Why I Am Choosing Slow Travel in Retirement

As I plan for retirement, I am settling on the idea of spending several weeks in one place. I want time to explore an area, follow the interests that bring me there, and have ordinary days for writing, reading, and enjoying the outdoors. I also want to keep Bobo with me, sharing a routine that gives us both time to settle in.

For me, slow travel means using one place as a base long enough to become familiar with it. There is time for museums and day trips, but also groceries, laundry, dog walks, and an afternoon at home. Those everyday details are becoming part of how I choose where I want to go.

I have shared quite a bit about cruising here, and selected cruises will continue to be part of my retirement plans. Longer stays with Bobo would provide another way to travel, with more control over where we live and how we spend our days. As I begin putting those experiences together, I want to explain what appeals to me about slow travel and how that is shaping the planning.

Why I Want to Travel Slowly

For most of my working life, travel has had boundaries. There are only so many vacation days, a flight home on a particular date, and work waiting when I return. Retirement will give me the opportunity to travel differently.

I want to see parts of the United States I have never seen, particularly smaller towns and communities that are easy to miss when the goal is simply getting from one destination to the next. I want enough time to learn where the grocery store is, find a favorite coffee shop, wander through a local museum, take Bobo for a walk, or spend a day doing very little without feeling that I have wasted precious vacation time.

I remember taking the Greyhound bus from Knoxville to Evansville when I was growing up. There was an express bus that took the interstate and a local bus that followed the highway system. The express got you there faster. The local stopped in all those small towns along the way. I didn’t think of it as a philosophy of travel then, but I understand the difference now.

I’m seeing this part of travel much like choosing between the express and local. The interstate is designed to get me efficiently from one destination to another. The highway takes me through the towns and landscapes the interstate was designed to bypass. I still have destinations I want to reach and things I want to see. But in retirement, I have the chance to choose the local more often. I don’t want the pace of getting somewhere to swallow up the experience of getting there. I want to see what is in between.

What past travel has helped me understand

My Alaska retirement travel test drive gave me useful experience of having unstructured time while still doing some work. I spent time on my balcony reading and watching the scenery, and I continued working on Solo Travel by Design. I enjoyed easing into the mornings, going for a walk, and returning to some work before joining others in the common areas.

Alaska’s mountainous shoreline across calm water, with low clouds along the slopes. — Alaska helped me recognize the pace I enjoy.

That rhythm is something I want to carry into retirement. I enjoy having places to explore and people around me, while also having time to spend on my own interests. A longer stay could give me room for both without having to decide every morning how to make the most of a short visit.

A cruise also takes care of meals, housekeeping, and transportation between destinations. In a rental, I will have responsibility for those things, along with more choice about how to arrange them. Alaska helped clarify the pace I enjoy; a longer land stay will help me learn how that pace works when I am organizing everyday life myself.

What draws me to a place

Water is one of the things that draws me to an area. I enjoy watching the scenery and having somewhere pleasant to spend time outside. That does not necessarily mean paying for a waterfront property. Access to a shoreline could be enough, depending on the location, the cost, and how easily Bobo and I could enjoy it.

History and museums are another draw. Presidential libraries, halls of fame, and local historical sites are the kinds of outings I would like to build into my travels. Several weeks in one area would let me spread those visits out and return to something that deserves more time.

I am picturing a larger day trip once or twice a month, with shorter local outings when they appeal to me. I would enjoy being able to spend a day at a museum and have an ordinary start to the next morning. A place with several interesting possibilities could keep me engaged without needing a full sightseeing schedule.

Season matters because I prefer mild weather and expect to spend time outdoors with Bobo. I also want opportunities to participate locally: a yarn shop with a fiber group, a library program, or an occasional volunteer activity with a manageable commitment. I am exploring Leave Something Warm as a way to bring crochet into my travels and contribute something useful where I stay. What that looks like will depend on the community and what local organizations need.

Choosing somewhere Bobo and I could live comfortably

A longer stay changes what I look for in accommodation. I want an entire private dwelling where I can follow my own routine, with comfortable seating, a usable table for writing, and reliable internet. A kitchen where I can actually prepare meals matters because cooking will be part of living there for several weeks.

I picture a fairly ordinary morning: walking Bobo, making breakfast, and spending some time writing before deciding whether to go out. The space needs to work for that kind of day as well as for the days when I have something planned. A comfortable chair may get more use than an impressive feature in the listing photographs.

Bobo, a tan dog wearing a black harness and leash, standing on a grassy path beside tall grasses. — Somewhere to walk Bobo is part of what makes a place work for both of us.

Bobo belongs in that decision from the beginning. I will need to confirm that a rental accepts a dog of his size and that we have practical places to walk. His needs also shape how far I drive between bases and what I arrange when an outing would keep me away for much of the day.

Laundry, groceries, parking, and access to the places I expect to use regularly deserve the same attention. A listing can establish some of those facts, but a stay will reveal how convenient they feel over time. That is part of what I hope to learn before making several similar bookings.

How I am weighing the choices

The STBD Discernment Framework helps me connect the reason I want an experience with the arrangements it requires. Its seven considerations are pace, complexity, energy, flexibility, value, comfort, and logistics. I use them to think through an appealing idea in enough detail to picture what the experience might be like.

Suppose two rentals could work for us. One costs less but requires more driving for walks, groceries, and the places I want to visit. The other costs more but makes those ordinary activities easier. I would want to understand how often we would benefit from the better location and whether that difference is worth the added cost.

Comfort and logistics are visible in the space and its surroundings. Energy and pace come into the amount of activity and driving I would enjoy, while flexibility includes what I could change if the arrangement did not work as expected. Looking at those things together gives me a more useful basis for choosing than the nightly rate alone.

Beginning to give the first months a shape

I am starting with the broad sequence of the first several months: the transition out of the townhouse, an initial longer stay with Bobo, selected cruises, and further stays around them. Some commitments have dates attached; other parts are still possibilities. Seeing them together will help me judge how much to arrange before leaving work and where I want room for the next decision.

My preference is to sell the townhouse, and the timing of that transition will affect the first accommodation I need. An earlier sale could mean temporary housing before I am ready for the first longer stay. I need to account for that possibility when I look at rental availability and decide when to commit.

Since I plan to keep New Jersey as my home base for mail, doctors, and vet visits, I need to distinguish returning to New Jersey from returning to an available home. Once the townhouse is no longer available to me, a visit for appointments or Bobo’s care will require somewhere to stay. Those return visits belong on the same calendar as the more obvious travel.

For the first longer stay, I want enough time to settle into the arrangement and see how it feels. Each move involves packing, driving, unpacking, and finding our way around again. I am willing to do that to explore another area, but the time between moves is part of what makes this way of traveling appealing.

I can begin by comparing a small number of places against the life I have described here. Then I can look at actual accommodation, the complete cost, and how the stay fits between other commitments. That gives the planning a useful order while leaving later choices open.

Where cruises fit

I enjoy cruising for its own reasons: sea days, scenic sailing, and time to enjoy the ship. I will include selected cruises alongside longer land stays, choosing sailings for the experience they offer and how they fit into the broader plan.

The transitions will need just as much thought as the sailing. My plan is to return to New Jersey for Bobo’s familiar boarding arrangements before international travel. That means considering the preceding stay, the return drive, accommodation around the trip, and where we would go after I collect him.

A cruise may fit the budget and still involve more moving around than I want at that point. Leaving some time around it could make the sequence more comfortable, but those days also need somewhere to stay. Looking at the whole trip will help me decide whether a sailing fits the months around it.

Putting costs beside the choices

Once a possible sequence takes shape, I can put costs beside each part. For a land stay, I need the complete accommodation charge, including applicable fees and pet costs, along with transportation, food, and the ordinary expenses that continue. For a cruise, I need the travel to and from the ship, any surrounding accommodation, and Bobo’s full boarding period.

I also need to identify what one arrangement replaces. Meals may be included during a cruise, while a rental gives me a kitchen and a different food budget. Comparing the complete period will help me avoid counting an expense twice or overlooking costs between the stays.

The next decisions

I know more about the kind of retirement travel I want to try than I do about exactly how it will feel. I still need to learn whether the length of stay suits us, whether the accommodation supports the routines I imagined, and how Bobo settles into different places. The first stays should give me information I can use in choosing the next ones.

I want to share those choices as they become more concrete: what drew me to a place, what I found when I looked at accommodation, and how the costs and practical arrangements affected the decision. That begins with the transition from home and the requirements for our first longer stay. The destinations will make more sense once that foundation is clear.

If you had several weeks in one place, what would you want time to discover? I would be interested to hear what draws you to slow travel and how that might influence where you choose to go.

The free Retirement Test-Drive Checklist can help you identify the routines, pace, housing, and practical arrangements you want to explore in your own planning. Choose one part of that life you would like to understand better, and let it help shape the next decision.

Frequently Asked Questions

How can I try slow travel before committing to a month away?

A shorter stay within an easy drive can help you test the accommodation and your everyday routine. Include ordinary days for cooking, laundry, errands, and any work you expect to continue. Keep a few notes about what you used, what was missing, and what you would change before booking a longer stay. A short visit can help refine your requirements even though it cannot tell you everything about living somewhere for a month.

What should I confirm before booking a dog-friendly rental?

Ask the host to confirm in writing that the property accepts your dog’s size and whether there are restrictions on leaving a dog unattended. Confirm the total pet charges, walking access, and whether outdoor areas are private or shared. If a fenced yard matters, ask about its enclosure rather than relying on photographs or the phrase “pet friendly.” Those answers can affect both the accommodation choice and the outings you plan.

How can I preserve flexibility when booking several stays?

Read each property’s cancellation and change terms before paying, including refund deadlines and minimum-stay requirements. Consider how changing one stay would affect the next. Booking the first base while continuing to compare later options can leave room to apply what you learn, but it also means accepting that availability and prices may change. The useful balance depends on which parts of the route are fixed and which you are willing to reconsider.

Do I need to sell my home to travel slowly?

No. Slow travel can be an extended trip from a permanent home base or part of a life spent between temporary homes. Keeping a home means including its continuing expenses and care during the absence. Without an available home to return to, accommodation between stays and during return visits belongs in the plan. Selling is part of my own planning; it is not a requirement for trying a slower pace.