A new wave of travellers is on the rise – many seniors are now taking a gap year in their retirement years, according to research by UK bank Charter Savings Bank and as reported by news site Express.
Seniors Take More Gap Years than Younger Travellers
A gap year is generally taken by high school graduates before they begin their tertiary studies, yet according to the site, seniors are said to be “twice as likely to take a gap year than younger people, with two out of five planning to travel after they turn 60, against less than one in five before age 30”.
About 40% of respondents in the study planned to utilise their lifetime savings to fund a gap year after turning 60, spending about R88 251.
According to Money Facts, only, “9% of over-55s will be working on their gap year, compared with 32% of those aged under 25”.
“Many of us think about gap years being the preserve of backpacking students, but increasingly we’re seeing that older customers are catching the travelling bug,” says Paul Whitlock, director of savings at Charter Savings Bank.
When looking at travel trends in 2016, research by the American Association of Retired Persons concluded that baby boomers were motivated to travel to spend time with family and friends, relax and rejuvenate, and to get escape everyday life.
