Once again Costa Rica made the list of InterNations’ Expat Insider “The Best & Worst Places for Expats in 2017”; the country holds the second place in the list of best places for expats.

This year’s survey saw many changes in relation to the 2016 result, although there is consistency in the bottom 3 with Kuwait and Greece maintaining their bottom positions for four consecutive years while Nigeria has been in the worst list since 2015.

The top three places are held by: Bahrain, Costa Rica and Mexico.

What makes Costa Rica such a great place for expats? Here’s what this report has to say:

Costa Rica: A Welcome as Warm as the Weather

If you’re looking to make friends, Costa Rica is the place to go. It ranks first in the Finding Friends subcategory, taking the top spot for every question. Expats say it’s easy to make local friends, with almost one in five (19%) saying their social circle is mostly Costa Ricans and 63% saying it’s a mix of locals and expatriates.
Costa Rica offers the freedom to live a peaceful, happy life, surrounded by peaceful, kind and happy people.

It’s not just the friendliness of the local residents, Costa Rica is in the top 10 for three of the five indices: Quality of Life, Ease of Settling In, and Family Life. The country made particularly impressive improvements in the latter index, jumping 16 places due to better scores in the Quality of Education and the Availability of Childcare and Education subcategories.

Costa Rica has also made big improvements in the Personal Finance Index, jumping from 43rd place in 2016 to 24th. Almost seven in ten respondents (68%) are generally satisfied with their financial situation, with 79% saying they have enough or more than enough to cover their daily expenses.

With almost a third of respondents describing themselves as retired (32%), many said that they appreciate the slower pace of life and pura vida vibe. One American respondent enjoys the “freedom to live a peaceful, happy life, surrounded by peaceful, kind and happy people”. With such a warm welcome and tranquil lifestyle, 48% can see themselves staying forever.