Some people unfortunately enter retirement with very little savings. But if you’re on the verge of retirement and you’ve got several million dollars socked away as a result of hard work, then you may be eager to do something you didn’t have a lot of time to do while you were working: travel.
A lot of people struggle to travel during their younger years because they’re constrained by time or money. During retirement, you might find yourself with an abundance of both. And if so, you might as well get out there and see the world. It’s a good way to not only enjoy some fabulous experiences, but just as importantly, also keep busy, which could be essential for your mental health.
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But if you know you intend to do a lot of travel in retirement, you may want to budget for some extra expenses. Here are a couple that could catch you off guard.
1. Travel insurance
Many retirees receive healthcare coverage from Medicare. Now, the good news is that with original Medicare in particular, you may find it pretty easy to receive care in pretty much any part of the U.S. It’s when you go overseas that things get tricky, though.
Medicare generally will not pay for healthcare services rendered outside of the U.S. So if you’re planning to, say, spend three months in Portugal, it’s a good idea to purchase travel insurance that offers some sort of built-in health coverage. Otherwise, you could face horrendously costly bills if you’re forced to pay for overseas healthcare out of pocket.
Keep in mind that the cost of travel insurance could vary tremendously based on factors like your destination and the length of your trip. You may want to start researching those costs ahead of your travels so you know how much extra money to budget in.
2. House-sitting services
It’s not uncommon for retirees to travel for weeks or months at a time. But if you own a home, you’re taking a risk in leaving it unoccupied for that long.
It’s generally not a good thing to let a home sit vacant for a few reasons. First, even if you have your mail held and don’t order packages so there are no obvious signs that you’re not around, a criminal watching closely could take the opportunity to break in knowing you don’t seem to be present. But more so than that, you never know when an issue might arise within your home with the potential to cause damage if left unaddressed.
Your heating system, for example, might go kaput. If that happens in mid-winter when you’re spending a month on an island, you risk having your pipes freeze — and the massive damage that could ensue. So if you know you’ll be gone for long stretches at a time, plan to pay for house-sitting services. That way, you’ll have someone checking in and helping you avoid potentially costly issues like the one just described.
Retirement can be a prime opportunity to travel to your heart’s content. But don’t just budget for things like plane tickets, lodging, and meals. Also factor in the cost of travel insurance with a healthcare component and someone to watch over your home in your absence.