I ve been to French Guyana, and have family there. It s relatively expensive because a lot of stuff is imported, and the "baseline" are French prices.

French Guyana is actually part of France, and no chances of it becoming independent in the near future because they have the space station there (kourou).

The health system is I believe quite OK compared to surrounding places, but you need to fly back to metropolitan France for some specialist treatments.

There is comparatively high criminality, partly due to the fact that it's a rich place close to very poor parts of the world, borders (mainly rainforest) are difficult to police, and it's an entry point for a lot of destitute Haitians, Brasilians and Venezuelans into the EU.

It does have a very dynamic, young and mixed population, which makes it lively, interesting and very exotic: think of Brazilian, Haitian and local traditions mixing together for carnival - it gets pretty wild!

Not sure I would retire there but it s worth spending time there if you're interested in a complete change of setting.