Retire early or travel while we can?

We retired early on reduced professional pensions too. Don’t regret it at all but we have now come to understand that even if you have paid your 40 (+) years National insurance they reduce your state pension by the number of years that have passed since you last worked. I worked as self employed for the first few years so haven’t lost as much state pension as my DH did.

It’s just something you need to factor in when you do your calculations.

Enjoy your retirement. I retired early due to health problems but am busier now than when working. Continue with my hobbies which give me great satisfaction.

Well, this is a timely thread! A few months ago I made the decision to take early retirement next year when I'm 65. I love my job, but physically I'm slowing down and things seem to take me so much longer to do now! I also want freedom to be able to do what I want, when I want, rather than being tied to work hours. Yet, even though I've made the decision, there are still days - like today! - when I wonder if I'm doing the right thing. Will I miss where I work, will I be bored and will I be able to cope with being with my husband all day, every day?! He retired 4 years ago due to ill health, so our retirement together will now have to be a very scaled down version of what we assumed it would be back in our younger days. 🤷🏼‍♀️

I retired at 61 the day before my first grandchild was born, I was able to help my daughter out for a year, then Covid hit, I went back to work as a nurse, I m now 68 and still working but just one day per week. I’ve travelled a lot, India, Nepal, Peru, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Finland, Norway, Canada, USA, Australia, New Zealand, Ecuador &Galapagos, South Africa and Mauritius as well as a lot of Europe, it’s about getting the balance right, I felt I was vegetating by not working at all and needed to keep my brain active otherwise I might have found myself just sitting around not doing anything, we re all different I guess 🤷‍♀️

We both took early retirement, just before 60 for my husband and 57 for me. The house was paid for, so we did our sums and reckoned if we lived carefully for 5 years until his pensions kicked in we could travel. So on a cold November day, backpacks packed we set out for a 4 month adventure in SE Asia using a map and travel book to get around. What wonderful memories we have and we carried on for 10 years after and never regretted it. I had my my 70th birthday in Cambodia and then due to a decline in my health we had to stopped. We can’t travel abroad now but we did it while we could. Now we just travel a little in this country. The cost of our travels was no more than living at home over the winter. So go for it

Please do it!! We had to retire a few years ago because of my health and we have done so much sine then. You will wonder how on earth you ever had time for work. The world is a big place and it's well worth exploring before, as you say, it is too late. Enjoy your well earned retirement and your travelling

Do it - I do so many lovely things - never bored. Look after my granddaughter once a week which is just the best thing ever.

As I know far too well, you never know what’s around the corner. If you’re healthy, I’d say go for it and travel. I’m sure you wouldn’t regret it.

You are the ages DH and I were when we retired. If you can afford it, then go for it. We have done lots of travelling but 18 years later we are slowing down and only go to Europe now, though DH does still mutter about going to Tanzania again.

I retired at 68 from full time employment and my husband retired a year earlier when he was 71. I didn’t feel like retiring at 60 because I enjoyed my job and I knew I still had a lot to give! Those extra few working years made so much difference - financially - to being able to do whatever we wanted to do and travel wherever we wanted to go when we both finally retired, and it’s definitely given us the freedom and choice to be able to live an active and fulfilling retirement. Money worries in retirement years just adds stress to you day to day life - and that can be a precursor for many depilating annd life shortening illnesses.

Definitely try and pack in as much travel as you can, while you can! My husband and I have the opposite situation - we both had amazing careers working for an airline that enabled us to travel around the world and visit incredible destinations. Now in our late sixties, we are held back in the UK by a very elderly mother who insists on living on her own and refuses point-blank to have carers. I would feel resentful about this a lot more if we hadn’t travelled so much with our jobs for 35+ years…..
If you don’t have family duties or ill-health, really do try to experience the thrill of travel to other countries if you can.

That's just the sort of thing I would like to do

Wow I didn't know that answer bet others don't.

Tanzania is on my must visit list. My husband is 2nd generation Polish and his mum's family were there for several years before coming to the UK. I'd like to see where she lived.

we retired mid 50s, over 20 active fun years ago, never looked back.

If you have no debts and no mortgage you 'll find you can live very comfortably on a reduced income.

Our children in their 50s are are all planning to be mortgage free and retire before 60 .