Who does NOT want to travel after FIRE?

[danm]

I've had to travel quite a bit for my job. After FIRE, why continue it? Doesn't interest me, other than a little here on this continent maybe. Anybody else?

 

[frayne]

Feel the same way, use to travel quite a bit and have no desire to put up with the hustle and bustle anymore. Just give me a nice golf course, good motorcycle riding weather and I'll be a happy camper.

 

[WhodaThunkit]

Travel? Bah, humbug. Hate it.

 

[grumpy]

I'm pretty much a home-body. I travelled a fair bit when I was working. Now that I'm retired I prefer my regular routine. My wife likes to travel and we take at least one big trip a year. Last year we went on two cruises (Alaska and Panama Canal) and I really enjoyed them. My strong preference is travel at a relaxed pace, staying in one place for a least a few days at a time.

Grumpy

 

[SteveR]

I used to travel a lot in my previous job too.  The problem was that I did not have the time to see much while traveling; airport-hotel-manufacturing site-bar-hotel...repeat.

DW and I have a list we are making of places we want to go.  We plan on several trips a year in the US with a few days drive of home and one major international trip every year or two for a while.  We have relatives in Australia so that is on the top of the list for an extended stay.  Ireland, UK, Austria, German, France and Italy are next on the list followed by Egypt, Spain and Portugal.  After that .... we may take some cruises to see where else we might like to go.  

Hawaii and Alaska are on the list too as well as Canada and Mexico.  

We plan on limiting the number of travel days per trip to less than two weeks (except the Australia trip) so we don't get too home sick (grandkids).  

 

[Outtahere]

I don't want to travel the world but I would like a vacation now and again to some place I haven't been in the US. Other than that to be home every day with a nice routine would be my idea of FIRE. DH on the other hand wants to roam the US in a motorhome , I might like that but I'll cross that bridge when we get to it.

 

[tryan]

Airline travel is not what it used to be. I'ld rather get a root canal after waiting 3 hours to see the dentist. The wait and the seats are nearly identical.

 

[Nords]

I've had to travel quite a bit for my job. After FIRE, why continue it? Doesn't interest me, other than a little here on this continent maybe. Anybody else?

Yep, spouse puts down the remote after every episode of PBS' "Globetrekker" and says "Cross that one off the list!"

When we were working we talked for years about diving Guam or the Great Barrier Reef "when we're retired". Last year she made it to Chuuk with a friend for a week but I stayed home for parenting duty, and now we talk about doing it "when we're childless". But then you would think that we'd at least be diving the local sites more often.

Somehow among the surfing and the home improvements and the parenting and the goofing off & everything else, travel has sunk to the lowest priority.

 

[haha]

Somehow among the surfing and the home improvements and the parenting and the goofing off & everything else, travel has sunk to the lowest priority.

I think this is key. If you really like the things right around home, travel is less compelling. I suppose if I were up in Fairbanks hardly able to be sure that was the sun I saw down on the ground at noon, I would want to get out a couple times every winter. Or maybe a Florida or Mississippi summer would do the same thing.

But if things are pretty good where you are, you have only the draw of whatever you want to see or do elsewhere, rather than also having the push to get away from home.

Ha

 

[justin]

My strong preference is travel at a relaxed pace, staying in one place for a least a few days at a time.

I was going to post the exact same thing! I like the cruises too - 7 nights in the same bed, yet you get to get off the boat a few times during your cruise and see exotic locations (if you want to!).

In contrast, I find the idea of a hectic vacation where sightseeing is planned from 8:00 am till 9:00 pm every day to be exhausting and the opposite of "fun" and "relaxing". I like to make a list of stuff I'd like to do on vacation, and then pick and choose what I do on the fly - if I don't get to see certain things, then there's always later - or never.

 

[Martha]

We like to travel and have the motorhome. Nice to take your own home when you go on a trip.

It is dark and cold here, approaching the shortest day of the year. In a couple of weeks I am going on a trip all by myself via Amtrak from St. Paul to Portland to LA. Doing it up fancy with the deluxe sleeper. I have a few good books and am ready to go. First time on a big trip by myself since 1973.

 

[cute fuzzy bunny]

Both the wife and I travelled extensively before retirement. We went on one vacation together a few weeks after we met. Just a jaunt to mexico to get some heat on us in mid winter. Havent stepped into an airport in years now, and from what i've read in the news, I dont miss it.

Considering that on a trip about 6 years ago when I had a very rude ticketing clerk, that I yelled "I HAVE A KNIFE!" to get a supervisors direct and immediate attention...thats probably a good thing. I dont think the TSA would as readily accept the explanation that I really yelled "I dont have a wife!".

 

[kz]

Hubby and I have a list of places we'd like to visit but haven't done anything specific yet. Almost all are in the US and driving distance with the exception of Alaska. (and he was there this summer)

The fact is, though, that we are homebodies. We've been in our home (that we had built for us) for 19 yrs and absolutely love it. Many a night, while sitting in front of a beautiful fire in the fireplace, we comment on how lucky we are to live where we do in the house we love. Will we downsize to a smaller one-story somewhere in the next 5 yrs? I used to say "definitely" but now it's just "possibly".

We love to take daytrips around Wisconsin or to the UP or eastern Minnesota and just explore areas we've never been to before. State parks, outdoor recreational stores, wonderful restaurants, etc. And of course we have my sister's homes to visit with their lake frontage or in-ground pools. (I come from a "what's mine is yours type family who loves to have family around)

I'm sure we"ll plan a trip in the near future but for now we're happy just rising in the morning and deciding, over a cup of coffee, what we want to do for the day. Life really is good right now.

 

[Dawg52]

I haven't done a lot of traveling over the years so I want to get in my car and see some of the country. Maybe head to Montana, Idaho, etc. during those hot summer months here in the south. I don't care to fight the airports so don't plan to fly much. 

 

[cj]

Airline travel is not what it used to be.  I'ld rather get a root canal after waiting 3 hours to see the dentist.  The wait and the seats are nearly identical.

Ha!  I totally agree.  I thought we were just strange that we don't like to travel much.  We laugh because in years past, we loved to vacation in a little log cabin in the woods somewhere.  Well, now we live in a log house in the woods, and are content as we can be to just hang around the house.  Day trips are fun, but I want to be in my own bed at the end of the day.

Thanks for making me realize we aren't the only ones.  

CJ

 

[AltaRed]

Have done way too much business travel (c/w some combined pleasure trips from time to time as well - Bejing, Honk Kong, Venezuela, Rome, Venice, Amsterdam, Copenhagen, etc) over my career to want to get into many airplanes after FIRE. The human body was not meant to be hurtling through the air at 36,000 ft in a cigar tube at 500 mph. When I retire in about 4 months back to Canada, I hope not to get into a plane again (with the exception of mid-winter relief) when a 2-3 week respite to Southern USA or Central America using some of those air miles will likely be needed to maintain sanity.

I think an annual trip somewhere new is good for the body and soul, but beyond that, mostly day trips or weekend trips that are close by. Tops on my list are Australia, Ireland, UK, Rio (carnival time), and potentially Egypt (pyramids). No desire whatsoever to see Asia or Africa.

 

[SteveR]

I don't mind the airplane....it is the other people and the airline I hate to deal with.

I added up my frequent flier miles the other day.....425,000 on three airlines. I would have had three times that but my former company did not allow us to keep the miles until after I had already traveled more than 3 years in that job. Some of it is also CC miles (business and personal) but they all spend the same. We switched CC cards recently to rack up some more miles on Delta since it has a hub here so flights are easier to schedule on them due to more flights.

We will start on eating into FF miles starting in 2006 with our biggest chunks reserved for RE since we can be more flexible on available dates for the FF fare. First class to Australia sounds really good right now. That should put a nice dent in the account.

 

[lazyday]

I suppose if I had a lot more $, I'd travel some more. At least to see family more often.

I like the idea of travelling. Seeing new places and things. Going somewhere beautiful. But for me, the reality isn't as good as the concept.

One thing I'd like to do someday (though much lower on my list since I stopped working) is go live somewhere for six months where people live life with different priorities than in big city America. Probably not someplace very poor, but someplace where people value fun, friends, family, and social time, more than consuming and accumulating.
Now that I think about it, it's not just stopping work that makes me less interested in doing that, it's also because I've been spending more time with people who are more into living life than buying stuff.

 

[SteveR]

One thing I'd like to do someday (though much lower on my list since I stopped working) is go live somewhere for six months where people live life with  different priorities than in big city America. Probably not someplace very poor, but someplace where people value fun, friends, family, and social time, more than consuming and accumulating.
Now that I think about it, it's not just stopping work that makes me less interested in doing that, it's also because I've been spending more time with people who are more into living life than buying stuff.

Sounds like you might need to move to either a small town in rural America or to a sleepy country in the EU. How about France or Spain? They seem pretty laid back lazy about most things.

Reminds me of a line from Kelly's Heroes

Kelly--"What are you doing?"

Oddball--"I'm drinking wine and eating cheese, and catching some rays. You know?"

 

[danm]

Well said, after lots of travel I've finally learned the same thing. It sounds great, is great for a day or two, then you find that it's not much different than being at home. And I agree with your other sentiment. After years of traveling to Europe (many of them for multimonth trips), I finally learned that the best thing was to sit out in a cafe with coworkers with just beer and conversation. Here in the U.S. we're in and out of a resturant in an hour or two, there you park for the evening. Otherwise castles and places to visit are all the same.

I like the idea of travelling. Seeing new places and things. Going somewhere beautiful. But for me, the reality isn't as good as the concept.

Now that I think about it, it's not just stopping work that makes me less interested in doing that, it's also because I've been spending more time with people who are more into living life than buying stuff.

 

[setab]

I'm glad I read this thread. I was beginning to think I couldn't retire unless I had an insatiable appetite for travel. The fact is my wife and I are homebodies and we are okay with that. I look forward to sitting on my deck, drinking good wine, grilling and tending to my fruit trees. In the afternoon I'll probably even read something now and then.

setab

 

[yakers]

Hey stop it, this thread is wierding me out

I want to travel. Maybe get a boat and go around the world. Or go live on a canal boat in England. Or change countries each year. Travel, travel, travel.

Now the problem is....my wife. She initially agreed with me but with the arrival of our first grandchild she suddenly wants to move nearby our older son and not be gone for too long periods of time. Its this sudden change that gets me.

 

[Mr._johngalt]

Conditions under which I would enjoy traveling:

Warm weather
Good fishing/boating
Good friends
Good sex
Someone else is paying

Otherwise, forget it. I'd rather stay home.

JG

 

[Eagle43]

I love to travel and believe that's one of the goals of retiring. That said, I do agree with the sentiments of some here, i.e. that once you've seen a museum or two, that's enough. You can gee whiz historical stuff or unique places, but after a day or two it gets old. I think the idea is to be a real traveler, not a tourist. Those, like the Terhorsts and Billy and Akaisha, have the correct idea. Stay awhile. Take it easy. When you're retired, there is no rush. Oh, and travel does make your home seem nicer, once you return.

 

[deserat]

I love traveling, but I have to say after just returning from a ski trip in Canada, I really hate using the airlines - I feel so invaded after practically stripping down for them and having someone rifle through my bag. Being treated like a criminal every time gets really old after awhile.