It isn't how much money a person has it's what you do with what you have. A true Naples Tail...When first moving to Naples, Fl. A new friend to me and Pip (4yrs.) showed us around. We stopped at Wal-Marts and a homeless man was sitting outside, weather beaten, shabby clothes, panhandling. I was going to give a little money. My friend said NO, saying why not? She proceeded to tell me he is very wealthy, lives on a yacht year around at Naples Pier. She called out, Hi John, all the locals knew him. So saying to my friend he gos "Grudging" for a pastime recreation? Yep...But can throw a mean "Black Tie" party on his yacht..
One thing for sure........and can't be deniable...........MONEY makes things happen! Every time wife/I seen a vacation ad on tv, especially if it's somewhere/something we'd really like to go/do, comments are made by both of us. Like last night. There was a commercial ad about taking a Rhine River Cruise in Europe. Everything about this boat looked superb as well as the area's the boat stops at. To have the extra money to enjoy something like this and still have the lifestyle we currently have, would be so, so, SO NICE!! But, "reality" kicks in after the commercial is over.
I know a few who have done that cruise and it's something I would like to do someday also. You never know what the future holds. I did do a Danube River Cruise while living in Hungary and that was great also....
A year before buying the boat we have now, wife and I went on my first Cruise. I think it was a 4-day to the Bahama's out of Port Canaveral on the Sensation. Since I had spent some years in the Navy onboard Destroyers, being on a Cruise Ship didn't bother me at all. We both had a blast and would definitely do it again, but first would be a trip to Niagara Falls and possible another trip to Washington D.C./Capital area. Oh heck, we get our boat back from repairs and we will take our own "cruise" down the river here, have lunch at the Jax Landing. After that, it will be sipping a Bud Light or two and listening to our favorite music. That's the way to "spend a day on the water"!
We did a Caribbean cruise once, and enjoyed it a lot. I'd love to be able to do an Alaskan cruise, as well as maybe a Mississippi River cruise, but doubt that we'll be able to do that unless we win the lottery or something. Since I don't buy tickets, that's unlikely.
You never know Ken what the future holds. Alaskan cruise is another one I'd like to do, so many love that one especially and have gone more than once. My sister has been doing cruises almost every year now for the past few ever since she went on an anniversary cruise with her husband. She's always on the lookout for good deals and there are some very good ones, all inclusive. You don't even have to worry about kids and school so anytime would be an option. My sister has kids and a husband who works.
Problem is, a nice Cruise can be costly........depending on if a flight has to be bought to get to the Cruise sight, what activities a person wants to do in a Port, number of days of the Cruise and the cost of alcohol (drinks). Food and onboard Shows are all free, but there are other things that cost on a Cruise. Again, money is "the name of the game" today!
Yes, it can be expensive but the costs drop if you are near a port, go off season, etc. Almost anybody could save for a cheaper one. My sister had her airfare included and got a certain amount of $ to spend on ship as part of the deal. My daughter has booked a European cruise for next June and she didn't go the cheap route, theyre flying first class...used points but still had to pay $3000 tax on 4 airline tickets which would have cost them $32,000! But just the other day she got an email and because of something the cruise is a day longer and because of this inconvenience, they're getting $300 a day to spend on the ship. It really didn't affect my daughter because she already added an extra day when she booked her flight. They're going next June because my grandson is graduating high school. This is their first trip to Europe. I wasn't invited but am I crying....No! I've been to Europe more than once....
I've taken a River cruise down the Rhine several times as I have the Seine in France many times. They are lovely cruises but just to put it in perspective if I lived in the USA or further..Australia etc, I wouldn't want to spend a lot of money taking either of those cruises, nice as they are, I can assure you, there are probably just as nice if not nicer cruises to be had closer to home for you Cody, so I hope that makes you feel better.. I have visited Switzerland, France, Belgium, many of the Greek Islands, Kos, Corfu, Capri, to name a few ...holidayed several times in Cyprus and Turkey.., lived in Italy, Germany and Spain..I have a second home in Southern Spain, which many of you already know...which I visit several times a year, I'll be flying over again at the end of this month. However...I would love to visit America...I have never been, I can afford it..perhaps just once, but the main thing stopping me is that being as it probably would be a one off trip, I don't want to make a big mistake and spend hard earned money on a place( city or state) that I might be the wrong choice, so I've always held back...and also the very long flight time to the USA and even further to Australia is one that would be difficult (although not impossible) for me to endure with the medical issues I have ...so ultimately it's all about swings and roundabouts.........money even if you have lots of it, doesn't necessarily bring you joy from it's purchasing power.
I've been to Perth Australia 4 times to visit relatives. With husband and kids, and as I look back once would have been enough. My husband wanted to see the Abu Simbel monuments, Egypt in the worst way. He followed the moving of these monuments to higher ground because of the Aswan Dam flooding the area. (1960). This was one of the greatest engineering feats in history. Money was there for all of us to go, but it never happened. I've told my boys, "If you wanna do something, do it." Don't do the should have, could have, would have.The 2 older boys have traveled all over with the older g-kids. Pip's been to Japan for 5 days. He laughed when he called me, "I flew by the seat of my pants."
You have to plan things also, like Holly said...there are nice River cruises in the US also. I'd do the Danube cruise because I was in Hungary at the time, it would be expensive from here. Lot if the places that Europeans go are way too far and expensive for us in the US, you have to take your opportunities when you can. I wish I had visited more countries while I was in Hungary...missed out on a lot. Mainly because I was coming back to the US every 3 months to visit my daughter who just had my first grandchild. Those trips were paid by my husbands boss. That was part of the deal for me. I wouldn't have left the US for 6 years if it wasn't agreed to. Also, Cody...you live in FL now so if you ever plan a trip to Europe, it's closer and cheaper from the east coast. It all depends where you live. Hawaii is close for us in CA but far for my sister in NJ, that's why she tends to go to Europe.
Generally, couples and families that have a power boat, spend money on that, not so much on other things. We've talked to couples (our age) that gave up boating when their kids left the nest. Unless a family has (that word again) money, they don't buy a new or fairly new boat. Our last boat, w/trailer, cost us $5k. Dip into the old Savings! It was a 1989. Older can definitely mean more repairs/maintenance, which = money. Boat we have now is a 20 footer and, w/ trailer cost us $10k. Another dip in savings. It's a 1992. Currently in the Marine shop for a couple major repairs. But, once it's out/paid for, we'll have an excellent running boat. People spend money on different things/different ways and, for people like us who really enjoy boating, repair expenses come with owning one. So, any other fun things will just have to wait and hopefully will be in descent health when we can afford to do them.
that's what I would call comfortable. I would love to have a little left after I pay my bills. I would love to take a vacation once in awhile. I would like to have one new outfit every three months or so. I would love not to have to eat ramen noodles because they cut my hours at work so my boss could get his bonus. On the other hand I would love to have some one to watch the stars with on a summer night. Chances of any of that happening are slight to none. Life goes on anyway.
Chris I'm so sad to read your post, I'm sure the last thing in the world you would have imagined after working most of your life is to have to live within such a tiny budget