That was a great introduction.........thanks for taking the time to put it together. Is there anywhere on this site (or others) that addresses the 40 something traveller. I want to plan a 2 or 3 month "walkabout" to regions yet identified but am aware of the fact that most hostels etc... are for the younger crowd.
ML
Reply to this ==> Michael, don't worry about your age... Hostels don't only cater to the young, they might be in the majority, but there are mostly plenty of older travellers too... I have met people of 70 in hostels... In fact depending on the hostel I find that quite a big part of the people are in their late 20's or in their 30's... It's all about being young at heart! You are only as old as you feel! I personally never get into the age topic with fellow travellers, we just never talk about it, it doesn't matter...
Reply to this That was a great introduction.........thanks for taking the time to put it together. Is there anywhere on this site (or others) that addresses the 40 something traveller. I want to plan a 2 or 3 month "walkabout" to regions yet identified but am aware of the fact that most hostels etc... are for the younger crowd.
Hello Michael 😊
In most hostels I have been to recently there were a wide range of ages. The most recent one was in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. I who am 39 was there. There was a retired couple who cycled from Switzerland to Bishkek and were going further there. There were a few girls and guys in their early 20s from Isreal. There was an American guy who was 27 who has been volunteering and travelling in Asia for 2 years. There were more but you get the picture. The only time there is not a range of ages at the hostel is when the hostel itself imposes age restrictions. The only places where I have seen these age restrictions recently imposed where in hostels in Rome and Bavaria, Germany.
The ages of the members on this site also cover a wide range.
Mel
Reply to this Hi Michael,
Ditto to what the others said :-)
Don't plan your travel around your age, plan it around where you want to go and what you want to do.
Some hostels may have restrictions on age, as Mel said, but I've only ever seen that apply to very young children.
Reply to this All the above is great info/advice. The trip my wife and I did in Vietnam in 2007 was a good example of age not being an issue in relation to travel. Our other companions ranged in age from 20 to 71, with us in the middle (me now 48). Yet the small tour we did was recommended for people under 30. The spread of ages actually made the trip a lot more fun. The two oldest members of of the group were both woman and amazed me when they told us of their travel experiences in the past 20 years, which included places I would have hesitated to go to. They were a great example of age not being an issue, they had backpacked across Europe in their mid-40's, trekked in Nepal and other places in their 50's and roughed it in countries in Asia I had never heard of. Great inspiration as I get closer to 50! In fact they were in some ways far more adventurous than the 20 year olds.
Reply to this Sometimes they make "older folk" pay a little more, which was what I observed in Europe hostels and for train passes, but traveling at any age is doable. My parents are in their sixties and spent the last two years traveling around South America. They pulled suitcases with wheels to save their backs and traveled a bit slower and rested a lot more, but that was merely a modification of their activity level.
I believe that anyone of any age should experience the world, we are never too old or too young to learn a new thing.
Reply to this To add to the 'over 40s can do it too' - when I did the Inca Trail there was a woman from Australia in her 60s who carried her own full backpack (as opposed to those of us who paid for a porter).
Not that anyone treated it as a race at all, but she outdid most of us into the bargain. Very impressive effort.
Reply to this Hi Michael! I too am travelling solo (and 40). I was worried about being the 'oldest' so I did alot of research on the web.....
For accomodations I try to find alternatives to hostels i.e. I stayed with a mexican family while learning spanish in Mexico, and I've traded houses with a couple from Brisbane when I go on my Aussie trip, but I also rented a campervan to drive from Brisbane to Cairns - as an alternative to staying in hostels/taking bus.
I'm also interested in a tour group called GAP adventures, their website is great, they appear to have a varied age group, and I think I will go with them when I make my way to Peru next year.
Best of luck to you!
Reply to this SHAUNA KELLY,,,,,,,,,,,,,,ARE YOU IN ALBERTA?
Reply to this I am finding that the budget indepentant travlers these days are getting older all the time as they bin the old lifestyle and live life. I ran into some age discrimiation from some younger travelers who were put out that I was on a bus instead of a plane I was told that I wasn't a backpacker which totaly insulted my poor bag. the darn thing has more repair stiches on it and been to more countries than most people I know. I am thinking of putting country flags on it to help hold it together :-/ Any advise to keep the bag alive and well allways welcome!
Reply to this Any advise to keep the bag alive and well allways welcome!
I just buy cheap and cheerful ones so I can replace them if they fall appart or get stolen. They seem to be lasting for years despite the cheapness so I will continue to do this even when I am old enough to be supposed to be able to afford better. Well, I am actually that old. :D
Reply to this MIcheal,
You are only as old as you feel.
I am 46 and the wife is 59. We feel youger by surrounding ourselves with younger travelers.
No worries my friend. We have had a blast on the road for over 5 months now and still digging it.
By the way, we stayed in one hostel in Leominster, England and we the youngsters in that place.
Enjoy the world my friend
Reply to this And not everybody who travels is so young. I will be 40 next June. I have been travelling on and off since I was 19 and dont intend to stop doing it because of old age. :D
Reply to this I am 61 and my wife is 66 and we have just spent 8 weeks coming overland from Hong Kong to the UK via the trans-Mongolian railway, stopping off at places along the way. Some of the stations were a bit of a nightmare to negotiate - especially in China - but overall the journey was wonderful. Don't let age put you off. At 40 you're only a beginner!
Reply to this When I was in Kyrgyzstan, I met a retired Swiss couple in their 60s who had cycled from Switzerland to Kyrgyzstan and had no intentions to stop. They were unable to travel over land accross China because of visa trouble so were having their bikes shipped to Thailand, so they could continue cycling from there. It seems to be a myth that people become less able bodied as they get older. Where do we get these types of ideas anyway, when there are so many older people doing as much as younger people are doing? Are we arrogant or what, when we are young?
This brings to mind a question for all those who are over 30, 40, 50.... Do you feel less able physically or in any other way to take part in any aspect of travel that you did when you were younger? If anything has changed, what is it and why do you think it happened?
Reply to this dispite my pro keds i don't jump so high any more. you adjust, but the more you use, the more you get to keep so keep moving as much as you can and push yourself to keep in the best shape that you can. Live longer and happier that way.
My Unk almost 70 made it half way up the great wall of china to the point where you can get a I climbed it certificate. I had him snorkling half a mile off shore in Bali, and he has a bad knee! the movement keeps it from freezing up and a wheel chair.
Reply to this In response to: Msg #48101
Hello,
I am also over 40, but still in travel, enjoy it and do not feel my age, I was mostly shocked, when in England happened to me, that some "young" people started to tell in my room for other "older" traveler, that "what is it, I sleep now with my grandda in one room?" Except of this littl estory I never had any negative experience, the only thing, to fin dthe right place as it can be a big surprise, regarding the volumelevel of this hostels. I remember I stayed in Bangkok in a place, where all travelers my age were giving each other the visitcard of the place adn really everyone was at the same age, quiet and peaceful, "the rest" stayed partying somewhere else.
With the idea I am also trying to open my little place and hope that I can realise it in this spirit.
You are welcome on the way and all your ideas as well!
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[Edited: 2011 May 28 09:42 - Jabe:6222 - No advertising on forums, please]
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