Shelby Smith
- Shelby Smith took a six-month career break and traveled to Curaçao, a Dutch Caribbean island.
- Smith fell in love and moved from Portland, Oregon, to Curaçao permanently to start her family.
- She described the pros and cons of relocating and highlighted some of her monthly expenses.
This as-told-to is based on a transcribed conversation with Shelby Smith. The following has been edited for length and clarity.
In 2013 I moved from Portland, Oregon, to Aitutaki in the Cook Islands after college for four months to teach English. It's a tiny island of about 2,000 people.
Being alone without my friends or family gave me anxiety bad enough to turn to medication. However, I didn't want this experience to stop me from traveling.
The Cook Islands planted a seed of living in a remote destination, but I knew it would have to be more populated.
I visited Curaçao on vacation and knew I'd be back
I visited Curaçao, a Dutch Caribbean island, on vacation in 2019. I was only there for a week before I returned to Portland, but I felt a connection to the island in my gut.
For a relatively small island, there's lots to do, and it's a true melting pot. Its beauty stuck out to me among the places I'd visited.
I spent lockdown in Portland and began considering returning to Curaçao. My job was unfulfilling, and I was sick of staring at the walls of my one-bedroom apartment.
With a year's worth of living expenses saved up, and in need of a break, I booked a six-month trip to Curaçao. I quit my job to fully recharge.
I'd always wanted to revisit Curaçao, and at the time the island had low COVID numbers. Also, Americans can stay on the island for up to six months without visa requirements.
Two weeks before I arrived in March 2021, Curaçao's COVID numbers skyrocketed. Three days before I landed, the whole island went on lockdown. I was nervous, but I decided to go and hoped the lockdown wouldn't last long.
For my first eight weeks there I could only leave my rental on two assigned days per week. It was brutal.
By the time things opened up in June 2021, I was well into my stay, so I was eager to do as much sightseeing as possible. I got to see the island, spend time in the water, and meet interesting people.
Falling head over heels in love changed my plans
On my first boat tour, I met a catamaran tour guide who would later become my husband.
It was an instant connection. He got my number, and we went on a first date. A week into our relationship he told me he loved me, and the feeling was mutual.
I went home as planned to visit my family for the holidays but returned to Curaçao at the end of 2021.
Then I discovered I was pregnant. It was a huge surprise.
I planned to return to Portland to carry out my pregnancy there — not on an island where I had no long-standing relationships. I was also about to start my new remote role as the head of community at a hypnosis app.
My partner and I looked into our options and found that it was much easier for me to stay in Curaçao visa-wise than for him to return with me to Portland. We found an apartment and moved into together.
I felt my relocation anxiety returning, but I had a new tool this time
The anxiety I'd felt in the Cook Islands almost a decade earlier resurfaced. I started my new remote position at Reveri in March 2022, and I used the app to calm my nerves.
Working remotely meant I could prioritize growing my family on the island, but it was an adjustment. Without serendipitous conversations around the office, I had to put more effort into building relationships with colleagues.
If you think living on a remote island would be much cheaper, think again
Some living costs on the island are cheaper, but others are more expensive.
Moving to Curaçao involved the cost of the plane ticket and, eventually, my visa, which was $300. We got married in May 2022, toward the end of my second six-month stay as a tourist. Getting a long-stay visa as a spouse is pretty straightforward.
The only additional cost was a security deposit and the first month's rent for our apartment. We're paying about $860 a month for a furnished two-bedroom with a private terrace, a pool, and a view. It's bigger and nicer than the apartments I rented in Portland for more than double the price.
Utilities are comparable, but food adds up quickly. Curaçao is a desert island, so not much food grows here. Import taxes are tacked on the cost of food at the supermarket. We're a family of two and a baby, and our monthly grocery bill is around $1,200.
After rent and groceries, our car is our largest expense. We have old cars, and parts are imported, which gets expensive if they need work done. Between gas and maintenance, we're spending $500 monthly per car.
The downside of living on an island is you don't have Amazon Prime delivery and can't make a late-night Target run.
The socialized healthcare system made childbirth and postdelivery care easy
I'm glad we chose to stay, especially for the birth in August last year.
Curaçao is part of the Netherlands, so it has socialized healthcare. As an American, I was very impressed with how transparent the healthcare system is. They tell you the cost of every procedure or visit up front. In the United States, it can be like pulling teeth to determine how much a procedure will cost.
The most surprising part was that a nurse came to help me for five days after I went home from the hospital. This is common with new mothers in Curaçao.
How I integrated into the local culture
We have no plans to leave Curaçao and intend to raise our child on the island.
Having a baby in day care has helped me feel more connected to the local community. My 11-month baby and I are learning Dutch together. Day care costs 800 Antillean guilders, or about $444 a month.
If you're considering moving to Curaçao, you need to put yourself out there and get to know the locals. When it comes to getting information online, it's not easy: Websites aren't necessarily current, but locals can answer questions easily.
Expat Facebook and WhatsApp groups are helpful, but they're in Dutch.
Unlike in places popular with digital nomads, there isn't a large American expat community here. Still, locals involved in tourism will become a lifeline if you decide to move. For me, making these connections was critical to finding housing, transportation, and friends.