life, take a trip to La Mariscal, also known as "gringolandia."

Original story