Best Places to Retire 2008: Healthiest Places Edition

Golf, boating, and nature are just a few of the things readers told us they are enjoying in retirement. For our second annual list of great places to retire, we asked readers to tell us about their healthy retirement haven. Here are 10 additional retirement gems worth a look.

Asheville, N.C. "I am 44 and do all of my training in the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains, road biking on the Blue Ridge Parkway, running the scenic Mountains-to-Sea Trail, swimming in our clean national park lakes and rivers, and mountain biking the hundreds of miles of challenging trails of the North Carolina Arboretum." Todd Gothberg

Austin, Texas "I like the climate, culture, and nice people in Austin. We go to the opera, concerts, pools to swim, and live [near the] forest." Gabriel Cacuci

Fairhope, Ala. "There are a lot of ma-and-pa shops downtown but no fast food and no chains. There are an awful lot of beautiful flowers on every street corner in every season. And people will look me in the eye and say hello." Norm Wachtl

Huntsville, Ala. There is "a great four-season climate, no recession, lots of job openings, very little crime, a very high percentage of professional people, the latest and best in shopping and entertainment, and very good schools, all in a beautiful area in the Smoky Mountain foothills....  Many veterans who were stationed here and worked on the big Redstone Arsenal move back here for retirement." Mel Fisher

Pensacola, Fla. "In Pensacola, nearly everything revolves around water or beach recreation, and the beaches have sand like very fine, white sugar. I bought a 30-foot Hunter sailboat when I moved here and have a 15-foot speedboat for fishing.... Life is very laid back, easygoing, and the cost of living is much cheaper than we imagined it would be along the Gulf Coast. We were very surprised at all the festivals throughout the summer, from crawfish to local art, and all the fishing tournaments that seem to be every weekend. Two weekends ago, a shark fishing tournament was held, and the winner was over 900 pounds." Elaine Helen Pike

Providence, R.I. "Providence, R.I., is a neat place to live if you've got some money. Between Brown and the Rhode Island School of Design, there is plenty of intellectual opportunity. The water and scenery are gorgeous, with plenty of boating, sailing, and fishing. Boston is under an hour away. The Patriots are even closer—just 20 minutes. Amtrak scoots you into NYC if you want it." Barry Fain

Reno, Nev. "Thanks to the gaming industry, we get lots of big-name music and shows that a town this size otherwise wouldn't get." Gina Pogol

Seattle, Wash. "It has the Puget Sound on one side and Lake Washington on the other. We take the grandchildren to the zoo, go down to Alki Beach, and go up to Mount Rainier." Perry Frumkin

Tyler, Texas "There is a great civic theater, two different concert series each year, a four-year college, an excellent two-year college, lakes, and hunting. The two colleges both have plays and other entertainment." Jerry Bellis

Wilmington, Del. "The University of Delaware offers a good program at its Academy of Lifelong Learning.... Courses are given by volunteer members in a broad range of subjects, with frequent talks by University of Delaware professors, organized trips, and University of Delaware theater programs.... Wilmington also has the well-known Winterthur Museum and Country Estate.... In addition, Delaware does not have a sales tax." Paul Steyermark