SALT LAKE CITY -- When the number crunchers at bankrate.com look at the best places to retire, you might guess the results will be practical.
So the beaches of Florida, California and Hawaii are too humid, too expensive, with too high of a crime rate to rank high.
Same with towering condos high above Manhattan, or looking out to the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco.
Bankrate.com’s top retirement destinations are, instead: Wyoming, South Dakota, Colorado, and Utah.
“A lot of people fall into the trap of thinking about retirement as an extended vacation, but that's not what it is,” said senior analyst Klaes Bell.
Retirees need to remember they’re choosing a place where they will pay taxes, shop for groceries, and seek medical care.
And Utah ranks number four when you figure in practicalities like the cost of living, crime rate, and general sense of happiness.
“So you bring all of these things together, and that's going to be an attractive package and place to retire,” Bell said.
