By Phyllis Stoller, NABBW’s Group Travel Associate As I mentioned in my last post, it’s finally time to travel again, and we Boomer/Senior travelers are right up at the front of the line, enjoying our renewed opportunities to see the world. Thankfully, the travel industry is increasingly catering to us oldies; but you need to be aware that there can still be a trip out there which you should not take, due to your personal limitations or needs. Obviously, you know that you don’t want to book yourself for an adventure travel experience, like bicycling across Europe, unless you’re... Read More

By Phyllis Stoller, NABBW’s Group Travel Associate Who do you think were the first to begin to travel post-Pandemic? Based on our experience as tour operators, is was Boomer Women. Why? Older folks were the first with access to the Covid vaccine. We were also the most enthusiastic to get it. Not to forget that we were the most obedient abut safety protocols. And finally, who amongst the 70+ crowd didn’t have a ‘now or never’ gut feel when travel opened? As travel slowly started again, this is what we tour operators experienced. Women wanted to go, more enthusiastically than... Read More

By Phyllis Stoller, NABBW’s Group Travel Associate For us Boomers, the time to travel is now. We can leave the United States and travel much of the world without anxiety. The Euro is close to $1 and the UK Pound, Mexican Peso, etc are very low; travel costs are way down to compensate for airfares which are up. Why should we feel safe now? Below I answer with facts and my personal feelings: Most of Europe is more vaccinated than we Americans are. Portugal is the outstanding example with 98% fully vaccinated.  Much of Europe has socialized medicine. What does that mean for Covid safety?... Read More

By Phyllis Stoller, NABBW’s Group Travel Associate You might be safer overseas than in the US or Canada. I just returned from 3 trips: one to Paris, one to Tuscany and London and an October one to Dubai/Abu Dhabi and Oman. Here is what I witnessed and what made me relax about Covid. And I am ready to take more groups to Europe beginning in May and to Mexico in a few weeks. Overseas masking is mandatory. In airports, on flights and in most places you as a tourist will visit.  Masking on a flight also means you no longer catch the cold of the guy in row whatever. Nor do you get snored... Read More

Masks Are Mandatory Inside Airports and On the Plane  Which means you really need to bring along more than one mask. This is important, in case you drop yours or sniffle into it. You need to be aware that even in “no mask” states, federal law requires masks at airports and on the airplane.  (Once you are outside the airport –  hailing a taxi, for example – local laws prevail.) You’ll also find free sanitizer dispensers in airports and elsewhere. These days there seems to be a lot of free sanitizer available. Use plenty of it on your hands, even if you wash them... Read More

By Phyllis Stoller, NABBW’s Group Travel Associate Most Boomers are being told we cannot travel during this time of COVID, as we are in an especially dangerous situation: our age. Of course, by the time we’ve reached our current ages, almost all of us have at least one pre-existing condition, but as you know, many of these are controllable. We now live for years with conditions that used to be death sentences for our parents. Age 70, as we compare it to our mothers, is the new 50 We regularly work out at gyms More than 50% of us are still working We are always on the hunt for opportunities... Read More

By Phyllis Stoller, NABBW’s Group Travel Associate What is unique about Boomer Travel? Only the critical things that make a trip successful: our wants, needs and expectations. You read about Boomer Travel all the time; however, not all articles are as frank and insightful as we require, at our age and stage. Wants: We want to hear a human voice tell us about travel, not be limited to an email or text message. For example: today some women called, asking about our upcoming Kenya trip, and specifically wondering how many game parks we would visit. We answered their specific question: there... Read More

By Phyllis Stoller, NABBW’s Group Travel Associate This summer is anticipated to be a hot one! Overseas hotels are not always air conditioned; however they are often described as  ‘climate controlled’. The latter is not always our expectation of continual cool air flow. So this year, why not plan a trip to a place where it is naturally cool? If you are OK with altitude, choose high places. Altitude plays as much a part in temperature as does location; remember that when you look for an escape from the heat.  (The “altitude rule,” also called the lapse rate, says that if... Read More

By Phyllis Stoller, NABBW’s Group Travel Associate As we travel these days, some of us are wary of being identified as American.  We often forget that we can be ambassadors as well as tourists. Whether or not you agree with the Trump Administration and the current state of US politics in general, you — yes, you — can contribute to our image abroad in many ways. Remember, we are the Peace Corps generation, the people who –  in our youth –  journeyed to Europe on rickety old ships we used to call “student ships,” then lived “off the land,”... Read More

By Phyllis Stoller, NABBW’s Group Travel Associate Boomer women are different. We were born into the post WWII era when things began to change for women. Our mothers went to work, we got college degrees and became nurses, teachers, lawyers, architects, doctors and accountants. Fast forward to today and we are living longer than our mothers and grandmothers. We’re healthier and more active. And many of us are single – either still, or again.  The oft-repeated mantra of our early years – “You’ve Come a Long Way, Baby,” has proven true.  In so many ways... Read More