I have always been a wanderer, and within my budget and by working in different places have travelled quite a lot , sometimes holidays sometimes living abroad. So now at 80 and with some health problems I have to make adjustments but have no intentions of stopping travel until I have to.
In my view the way I begin is think of what I would like or love to see or do, and then look at ways and means to do the nearest and most practical way of getting to the places that matter to me. So I nowadays dont travel much by plane. As others have said too much waiting around and faffing about. I still want to do my own thing, so do not find coach trips to my taste as they stop at their choices, and the drives tend to go on for too long in one trip to help my back problems.
So one of the best ways I have found is to go on a cruise with Fred Olsen. Their ships are smaller and you are not in with a huge amount of people. I went up to the Artic with them and they suit me. Firstly from where I live I usually go from somewhere like Liverpool or Newcastle and dont traipse miles down to southampton. So it is a matter of a straightforward train journey, and once you are on the boat and got yourself sorted out , no loads of packing , unpacking etc. They have a good variety of things to choose from. I go swimming, which helps my back, they have very good talks on the places and things you are going to see. The food has always been excellent and when we arrive in a port I have the option of doing my own thing as I choose etc. On another trip I went on it called at Lisbon and as I had lived in portugal for 2 years I just went off on my own. It allowed me to still do my own thing I found, in as much as I am able to.
I would read up on anything or anywhere you are interested in and then consider how and with whom you might like to travel there. Have done a long journey by train in Canada recently and again I prefer that to coach as you can walk about more etc, but would not enjoy sitting for many hours on a coach these days. So if you could draw up a couple of lists, one of things that you need to consider , such as how you feel comfortable travelling, and then think about something or somewhere you have always meant to visit and read up about it and the town or city nearby and see if you think it is worth doing.
In the meantime do you have a friend who you might have a few weekends or weeks away where you could perhaps go by car, share the cost and agree before you go, how you will spend the time wherever you are going.? So you might share the driving, or one drive on one trip and one on the next one, and then do your own thing when you get there. I am happy looking in Art Galleries and going to concerts, walking by the sea, looking at gardens , but dont expect my friends to do the same and in no way would I want to go round shops. So trying out one or two little trips will soon make you realize that you either want to go further, or on your own or that you actually prefer to stay in this country. But please do try something out and make a decision rather than just drift into not going anywhere and possibly in the future come to regret that you didnt do something when you were able to. I would much rather regret going somewhere and deciding not to visit again, than always wonder what it would have been like. Good luck making this year a year of doing something special whatever it is
