Eugene And Other Top Spots

Forbes screened more than 800 U.S. locales for everything from climate risk to crime to doctor availability. Those that made the cut were compared on leisure offerings—from the arts, fine dining and learning to hiking, skiing, watersports and golf. Here are the top 25.

_{By William P. Barrett, Senior Contributor}

Jill and David DeForest Colvig spent six years plotting their retirement escape from Des Moines, Iowa. To be clear, they have nothing against the Hawkeye State­—they both grew up in Iowa and spent 30 years of married life together in Des Moines, where they raised two now-adult kids. But they imagined a retirement haven where they could hike and bike together, take their pick of cultural events, and enjoy different scenery. In Iowa, “it’s hours and hours of cornfields,” says Jill, 57. “We wanted cleaner water and a better environment.” This past spring, Jill retired from her job as a marketing director for Meredith Corp. and David from his position as a real estate specialist for the city of Des Moines. In June, they moved 1,800 miles west to Eugene, Oregon, a city of 178,000 that sits on the Willamette River near lots of lakes and the Cascade Mountains. The water was a particular draw for David, 62. “I like to kayak,’’ he says.

Eugene is one of three Oregon cities that earned a spot on Forbes’ new list of 25 Best Places To Enjoy Your Retirement. That’s the most wins for any state and demonstrates just how different our “enjoyment” picks are from those on our Best Places To Retire In 2024 list, a value-oriented roster that included no Oregon locales. The Oregon-free list, now in its 14th year, emphasizes high quality retirement living at a reasonable cost, thus excluding places with high housing costs or taxes, no matter how appealing they might otherwise be.