I Retired Early and Now Travel the World Staying in Airbnbs

We are talking to passengers as to travel as a travel + leisure column, how he likes to find the world through his unique approach. Corporates were burned from the United States, Kelly Bennethal obtained his financial support and abandoned Texas’s lifestyle to retire in 53 years and to live around the world in Airbus with her husband, Nigel. Here is his story …

I was living in Texas and working in oil and gas. As time went on, and the children went away, my job was under extraordinary pressure – at the point that I had to go out of the wheel on a guerrilla by the lobby, an EKG was tied up. After all these years of feeling, as I need to be overwhelmed, my doctor said that my job was trying to kill me.

Once I realized that, my husband, Nigel, and I found a financial adviser who gave us some good ways estimates and suggestions. I always thought I would retire at 65 and play golf. Nigel did not have a retirement plan. He was going to work forever, and it took me a few years to turn it to the corner. But at the age of 53, I decided to retire.

Once the job was over, my whole tension was over and my level was returned to normal.

I was not traveled. Our family would take our amended van every year from Texas to Ohio to see our grandmother. It was our big journey. I didn’t even have a passport until I got married for the first time in the 20s, and we only went to Mexico. Finally, at work, I said yes on every trip that came out because I was interested in seeing the world. I like to talk to foreign languages and people from different countries. Once, a contractor of mine was pregnant and could not go to the Indonesian city of Claimton. I didn’t know what she was doing, but I went anyway.

I feel the travel and calm (instead of being at home). I am connected to every little thing because it’s new and different, so I rest and take it in. I am not a playground tourist – I don’t go to all the major tour sites. I probably walk and walk, but I like just walking in a cafe and chatting with people.

Although I have many friends and family in Houston, it’s not finally where I wanted to be, when I retired both Nigel and I, we came to the idea that they would travel to the world, lived in Airbus a month.

We started with a trial run in 2023, spent a month in Mexico to ensure that we can really live together. At that time, our marriage was almost seven years.

We stayed in the middle of the jungle in a very intimidated place. The door between the bedroom and the kitchen was glass, so there was no privacy. But every morning we put a palette on the roof together and cooked food. We bought a Christmas tree and decorated it. And we did a great job – I was very proud of us. So we returned and started planning our global travel.

I saw all YouTube videos that I could find and listen to people’s advice. Initially, I went to some local real estate agencies, but I like places that have local mood. What I have found is that Airbon B, more than other platforms, is good with it because we can connect with local hosts. In addition, we can easily find things that are important to us, such as outer space. We had some good places with roof ponds that were not expensive. Being able to view all ratings makes it easier to sign and lease.

This has also been cheap. We are now living in the Aix-Enn-Provence, where we have been for eight weeks, and has received a 70 % discount for long stay. So we can stay somewhere for a week, or we can stay for six weeks at the same price. I thought, how never told me about it? This is really the thing that has made it all possible, and I am grateful for it.

We started in Dobroonk, and took the 87 -year -old mother of Nigel. It was interesting because the language is very different. We tours a walking tour with someone who speaks English so that we can lay the ground. The city was amazing, like a movie set. We learned to walk on its hills. We lived in a neighborhood in which these local Bodiga type shops were. Old boys play buće (BOX) In the evening, and we would go out and sit with them.

We asked our Airbon B host what we can do for the community even though we do not speak the language, and help in cutting the grapes in this little winery. They cannot get the services of many people because of tax issues, so they rely on volunteers. It was a hot and difficult task, but a fun way to learn about culture.

Since then, we have also raised the trash on the beaches in Mauritius. When you are a tourist, you probably don’t think about it, but when you are going to visit for a long time, it’s different. It is one of the things that helps us connect with the locals. They know that we are not just using and not going. We hope that our social work will be more involved. We will eventually want to work with children, but we have to stay longer to earn that confidence and reduce the language.

When we arrive in a new place, we will usually start and start the local market. We will find and find the works of the locals. For example, in Seoul, we were crossing the road from a community center, so we will go and see that people who were taking classes. It was easy to join the neighborhood as they all gathered out in the evening, so we joined them. Usually how we make ourselves happy.

We also like to rotate and lose. Since we are in places for so long, we have time to ask. A few times a week, we will visit the day. The next day, we took the train to Agagan and tasting the wine in Chatianov Du-Pep.

In Mauritius, we really came close with our air bank host. They lived across the road and invited us to use their property. We spent the New Year’s Eve with them. It was just beautiful. We stay in leaks for a month and go to different beaches. We spent a few days in the south, and I met a woman who took my picture from behind while I was watching the sunset and drinking a glass of wine. The next night he invited us to the dinner party, so we extended our stay. No one spoke English, except for a child. We sat in the middle of the table with the hosts, and everyone sat down as far as possible because they knew that we did not speak the same language. But finally, we were able to communicate through Google Translate and baby. It was memorable, and I still stay in touch with them.

I find comfort in the spreadsheet, so we use one to plan our travels. This is the color code after the sun through the region. After that, I have the cost to live compared to the United States. We also do not want to spend a ton of money on flights, so we choose a common area. Right now, we are doing Europe, and if we need it, we shuffle a little because we can’t stay too long.

Nigel’s family is in England, so it has been our jumping off -point. We have six children, and a daughter, two grandchildren, and Nigel’s mother are all there. Our other children are in California, Utah and Texas, so we remove an American for about three months.

We live in at least one month everywhere to get a discount. We wanted to spend a few more time in the Provis because none of us was, so we have been in the region for three months now. Next, we are going to return to England because I have never seen my husband’s home country. Then, we are going on the road and will spend a month in Ireland. There are about $ 65 in one night, very cheap. You can’t even find some hostels for this amount.

We could have been in bed and breakfast in this road trip, but I don’t want to be together and mix all the time. I need my place and a kitchen. We cook with the ingredients of local markets all the time. This saves our money, and it gives us a lot of privacy, which we do not find in hotels. In Mauritius, we went to a hotel for good food on Christmas Eve, and I was like, “Oh, I forgot how good the hotel was because everyone was serving you instead of serving.” But I don’t think I can stay in a hotel.

After that, we will go back to the spreadsheet and feel it. I know we want to go to Asia, then to New Zealand. We also want to go to Bali and South America. We have all these big image plans.

There are definitely challenges. I miss my friends and family, and capable of leaving people. We always book a place with an extra room so we can find people. But if we do not try, it can be a bit isolated.

This is not just in any other country. Being retired is strange at that age. At first, I didn’t feel a little criminal. Now, I realize it’s okay to be bored. I enjoy it. I have gained a lot of creative in this chapter, which is very self -aware. Nigel always wants to go and work, and I have to remind him, we are here for a long time. You don’t need to see everything right now. We are not as tourists here. We are like a kind of locals here, while we also do a little tour.

People will ask where we are, and this is a complex answer. They also ask what we do – not as much abroad as they do in the United States. We are lucky to achieve this lifestyle, but it is difficult to explain to people that it does not seem to be rotating. I tell people that we are looking for places where we belong and are looking for adventure.

My background is in the psychology of behavior, so I like to go into other people’s shoes and understand their point of view. It is opening the eye. In Texas, we all say greetings. In places like France, people are extremely friendly, but they would say Bangar And that’s it. They do not automatically befriend you. It depends on where we are in the world.

Once we spend a month a month, it feels like a home. We always feel that we should spend more time there because when we arrive at the point where we know where everything is, the time has come. We have our local liquor bar and fish mangoes, and the time has come to leave again. We can’t stay during the high season because it is expensive and I don’t like the crowd.

I have found to be very united by observing and absorbing the cultures. The world is a giant, but also so small, and the journey really teaches us respect. Many of my friends and family people who just don’t think we are doing. But if everyone only goes and inquired, it will eliminate the obstacles we all are. You realize that people have stereotypes about you that may not be true. I can’t force my interests to other people, but I feel intensely about it and think that everyone should do it.