Baby boomers refuse to apologise for spending children’s inheritance on travel

If you enjoy spending your hard-earned money on travelling in your retirement, it turns out you’re not alone.

A study by the Australian Seniors Insurance Agency (ASIA) has found 90% of Australians over 50 say that travelling makes them feel alive, and a growing number are digging into their children’s inheritance to fund their travels.

According to the study, 18% of travellers over 50 said they had no problem digging into their children’s inheritance to pay for a trip.

And why not enjoy it while you’ve got the money, right?!

More than 50% of those surveyed for the study said they deserved to enjoy the money their children would otherwise inherit and 85% said they weren’t concerned about using the money set aside for their children’s future.

ASIA spokesperson Simon Hovell said while Baby Boomer travellers were happy to spend their money on travel, they still took the cost into consideration when planning a trip.

“I think we would be hard pushed to find children who would begrudge their parents a trip of a lifetime or an opportunity to be happy, and reassuringly for the next generation nearly every senior traveller (93%) admits that they invest time to make sure they are getting the best deals,” he said.

“It’s clear that costs remain a major consideration for senior travellers with seven in ten choosing destinations with their budget firmly in mind.”

But don’t just take the survey’s word for granted.

We asked some of our over-60 travellers at Travel at 60 and they held similar views.

Dee Bond said her kids would be delighted she’s spending money on travel.

“They will get the caravan, two cars and a camper trailer when we leave our bodies!” she said.

“We spent a year travelling Europe and America, in 2012, and I spent my dads inheritance on that….after looking after him for two years.”

Fellow traveller Narelle Hulme said her kids were also happy to see her enjoying her retirement.

“They all have their own lives and tell me to spend it all,” she said.

“We are saving a section of the family farm for them to fight over.”

Apart from the financial side of travelling, the study also found travellers over 50 are becoming more adventurous on their holidays.

68% of those surveyed said traditional seniors tour packages weren’t the format for them, while 56% said the tours were boring and 49% said they didn’t offer enough adventure.

Senior Lecturer in Tourism at the University of Technology in Sydney Dr David Beirman said senior travellers were far more adventurous than they were given credit for.

“Seniors have the benefit of a lifetime of worldly experience, a lifetime of built up hunger for travel, for new places and experiences, and it’s natural as their lives advance that they see their opportunities to experience these desires narrowing,” he said.

“Now it’s time for the rest of the world to realise that we have a generation of people who remain active and still want to enjoy what this earth has to offer.”

After all, we only live once!

Have you been using your children’s inheritance to travel with? Are you adventurous when you travel?