Do Retirees Get a Vacation?

[CaptTom]

Before I retired, I thought every day in retirement would be a vacation day. I did plan a big, 3-month trip right out of the gate. But after that I missed a very important detail.

I didn't schedule ANY vacation time this past summer.

So we never went. Oh, I did a couple of boat delivery gigs that kept me away for a few weeks, we got out on our own boat a few times, and I do some volunteering one or more days a week. DW did some out-of-town visiting and we're scheduling a few days at one of her "bucket list" destinations next month.

But we never took two weeks, closed up the house, told friends and relatives we'd be out of town and just went.

Now that everybody knows we're retired, it seems we're expected to always be around to help family and attend various functions.

Lesson learned. Next year we're scheduling vacation time, just like I did when I was w*rking.

 

[wmc1000]

This was our first year in retirement and we only took one 2 week "vacation" We do have 3 weeks booked for Jan. 2018.

Maybe the question is really - "Do we need a vacation?"

 

[brett]

Absolutely. It is called travel. We did a 7 month trip in the first year. Now we do two 8 weeks trips a year plus a few short ones in between.

Why stay home? Especially for those of us who live in the snow zone.

 

[97guns]

Took 4 week long trips this year, Hawaii, Las Vegas, Grand Canyon, Los Angeles, Seattle and around 8 weekend trips, I've been on a constant vacation since I fired

 

[Midpack]

It’s not called vacation when you’re retired, it’s called travel. However, we take one week vacations from cooking from time to time, going to a restaurant every night for a week.

 

[meierlde]

Of course now how much time you take is up to you, just say no to other demands on your time.

 

[FUEGO]

Yes, we spend 6-10 weeks on vacation every year. This summer was 9.5 weeks crisscrossing Europe. The main limitation for us is the kids' school schedule that dictates that lengthy trips happen during the summer.

I think we'll keep up the traveling for the foreseeable future, though I'd like to take a summer off and stay at home for once. Our kids won't ever know a "lazy, boring summer at home" otherwise. And I hate to deprive them.

 

[Meadbh]

They’re called trips. I take several each year, from 3-35 days.

 

[Dawg52]

I've been on vacation for the last 10 years.

 

[SheitlQueen]

Last year I didn't do vacation, this year I have scheduled three around seminars that I wanted to take. Next year I'll probably do traveling just for the sake of traveling.

 

[Sunset]

This year was great so far for traveling. We did 3 trips for a total of approximately 10 weeks.

Right now, I'm feeling the itch to travel, but I'd like DW to pick a trip and book it, as I did all the travel arrangements this year (and last year). I don't need a new job as a travel agent.

 

[robnplunder]

Every day is a vacation to me if I let it.

 

[Souschef]

I retired on Friday, and was on a plane to South America on Sunday for a 2 week land trip. Since then we have taken 42 trips of varying length.

 

[Ronstar]

No vacation because retirees are always on vacation. If a retiree goes to a vacation spot, its called travel or trips as described by many above. But going to a long stay snowbird place isn't really travel or a trip - its just normal living in a different place.

 

[CaptTom]

Ahhh, OK. Got it. We'll call it "travel" from now on.

I was already away from home on "travel" the first official day of my retirement. Didn't come back for 90 days. And when we did, we steamed right past our dock and stayed out a few more days. All winter and into the spring we were asked what we had planned for next year.

The problem was, we didn't plan anything!

It's getting better now. We've planned a trip for next month, and those cruise line ads are starting to get my attention. Next year we'll pick a destination and schedule some "travel" on our own boat.

It just shocked me how quickly a summer can fly by if you don't have a schedule in advance! I thought I was done with schedules.

 

[antmary]

The problem is that we love being home so much, that we don't want to leave! I went to Oregon for my niece's wedding a couple of weeks ago, visited with family, etc., and couldn't wait to come home! BUT, I quit saying I am retired, because people think my time is "free."

 

[brett]

We can travel on shoulder season if we want. We can snap up last minute travel offers and leave the next day. We can do a one way ticket, leave home and decide when to to come home and from where as we travel along.

Could not do that prior to retiring.

 

[Sunset]

Yes, I'm still amazed at how some folks plan. I've looked up trips in 2019 and sometimes find some are fully booked for the week I wanted and the only reason I looked then was because 2018 is fully booked too.

I did book a back to back cruise for 2018, about a year in advance as I was told it was a good thing to do, now when I look to see what the price is now, it shows as fully booked.

Right now we have an empty gap of months, because we didn't plan anything... I'm hoping to snag a last minute deal.

 

[Amethyst]

I don't consider travel a vacation. Far too much planning and disruption are involved. I hate planning. Even the most expensive package tours require a fair amount of it.

To me, a vacation is when I can focus on my own interests instead of meeting the needs of other people, the house, etc.

Vacation actually seems to have diminished since retirement.

 

[CaptTom]

I did book a back to back cruise for 2018, about a year in advance as I was told it was a good thing to do, now when I look to see what the price is now, it shows as fully booked.

Interesting. Do you suppose they release cabins in batches, like airline seats? Seems no matter when I book a flight there are always only a few seats available. Even if the plane is half-empty when I board.

 

[pacergal]

....
Vacation actually seems to have diminished since retirement.

This.
We had an extensive travel list before retirement. After knocking 4 off this year, we have enjoyed our time unplanned. We actually just sat down this weekend and reviewed our "list". Crossed off several spots as they were no longer interesting to us, but added one or two.
My "travelbug" does seem to have been diminished since retirement, not sure why. Maybe I no longer feel the need to "escape" from work!!

 

[Teacher Terry]

We usually take 2 trips/year for 10-14 days. I have booked a cruise for 2/2018 and 19. Got a good price so why not. We have 3 dogs and I don't like to be gone for too long because I miss them. We will take a 5 day RV trip the end of this month and then we take all the dogs.

 

[mickeyd]

My last vacation ended Friday. My next vacation beigns tomorrow.

 

[audreyh1]

This year was great so far for traveling. We did 3 trips for a total of approximately 10 weeks.

Right now, I'm feeling the itch to travel, but I'd like DW to pick a trip and book it, as I did all the travel arrangements this year (and last year). I don't need a new job as a travel agent.

See my sig line!

 

[FreeBear]

It’s not called vacation when you’re retired, it’s called travel. However, we take one week vacations from cooking from time to time, going to a restaurant every night for a week.

Nice! We usually don't cook or for 1-2 weeks while on vacation. This is a big part of fun, not having to do the usual home chores.

When traveling we stay in basic Hamption Inn type places. Good enough for us and it's nice to have breakfast included, avoiding having to figure this out just to get going in the morning.

We skip lunch or have a light snack "on the road". Dinner out is usually nice or even very nice for us. It is a big part of traveling.

After our last 2 weeks again, we found that we enjoyed just staying at home for awhile and cooking and making coffee. We haven't been to a coffee house in more than a month, whereas we normally go a few times a week. The vacation change of pace is nice, but leaving home and coming back.