Staying Close To Home Is Always An Option

If you’ve explored this website at all, you know that I enjoy travelling and escaping the cold winters that we have in the Hudson Valley.  This lifestyle fits our vision of retirement, but it doesn’t mean that it’s ideal for everyone.  And your thoughts of a happy retirement can change over time.  Staying close to home may be something that looks more appealing as the years go by. Many people who loved to travel in their younger days have grown tired of it and made some changes in their lifestyle.  There are also those who never liked to travel to begin with.  The wonderful thing about retirement is that it can be whatever you want it to be.  I completely understand anyone who hates an airport.  They seem to have gotten worse and, if you haven’t bothered to get TSA approval to speed the check-in process, your waiting time to get through security can be horrendous.  It’s why the extremely wealthy have made the private jet business a booming segment of air travel.  But only those at the top of the “wealth pyramid” can afford that so it’s no wonder that many people are getting a little tired of the travel process.

Even driving becomes a bit more of a burden as you age.  We used to spend ten hours in the car with no problem as we journeyed across the country in our retirement adventure each winter.  For the past couple of years, we’ve tried to keep it under seven hours of driving if possible.  It adds an extra day of transit, but it makes a big difference in our physical condition at the end of each day.  We are beginning to see why people have opted for staying close to home rather than embarking on a long trip.  Our little community is equally divided between those who do a winter escape and those who stay and hunker down for the long winter.  While we are still among those who seek the warmer temperatures, our journey is now much more leisurely and the big advantage to driving over flying is that you are the one in control of your time.

With increased airport delays, staying close to home becomes more and more attractive.

It’s easy to stay in touch when you travel so that makes a getaway a little bit easier.  But many people have childcare obligations where they provide care for their grandchildren and, in every case that we know, they wouldn’t have it any other way.  Staying close to home is their first choice and only choice and it’s a wonderful thing to see.  They have a blast especially when the snow comes.  Skiing is a passion for those who learn to navigate the slopes in their youth and, if there’s no wind, a bright winter day after a fresh snowfall can be one of the most invigorating experiences you can have.  We enjoy the seasons and although it sounds like we escape for the entire winter, we’re always home for Christmas and a couple of weeks into January.  I will admit that we get a smile on our face as we journey south and watch the temperature climb with each passing mile.

Staying close to home for some people means never leaving the country and that’s fine if that’s what you want to do.  We still want to explore the world but there are some experiences we don’t need to repeat.  For example, I don’t need to rent a car and drive on the opposite side of the road anymore.  I’ve done it, survived it and had fun doing it but as I enter into my mid-seventies, it’s not something that I need to do again.  But we’re not quite ready to rule out trips to Europe, South America or even Asia.  We know our window is shrinking.  We’re closer to eighty than we are to sixty, so we have to be a little realistic.  While you can still travel past eighty, and many people do, your body doesn’t move as fast or function as well as it did twenty years ago.  You want to start making things as easy as possible.  Doing things like TSA approval and Global Entry are great.  Gaining access to an airport lounge is also a very nice thing to be able to do.  Sometimes the right credit card or a business class ticket can get you into an airline club and, although it sounds a little decadent, it makes travel a little easier to take.  It may not be a private jet, but it provides an additional level of comfort that is tremendously helpful in your golden years.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with staying close to home rather than embarking on a strenuous vacation or journey, but we will probably fight that urge for as long as possible.  We’re all in favor of making travel as easy as possible and, over the past several years, we’ve become fans of cruising.  It is a much more relaxed way to travel compared to the land tours where you’re driving for hundreds of miles.  We have found that river cruises are a great way to see a country or region and that’s especially true in Europe.  The language barrier is taken care of and, once you’re on board, you never have to pack or unpack again before you leave.  Meals are taken care of and you’re waited on by a staff that is focused on making you enjoy every moment.

Ocean cruises are also a great way to travel but we are not fans of the big ships, and we don’t use this mode of travel to go on water slides or gamble in casinos.  At this point in our lives, we want good food, a relaxed environment and enriching excursions.  While we are definitely not staying close to home when we set sail on the ocean, we’ve brought a little bit of the relaxing atmosphere of home on board.  It is worth spending the extra money for quality on both an ocean and river cruise so, while it may not be an inexpensive way to travel, you will definitely enjoy it and see the world in the process.  If you can afford it, a luxury cruise is the way to go.

But there’s nothing wrong with staying close to home either.  If you’re shut in for the winter, line up some great recipes, stream some wonderful movies and enjoy the company you’re with.  Make up a winter project to complete like watching every Academy Award winning movie or solving every Sherlock Holmes mystery!  Being home never has to mean being bored.  Life is meant to be celebrated, and every day is a new reason to Enjoy Retired Life!

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