Night Elf Posted May 17, 2015 Share Posted May 17, 2015 I've been reading the thread about if we'll (those of us on this board obviously) will work if there is no financial need after homeschooling is over. My question is about traveling. I see that many would like to travel more when they are no longer needed at home, or maybe even when both spouses are considered retired. So where do you want to travel? I mean, realistically. Not what is your dream travel. But when you have the free time to travel, where will you go accepting what financial means you are able to do so. I'm not a big traveler. I don't like doing tourist type stuff so that limits where I'm willing to go. But when DH retires, I don't know how much money we'll have to do something like traveling. I guess we could visit other states, especially if we don't expect luxury extras. In my first marriage, we went camping but I honestly have no desire to ever do that again. We'd have to stay in hotels. I guess we could visit popular sites within a range of states around us as I couldn't handle driving a long way. I'll admit I am interested in seeing the Grand Canyon though and that's like 1800 miles away. The idea is completely overwhelming to me. Do people really drive that far for a vacation? That would be like a 10 day trip. That just seems so long for a vacation. Is that the type of vacations people talk about when they are retired and they want to travel? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carol in Cal. Posted May 17, 2015 Share Posted May 17, 2015 I have specific places I would like to see, and I don't know that I would drive to them. I have never seen the Grand Canyon. I want to visit the Canadian Rockies. DH wants me to see Brice and Zion and Key West, which I have no interest in at all. I'd like to go back to Vermont and Maine. I'd like to see the wilds of Alaska. In other countries I would like to visit Kyoto, Copenhagen, Greece, the Lake District in England, East German Luther sites, Peru, Bora Bora, and maybe New Zealand. If I could afford it I would probably do two major trips like that per year. It would take a while to plan each one, and I would want to enjoy each one thoroughly and rest up a lot before the next one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rosie_0801 Posted May 17, 2015 Share Posted May 17, 2015 Well, I drove a round trip of 2,400 miles, give or take, with the kids one week, for the sake of not being home. It's all about the petrol budget. *sigh* 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carrie12345 Posted May 17, 2015 Share Posted May 17, 2015 I'm not really big on traveling for the sake of traveling, but dh goes to some interesting places for work. I could easily entertain myself while he's busy with work, stay in his company paid room, and enjoy touristy/foody stuff with him when he's not busy. More for the sake of being together, having fun, than just the concept of traveling. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orthodox6 Posted May 17, 2015 Share Posted May 17, 2015 Our finances always are going to limit us to taking a vacation in our back yard. Really wish things were different. I am grateful that my last-held outside job included traveling to conferences around the country. I also cherish my one trip to Canada which let me meet in person an online friend. (My husband was speaking at an international conference, so hotel expenses for me were zero.) There are a few places which I very much would love to visit. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Night Elf Posted May 17, 2015 Author Share Posted May 17, 2015 DH just told me I shouldn't assume vacation meant driving to the destination. I was just thinking of money and budgeting. Airfare seems so expensive, but he said we could fly out west and rent a car if we wanted to go a fair distance. He also said that not all airfare was expensive. Sometimes packaged deals are a good bargain. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regentrude Posted May 17, 2015 Share Posted May 17, 2015 I've been reading the thread about if we'll (those of us on this board obviously) will work if there is no financial need after homeschooling is over. My question is about traveling. I see that many would like to travel more when they are no longer needed at home, or maybe even when both spouses are considered retired. So where do you want to travel? I mean, realistically. Not what is your dream travel. But when you have the free time to travel, where will you go accepting what financial means you are able to do so. I'm not a big traveler. I don't like doing tourist type stuff so that limits where I'm willing to go. But when DH retires, I don't know how much money we'll have to do something like traveling. I guess we could visit other states, especially if we don't expect luxury extras. In my first marriage, we went camping but I honestly have no desire to ever do that again. We'd have to stay in hotels. I guess we could visit popular sites within a range of states around us as I couldn't handle driving a long way. I'll admit I am interested in seeing the Grand Canyon though and that's like 1800 miles away. The idea is completely overwhelming to me. Do people really drive that far for a vacation? That would be like a 10 day trip. That just seems so long for a vacation. Is that the type of vacations people talk about when they are retired and they want to travel? DH and I love traveling to Utah, Colorado, California, and also would like to go back to Oregon where we lived for a while. We go to Utah/CO every year. It's about 1,400 miles to the spots we like, which takes us a day and a half to drive. We drive 12 hours the first day which gets us through the boring parts and then the half day is already enjoyable because the scenery is so pretty. We hike and camp or sometimes rent a house. It's worth going for a week of rigorous hiking. We have also driven to CA several times; that's 1800 miles. We stop en route at pretty destinations and make the journey part of the vacation. I dislike staying in hotels and we only do so for the first night along the freeway. I don't like touristy stuff either; we prefer destinations off the beaten path and we prefer to explore. Looking forward to doing more of this this summer. Other than that, I like traveling in Europe. ETA: When we are retired, I would assume that a large part of our travel will be visiting our children and, perhaps grandchildren - wherever they end up. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jane in NC Posted May 17, 2015 Share Posted May 17, 2015 I am by nature a traveler, something I have been doing my entire life. Why wait for retirement? My husband has limitations on his schedule due to work. He has a fair amount of vacation time but it is restricted, i.e. there are certain times of year when he cannot take a vacation--March for instance. I have friends who escape from the Midwest to Saint Simons Island at some point during that month. I drive down by myself. Usually I fly to destinations though. That is our preference to maximize vacation time and minimize time spent on Interstates. I realize that not everyone is as financially fortunate as we are. For us, homeschooling included travel. We piggybacked the Grand Canyon on a trip to Scottsdale where my husband was attending a business conference. We have camped at Yosemite, stayed in a cabin in the Black Hills of South Dakota, enjoyed the museums and theater of London. Travel defines us, I guess. I'm pretty much in the school of "I'll go anywhere". 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soror Posted May 17, 2015 Share Posted May 17, 2015 Lol we are on a road trip now to see Carlsbad, Grand Canyon, Bryce, Zion, Mesa, Albuquerque and Sante Fe, total mileage will be around 3000 I think, totally worth it, awesome, breathtaking, monmental. I'm already planning our next trip and we won't be home for anther week. I'm thinking we'll fly into somewhere cheaper and rent a car. There is no end of places I would like to see. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KungFuPanda Posted May 17, 2015 Share Posted May 17, 2015 DH just told me I shouldn't assume vacation meant driving to the destination. I was just thinking of money and budgeting. Airfare seems so expensive, but he said we could fly out west and rent a car if we wanted to go a fair distance. He also said that not all airfare was expensive. Sometimes packaged deals are a good bargain. Sometimes air fare is cheaper than the gas, hotels, and food you'd buy on a long drive. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wabi Sabi Posted May 17, 2015 Share Posted May 17, 2015 We regularly drive 1000 miles each way for vacations- drive all day Saturday and Sunday, stay at our destination Monday through Friday, and drive home again the following Saturday/Sunday. Flying is generally not an option for us now: too expensive, we'd still have the added expense of a car rental at our destination, too limited in what we can bring in our luggage (I guess you could say we are NOT light packers- camping equipment, beach chairs, cooler, boogie boards, fishing poles...) When we're older and retired, and have more than one week at a time, 1800 miles will be nothing. When we're older, retired, and have plenty of time I'd love to take some more exotic vacations: New Zealand, Japan, a grand European trip. However, we could travel in the US and never run out of places to go too. We dream of eventually owning a small camper and traveling the country visiting friends, family, national parks, and everything in between. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hikin' Mama Posted May 17, 2015 Share Posted May 17, 2015 I have a lot of national parks I'd like to see and hike in. We have a tent trailer and would probably take that. I will definitely be (and already do) traveling to see kids and grandkids. If it's just me, I fly. If it is more than me, we drive. I would also like to go back to Hawaii again. And I've heard Costa Rica is nice. My middle son asked me if I would go to Peru with him when he gets out of college. So as long as he doesn't find a girlfriend between now and then :), maybe I'll do that. My daughter and I are planning a trip to Seattle and Victoria, BC for sometime next year. She is great to travel with. I don't really enjoy big cities, other than Seattle, but am more of a nature person. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pawz4me Posted May 17, 2015 Share Posted May 17, 2015 I don't really like to travel very much, but DH does. And since he's the one who has worked and supported us all these years, you bet I happily go whenever and wherever he wants, and will do so as we get older and (hopefully) are able to travel even more. We have an RV and mostly we like to take it on road trips. DH's dream trip is a meandering drive to Alaska and back. If all goes according to plan we'll head out on that soon after he retires. We'd also like to make some leisurely trips through the western part of the country. Neither of us is really all that interested in overseas travel (too much we still haven't seen here and in Canada), but we toy around with the idea of going to Ireland sometime. Before kids DH traveled regularly for his job, and I often went along. I had plenty of vacation from my job, and all it cost us was an extra plane ticket and my meals. While he was doing whatever he was there to do I'd wonder around and sight see, shop or hang out at the hotel. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wheres Toto Posted May 17, 2015 Share Posted May 17, 2015 Most of the travel I want to do we probably won't wait until the kids graduate, or until we retire. We'll probably do them as soon as we can afford to, which hopefully will be in the next year or so. I want to fly out west, rent an RV and drive around the national parks for a couple of weeks. I want to see the Redwoods, and the Grand Canyon, and Arches, and Yellowstone. We are planning a trip to Disney World for the next year or so, and will drive or take the AutoTrain. I'd like to go on a cruise to Alaska, and take a trip to Hawaii, but those will probably have to wait a little bit longer. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MBM Posted May 17, 2015 Share Posted May 17, 2015 My husband and I will be traveling more next year when the youngest leaves for college. We've already planned trips for Florida, Hawaii and Washington, DC which we'll fly to. Some of those are business trips that my husband has to take so I'll just tag along. We might also go to Europe in early summer. Locally, we plan to travel to areas around Illinois: Wisconsin, Michigan and other parts of Illinois for weekends. Our car is a hybrid and it gets terrific gas mileage, almost unbelievable to us, so gas shouldn't be much. We also plan to rent an apartment in Chicago (we live in a suburb) so we can do more of the fun city things. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted May 17, 2015 Share Posted May 17, 2015 I've been reading the thread about if we'll (those of us on this board obviously) will work if there is no financial need after homeschooling is over. My question is about traveling. I see that many would like to travel more when they are no longer needed at home, or maybe even when both spouses are considered retired. So where do you want to travel? I mean, realistically. Not what is your dream travel. But when you have the free time to travel, where will you go accepting what financial means you are able to do so. I'm not a big traveler. I don't like doing tourist type stuff so that limits where I'm willing to go. But when DH retires, I don't know how much money we'll have to do something like traveling. I guess we could visit other states, especially if we don't expect luxury extras. In my first marriage, we went camping but I honestly have no desire to ever do that again. We'd have to stay in hotels. I guess we could visit popular sites within a range of states around us as I couldn't handle driving a long way. I'll admit I am interested in seeing the Grand Canyon though and that's like 1800 miles away. The idea is completely overwhelming to me. Do people really drive that far for a vacation? That would be like a 10 day trip. That just seems so long for a vacation. Is that the type of vacations people talk about when they are retired and they want to travel? I do really want to take a western National Parks trip in an RV, but I am thinking a few months of traveling. The sites I want to see are very spread apart. I want to see (and backpack into) the Grand Canyon; see other Utah/Arizona canyonlands (Bryce, Arches, Zion), head up to the Tetons, and Yellowstone, perhaps see Mt. Rushmore. That's at minimum. I would like to cruise through the Hawaiian Islands; this trip has pretty good potential of happening within seven years or so. Personally, there are a lot of European vacations I want to take, but DH has no desire at all to go to Europe. I mean to do those trips, though, so either I will find a way to entice him along (i.e., I believe i could get him to go to France if we go to the beaches of Normandy), or I will do those trips with different people. Financially, it seems reasonable to expect we will have enough money for a larger trip every two years or so. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
creekland Posted May 17, 2015 Share Posted May 17, 2015 We're among those who didn't save traveling for retirement, though we might travel more in retirement. When our kids were growing up we took off up to 3 months in a calendar year with the longest single trip being 2 months. Most trips are at least a week. It's not really worth it for us to go places for less than a week unless they are short weekend or day trips (we do those too). Where have we been (as a family)? 49 of the 50 states (missed Alaska) and the eastern half of Canada. We've been to most National Parks and a variety of state parks. We've been to many beaches. We've toured "top" road trips (for vistas). We get a whim and start planning. Sticking with North America (again, as a family) helped us stretch our travel dollars. Individually my guys have been more places as there have been trips they've gone on (Europe, Africa, Caribbean, etc). Where do we want to go? Alaska is obviously near the top of my list. Rocky Mountain NP is too as that's one we've missed. We're (hubby and I) working on Caribbean Islands now. I'd also like to see Africa (various countries), China, Vietnam's & Thailand's coasts, the Great Barrier Reef, Italy's historical places, and French Polynesia. There are places I'd love to return to as well. Hawaii tops that list, but Nova Scotia's Cabot Trail and Bay of Fundy are also right up there - then the simply gorgeous western National Parks (Yellowstone, Bryce, Zion, Arches, Sequoia, etc). We're restricted by time and money, (though not as much as many as hubby works for himself and can work from remote locations) but whenever I can scrape up enough of both, we're off. That's just what travel junkies do. Picking "a" spot can be difficult as there are so many to choose from. I can't imagine, if I were given a free trip, that any spot wouldn't interest me as long as it's not in an active war zone. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regentrude Posted May 17, 2015 Share Posted May 17, 2015 He cannot imagine it could possibly be comfortable for him. He is correct. Flying these days is not comfortable for anybody. It is an ordeal to be endured to get from A to B. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pawz4me Posted May 17, 2015 Share Posted May 17, 2015 lol Sssshhh don't tell him that. Yes, I agree. It is an ordeal. I remember being patted down by TSA because I didn't want to go through some contraption that looked like it wanted to give me cancer. He says he would need first class. He's big and tall. I'm short and just a tad bit overweight, but I really take up much less space than the average person. And I've told DH that if I ever get on a plane again it will be in first class. Not that that gets you a whole lot better experience nowadays. But at least you don't have to fight for overhead bin space. But it won't bother me in the least if I never get on another plane. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted May 17, 2015 Share Posted May 17, 2015 I set up my life when I was young in such a way as to travel a lot then. I like to go away to relax but I am happy driving a couple of hours into the mountains and renting a self catering cottage. Husband may have bigger plans. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DawnM Posted May 17, 2015 Share Posted May 17, 2015 I have traveled a lot, most of it before kids, particularly my overseas travel, but in the US my kids have seen quite a bit. When we lived on the West Coast we did a lot there, and now that we live on the East Coast I have seen just about all here I had on my list. I still want to take my kids to see where I grew up in Africa and I would love to take my youngest back to China when he is a teenager to see where he was born. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FaithManor Posted May 17, 2015 Share Posted May 17, 2015 We are museum and national park nuts. So, our destinations tend to have those themes. But, we also would like to travel internationally and will save money in order to do so. New Zealand and Denmark are two of our most desired "bucket list" destinations. This summer we will be traveling to the Badlands, Mt. Rushmore, etc. At some point I'd also like to get my kids together and head to Yellowstone. They were so young the last time we were that far west that they do not remember it. We do have a pop up camper and use that some at state parks. It's not my favorite way to travel, however works if we are going to stay in one place for a week at a time. When we do a road trip, we still picnic a lot because it is healthier and saves money. I will usually start out with a frozen casserole or two which takes a while to thaw, and then we use the microwave in the motel to serve it up. We try to always book rooms with microwaves and fridges because it makes it possible to eat most of our meals on a decent budget and without a bunch of fast food. That helps the budget. Eventually, when it is just the two of us, we'll be able to hit the road in Dh's Saturn Astra which gets 32mpg instead of our mini-van which only gets 22-23 mpg. That will also help out our travel budget when he retires. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carol in Cal. Posted May 17, 2015 Share Posted May 17, 2015 When we do a road trip, we still picnic a lot because it is healthier and saves money. I will usually start out with a frozen casserole or two which takes a while to thaw, and then we use the microwave in the motel to serve it up. When I was a kid our trick was to eat out for lunch, which can be substantial and still be a lot cheaper than dinner, and picnic in the motels for breakfast (cereal) and dinner (sandwiches). 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fraidycat Posted May 17, 2015 Share Posted May 17, 2015 Retired? 10 days is short for a vacation in retirement, IMO. When we have time (retirement), yes we'll travel 1800+ miles for a vacation, but the whole route will be part of the vacation. Roadside attractions, historic sites and monuments, all kinds of things to see and do. We'll most likely travel in a (smallish) RV so we can stop and go whenever we want and eat healthier/cheaper. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
creekland Posted May 17, 2015 Share Posted May 17, 2015 When I was a kid our trick was to eat out for lunch, which can be substantial and still be a lot cheaper than dinner, and picnic in the motels for breakfast (cereal) and dinner (sandwiches). And many motels provide a free breakfast of sorts now. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LibraryLover Posted May 17, 2015 Share Posted May 17, 2015 We have driven across the country, from CA to DC, then to MA. We have driven from MA to FL, most every southern state most every northern state, and to Ohio, and to Canada. In CA, we have driven from San Diego to LA, San Fran, Big Sur, Muir Woods, Tahoe, Nevada, and many other towns and cities. I don't even have a tally of how many times we've driven a van load of kids to FL. It's quite fun, with the right attitude, food and activities. So yes, many of us drive too much. but we also use long weekends to visit areas closer to home. Oh, we've also taken a little over two weeks w/ the children to drive to Key Largo, Key West, Sanibel Island, and to see the Red Sox in Spring Training. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amira Posted May 17, 2015 Share Posted May 17, 2015 We haven't done a lot of real traveling, depending on how you define it. Mostly we're just exploring the place we live and very rarely go more than 4-5 hours away from home. Or we're visiting family which definitely isn't traveling to me. Mostly I've been lucky to live in a lot of different places so we're always sort of traveling. We did go all over the US when I was growing up and I've been to most every state. Up till I was around 8 or 9 my parents had a pop-up camper that we pulled all over the US and would set up in a new place every night. I love road trips anywhere we can manage them. We've camped along the way sometimes or found inexpensive hotels each night. For travel, I really think you have to decide what you actually enjoy doing, create a plan and a budget, save money to do it, and make it something you're willing to spend money, time, and effort on. If it's not fun for you to drive a long time, don't do it and budget for flying. Get the sleeping accommodations that work for you. Just make it happen, whatever it is. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LibraryLover Posted May 17, 2015 Share Posted May 17, 2015 Your dh is right, deals can be found. I also don't enjoy shopping as a tourist destination, for the most part. At least not in the US. I could probably get onboard with a bit of shopping out of the country. For instance, I love Boots in UK. I know- it's basically a big drugstore, but it was quite enjoyable. ;) And I love a good famer's market. I always check for FMs whenever I am on vacation. In the future, I am hoping to 'vacation' with a respectable volunteer organization. I also like the idea, if spendy, of taking cooking classes abroad. Again, the famer market thang, and learning from folks who live and work in the area I'm visiting. I also want to take a Reggio -Emila education tour in Italy. That would be incredibly interesting. A coworker of dh's also hosts 'eating tours' (lol that's what they call them) to Hong Kong every couple of years. I missed the last, but am really hoping to go on the next. Money and time. :sigh: On flying. I don't hate it as much. I am afraid, and often have a glass of wine before I board, but going through security has not been difficult for me at all. I've got it down, and for my last two flights, I was prescreened and skipped the lines and shoe shuffle. That was really nice. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
creekland Posted May 17, 2015 Share Posted May 17, 2015 I guess we're weird (again). I don't mind flying (same as the rest of my family) - even with today's crowds and less space. It's still beautiful up in the sky and I've had some very interesting seat buddies - they make a trip short. I love road trips too. Which we choose totally depends upon the trip. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LibraryLover Posted May 17, 2015 Share Posted May 17, 2015 We are museum and national park nuts. Yes! Such treasures. (Side note and PSA: Best, potentially (if you don't buy books hahahahaha) least expensive vacation (especially if you stay in MD or VA) is Washington, DC. Miles of monuments and museums, all free. Try to spring for the Spy Museum and Ford's Theater. And eat in the cafeteria at the Museum of the American Indian. Best museum food, decent price.) 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EndOfOrdinary Posted May 17, 2015 Share Posted May 17, 2015 Ds is currently saving money to travel Europe with me for a year. At least, right now it is for a year. We were thinking of doing it when he is 18. Both he and I have desires to walk the world. We are long distance backpackers. In Europe we would like to do The Canterbury Trail, the Dolimites, and The Camino de Santiago de Compostella. We also want to spend significant time in London, Greece, Italy, and Prague. Right now, until the end of high school, we are hiking the USA: The Appalachian Trail, the Pacific Crest Trail, the Arizona Trail, The Continental Divide Trail. We can be hiker trash poor and still enjoy seeing so much this way. 8 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annie G Posted May 17, 2015 Share Posted May 17, 2015 While raising kids, part of the attraction of homeschooling was that we could travel with the kids. Dh traveled for work and we went with him when we could. It was greta fun. He worked, the kids and I visited zoos or historic sites, or just explored wherever we were. And at night we met back up with dh and had dinner and swam in the hotel pool. Now that the kids are grown, dh and I love car travel. We have a Corvette and we take day trips, weekend trips, week long trips. (Dh isn't retired yet) We go anywhere and everywhere, sometimes on our own and other times with groups or friends. I also travel a couple of times a year with my sisters. We just finished a week in New Orleans, and earlier this spring I spent time with my sister at her beach condo in Florida. I'll go anywhere, anytime, except I don't care for amusement parks, Disney, or places like that. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris in VA Posted May 17, 2015 Share Posted May 17, 2015 We've gone a lot of places. Our furniture is sucky at home and we have cheap clothes because we spend our $ on travel! Dh loves to go places. I will go anywhere. 'Cept Paris. ;) :D 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKL Posted May 17, 2015 Share Posted May 17, 2015 I love to travel. My favorite part is the outdoorsy stuff, mountains, trekking,and visiting countries with a lot of history (which are often less-developed countries). My concern is that I may not be able to do all I want to do when my kids leave the nest. I am 40 years older than my kids. Thankfully I did some traveling before they came along, and I've done some with them. And from watching older people in my tour groups, I may have picked up a couple of tricks. For example, I plan to buy a couple of lightweight retractable walking sticks (or whatever they are called), to take some of the pressure off the knees on long, hilly hikes. It is expensive to travel internationally with kids, but I feel like it might be now or never. So I plan to keep doing it. And hey, at least my kids are getting a head start on their bucket lists.... 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J-rap Posted May 18, 2015 Share Posted May 18, 2015 For us, putting travel in a separate category is something I can't relate to. Traveling is simply part of living. We are traveling all the time. Maybe 1 hour, maybe 3 hours, maybe 7 hours, maybe over a country or two, maybe an ocean. It's just become our way of living. One year after my husband's stroke that took 1/4 of his brain, our family celebrated his 1-year anniversary sleeping under mosquito netting in South America. For us, traveling is a sign that we are still alive and breathing and living. We skimp on everything else so that we can do that. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmilyGF Posted May 18, 2015 Share Posted May 18, 2015 DH travels for work. In two weeks he's going to Israel. This fall he's off to France. Later in the fall he's going to Hawaii. Last fall he went to Vietnam. In January he went to China. That's the sort of travel I mean. Right now travel as a family looks like driving to a camping site and then camping. I like camping with kids and am happy to do so. I'd like to go with him on some trips someday in the future. (He's working on bringing me to Hawaii... we'll see if that works out.) Emily Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
creekland Posted May 18, 2015 Share Posted May 18, 2015 For us, putting travel in a separate category is something I can't relate to. Traveling is simply part of living. We are traveling all the time. Maybe 1 hour, maybe 3 hours, maybe 7 hours, maybe over a country or two, maybe an ocean. It's just become our way of living. .... We skimp on everything else so that we can do that. I absolutely love the way you put this. :hurray: I hope your dh is still improving health-wise. :grouphug: 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joyofsixreboot Posted May 18, 2015 Share Posted May 18, 2015 I like to travel. Dh does not. I can probably talk him into a yearly trip to a beach as long as we don't leave the eastern half of the continental U.S. I have mental plans to " do" the western U.S. by myself. I also would like to do a bike tour in Italy, return to Great Britain and go to Greece. He is fine with me leaving him at home. I just need the littlest to be 16 and able to get herself where she needs to be by herself when he is working. I've been saving for these things for 15 years. They will happen! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bettyandbob Posted May 18, 2015 Share Posted May 18, 2015 I like travel. We have a very limited budget. Dh doesn't really like travel. So, I travel with the kids. Trips are planned short and last minute around openings in my work schedule or may be planned way ahead, with reservations not finalized as I look for deals or consider interrupting financial commitments. We drive, because airfare for 3, usually makes fly out of budget, especially if we are going somewhere we'd need to rent a car. Many trips we camp. Often those cant be last minute because state and national parks are cheaper for camping than a commercial campground--this is camping to have a place to stay, not camping for the sake of camping. The camping is still fun,but it is not the focus of the trip. We go to the beach a few days in summer, we camp to make that possible. We stay in motels that are really dumpy. We do this if we are using a motel in route.i figure we arrive late, crash, get up and go in the morning. Sometimes, I plan driving to the destination with a cheap motel stop close to the destination, but more expensive motels in the destination. If I'm staying in a spot a few days, I want my kids to have some comfort. For example, we went to Atlanta a few years back. We stopped at a cheap place 2 hours from Atlanta. I could have driven straight through, but by doing that I arrived with a full day to do the things we planned without having paid twice as much for the previous night's accommodation. I'm trying to plan a trip to universal this summer and a strategic motel stop before our first day in Orlando is part of the planning. We have an old hybrid vehicle. So, the cost of gas will be lower than airfare. My neighbor is thinking about squeezing in so that will lower the cost. We will have room for a small cooler and little space for clothing if neighbor comes (good thing it will be summer) So, I've analyzed getting some travel in cheaply quite a bit. If I didn't have to budget, I'd fly the kids all over and rent a car. If time, money and dh all worked in my favor I could see trips to places and staying a month at a time to get a feel for local culture. Honestly that is the kind of travel dh would most likely like. He's not a "go see a bunch of stuff" kind of person. But renting an apartment and going to the local cafe and taking a relaxing pace to decide to see a museum or hang around some local neighborhood would be his style. I could see us doing that all over Europe, if circumstances were different. He would never SCUBA dive with me, but I'd get dd to do that. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pam in CT Posted May 18, 2015 Share Posted May 18, 2015 I'm with Jane -- I'm happy to go pretty much anywhere, really. So many cool places on this earth, so little time. We've been fortunate to have been able to travel a good bit, both within the US and overseas. I'm happy staying in spiffy hotels when I tag along on my husband's business travel and I'm happy in a sleeping bag in the back of my Subaru in a state park -- don't care. Two of my kids are still home, but the older they get the easier the travel itself gets (although coordinating schedules gets harder). Part of it is an opportunistic mindset -- whenever we have to go someplace, like a wedding or bar/bat mitzvah or college visit, I try to figure out side trips along the way, look up museums and historic sites where we're going, Yelp good restaurants, etc. I also really like to daydream / fantasize / armchair travel / plan longer trips -- that's definitely part of the fun for me. Many is the trip I've planned out in detail that we have not taken.... yet. I have a very long bucket list.... LibraryLover, my two older kids, plus my dad and my aunt and uncle and I, are all going to be doing a Habitat build trip in Central America this summer. Several of us have worked with them here in the US, but none of us have ever done one overseas. I am sooooo excited about it. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amy g. Posted May 18, 2015 Share Posted May 18, 2015 Dh travels for work and we can take some of the younger children with us for a little vacation, or they can stay with our adult kids if we want to spend some time alone. Not only does the company pick up the tab, but best of all, Dh doesn't have to use up his vacation time on the trip. He has enough frequent flyer miles from work for us to take a couple of non work related trips a year. I usually plan those so that we get to spend time with my sister. I'm not sure my husband will ever retire. He enjoys working too much, so we evaluate future job opportunities with an eye out for what sort of travel perks go along with the job. It works for us because I'm not picky about destinations, he just likes not having to be away from me and showing off the kids. I like my alone time, so it never bothers me if he gets held up in a meeting. Next summer. We are turning 50 and will have been married half of our lives. I told him to start saving up for a big trip for me. Now I just have to decide where I want to go. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J-rap Posted May 21, 2015 Share Posted May 21, 2015 When I was a kid our trick was to eat out for lunch, which can be substantial and still be a lot cheaper than dinner, and picnic in the motels for breakfast (cereal) and dinner (sandwiches). This brings back memories of all of the cross-country roadtrips my family did when I was a kid. (We did them yearly.) Those were the days of roadside motels in the 60's and 70's. Such fun memories!! No car air conditioning, either! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.