Twelve years have passed since Tsukasa Takeuchi, 73, moved with his wife, Setsuko, 72, to Puerto Azul, a prominent high-quality villa in the Philippines, a two-hour drive south of Manila.

A spacious terrace off the living room, where the couple have breakfast and can look down on Manila Bay, is their favorite place. In a garden with a swimming pool, there are flowers all year round, and banana and papaya trees bear fruit.

"We had been yearning for a southern island," Takeuchi said. "Japan is too busy, and it is difficult for us to be taken care of when we are old."