6 Reasons You Shouldn’t Wait to Travel Until You Retire

Waiting and saving until you retire before you see the world? Stop. There are 6 reasons you shouldn’t wait to travel until you retire.

We love the US site ClubThrifty.com who show you how to Earn more. Save more. Travel more. How to design the life of your dreams, travel without guilt, and have cash to spare. We are thrilled to share this fab guest post from Club Thriftys Greg Johnson.

Over to you Greg….

For many people, the daily grind is just that — a grind. They toil away all their adult lives, looking forward to the day they can retire. Once they reach that magic number, typically between 60 and 65, they can finally start enjoying life.

With all the free time in the world, they get to tackle their bucket list and embark on the traveling adventures they’ve always dreamed of. From high-end resorts to the cheapest places to travel, the world is their oyster.

But what if it isn’t?

I’m all for hard work and delayed gratification, but waiting until retirement to travel doesn’t make sense. It leaves too much to chance. Truth be told, it’s a risk I’m not willing to take.

Here are six reasons not to wait.

1. You Should Enjoy Life Here and Now

You should absolutely enjoy your retirement, but why put off your exciting plans? What’s stopping you from enjoying a rich life that includes travel right now?

The idea of working 25-40 years so that I can finally have the life I dream of has never made sense to me. I say don’t wait — create the life you want, right here, right now.

After all, you never know what tomorrow might bring. Ask yourself, are you working to live or living to work?

I know what you’re thinking. You don’t have time to travel. Or maybe you can’t afford it and don’t think you ever could.

While you may not have unlimited free time right now, you can and should schedule travel into your life. I’m not saying quit your job and become a digital nomad (unless that appeals to you), but if you are given paid vacation time, use some of that for an actual vacation that involves travel away from home.

On the financial side, I get it. You might be working towards other goals like buying a home, paying for a child’s education, or saving for retirement. But you can budget for travel, too. You don’t have to plan a lavish weeks-long vacation. Even a long weekend away is worthwhile. Work within your current schedule and financial needs and figure out a way to take some time to get away.

A user-friendly budgeting app and the right travel rewards credit card can be powerful tools for making travel a reality. To protect your financial investment, compare travel insurance options in the USA and travel insurance in the UK to find one that meets your needs.

2. Travel While You are Young and Healthy

It’s scary to talk about, but most people are healthier during their younger years. I hope you’ll enjoy good health for many years to come, but no one knows the future. I say, if you’re healthy now and you’re able to travel, take advantage of it while you can.

This is especially true if adventure travel is on your bucket list. You can totally get into rock climbing in your 60s, but it will probably be easier in your 20s, 30s, or 40s.

Besides that, long-haul trips get more difficult as you get older. Heck, just walking around and seeing the sights can take a toll as you age. In addition to the normal aches and pains of aging, you may also have to plan around illnesses, bad knees, and more.

We’ve been fortunate enough to travel the world while young and healthy. We’ve also been able to take our parents on some wonderful trips. Although they were able to enjoy these trips, it did take a toll on them. So, travel as much as you can while you are young because you never know what tomorrow will bring.

3. Traveling Shapes Your World View

I’m a firm believer in the transformative power of travel. I don’t want to go all Eat, Pray, Love here, but discovering a passion for travel when you’re young can alter the trajectory of your life. For us, being able to travel was one of the reasons we worked so hard to build a business we can sustain from anywhere. That flexibility allows our family to travel about 20 weeks per year, and we love it!

Travel also opens your eyes to how people outside your immediate orbit live. Learning about a different culture first-hand is both humbling and empowering in a way that’s hard to describe. If you embrace it, travel makes you a more curious, compassionate human being. And I love that we can share that with our kids.

4. Tomorrow Isn’t Guaranteed

I’m not trying to be morbid, but I’m gonna be real here: Today might be all you have. When I worked as a mortician, I saw some truly heartbreaking instances of people dying before they’d had a chance to live a life they loved. Over and over again, I heard about travel plans for retirement that never happened. It was incredibly sad.

For me, it was a wakeup call. I knew I couldn’t wait for an uncertain future to pursue my passion for traveling. I realized that tomorrow is never guaranteed and that I didn’t want to have any regrets. I decided to live life to its fullest while I still could!

None of us knows when our time is up, and dwelling on that fact is a recipe for anxiety. What we can do instead is live a life that aligns with our values.

Is seeing the world important to you? Then don’t wait, make it a priority now.

5. You Can Enjoy Your Passion for Longer

For many people, travel is a passion that lies undiscovered for most of their lives. Imagine waiting until retirement to start traveling and then discovering that you love it.

Better late than never, but just imagine all the extra years you could have enjoyed traveling if you hadn’t waited. If you start young, you’ll have longer to enjoy it and will likely get to visit more places.

Travel also has a way of opening other doors. You’ll try things in a foreign country that you might never have the opportunity to try at home. It’s a road to self-discovery that can introduce new interests and passions that shape the rest of your life.

6. World Events Can Interfere with Your Plans

This ties in with the whole, “tomorrow isn’t guaranteed thing”— you never know when a major world event, like a global pandemic, will erupt and put your plans on hold indefinitely.

A year ago, a statement like that would have been funny, right? Well, nobody is laughing now. COVID-19 made 2020 the stay-at-home year, with millions of long-anticipated trips and celebrations canceled or postponed.

My heart goes out to recent retirees who were planning to finally travel in 2020. No one could have anticipated a global pandemic, but that’s just it — you never know what the future will bring. Better to capitalize on today than wait for an uncertain tomorrow.

Final Thoughts

In my humble opinion, traveling is one of the most worthwhile ways you can spend your time and money. If travel is important to you, prioritize it now. When you plan it the right way, you can enjoy your life now while still saving for your future.

Thanks for reading and happy traveling!

Greg Johnson is a personal finance and frugal travel expert who leveraged his online business to quit his 9-5 job, spend more time with his family, and travel the world.

Thanks to Greg for sharing this

There are many ways to travel smarter and travel more, making the most of deals, Air Miles and a little imagination. Visit Club Thrifty for great ideas and US offers and have a look at other posts on Mind over Money Matters for more inspiration including.