flintnational
Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Great thread. Thanks for posting. Please keep us informed about your very interesting life! 
4 Years of FIRE & Perpetual Travel/Nomad Life
- Thread starter Diver
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Gringoretirado
Dryer sheet wannabe
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Thanks for the posts and I hope that there are many more to come. We are hoping for a similar retirement. However I plan to keep my WY residence and house as Home base and then rent for months at a time where we go maybe airbb as you suggest. We are also hoping for some diving as well.
flyingaway
Full time employment: Posting here.
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One thing about keeping a residence in the U.S. is that the cost (property tax, insurance, upkeeping, etc.), in my case, it is more than $10K a year. Plus the money could also be invested in the house is sold. This is particularly important if you don't want to return to the same place after your travel years.
Vacation4us
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Really enjoying the thread.
How do you find a he live aboard? Is there a particular website or venue you search? Not a diver here but water is my "thing".
Would love to here more.
How do you find a he live aboard? Is there a particular website or venue you search? Not a diver here but water is my "thing".
Would love to here more.
I noticed this revelation when in Queenstown, NZ during Anzac week. Sooo many dutch kids there visiting and I thought wow, that is cool. I was fortunate to be able to go to Amsterdam, Prague, Vienna, Budapest, Germany, Greenland, Mexico and of course Canada all before I graduated high school. I know a lot of my friends just didn't think that big, but my ole man sure helped me to.
I read alot of very helpful advice from full time RVers online about this issue before we left. They face similar issues with residency, etc., even though they travel mainly in the US. Basically, after we sold our house, we legally established residency in a no-tax state, got our drivers licenses there and turned in our GA ones, etc., as everyone has to establish a state of residency for such things. Each state has their own requirements to establish residency, and we were interested only in no-tax states, as are many RVers. We have our ACA policy in that no-tax state. Filed our last GA state income tax return, and that was that. There are some states that are aggressive in claiming you are still a tax resident after leaving like CA, NY, etv., so very important to clearly establish residency in your chosen state before leaving. FYI, you can easily vote in that state as well while abroad
My first stop is usually liveaboard dot com to get an idea of prices for liveaboards in a particular place. Tripadvisor sometimes has reviews for some of them.
Oh, and several people asked about pets. When our last cat died, we knew we were doing this, so no more pets. We met a young couple last week traveling with their 10 yo son and dog on a multiyear trip traveling through all of North America and South America in a converted ambulance! They were staying in the downstairs apt from us here in Mexico. Of course, we got a tour of their ambulance conversion. Now that is an adventurous family! By the way, the lights & sirens still work. That's one way to get through traffic, haha!
Cut-Throat
Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
I really admire you for doing what you want as far as Travel Vagabonds. It's not for everybody, but if you love it, then go for it!
We have been doing a modified version of Travel Nomads for 10 years now.... We leave for the 3 months of winter (Snowbirds) and immerse ourselves in a local culture. Bahamas, Australia, Hawaii, -- next year is Antigua. We spend enough time in a smaller community that we start to blend in and become locals.
At the end of three months though, we are always anxious to come home to our friends and our 'stuff' that we need for our many hobbies. I would happily shed our 'stuff' if we were not addicted to these hobbies.
But, good for you on doing what you want and not just sitting on your duff as the 95% of the population does.
We have been doing a modified version of Travel Nomads for 10 years now.... We leave for the 3 months of winter (Snowbirds) and immerse ourselves in a local culture. Bahamas, Australia, Hawaii, -- next year is Antigua. We spend enough time in a smaller community that we start to blend in and become locals.
At the end of three months though, we are always anxious to come home to our friends and our 'stuff' that we need for our many hobbies. I would happily shed our 'stuff' if we were not addicted to these hobbies.
But, good for you on doing what you want and not just sitting on your duff as the 95% of the population does.
Cut-Throat, your 3 month snowbird immersion in a different place every year sounds wonderful! Agree that we all need different things, and probably different things at different times of our lives. Finding that happy balance is what we all strive for. Sounds like you have found your Bliss. Sounds like a wonderful retirement to me.
Yes I would think having a pet would be quite difficult with this lifestyle. Many countries wouldn’t allow a pet to be brought in, and with cultural attitudes differing so much, I would think having a pet would severely limit options for places to stay.
I downloaded this and it’s very interesting. Thanks for the recommendation. Some of it is preaching to the choir here (LBYM, pay yourself first, etc.). I think their observations about adapting to other cultures are spot on. We spent three months in the USVI and realized quickly that the key to enjoyment was living as the locals do and not expecting everything to be just like the US mainland.
Glad you liked it, Scuba. I agree with you 100% on how to enjoy and be happy with different cultures. When in Rome...and Vive la Difference!
brett
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
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In our years of travel some of the unhappiest travelers, the biggest moaners/complainers, and the rudest were the ones who expected everything to be the same as home. From food to customs to accommodation. Made us wonder why they bothered to travel.
Teacher Terry
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
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Why would people expect it to be the same? You travel for a new experience. Luckily we haven’t met many complainers.
Nemo2
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
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One of the reasons we find accommodations in back alleyways, ride early morning, (preferably old), commuter trains, explore the 'wrong side of the tracks' in cities, etc, etc, is to attempt to observe places as the locals see them.
Being continually surrounded by other tourists is not on our agenda.
HI Bill
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Cool! My wife and I are divers, and our monthly budget will be about the same. You mentioned that you weren't blown away by the Great Barrier Reef. What were your favorite places to dive?
Mine so far are Maldives, Bali, Wakatobi, Palau, Caymans, and Monterey.
isisdave
Recycles dryer sheets
I just realized that we retired in January 2014, so it's been over 5 years. Somehow what they say is true, "when you're over the hill, you start to pick up speed." Seems like only three.
We tried to sell the house in 2016 without success due to local issues -- small houses sell like hotcakes, not so bigger ones. Since then we've parked an adult kid here to manage things when we're away. At the current time, we're keeping it, as we've owned it for 25 years. Although there's a mortgage, the payment is less than an apartment would be.
We spent three summers in Europe, mostly via pet-sitting. See www.trustedhousesitters.com for info on that. This year we're spending more time at home, but there's an excursion to NZ coming in October, and it's off to Europe again next April. Meanwhile there are cats in Victoria BC and Kona to be minded.
We've done this by spending down savings until recently; I started SS at 69.5 in January, and DW converted from spousal to her own benefit at 68 just this month. We own a small office condo whose mortgage will end next month, so that's like a third SS check. It'll be enough.
Nothing magic about how we got here. We're pretty frugal, and both being self-employed meant that we couldn't take long expensive vacations during our work years. So now it's "go, go, go" until we can't, at which time we'll have to settle for rocking chairs and a terabit Internet connection, I guess.
You can read about the travels at seniorgapyear.wordpress.com
She's a snorkeler, if it matters.
We tried to sell the house in 2016 without success due to local issues -- small houses sell like hotcakes, not so bigger ones. Since then we've parked an adult kid here to manage things when we're away. At the current time, we're keeping it, as we've owned it for 25 years. Although there's a mortgage, the payment is less than an apartment would be.
We spent three summers in Europe, mostly via pet-sitting. See www.trustedhousesitters.com for info on that. This year we're spending more time at home, but there's an excursion to NZ coming in October, and it's off to Europe again next April. Meanwhile there are cats in Victoria BC and Kona to be minded.
We've done this by spending down savings until recently; I started SS at 69.5 in January, and DW converted from spousal to her own benefit at 68 just this month. We own a small office condo whose mortgage will end next month, so that's like a third SS check. It'll be enough.
Nothing magic about how we got here. We're pretty frugal, and both being self-employed meant that we couldn't take long expensive vacations during our work years. So now it's "go, go, go" until we can't, at which time we'll have to settle for rocking chairs and a terabit Internet connection, I guess.
You can read about the travels at seniorgapyear.wordpress.com
She's a snorkeler, if it matters.
Thanks for sharing your exciting retirement. We have traveled across the country 4 times with our RV although for only 2 months at a time. We come home to plan and rest for our next trip. Home is now an 800 square foot house that we can lock and leave. We got rid of most of our stuff when we sold our "family home." Life is pretty good and at 2 bdrms and 1 bath, no room for the kids to move back in!
Keep sharing your adventures with us. We can all learn where we might like to go next from some of your adventures. Safe journeys and fun times for you always.
Keep sharing your adventures with us. We can all learn where we might like to go next from some of your adventures. Safe journeys and fun times for you always.
Nondivers, please skip right over this!
We just finished our planning tonight for a 2 week trip to Maldives, incl a 1 wk liveaboard! So happy to hear you liked it!
We also loved Palau. So beautiful! I hope you saw the super friendly Napolean wrase there that like to be "petted". Bali was OK, but we were over by the Liberty wreck. We have done Grand Cayman, but need to get around to the other Caymans. We have not been to Wakatobi, so will have to look into it.
Our favorite pkace so far is Indonesia, specifically Raja Ampat. Really incredible, we thought. We decided not to rough it in a homestay (could not deal with no fresh water showers!) and stayed at the only modern dive resort there, Meridian, and all their boats and equipment were brand new, the dive shop kids were all from South Africa, but all the dive guides and captains were locals who knew that water like the back of their hands. Every dive seemed better than the one before. Komodo was nice too, but the currents in some places were almost too much. That said, you will see some huge mantas there.
For wrecks, there is no comparison to Chuuk/Truk. I think there are over 60 wrecks there from WWII Operation Hailstorm (mainly shipwrecks, but also some planes). It was so eerie diving through huge ships through torpedoes and bomb holes. We dove some of the Japanese wrecks with a Japanese diver, who shared all his uw pics with us. It is their Pearl Harbor, so to speak, so that was interesting. Go sooner rather than later, as some wrecks are still full of fuel and are deteriorating.
Also, we were wowed by Tubbataha Reef in the Philippines, which we had never heard of until we got there. It is really great diving teeming with sharks, and we were arms length of a curious whale shark on one dive. Incredibly clear water and a pristine reef. It is a well protected national park reachable only by liveaboard (too far for any fishermen to ruin) and only open for diving a few months a year. If you go to the Philippines, you have to check it out. It was by random luck that we heard about it at the end of their season and caught the very last liveaboard to go. It was a bit of a rickety old boat, but the diving more than made up for it, esp the whale shark, and all the other liveaboards were gone for the season, so we had the place to ourselves. Did I say dumb luck?
You have already been to some incredible places, but there are even more to enjoy for us all. We are doing a 2 week liveaboard trip to the Red Sea in Egypt in June (from Marsa Alam) , so PM me if you like in July, and I will let you know how it compares.
Happy bubbles!
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Thanks, kimcdoug! I think an 800 square foot retirement home sounds just perfect for when we eventually slow down and want a base. I expect that will happen eventually, and the lock and leave part is "key"! Your RV adventures sound fun, too! There is so much of the U.S. we haven't seen yet, and we would like to one day.
I will check out your site. Retirement does fly by when you're having fun, doesn't it? A catsit in Kona? Hmmm, I do love cats!
While here in Chapala (we're leaving in a few weeks) Billy & Akaisha have introduced us to a single guy and a couple who are separately housesitting successfully in the area. Of course, they know of many others doing it all over like you are. The couple has a permanent 6 month housesit every year here. It is definitely something people should consider if it appeals to them, and it certainly cuts housing costs significantly.
Thanks for this post. We have considered a liveaboard in Raja Ampat. We spent 2 weeks on Gangga Island in 2015 and really liked the diving there. Maldives is on our bucket list, as is the Tubbataha Reef.
When you did the Great Barrier Reef, did you go out to Osprey Reef and Lizard Island? We are thinking of this but have read a lot about coral bleaching in that area.
Have you ever dove Papau New Guinea? That’s another one we’d like to try. So many places!
