The Money Mustache Community
General Discussion => Post-FIRE => Topic started by: WSUCoug1994 on December 18, 2017, 02:48:36 PM
-
I would give myself a 7/10 on travel hacking and until the Credit Card Industry takes this all away from me I am going to continue to take advantage of it. As I am planning for my Post-Fire life I am struggling to figure out what a reasonable annual travel budget would look like. In a perfect world our little family of 4ish (Myself, Wife and Daughter and working on a fourth) and we could spend 4-6 weeks a summer slow traveling the world. Prices, duration, etc. will all change depending on when and where we go. Since we haven't done any of this as a family I don't have much of a baseline.
Any advice from those more experienced and further down the path on how to "budget" for this kind of travel?
-
Check out the rootofgood site. He does plenty of travel and lists all the costs in detail.
-
As you say,
Prices, duration, etc. will all change depending on when and where we go.
So my answer to this...
Any advice from those more experienced and further down the path on how to "budget" for this kind of travel?
... would be to work out how much you can afford and are willing to spend, and draft out rough potential itineraries that can fit into that budget. There are plenty of websites and travel blogs etc. that can help you figure out how much things cost in various countries but aside from those, as a quick glimpse, I generally look at how much a decent guesthouse would cost on accommodation-booking platforms, and that is pretty good at giving me a general idea of the level of expenditure I can expect before I research on other costs.
-
Annual budget doesn't work for me. I like to be somewhat spontaneous with the travel plans. If a great travel deal comes along, I'll take it. If I can't afford it, then I don't go.
Best thing you can do is travel when everyone else is staying home. Stay away from the crowds if possible. The problem I have is that we have 3 kids in school still.
-
I appreciate the advice everyone. I will do a little more research. Thank you.
-
There's this couple who retired like 20 years ago and they've been travelling around the world living on a daily budget of something like $50 a day. I can't remember the name of the book though or the couple... I think the Mr Money Moustache blog refers to them. Back in the day the guy wrote a book about retiring early. They have a website which is sometimes updated with all their travels.
Sorry I can't remember their names but hopefully you might be able to find them online somehow through some Google magic.
-
The Terhorsts. They retired at age ~35. I believe one of them was a Wall Street trader so they didn't go ERE style though they weren't dotcom insta-millionaires either.
-
Travel is probably our biggest expense besides housing. We spend about $600/month or $7,200/year. We don't spend very much on hotels. We book trips to visit friends and stay with them. If they want us to get a hotel we tend to go visit someone else.
-
Slow travel is so much more rewarding than rushing daily from place to place. We travel full-time in a motorhome and love it. We can do touristy things one day and then take a day or two to rest and recharge before going again. We take advantage of free and low-cost camping spots which keeps our expenses quite low. We post trip reports and monthly expenses on our blog. See link below.
-
Annual budget doesn't work for me. I like to be somewhat spontaneous with the travel plans. If a great travel deal comes along, I'll take it. If I can't afford it, then I don't go.
Best thing you can do is travel when everyone else is staying home. Stay away from the crowds if possible. The problem I have is that we have 3 kids in school still.
this is how we do it. and we have miles packed in the bank to get us to the good deal when needed from travel hacking.
-
I'm a little over a year away but my plan (and this is just for one person) is to have a travel line item in my FIRE budget of $400 a month.
This should allow for one international trip and 5-6 US based trips (some via budget airlines and some via car) each year.
I also will explore credit card hacking (not doing it yet) for free flights and some of the trips will be slow travel (like stay in one place for a month and get the monthly discount on AirBnb for example).
-
I've done mine a bit differently. I've no travel budget at this stage but have taken a one year volunteering job with an NGO in a small Pacific country that has next to zero tourism. Role includes flights too and from assignment, two trips off island during stay (so can pop down to Fiji, over to the Solomons, or back home for some R&R), western style accommodation (basic but serviceable- have running water but no hot water), all medical and insurances covered, have a small living allowance and opportunity to pass on my skills/knowledge to help strengthen the organisation I'm working at.
Maybe not everyone's cup of tea but is giving me the opportunity to get a good understanding of the people, the country and issues they are facing and is a great way to "travel" and give back at the same time.
Kakanui
-
My estimated FIRE date is a little over a year away. I have a monthly barebones budget that includes all my expected bills over the long term (including infrequent things like costly home maintenance) and averaged out per month.
The remaining figure after subtracting barebones from my take home pay is for saving/entertainment/buying non-necessities, but not broken down into separate line items. In almost every year, I saved at least 90% of it.
When I FIRE, based on a 4% WR, that remaining figure after subtracting barebones will be smaller, but traveling will probably become a new significant portion of that along with more entertainment and still some splurging on misc.
So, as a single person, that will provide about $30,000/yr. for travel/entertainment/splurging, but it's not broken down into separate line items or to a monthly basis. In fact, some vacations are much less expensive than others, so I might spend more one year due to one or more expensive vacations, then cut back the following year with some low cost vacations.
Wild card for me that could change things up is the possibility of selling my home, maybe some slow travel without a home base for an extended period of time, and eventually re-locating.
-
Thank you for the comments - this is helpful.
-
The Terhorsts. They retired at age ~35. I believe one of them was a Wall Street trader so they didn't go ERE style though they weren't dotcom insta-millionaires either.
Bill and Akaisha Kaderli have been doing it as well. Retired with $500k. Today they have much more than that. Here's a great recent article on them (and the 4% Rule):
https://assetbuilder.com/knowledge-center/articles/the-biggest-risks-of-the-4-percent-retirement-rule
-
I am struggling ...
Being a Coug this is not surprising.
Bow down to Washington!
-
I'm trying to stick to a $50/day travel/living expenses budget myself as a single person (so much cheaper per person if you have a partner) and think its highly doable even in the US.
Also single, I thought my $30K/yr travel/entertainment FIRE budget sounded pretty good from an annual perspective, but when I break it down per day, that's only $82/day. Excluding healthcare costs, that's only $124/day for everything unrelated to healthcare.
-
I was considering selling everything and going nomad. I am stuck on what to do about a home base in the US. Buy a shack in Nevada (no income tax)? Or get storage unit? Go totally base less?
-
I was considering selling everything and going nomad. I am stuck on what to do about a home base in the US. Buy a shack in Nevada (no income tax)? Or get storage unit? Go totally base less?
Just get rid of all your stuff. That's what I did. The replacement cost probably doesn't make the ongoing cost of a storage unit worth it (if you decide to settle down just buy it all over again). Do you have any family that you can just store a box or two of sentimental stuff with? As for the no income tax address, I'd just see if you can get a "roommate" in one of those states. Throw them a couple hundred bucks and have them sort your mail. Minimize your mail so the only thing showing up there is a replacement credit card or two once every few years. I know there's also services that will deal with your mail for you, but I'm not totally sure if that's legit with some banks, but that's worth a look as well. Luckily for me I have a brother in Washington state (no income tax as well).
-
I was considering selling everything and going nomad. I am stuck on what to do about a home base in the US. Buy a shack in Nevada (no income tax)? Or get storage unit? Go totally base less?
LOL how about a beater house? Its the mustashian equivalent of an old beater car. You buy it cheap, put minimal work into other than required repairs and maintenance, and you only use it as needed and could probably sell it for what you paid for it after years of use. Could work for a part time traveller who wanted a home base they didn't really have to worry about. Of course here in Cali a beater house is still going to cost a lot.
I was actually looking into this earlier this weekend in relationship to the homeless comments in the thread we were discussing RVs/vans and slow travel. In this LCOL area, about the lowest cost house I would consider as a home base and part time living is about $50K, decent small house, decent neighborhood. Then you have the other related expenses, taxes, utilities, etc. If I do the long term slow travel thing, like with an RV, I think I will either just keep my existing house (to avoid additional buying/selling despite higher expenses vs. a cheaper house that I probably wouldn't want to settle down in) or go homeless while I'm doing slow travel and concern myself with a home later. And if I decide to maintain my house or get any other house while traveling, I will probably cut back to shorter or fewer intervals of traveling through the year, as you had mentioned as well, since I'll have my home to return to vs. full time traveling. In either case, I may end up re-locating in the long run.
-
I was considering selling everything and going nomad. I am stuck on what to do about a home base in the US. Buy a shack in Nevada (no income tax)? Or get storage unit? Go totally base less?
Check out cheaprvliving.com for extensive and detailed information on almost every aspect of nomad living.
Dealing with mail => https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XylgnHXA0go
-
Slow travel is so much more rewarding than rushing daily from place to place. We travel full-time in a motorhome and love it. We can do touristy things one day and then take a day or two to rest and recharge before going again. We take advantage of free and low-cost camping spots which keeps our expenses quite low. We post trip reports and monthly expenses on our blog. See link below.
How does health insurance factor into your travel budget? I find that the hardest expense to plan for when preparing for the nomad life.
-
I was considering selling everything and going nomad. I am stuck on what to do about a home base in the US. Buy a shack in Nevada (no income tax)? Or get storage unit? Go totally base less?
Check out cheaprvliving.com for extensive and detailed information on almost every aspect of nomad living.
Dealing with mail => https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XylgnHXA0go
Bob has some good content. But, please, don't become one of those people who shits in a bucket and throws it in a dumpster.
-
I was considering selling everything and going nomad. I am stuck on what to do about a home base in the US. Buy a shack in Nevada (no income tax)? Or get storage unit? Go totally base less?
We sold or gave away everything and would do it again. Saves the expense of storage lockers and less to worry about. We aren't materialist people and stores sell stuff everyday so can always replace items if needed.
-
Slow travel is so much more rewarding than rushing daily from place to place. We travel full-time in a motorhome and love it. We can do touristy things one day and then take a day or two to rest and recharge before going again. We take advantage of free and low-cost camping spots which keeps our expenses quite low. We post trip reports and monthly expenses on our blog. See link below.
How does health insurance factor into your travel budget? I find that the hardest expense to plan for when preparing for the nomad life.
The expense will vary depending on your age, location and income. ACA plans can be very affordable if you are able to keep your income low enough to qualify for subsidies.
-
I was considering selling everything and going nomad. I am stuck on what to do about a home base in the US. Buy a shack in Nevada (no income tax)? Or get storage unit? Go totally base less?
We sold or gave away everything and would do it again. Saves the expense of storage lockers and less to worry about. We aren't materialist people and stores sell stuff everyday so can always replace items if needed.
My biggest concern would be losing original documents like birth cert, death certs, diplomas, SS card, etc.. Also hard drives with precious data. Would not want to have to replace these due to being lost in travel. Encrypt up to the cloud could be an answer for the data.
Edit: A bank safe deposit box would solve this problem.
-
I've done mine a bit differently. I've no travel budget at this stage but have taken a one year volunteering job with an NGO in a small Pacific country that has next to zero tourism. Role includes flights too and from assignment, two trips off island during stay (so can pop down to Fiji, over to the Solomons, or back home for some R&R), western style accommodation (basic but serviceable- have running water but no hot water), all medical and insurances covered, have a small living allowance and opportunity to pass on my skills/knowledge to help strengthen the organisation I'm working at.
Maybe not everyone's cup of tea but is giving me the opportunity to get a good understanding of the people, the country and issues they are facing and is a great way to "travel" and give back at the same time.
Kakanui
How do you find these types of volunteer opportunities?
-
I am struggling ...
Being a Coug this is not surprising.
Bow down to Washington!
I can promise you one thing.....never in my life will I bow down to anyone other than my wife (even though she went to UCLA) and certainly not to some hairy dawg.
-
I am struggling ...
Being a Coug this is not surprising.
Bow down to Washington!
I can promise you one thing.....never in my life will I bow down to anyone other than my wife (even though she went to UCLA) and certainly not to some hairy dawg.
Kitty-cat say what?
(http://data:image/jpeg;base64,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)
-
I would give myself a 7/10 on travel hacking and until the Credit Card Industry takes this all away from me I am going to continue to take advantage of it. As I am planning for my Post-Fire life I am struggling to figure out what a reasonable annual travel budget would look like. In a perfect world our little family of 4ish (Myself, Wife and Daughter and working on a fourth) and we could spend 4-6 weeks a summer slow traveling the world. Prices, duration, etc. will all change depending on when and where we go. Since we haven't done any of this as a family I don't have much of a baseline.
Any advice from those more experienced and further down the path on how to "budget" for this kind of travel?
I have been experimenting retirement travel since January and have used 9 pages of my new passport in 4 months. I can say that travel hacking is overrated by the bloggers who just want to write something and make some money from credit card companies.
Those points and miles are difficult to use for people who travel a lot and to low cost countries such as those in southeast Asia. The budget airlines and Hotels are convenient and cheap.
-
Agree wholeheartedly, especially for SE Asia which is insane value for money. I am currently visiting Medan and staying at one of the very top hotels there (the four points) for under $50 a night all inclusive with breakfast (huge and tasty spread). I am staying here for the star points but I can get a pretty similar hotel with equally good breakfast for under $30 a night with fewer bells and whistles which I hardly use. And all this is actually rather expensive for this area given that Medan is the local megapolis. A decent hotel at Lake Toba which is one of the most beautiful places I have ever visited and which is a few hours from here runs under $15 a night (no breakfast but with a large balcony giving a fantastic sunset view over the lake). At that cost level, the miles and points don't really matter imho. Also, the more expensive places in SE Asia don't seem all that much more beautiful but are usually better connected and more tourist friendly in terms of language and food. With a bit of adjustability and available free time, these less expensive places are amazing value for money and the people in these areas are usually very friendly and nice to tourists since they get so few. I had the unusual experience of being treated like a star at the four points as I was the only foreigner for the first few nights with the restaurant manager greeting me specially every morning. Another memorable incident was the grab bike driver I gave a 8 cent tip to yesterday (yes, that is not a typo) who was embarrassingly grateful.
All in all, I find visiting here much nicer than traveling in the US or Europe though one might face the occasional discomfort (isn't that what Moustachianism is all about anyway?).
Sent from my Lenovo P2a42 using Tapatalk
-
It is amazing what I can get here if I am prepared to spend something close to western prices. I just had dinner at the restaurant in the Four points hotel which is highly rated but almost always empty outside of the free breakfast. I got a grilled oxtail soup (local favorite) which was re-interpreted by the chef to a western style grilled oxtail which was amazingly succulent and tasty together with a decent large vegetable soup (nothing of note in it but it was fine). I rounded it out with a fresh avocado juice and the complimentary banana chips for an excellent meal in a very posh restaurant. The total bill - US$10.50 including the high goverment tax and service charge (so no tip expected)!
Now, that is very expensive for a dinner in Medan and the locals who can afford it (there are actually many as it is a major export center for palm oil and high quality wood) probably employ full time chefs at home and so have little need for restaurants. For an international traveler, this is luxury dining at almost developed country fast food prices.
(I have attached a photo of the meal but it doesn't seem to show up in the preview.)
-
It's difficult for me to do travel hacking as I'm in Australia and with low income I'm often not eligible for the credit cards with the really great deals. But as what has been said above, with low cost countries it's not a big deal if you don't travel hack. And thankfully, Australia is not too far from Asia, and AirAsia operates here, so that works well for me. Also I'm not properly retired but I like to do mini-retirements in Asia, and being in the same region for months helps bring down the average daily cost.
-
I was considering selling everything and going nomad. I am stuck on what to do about a home base in the US. Buy a shack in Nevada (no income tax)? Or get storage unit? Go totally base less?
LOL how about a beater house? Its the mustashian equivalent of an old beater car. You buy it cheap, put minimal work into other than required repairs and maintenance, and you only use it as needed and could probably sell it for what you paid for it after years of use. Could work for a part time traveller who wanted a home base they didn't really have to worry about. Of course here in Cali a beater house is still going to cost a lot.
I guess the question is why do you feel that you need a home base? I would not want the bruden of a house if I was gone. Who would look after it?
I am going to travel a year. I am going to rent out my apartment, get a safe for jewelry and some papersstuff and store most of the other stuff. The sofa and book shelf will be sold because they cost to much so store. Officially I am moving to my parents place so they can deal with the mail.
-
We have what I feel is the ultimate travel hack...my GF works in the airline industry and we just fly standby for free, or if it’s not on her company’s plan we get about an 80% discount on the fairs. It’s awesome, she can shift her schedule around and open up big blocks of time, then as long as we are flexible on when we leave or get home it’s never an issue. Best part is we negotiate on VRBO places that are not filled last minute and get great deals. Definitely not for the Polly planners of the so le that’s for sure! In the last year we will have used $80k (admittedly first class international adds up fast) of airfare for about $1k in taxes and fees. Beyond that we probably spend $20k a year in travel/fun related expenses above and beyond what normal living expenses would have been anyway. In a couple years she can retire with flight benefits for life...it’s a pretty good set up!
-
We worked hard, as does everyone, for our retirement fund and darn it...We are spending it!
$20,000 a year minimum....good hotels, good flights..first class I’d needed.
Spend the inheritance!
-
We worked hard, as does everyone, for our retirement fund and darn it...We are spending it!
$20,000 a year minimum....good hotels, good flights..first class I’d needed.
Spend the inheritance!
I mentioned $30K/yr earlier, but that's just for me. Since I'm not too crazy about flying and want to save the environment, I figure I'll do most of my traveling on a bicycle. hehehe
-
$30000 on a bike! Woohoo...
I didn’t even think about what we spend on travel here, just the “big”trips. Actually, after adding it up 2018 trips are at about $25,000 right now....that’s cross Canada on the train and exploring the maritimes, then India and Nepal. Just back from Vancouver island...but didn’t count that.
Can’t bike that far, but I do commend your environmentally friendly travel.
-
$30000 on a bike! Woohoo...
I didn’t even think about what we spend on travel here, just the “big”trips. Actually, after adding it up 2018 trips are at about $25,000 right now....that’s cross Canada on the train and exploring the maritimes, then India and Nepal. Just back from Vancouver island...but didn’t count that.
Can’t bike that far, but I do commend your environmentally friendly travel.
I was being slightly facetious. I would like to do some biking travel, maybe some RV/van slow travel, and take the bike with me, but I am not too excited about traveling abroad or flying in general. It's not completely outside of the realm though, so I'll see how things play out after I FIRE next year. With a $30k/yr travel and entertainment budget as a single person, I have some options.
-
$30000 on a bike! Woohoo...
I didn’t even think about what we spend on travel here, just the “big”trips. Actually, after adding it up 2018 trips are at about $25,000 right now....that’s cross Canada on the train and exploring the maritimes, then India and Nepal. Just back from Vancouver island...but didn’t count that.
Can’t bike that far, but I do commend your environmentally friendly travel.
I was being slightly facetious. I would like to do some biking travel, maybe some RV/van slow travel, and take the bike with me, but I am not too excited about traveling abroad or flying in general. It's not completely outside of the realm though, so I'll see how things play out after I FIRE next year. With a $30k/yr travel and entertainment budget as a single person, I have some options.
Yeah that's a pretty large travel budget, and depending on the duration and type of trips, you probably won't need as much as you think. I have found travelling solo to be much more expensive then travelling with others if not flying or using mass transit so you're probably wise to have a higher budget for the type of travel you'll be doing (road trips in North America). Other than food costs, your expenses will probably be double than if you were travelling with another person. Kind of sucks but the trade off is you can do what you want with out having to be considerate of others.
Thanks. I thought $30K/yr sounded pretty good for all the excesses over my basic budget, but it doesn't seem like so much when I break it down per month or day. That's based on maintaining my home and not traveling full time. If I sold my house, that would free up about $8500/yr (not including opportunity cost of the funds from the house - LCOL and much less expensive than yours.) That's not something I would do early on - need to test the waters (I know we discussed this before.)
I can't even think of anyone that could travel with me - someone who is single, retired, can finance their share, and might actually be interested in some slow travel. Nine years ago, an ex-gf of mine said she wanted to retire at 50 and travel. At the time, I asked how she could do that, and I said she would run out of money. She said she would go back to work later if she had to. I told her I could never afford that. It was only briefly discussed. Funny, because that's when I was still expecting to work until 65 to 67, and now I'm looking at over a decade earlier. And now, she's probably the one who is going to keep working. lol
-
We take 2 trips/year and spend between 10-14k. This year we took a cruise and will do a 5k/miles trip in the states with our car and 3 dogs. NOt taking the RV because with the cost of RV sites and gas we can stay in motel 6's which are dog friendly for the same price.
-
We take 2 trips/year and spend between 10-14k. This year we took a cruise and will do a 5k/miles trip in the states with our car and 3 dogs. NOt taking the RV because with the cost of RV sites and gas we can stay in motel 6's which are dog friendly for the same price.
Many Motel 6s limit the number of dogs to two. We have found letting some place like bringfido.com call them for prior approval helps to get the limit waived.
Also, we find LaQuinta pretty receptive to more than two when called by bringfido.com. We also find them a bit nicer than Motel 6.
-
Because the 2 Little ones weighed 5 lbs each and all Maltese are white we just put one in a bag and no one is the wiser. They are pad trained so no need to go out.
-
We take 2 trips/year and spend between 10-14k. This year we took a cruise and will do a 5k/miles trip in the states with our car and 3 dogs. NOt taking the RV because with the cost of RV sites and gas we can stay in motel 6's which are dog friendly for the same price.
wow, those are expensive trips! do you have kids? The wife and I do 3-4 weeklong trips/year together at a cost of @$3k/trip. Generally to Mexico/Latin America (Costa Rica, Honduras, Panama). Typically, airfare + hotel runs @$1,800, then $200-$300 for a rental car, the rest spent on food and activities (surfboard rentals, scuba diving, etc.). Every few years we'll do a trip to Europe, which tends to run us @$4k-$5k for 10-14 days. Also, each year I do 2 solo trips, one snowboarding out west, one rock climbing out west. These are far cheaper trips (esp. the latter which involves camping instead of hotels).
-
We are 63 so our camping days are behind us unless we take our RV. Our kids are long grown. We spend about 5-6k for a cruise. We go early to the city we are leaving from to explore and then stay in the port we go home from also. When we go to Europe we go for 2 weeks and Poland cost us 5k whereas Italy cost us 8k.
-
We take 2 trips/year and spend between $10K-$14K. This year we took a cruise and will do a 5k/miles trip in the states with our car and 3 dogs. NOt taking the RV because with the cost of RV sites and gas we can stay in motel 6's which are dog friendly for the same price.
wow, those are expensive trips! do you have kids? The wife and I do 3-4 weeklong trips/year together at a cost of $3K/trip. Generally to Mexico/Latin America (Costa Rica, Honduras, Panama). Typically, airfare + hotel runs $1,800, then $200-$300 for a rental car, the rest spent on food and activities (surfboard rentals, scuba diving, etc.). Every few years we'll do a trip to Europe, which tends to run us $4K-$5K for 10-14 days. Also, each year I do 2 solo trips, one snowboarding out west, one rock climbing out west. These are far cheaper trips (esp. the latter which involves camping instead of hotels).
When we go to Europe we go for 2 weeks and Poland cost us $5K whereas Italy cost us $8K.
Expensive travelers on here I see. Heck, that makes my $30K/yr discretionary budget (for me alone) seem inadequate for much traveling when I FIRE. The $30K will have to cover everything beyond my necessary expenses (barebones) including local entertainment, so the entire $30K can't go to travel. I think I'll stick to US and Canada, though, and drive. I'm not too crazy about going to Mexico, South/Central America, or overseas.
We are 63 so our camping days are behind us unless we take our RV. Our kids are long grown. We spend about $5K-$6K for a cruise.
Yikes! That's a little too cashy for me. I think I'll stick to land and small boats.
-
We did not travel much until about 15 years ago. Now this is our time to enjoy while we both are healthy
-
We did not travel much until about 15 years ago. Now this is our time to enjoy while we both are healthy
You have at least a 16 year head start on me then. :)
I'm not saying that you shouldn't travel if you can afford it, but those figures add up quickly if you're FIREd and have all year to travel, and my $30K discretionary isn't going to allow that much traveling at that expense, not that I'll have to sit at home, though. :) I'll look at more frugal ways to stretch my $30K/yr discretionary. If I OMY to 2020 instead of 2019, that only buys me about 10% extra - not really worth it.
-
We lost 3 friends between the ages of 59-67 and know couples where one person is not healthy enough for travel. So we are doing what we want while we can. Also by age 80 many people say that traveling is a hassle.
-
We lost 3 friends between the ages of 59-67 and know couples where one person is not healthy enough for travel. So we are doing what we want while we can. Also by age 80 many people say that traveling is a hassle.
Yeah, my parents used to travel a lot, but my dad had to get a pacemaker and he read (potentially an urban myth) that airport metal detectors can disrupt a pacemaker and now he refuses to fly. They still take a cruise once a year but that’s it. My parents are 79 and 73. They travelled a lot until dad hit 70 and then have really wound back. He got the pacemaker 2 years ago at 77.
DW and I are looking to have a big travel budget of $18K a year and arelooking at it as $200/day for 90 days a year, or $300 a day for 60 days a year, and if we want to do something pricey we will still be able to travel for 36 days in any year on a budget of $500/ day.
-
WE see many people in their 80's on cruises and I think it is because everything is done for you and provided in one location.
-
We lost 3 friends between the ages of 59-67 and know couples where one person is not healthy enough for travel. So we are doing what we want while we can. Also by age 80 many people say that traveling is a hassle.
Yeah, I don't blame you. I think I would do more of that when I FIRE if I could. But after $20K/yr in expenses, that leave about $30K/yr discretionary (total), so I'll have to pick and choose my spots to make the $ go the furthest and otherwise limit my traveling, just like itchyfeet.
-
It might have been smarter for us to start traveling younger but we didn’t. So now we are partying on😂
-
Expensive travelers on here I see. Heck, that makes my $30K/yr discretionary budget (for me alone) seem inadequate for much traveling when I FIRE. The $30K will have to cover everything beyond my necessary expenses (barebones) including local entertainment, so the entire $30K can't go to travel. I think I'll stick to US and Canada, though, and drive. I'm not too crazy about going to Mexico, South/Central America, or overseas.
Your budget sounds like a lot to me too. :p
-
So I estimate this summers 6 week driving trip will cost about 5k. With having 3 dogs and one a 80lb shedding machine we booked motels unless someone offered to put us up. We will eat out one meal a day which will usually be dinner and use the cooler for the other meals. Most places we are paying 50/night for motels. We are staying in 3 expensive places during the trip so it will be higher in those places. We also booked 3 airbnb’s Which are apartments attached to a house. When people come to visit we always offer to put them up but with our current dog situation I don’t expect that of others. We have talked about taking this trip for years so super excited that we are finally doing it.
-
Expensive travelers on here I see. Heck, that makes my $30K/yr discretionary budget (for me alone) seem inadequate for much traveling when I FIRE. The $30K will have to cover everything beyond my necessary expenses (barebones) including local entertainment, so the entire $30K can't go to travel. I think I'll stick to US and Canada, though, and drive. I'm not too crazy about going to Mexico, South/Central America, or overseas.
Your budget sounds like a lot to me too. :p
LOL. Yeah, everything is relative. But if I divide that $30K discretionary out over a full year, that's only $82/day or $574/wk. If I limit my traveling, then I can concentrate more spending within a shorter time period when I actually travel. I thought about selling the house and doing some slow travel for a while, but that only gives me about $700/mo extra to spend, and then I lose my home base.
-
Expensive travelers on here I see. Heck, that makes my $30K/yr discretionary budget (for me alone) seem inadequate for much traveling when I FIRE. The $30K will have to cover everything beyond my necessary expenses (barebones) including local entertainment, so the entire $30K can't go to travel. I think I'll stick to US and Canada, though, and drive. I'm not too crazy about going to Mexico, South/Central America, or overseas.
Your budget sounds like a lot to me too. :p
LOL. Yeah, everything is relative. But if I divide that $30K discretionary out over a full year, that's only $82/day or $574/wk. If I limit my traveling, then I can concentrate more spending within a shorter time period when I actually travel. I thought about selling the house and doing some slow travel for a while, but that only gives me about $700/mo extra to spend, and then I lose my home base.
$82/day could go a long way but it depends what you like I guess. For example I don't really do camping, which I know can be very cheap. However I like to travel in Asia and it's easy to not spend very much there and I imagine it's similar for Mexico and Central and South America, but if you're not interested in those places then it is what it is.
-
I actually don’t like hot, humid countries and not interested in Asian countries. I love, love Europe. We went to Thailand and although beautiful that cured me. My son is moving to Vietnam to teach English so we will go there only to see him. However, I recently found out through dna testing that I have a half sister in Australia so will see her on the way.
-
Actually this summer trip is only costing 119/day. I am a homebody so if I cannot take my dogs don’t want to be gone longer than 2 weeks.
-
I actually don’t like hot, humid countries and not interested in Asian countries. I love, love Europe. We went to Thailand and although beautiful that cured me. My son is moving to Vietnam to teach English so we will go there only to see him. However, I recently found out through dna testing that I have a half sister in Australia so will see her on the way.
Not all Asian countries are hot and humid! But yes the SE Asia part tends to be. Still, I know mountainous regions in some parts of SE Asia that are quite nice and cool.
If you don't like hot, avoid Australia in summer (though it depends on the area also, Tasmania doesn't get too hot). My favourite season in Australia is autumn.
-
Since I don't stay in posh hotels, I find travel hacking is good for long distance flights. Asia is pretty amazing. Two thirds of the world lives on our continent http://www.nationsonline.org/oneworld/world_population.htm and the economies and cultures in the region have a pivotal role in the 21st century. To me, the west - particularly Europe - feels so old and stale after Asia's dynamism. To each their own of course! The world's a wonderful place, aren't we so lucky to have the time and technology to explore it.
-
Yes I went to Thailand in winter and the heat was horrible. If we all liked the same thing it would be boring.
-
Yes I went to Thailand in winter and the heat was horrible. If we all liked the same thing it would be boring.
You must have been to Bangkok or something like that. Mountain villages up north are different (in both climate and culture). Kind of like Alaska and Arizona are both in the same country but give you a different experience...
-
Thailand's divided into various regions, each with different climates and cultures: North (Lanna), Northeast (Lao culture), Central plains (including Bkk), the South (Muslim, with its most famous islands), and Southeast (coast near Cambodia). Generally, late Jan -> mid March is the hottest time of year, before the monsoon comes to cool things down. Northern Thailand can be nice from Oct-December, as is northern Vietnam (esp Sapa and other hill towns).
We all travel for different regions and different styles. Over the years mine have changed: from learning about the world via art study and internships in Europe my 20s, to exploring inspiration and possibilities of where to live and make art in my 30s (Asia/Sicily), to travel for artwork production and exhibition in my 40s (Asia, Europe, USA). I travel a lot, but the leisure aspect is a side benefit to the main purpose of the trip, like tacking on a couple days on an island between exhibitions. My career means life and work are inseparable and drive each other on. Not true for most who sensibly have more delineation between work and private life.
-
Yes we were in Bangkok. My kids were in India and said the poverty was bad. We have traveled to the Caribbean many times and some of the poverty is awful in some of those countries too.
-
I once spent 3 months bumming around SE Asia and had an awesome and very, very cheap time.
But I also remember the first time I went to Bangkok when I was 19, 9 years before that extended trip.
I had a 4 day stopover there on my way home from hiking in Nepal. I managed to pick up a stomach virus and spent nearly the whole time in Bangkok lying on a dirty mattress in a concrete cell on Khao San Road (paying $2 a night for the “room”), sweating buckets in the searing heat and running back and forth from the toilet every 15mins. It was a lonely and very unpleasant experience.
The only other thing I recall from that first trip to BK was Patpong... but that’s a story for a different forum. Lol. A real eye opener for a young lad.
Since that first memorable trip, DW and I have always had a good time in Bangkok but wen no longer stay in concrete cells.
-
We stayed in a fancy hotel but they gave us bottled water and told us to use that to brush our teeth. We were careful not to drink anything unless it came in a sealed bottle. We did not use ice either. They had tons of fresh fruit but we didn't touch it because of worrying about getting sick.
-
Expensive travelers on here I see. Heck, that makes my $30K/yr discretionary budget (for me alone) seem inadequate for much traveling when I FIRE. The $30K will have to cover everything beyond my necessary expenses (barebones) including local entertainment, so the entire $30K can't go to travel. I think I'll stick to US and Canada, though, and drive. I'm not too crazy about going to Mexico, South/Central America, or overseas.
Your budget sounds like a lot to me too. :p
LOL. Yeah, everything is relative. But if I divide that $30K discretionary out over a full year, that's only $82/day or $574/wk. If I limit my traveling, then I can concentrate more spending within a shorter time period when I actually travel. I thought about selling the house and doing some slow travel for a while, but that only gives me about $700/mo extra to spend, and then I lose my home base.
$82/day could go a long way but it depends what you like I guess. For example I don't really do camping, which I know can be very cheap. However I like to travel in Asia and it's easy to not spend very much there and I imagine it's similar for Mexico and Central and South America, but if you're not interested in those places then it is what it is.
I think it would be interesting to go to those places, but they are high risk when it comes to safety and security. Also, I don't speak the language and would stand out among the natives, which would make me a target.
-
We stayed in a fancy hotel but they gave us bottled water and told us to use that to brush our teeth. We were careful not to drink anything unless it came in a sealed bottle. We did not use ice either. They had tons of fresh fruit but we didn't touch it because of worrying about getting sick.
!!? They sound paranoid. Using tap water to brush teeth is perfectly fine throughout Thailand and pretty much anywhere in SE Asia (perhaps remote Burma an exception - only place I've used tap water was in Haiti). Re. the fruit etc if you have immune issues or are eating cut fruit from street vendors during a short trip sure but from a good hotel *should* be fine. Washing hands often goes a long way.
In a couple years of living/traveling through SE Asia (over a year in Thailand) I was ill just once in Thailand from an undercooked coconut dessert made by a street vendor. Thais lean toward extreme fastidiousness and the country is one of the more developed in the region. Cambodia and Burma were a different story entirely ;)
-
Yeah I've always used tap water to brush my teeth in Thailand! I also had plenty of iced drinks there - even from roadside stalls, and salads. The only country I've used purified water to brush my teeth so far is Nepal.
I think it would be interesting to go to those places, but they are high risk when it comes to safety and security. Also, I don't speak the language and would stand out among the natives, which would make me a target.
I think there are some countries that are not so high-risk, or within the same country many areas are safe and you just need to steer clear of certain areas. Yes not speaking the language and standing out as a foreigner certainly can make you more of a target for scammers, pickpockets etc. Some reading up on potential things to avoid and being cautious can go a long way. But I can understand that you may find that stressful and just want to avoid it altogether.
-
These days the world is so heavily touristed that you really need to get well off the tourist trail to really stand out and be an oddity.
The only place where I felt people were really curious about me, or more accurately my DW, was in China... not in Shanghai or Beijing so much, but even on the Great Wall in Beijing, Chinese domestic tourists from regional China were quite fascinated by us.
Generally people are just not that interested in what I am doing.
Over the years I have been subject to a few minor scams, and some I prob didn’t even realized happened. It’s has never worried me. It’s part of the fun.
I have had friends robbed at knife point in Brazil but I have been lucky this far.
Currently I live in the Middle East which gives me great access to Africa and Eastern and Central Europe. We are Trying to see as much as we can whilst living here.
-
A Thai women I met on the plane told me I had been smart to avoid the fruit. She said she eats it on a yearly basis when going home but got sick that year. This was 20 years ago. It is not a place I wish to return to anyways. Interesting when I said on another retirement site the amount of $ we spend on trips a year one person said I must only do domestic travel because you can't go to Europe for one trip what we spend on 2. I laughed as we do go to Europe. Some people on that site spend between 25-50k/year traveling.
-
Cassie, I fully expect and want to spend 25,000 to 50,000 is travel every year TIL i can’t walk any more! 😉
Did Vietnam...but a tour. It was great and really a good buy! Ate fruit and raw veg, but in good hotels. We had iced coffee from small shops. I had no gut issues, no one on our tour was sick. We did eat off hotel too....
I have travelled cheap my whole life, and we saved and saved and saved...and now it’s time to reap the rewards! I still look for great deals but...there are limits
-
BG, we look for deals too. Traveling is one of ours biggest pleasures but then I miss home if I am gone to long. I booked a cruise 18 months in advance because I got it cheaper. I went on that trip with my sister and she gets diarrhea easily and then can’t get rid of it. For some reason we were only gone for a week so spent 2 days traveling and only had 5 days there. I can’t remember why we didn’t stay longer but it might have been that I didn’t have enough vacation time because we went less than a year after I started a new job. It was definitely too far to go for such a short time.
-
Remember, every day that you are traveling is a day that you're not at home, so you're not buying food at the supermarket, not using your air conditioning, not spending from your entertainment budget, not driving around in your car, etc. So, your travel budget is partly offest by reductions in those costs.
In fact, my experience is that I spend about the same whilst on holiday as when I'm at home, without factoring in the airfares. That's based on a mix of mostly cheaper travel in Asia, Mexico, etc., with some US and Europe (maybe 30%) thrown in to the mix.
Hence, taking advantage of frequent flyer miles, airfare sales, discount airlines like Spirit and WOW, and off peak travel can make a huge difference. For example, I wanted to visit my cousin in Seattle but I waited until I found a round trip flight on Spirit for $193. Being FIRE gives one the flexibility to take advantage of that kind of opportunity.
The way that I budget for trips is to come up with a travel budget that includes all travel expenses (this year it'll be $11,000 for 12 weeks of travel in six trips - Kyrgyzstan, 2 weeks, $2500; Mexico, 1 week, $1,300; Dublin, 1 week, $1,200; Vietnam, 2.5 weeks, $2,000; Indonesia, 4.5 weeks, $3,000; Zion/Bryce Canyon, 1 week, $1,000) but to do my other expense calculations on a weekly basis and to come up with my annual numbers for those categories based on the number of weeks I'll actually be at home (40).
-
I agree with this approach, but in my budget there are also many expenses that do not reduce when I am traveling like land taxes and insurance. Also long term costs like car depreciation or home repairs are not reduced because I spend a month or 2 overseas. For this reason I think you need 3 pools of funds
1. Recurrent costs for the weeks you are at home
2. Travel costs for the weeks you are away
3. Annual costs that are not affected by you being at home or not.
-
I agree with this approach, but in my budget there are also many expenses that do not reduce when I am traveling like land taxes and insurance. Also long term costs like car depreciation or home repairs are not reduced because I spend a month or 2 overseas. For this reason I think you need 3 pools of funds
1. Recurrent costs for the weeks you are at home
2. Travel costs for the weeks you are away
3. Annual costs that are not affected by you being at home or not.
Of course.
In fact there are some expenses that may go up while you're away, such as kennel costs, house sitters, etc.
-
If you like to travel for low cost and are in no rush, crewing sailboats is a fine way to travel. You can get onto boats with no or minimal experience at many points around the world.
As an example, there are a great many sailboats moving from the Mediterranean to the Caribbean in the months of October to December, following the sun and the trade winds. Similarly, many boats go from the Caribbean/Eastern Seaboard to Europe and the Med in the Spring to get out of Hurricane country.
There are many locales where it is possible for a person or couple to hitch a ride on a wonderful sailboat for zero dollars, or sometimes the cost of food. Some boats requests a contribution to expenses, but it is usually quite reasonable.
By way of example, a friend and I hung around Gibraltar for awhile in November looking to crew a trip to the Caribbean, and after a few days found a boat that took us to the Canaries, then on to Martinique for a grand total of $125 each (groceries). It took a couple of months, but what a fantastic trip.
Check out www.crewseekers.net (http://www.crewseekers.net) for more information, or the boards on Sailing Anarchy (http://forums.sailinganarchy.com/index.php?/forum/11-crew-pool-anarchy/).
Of course, women travelling along must be cautious about which boats they pick - most are fine or excellent, but the middle of an ocean is no time to unmask a jerk.
-
I still have to eat, I still have to drive or use transportation, I would have to pay someone to mow my lawn, I would still have utility bills (albeit a little lower), I still have to pay for insurance and many other bills including expensive property tax and homeowner's insurance. On balance, any offset by being away from home is insignificant.
Interesting when I said on another retirement site the amount of $ we spend on trips a year one person said I must only do domestic travel because you can't go to Europe for one trip what we spend on 2. I laughed as we do go to Europe. Some people on that site spend between 25-50k/year traveling.
I could do $35K/yr max assuming I had little discretionary spending outside of traveling. That's just for myself not a couple and assume I would be traveling alone. I think a lot about relocating after I FIRE, and if I sell my house and do some interim full time slow travel, that would free up another $8K/yr., so $43/K yr total towards travel/entertainment, but it would be full time with no home base to retreat to, and I don't think I would keep that up for long.