I think you're absolutely right @Babs Hunt ... we travel a lot , even though I've just taken retirement and hubs is still in full time work.. (I'm early 60's he's still in his 50's)... but I have noticed that at airports, probably less than 10 % of travellers tend to be in the senior age bracket.. ...and also whatever destination we visit, on talking to older people who are there visiting , I find that the vast majority have come from somewhere within about 2 hours travel... often the simplest method.. by coach for example..within the same country, so no driving no flying etc.. It's a 3 hour flight from London to our house in Southern Spain ...however it can take up to 9 hours travelling time. We have to be at the airport at least 2 hours before the gates close to check in.... so if we have a flight at 8am.. we leave at 5am it takes over an hour to get to the airport, and park then get the shuttle bus... then 2 hours at the airport before we board the plane (if it's on time)... then a 3 hour flight.. then an hour at baggage claim... then an hour to get from the airport to the house... All very exhausting, and we're relatively young... so for older people it must be a real trial
Except for my daughter who is a 3 hr drive from me, the rest of my family is all more than a 4 hr flight so I have no choice. All of my flights take me almost a whole day. Travel to airport, connections, time changes...it's exhausting and that's why I at least try to stay for more than a week.
Gosh @Holly Saunders...it seems like it would be easier to just throw your baggage in the trunk of your car and drive to your house in Southern Spain then go through all that airport hazzle.
I would totally LOVE to be able to travel; but it is just not a possibility in my life anymore, except when Robin invites me along on trips to Idaho to visit with my two sons who live out there (and their families, of course). It used to be fine with me to just go on cross-country jaunts; but since moving out here from Idaho, we really have not done any traveling to speak of, and Bobby prefers to stay home anyway. If I could do it, I would dearly love to go one on of those short cruises, like down the Caribbean and back, or to take a train trip across America, or up through the Canadian Rockies. Texas has a museum where there are human footprints inside of dinosaur tracks, and other archeological finds , and I would love to go and look at things like this, and some of the ancient cities and mounds/pyramids that are from pre-AD civilizations here in North and South America.
Yes to a train trip @Yvonne Smith ....on my bucket list. Just don't want to do it alone. Should have done it with my ex before we split. Speaking of my ex, Ive been talking to him because he's been really sick. Been in and out of the hospital and rehab for at least 6 weeks now. He's home but home bound...meaning he can't go anywhere and nurses come 3 times a week, that was his option because he didn't want to go back to rehab. Think it all started with his blood thinner meds...xarelto.
I am lucky in that my younger daughter and her son live with me in my house and pay for all the outgoings, so my state pension ($8,800 a year) which is similar to your SS I presume @Cody Fousnaugh , pays for all my travel and food. I am no high flyer and stay in Homestays and small B&Bs when travelling and live 6 months of the year in Russia anyway, which costs next to nothing. You have a boat and enjoy other pursuits, so I feel in a way we make choices as to how we spend our money? I will add that though I have always travelled on occasion in the past, since meeting Lisa some 15 years ago I have travelled much much more, mainly because that is Lisa's passion, and I enjoy experiencing the pleasure she gets from it. If I were on my own, I doubt I would travel at all, like @Babs Hunt I have lost the desire for it, I would be content to armchair travel and sit on my terrace at home drinking a beer or two. I don't find airports and travel in general a hassle at all, but I no longer get excited or derive much pleasure from the whole experience of travelling, Lisa doesn't understand this of course, and as long as I am able and can afford it I will continue......................
I don't want to Cruise in the Ocean but I wouldn't mind doing a Riverboat Cruise along the Mississippi. They are really expensive though and clearly not in our budget so I'd have to win the lottery, etc. to do this. As for the train trip I am still considering doing one of those to get as close to Colorado, Oregon, and Utah as possible so we could have one last visit with my Honey's brother and daughter...and my brother before we hang up the long distance traveling for good. I have a sister who has two sons and a granddaughter living in Denver and she likes to drive so I'm talking to her about maybe coming with us and driving through the rough places while I take the smooth places. Whether any of it comes together for us remains a mystery at this time.
@Terry Page Oh Terry so many of us are so glad you do all that traveling with Lisa, etc. as we sure have enjoyed your photos which often make us feel we are right there with y'all. Sharing your adventures with us has brightened up many of our days and we will all be sad when you do decide to just armchair travel and sit on your terrace drinking your beer or two.
Airports didn't stress me out when I traveled with my ex or husband but alone I do stress because it's all on me. Have to be super vigilant and it tires me out. Alone Ive missed some connections so would have to go and get my bag from baggage claim, find a hotel near the airport and spend the night and start all over again the next day...these were last flights so no other options. Ive had enough of these especially in the winter coming back from my son's to make me dread it. Just getting my bags from baggage claim, I position myself next to a young man and hope he'll grab my heavy suitcase off the belt. Little things like this add up.
No, not the same........your state pension and my SS. SS here is always telling people not to depend on SS as a retirement income, even though many people have to. A "state pension" means that you worked for "the state" for so many years and got that as retirement income........right? About the highest amount a person can get from SS is $4,000 a month and that would mean the person stayed on that job for years and kept paying into SS. I get less than $1,000 a month in SS, but my wife gets more. Fortunately, for us, my wife has a nice paying job and also gets SS. She decided to collect her SS last year, at age 67, and nothing is taken out of her SS (due to her income) because of her age.
The UK is an Island @Babs Hunt so wherever we travel we either have to take a plain or a ship.... to drive our own car to Southern Spain to travel by ship...would take almost 24 hours.. and I couldn't drive for that long any more these days..
Ooops that should be Plane That said... we have a huge train network here in the uk...so travelling anywhere in the Uk from England all the way up north to the tip of Scotland is very easy ( albeit expensive)... so apart from the cost holidaying in the Uk for most people is easy.. ...we travel by train a lot , and of course within London we have the Underground (Tube)... to get us every part of the Greater London area..