When Simo D and his family moved from Canada to Belize, their youngest child was seven weeks old. They were learning how to live in a new country at the same time as they were learning how to live as a family of four. In the Destination Unlocked interview, that detail explains a lot about what came next.

Try out an ordinary week

Simo talks about heat, humidity and what salt air does to everyday possessions. For a scouting trip, take time to shop for groceries, get across town and do a normal day’s work from the place you’re considering. Visit outside your favourite holiday season if you can. The test is whether your routine feels workable when there’s nothing special in the diary.

Find out how you’ll meet people

For Simo, community became one of the strongest reasons to stay. It took repeated effort to meet people and build the kind of relationships a young family could rely on. Think about where you would naturally see the same people each week. That could be through school, volunteering, sport or a shared interest.

Separate the move from the career change

Simo had run a renovation business in Canada. In Belize he started again as a writer, then moved into AI-assisted software development. His family’s questions about whether they had chosen the right country eventually became MoveSmart, a tool for exploring where you might want to live.

Make a separate plan for income, work and family logistics before you commit. Simo’s story is especially good at showing how much those decisions affect one another. If you want to explore the questions behind his move, you can find his writing and projects on Simo D’s guest profile.

More from Destination Unlocked

Listen to Belize with Simo D or explore the Belize destination guide.