Why either or? We plan on doing both

I used to think we were saving up for retirement travel, but then I was hit with a big health issue in my late 30s. I seem to be making it through, thank God, but with a much deeper understanding of how little the future is guaranteed. We have planned 3 international trips this year with our kids, and I plan to keep up that pace as long as we can afford to. I haven't fully processed what it means to be saving less for retirement, but I feel desperate to make the most of the time while I'm here and healthy enough to do it. I want to take my kids everywhere and there was a very scary period where I didn't think I'd get to. It's hard to say no to anything now.

Privilege aside in all of these comments. I’m amused that so many of you assume that climate change won’t create havoc on all
of these travel plans in retirement. The level of denial is astounding.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:One kid who is a great traveler and loves museums and non-kid focused activities. I will happily retire later and poorer to be able to show her the world while she's still young. We occasionally take trips without her, but mostly we schedule around spring and summer breaks and destinations that are interesting to all three of us. Hopefully we'll be able to keep traveling after retirement, and she'll be welcome to join as often as she wants.

The problem is when you have one kid like this and a second who is a terrible traveler who whines nonstop.

Ha, yep. Benefit to being one and done!

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Anonymous wrote:I agree. Out of curiosity, what was the exhausting trip? How long and where did you go? I feel so sorry for all the doddering old people I see everywhere these days. Honestly, it’s downright dangerous for a lot of them to be out and about.

I know. They should all stay in doors, waiting for death☠️.

Someday you will be “they.” And I’m sure you won’t enjoy the judgment of younger generations.

But why didn’t they do it when they were younger? That’s what we’re doing.

The privilege on this board never ceases to amaze me. Not everyone can afford to travel when they’re young. Maybe they’re helping care for their parents, maybe they have a special needs child, so many reasons.

Tough luck. Plenty of broke people still manage to travel. It's called shoestring travel. You're coming up for excuses while others just did it.

I'm in mid 40s, heading to Switzerland for a two week hiking trip this summer. No shortage of fit hikers in their 60s and 70s up in the Alps. My mother is going to Ireland to visit friends, and then exploring the Scottish islands on her own for another week. And she's 76. It's all about what you want to do and your mindset. If you want to sit home and complain about being old/tired/broke, go for it, but I'm not listening.

It's not just about the money to travel, it's about keeping your job. Not every job will give you enough time off (even unpaid!) to travel so much.

See. More excuses. Excuses and excuses. What job doesn't give you a week off out of the whole year? You're just coming up with moaning and whining excuses while others made it happen. Your choice.

I’m a nurse and my hospital only allows one week of PTO per summer. My kids are in school. Pray tell—when should I should I travel? You sound so damn entitled. And many jobs don’t even give people PTO. They don’t work, they don’t get paid.

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Anonymous wrote:I often see posts about people needing a ton of money for retirement, as they plan to take numerous expensive trips they wouldn’t take while in their 30/40/50s. I don’t get the sentiment. I am now nearing the end of what’s probably the most exhausting trip I’ve taken in my lifetime and I can’t begin to imagine what it would do to my health and body to travel like this when I’m 60 or 70. I just wouldn’t be able to do it. How do people assume they’ll have the strength to pull this off?

My parents just took a trip in their 70s. First class flight, luxury hotel, driver to take them around the sites, private tour guide. Nothing about the trip was exhausting? I’m not sure what you are doing to have an exhausting trip.

Please tell me you are troll. Surely you understand not everyone has the means for all of these luxuries?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:One kid who is a great traveler and loves museums and non-kid focused activities. I will happily retire later and poorer to be able to show her the world while she's still young. We occasionally take trips without her, but mostly we schedule around spring and summer breaks and destinations that are interesting to all three of us. Hopefully we'll be able to keep traveling after retirement, and she'll be welcome to join as often as she wants.

The problem is when you have one kid like this and a second who is a terrible traveler who whines nonstop.

Throw in a third kid who likes to travel, but only outdoorsy stuff, not cultural.

Planning a trip that makes everyone happy is impossible. Planning one where everyone is takes turns being happy and 20% of us is suffering in silence is not appealing.

We did one kid, one parent trips, and I traveled with friends. We'll see what works when we're retired.

I can't imagine planning a trip that would leave me "exhausted "

Close to retirement, and have retirement budget of fone overseas trip for the 2 of us, 3 visits to each of the kids (still very young adults, like to see us, esp as we leave them with a stocked refrigerator, take them and friends out to nice dinners, etc when we visit), and one full family trip each year (Christmas or summer). We all love to travel and explore new places. I see it as invigorating, not exhausting.

Anonymous wrote:One kid who is a great traveler and loves museums and non-kid focused activities. I will happily retire later and poorer to be able to show her the world while she's still young. We occasionally take trips without her, but mostly we schedule around spring and summer breaks and destinations that are interesting to all three of us. Hopefully we'll be able to keep traveling after retirement, and she'll be welcome to join as often as she wants.

The problem is when you have one kid like this and a second who is a terrible traveler who whines nonstop.

You are smart to be thinking about this now OP. I am in my upper 60’s and had not really thought about how much harder travel would be in the future. I can do it, but need longer to recover between exertions, it is harder to carry a heavy suitcase, walk far in bad weather or in airports, stand for hours in a museum, etc. Some if that can be alleviated by spending money, but it can also impact your enjoyment of the travel experience.

I also find that I am more conscious of the possibility of needing medical care when I am away—something I never considered when I was younger.

So yes, I am still traveling and feel fortunate to be able to afford that (and have my health). But, certain trips/experiences do seem to be off the table now.

Also, because I traveled a lot with my child as she grew up, we share many wonderful memories. She appreciates other perspectives. She has the skills and confidence to navigate the world.

So definitely do not put it off entirely (if you have the time and money). If you are lucky you will get to do both. They are different though, so one does not really substitute for the other.

Anonymous wrote:My mom hiked up Machu Picchu at age 89. She lived frugally her whole life and only started traveling in her eighties after my dad died. She lived until 101. She is my rock star and i hope to be able to travel like she did for as long as she did. I’m in my sixties and planning tons of trips.

I love this. She sounds amazing. I would love to be that active in my 80s!

I have come to realize that not everyone has a love of travel - and that's ok! I love to travel myself (and this includes waiting in the airport people watching, figuring out how to rent a car in a foreign country or get to a site to see, etc) but others find these parts of travelling painful and would rather stay home.

And even people who love to travel have different priorities for how they allocate their travel budgets. For example, I have a friend who has taken her kids to Europe once where I have taken mine several times. However, our trips were entirely different. Her trip involved first class airfare, nice hotels, fancy meals, fancy European brand handbag as a souvenir, whereas we have flown budget airlines and stayed in hostels (although we do mix it up with nicer places from time to time).

OP, if you are exhausted by your last trip, maybe you won't want to travel when you retire. Regardless, you should save for retirement! Once you retire you can decide do you want to spend $$ on travelling, something else you might enjoy like a condo in Florida, or if you might need it to help pay for healthcare. Saving $$ now provides you with choices later.

Why not both?

We traveled extensively when our DC was young, and now we are retired and still take at least 3-4 longer trips a year, on top of short trips here and there to visit family, etc. DC was a great traveler (very cooperative and could sleep anywhere) but traveling is so much easier and cheaper now that we aren't confined to school holidays. We can also take more time to settle in and really get to know a place -- we already traveled so much that there's less pressure to be over scheduled trying to cram in every possible activity into a one week window.

I am in my 60s, and my DH is in his 70's, and we are both fit and energetic. My DH, if anything, is in better shape than I am. He goes to the gym every day, on top of several mile walks with the dog. We're not unique -- a lot of our neighbors are older than us, and I see them taking long walks every day and they all travel pretty frequently.

It's so funny that this generation seems to be so focused on fitness and "eating clean" etc, and yet are assuming that they're going to be shuffling around an old folks home at 65 or confined to cruises.

Judging by some of the comments here, there does seem to a bit of cope/rationalization involved. Which is sad. The future isn't guaranteed to any of us, so I wouldn't put off traveling young, but why wouldn't you try to plan to be traveling when you were older, if that's what makes you happy?

One kid who is a great traveler and loves museums and non-kid focused activities. I will happily retire later and poorer to be able to show her the world while she's still young. We occasionally take trips without her, but mostly we schedule around spring and summer breaks and destinations that are interesting to all three of us. Hopefully we'll be able to keep traveling after retirement, and she'll be welcome to join as often as she wants.

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Anonymous wrote:I agree. Out of curiosity, what was the exhausting trip? How long and where did you go? I feel so sorry for all the doddering old people I see everywhere these days. Honestly, it’s downright dangerous for a lot of them to be out and about.

But do you realize that society could be set up to accommodate the reality that a large segment of our population is aging. There is no reason that they should be consigned to their homes because they are not up to what young adults can handle.

That would require us to regard them with respect, and equal worth.

I don’t see that, at least on DCUM.

But they’ve lived their lives. Why should society, and young people in particular, to cater to old people? Isn’t it more reasonable and fair for society to expend more energy and resources on younger people who haven’t yet had the same opportunities and experiences? But I guess the Boomers were never slated to age gracefully and embrace their fragility as their parents did.

I guess aging gracefully to you means being warehoused somewhere, so they are out of the way when you are on vacation. Ideally, perhaps they would die and leave you money when you deem their usefulness to have expired .

A stunning lack of respect for those who are not strong or earning money any longer. I hope our society never embraces your Darwinian mindset.

PP here. Didn’t mean to offend, but honestly just a bit tired of Boomer selfishness and entitlement. Nothing is never enough for them, and God forbid you call them elderly (which they now all are). A generation in denial. And based on my experiences, they are the epitome of the Ugly Americans abroad, always screaming the loudest. I recently had a tour guide in France complain that they get off the cruise ships, on the bus, demand the a/c be turned up, demand to see the American battle sites, and then fall asleep when any French history is shared, or something isn’t in English. So yes, those people should stay home!

Their money is a green as yours is. And they have a lot more of it than you do. Time to get over it.

We are traveling now AND later. Stay mad.

Enjoy the river cruise Grandma.