Traveling can be a hassle.  Finding the right hotel room is right at the top of the list.  We prefer consistency whenever possible when we’re on the road.  We learned years ago, while traveling on business, to take advantage of rewards programs and eventually establish brand loyalty when it comes to hotel services.  The biggest advantage is that we typically don’t have to take the time to specify our preferences, they are already in the system when we make the reservation. It can almost seem like a home away from home.  We like Marriott Rewards, and took a giant step with them today in planning for retirement.

Travel was the number one thing that my wife and I saved for in establishing our 401K programs through work.  I have just retired and she still has about six more years of saving to do.  While she’s still earning the “big bucks.” I’m ready to start spending my “travel bucks.”  However, because of her income, every dollar that I withdraw from my IRA is really only worth about half after taxes.  It’s an issue that couples face when they don’t retire at the same time.  I have my pension and social security income that gives me some sense of contribution to our overall budget.  However, when we travel, I find myself building up credit card debt, and she will have to come to the rescue with additional money to help keep my balance in check.  Until she retires, I will therefore be faced with a false sense of paying our travel expenses.  I can act like I’m the sugar daddy by pulling out the credit card, but then she has to bail me out when the balance gets too great.

We decided to join the Marriott Vacation Club.  My wife has on many occasions stated, “he loves his Marriott points more than me.”  I do admittedly like the free rooms and upgrades, but a hotel room without her is lonely and sad.  We will take two or three major trips together each year for the next ten years and will have to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars doing so.  We liked the idea of creating a family legacy, by investing in the Marriott program.  After all, we always use Marriott hotels when we travel and collect points for free travel in the process.  By the time my wife is seventy years old (ten years from now), we will simply be paying an annual maintenance fee for any travel that we or our children will do over the course of our lifetimes.  Marriott has established Vacation Clubs all over the world and operates hotels in every city we would ever want to visit.  We also have the option to stay in a vacation home, take a cruise, or do a tour.  Our only expenses in travel will be food, transportation, and entertainment (many of these included on most cruises- that we consider to be the most economical way to see the world).   When we eventually die with our memories, the investment is passed along, with only the maintenance fees to be paid by our survivors.  The way we see it, it will give each of our children the opportunity to always take one or two nice vacations every year as long as they live. and can then pass it forward, as well.

I did not like the idea of a timeshare, but I am comfortable with the flexibility of using points instead of strictly condos.  Plus, between Marriott, Starwood, and Ritz Carlton properties there are so many options available to fulfill our travel bucket lists.  They also have a connection with Viking and Alaska Cruise lines that we had already planned to incorporate in our future excursions.  These were dollars that would have simply created memories, which in and of itself is worth it, but now it can also be an investment.  It’s certainly not for everyone, but for people like us who have big appetites for travel, it may be worth looking into!

Happy Trails to you….