I am in my early 60s and retired at 53. Lots of people gave me pushback because they had difficulty grasping the concept of not working if you don’t have to. I looked at my life as stages. I earned everything I have now through a lot of hard work, but I owe it to myself to “stop and smell the roses” in my final stage of life. In my case I left the country after I retired and live in Latin America. It allowed me to get away from all the negative things happening in America while appreciating my new environment. I have yet to meet anyone who regrets retirement.
Nice way to retire. For me, I believe retirees who struggle to meet their basic needs are the ones who could not accumulate enough money during their active years to meet their needs. Retirement choices determine a lot of things. My wife and I both spent same number of years in the civil service, she invested through a wealth manager and myself through the 401k. We both still earning after our retirement fund has grown way more than it would have with just the 401(k). Haha.
It's unfortunate most people don't have such information. I don't really blame people who panic. Lack of information can be a big hurdle. I've been making more than a million dollars by just investing through an advisor, and I don't have to do much work. Doesn't matter if the economy is misbehaving; great wealth managers will always make returns.
I think this is something I should do, but I've been stalling for a long time now. I don't really know which firm to work with; I feel they are all the same but it seems you’ve got it all worked out with the firm you work with so i surely wouldn’t mind a recommendation.
I definitely share your sentiment about these firms. Finding financial advisors like *Layan Talia Chokr* who can assist you shape your portfolio would be a very creative option. There will be difficult times ahead, and prudent personal money management will be essential to navigating them.
Please add an additional expense item -- the cost of your many credit cards. Total them and divide by 12 and show it as a fixed expense similar to health insurance. I suspect you spend around $100 per month to maintain those cards.
Your channels are great! The finances blow my mind. All that travel and you're spending even less than my husband and I will spend living and traveling in our RV full-time. Health insurance, car insurance, RV insurance etc. are just bonkers in the US.
Wow that hotel suite is so nice and big! You guys deserve the upgrade. I can't get over the Spa prices. I am blown away by the cruise channel too. That really is pretty amazing. I am encouraged by each of these monthly videos. Thank you!
IHG hotel in Singapore was cheaper than Southampton England. I paid $141 at Holiday Inn the day after my Princess TA cruise. 3 weeks later I paid $297 the night before Queen Mary TA cruise. I probably should have looked for something further out and taken a longer taxi in. 20/20 hindsight. But I just bought 100k IHG points at their half price sale that ended today. Thanks for the heads-up!!
I cant wait for you two to cruise more. Have you thought about covering the ferries in the Phillipines, cruises from Japan or other countries. As Americans we would love to see that content.
I love all the information you provide. I have followed your advice and downloaded the Airalo app. My question is, once I pay for the service before arriving on land, will my esim kick in automatically so I can make an immediate phone call or use an Uber app? Again, thank you all for the info. BTW, on your suggestion, I was able to purchase 50,000 IHG points and get a matching bonus.
I received the email of buying IHG points and receiving 100% bonus. I am in Istanbul and did the calculations and buying the bonus points and getting the 100% was more expensive than paying cash directly to the hotel. Did I miss something???
The signup bonuses are great. I know all of us can bank hundreds of thousands of frequent flier miles or points, but unless you are willing to churn those credit cards periodically, we can't keep enough in our accounts to take many business class flights. This is especially true on long-haul redeye routes over 8 hours when they are most valuable. I have noticed in recent years, especially since the pandemic, that airlines often sell their business class seats for less than you would pay for the miles. When I find these outstanding cash offers, every desirable schedule is available. Not just daytime flights where a lie-flat seat is not necessary. When you disregard the replacement cost for miles in calculations, you are creating an unrealistic benchmark for those of us who are not full time travelers. Why not use 1.5 to 2 cents per mile in your budget estimates to compare those costs? When I do that I can often find business class flights for less but it takes some planning and usually a positioning flight in coach. Plus there are several sources for inexpensive business and first-class seats with travel bloggers to make things easier for most of us.
A few questions for you...(1) when you applied for your Chase IHG Premier Mastercard how long did it take to get approved, (2) how did they notify you, and (3) how long did it take to physically receive the card?
I very recently applied for the Chase IHG Premier Mastercard (because of the 100% points match), which was on a Saturday, and I was approved basically instantly on-line. The notification was by on-line response and by e-mail. The physical card arrived in the mail the following Saturday (5 business days).
Thanks for sharing your strategies on the business class flights. Im curious, how much do you value the Amex points at - a penny each? Less? How long were the flights in hours?
I don't do spicy either. I'm curious what Rob enjoys in Thailand. I would LOVE to visit Thailand and am an adventurous eater, but I'm afraid I won't enjoy enough of the food. Would love Rob's insights. TIA 😊
You may have already covered this but I'll ask since you offered .... I just returned from a 2-week trip to four countries in Europe. I want to talk about packing. We like to go with only a carry-on and personal item. It works for us. Tell me how and what you pack, please. Are there rules or tricks you've learned that help you move about easily?
We will do one soon, but the short answer is we pack a lot more than most people on a one month trip because we are carrying everything we own at all times.
Awesome on using the points for business class. Curious if you used any points searching/tracking service that you could recommend. I have alot of UR and AMEX points buy still living in US. Not able to get good redemption so far.
I look forward to these monthly wrap ups :) Question for you - if I don't have any specific travel planned and IHG offers me the BOGO for points should I do it or can I expect another offer shortly?
Great unique approach to retirement which makes for unique content Thanks for sharing all the details. My question is are you buying points based on your CZcams income? Or another way to put it is if I didn’t have income and retirement how much do you think I would pay/year to purchase the points needed to travel/retire as you are doing?
Thanks, there is a limit with IHG of 500k points per year that can be bought, so we don't go over that.That costs $2,500 if you get them on the 100% match sale.
Thanks for the video, you mentioned Amex points you converted over to Air Canada. I’m assuming you converted the Amex points to Aeroplan. Can you confirm?
Thank you for sharing your knowledge! I have a sweet dog that I travel with. Do you think it would be acceptable to the hotels to stay with my dog for the 30 night stays at hotels?
Great video. Question: do you have any strategies to use in order to satisfy the spending requirements to satisfy the welcome offers for the platinum credit cards? Sometimes the requirement is something like spend $6000 in three months. What if you don't have any need to spend that much money during that period. You don't want to waste money either. Any ideas?
I’d wait until you have a larger expense coming up (like a vacation, dental work, Xmas, property tax, etc.). You could also buy gift cards for places you know you’ll use in the coming months - grocery stores, gas stations, favorite restaurants, etc. Just make sure you have the cash on hand to pay the bill so you’re not incurring extra fees.
I don’t get where that was accounted for either or the purchase of IHG points they aren’t shown, I appreciate these cost videos so I don’t see how the numbers are really accurate.
The IHG points were accounted for in this video. We said we bought points at .5 cents per point and spent 10.8k per night or $54. We account for the points when we spend them not buy them so you get a more accurate picture of what the month cost.
I am in my early 60s and retired at 53. Lots of people gave me pushback because they had difficulty grasping the concept of not working if you don’t have to. I looked at my life as stages. I earned everything I have now through a lot of hard work, but I owe it to myself to “stop and smell the roses” in my final stage of life. In my case I left the country after I retired and live in Latin America. It allowed me to get away from all the negative things happening in America while appreciating my new environment. I have yet to meet anyone who regrets retirement.
Nice way to retire. For me, I believe retirees who struggle to meet their basic needs are the ones who could not accumulate enough money during their active years to meet their needs. Retirement choices determine a lot of things. My wife and I both spent same number of years in the civil service, she invested through a wealth manager and myself through the 401k. We both still earning after our retirement fund has grown way more than it would have with just the 401(k). Haha.
It's unfortunate most people don't have such information. I don't really blame people who panic. Lack of information can be a big hurdle. I've been making more than a million dollars by just investing through an advisor, and I don't have to do much work. Doesn't matter if the economy is misbehaving; great wealth managers will always make returns.
I think this is something I should do, but I've been stalling for a long time now. I don't really know which firm to work with; I feel they are all the same but it seems you’ve got it all worked out with the firm you work with so i surely wouldn’t mind a recommendation.
I definitely share your sentiment about these firms. Finding financial advisors like *Layan Talia Chokr* who can assist you shape your portfolio would be a very creative option. There will be difficult times ahead, and prudent personal money management will be essential to navigating them.
Thank you for this Pointer. It was easy to find your handler, She seems very proficient and flexible. I booked a call session with her.
Please add an additional expense item -- the cost of your many credit cards. Total them and divide by 12 and show it as a fixed expense similar to health insurance. I suspect you spend around $100 per month to maintain those cards.
My favorite monthly vid!!!
Your channels are great! The finances blow my mind. All that travel and you're spending even less than my husband and I will spend living and traveling in our RV full-time. Health insurance, car insurance, RV insurance etc. are just bonkers in the US.
@GroundedLifeFinance I don't know what you mean.
Someone was impersonating us, it's been taken care of. They made an account that looked very similar but was one letter off
@@GroundedLifeRetirementTravel thanks for the notice.
Wow that hotel suite is so nice and big! You guys deserve the upgrade. I can't get over the Spa prices. I am blown away by the cruise channel too. That really is pretty amazing. I am encouraged by each of these monthly videos. Thank you!
Thank you! The suite upgrade was a big blessing!
Congratulations on another amazing successful month!! I learn so
Much from you! 🏫 Appreciate you both!!
Thank you so much!
WOW your youtube numbers!! Congratulations and thank you for sharing!
Yay! I love your posts! Thanks for all of the transparency 🙏🏼
Buy the bundle! I'm going through the CZcams course now, but with access to the new course you get access to the community as well! Robert in NYC.
Thanks Robert!
HaHa the cruise channel; that's how I found you, and subscribed to all your channels. CZcams Cruising vloggers are a big thing.
You’re living your rich life!! Amazing!! Thank you for such valuable information. It shows that’s doable indeed. 😊
You guys are soooo authentic ! Love your videos !
Thank you!
IHG hotel in Singapore was cheaper than Southampton England. I paid $141 at Holiday Inn the day after my Princess TA cruise. 3 weeks later I paid $297 the night before Queen Mary TA cruise. I probably should have looked for something further out and taken a longer taxi in. 20/20 hindsight.
But I just bought 100k IHG points at their half price sale that ended today. Thanks for the heads-up!!
The cruise hotels are crazy sometimes! We had that happen Barcelona last year.
I cant wait for you two to cruise more. Have you thought about covering the ferries in the Phillipines, cruises from Japan or other countries. As Americans we would love to see that content.
I love all the information you provide. I have followed your advice and downloaded the Airalo app. My question is, once I pay for the service before arriving on land, will my esim kick in automatically so I can make an immediate phone call or use an Uber app?
Again, thank you all for the info. BTW, on your suggestion, I was able to purchase 50,000 IHG points and get a matching bonus.
Yes it will kick in, but you need to activate it first, so we usually do that before getting on the flight.
I also love watching planes land and take off.
I received the email of buying IHG points and receiving 100% bonus.
I am in Istanbul and did the calculations and buying the bonus points and getting the 100% was more expensive than paying cash directly to the hotel.
Did I miss something???
I love plane and train spotting. There are actually several YT channels.
When I travel for a month at a time, it's really hard to eat restaurant food every day and not gain weight.
I hope you share your fitness routine!
It was kind of hard in Japan, but now in Thailand long walks seem to be working better for us
Thank you !
You're welcome!
The signup bonuses are great. I know all of us can bank hundreds of thousands of frequent flier miles or points, but unless you are willing to churn those credit cards periodically, we can't keep enough in our accounts to take many business class flights. This is especially true on long-haul redeye routes over 8 hours when they are most valuable.
I have noticed in recent years, especially since the pandemic, that airlines often sell their business class seats for less than you would pay for the miles. When I find these outstanding cash offers, every desirable schedule is available. Not just daytime flights where a lie-flat seat is not necessary.
When you disregard the replacement cost for miles in calculations, you are creating an unrealistic benchmark for those of us who are not full time travelers.
Why not use 1.5 to 2 cents per mile in your budget estimates to compare those costs? When I do that I can often find business class flights for less but it takes some planning and usually a positioning flight in coach. Plus there are several sources for inexpensive business and first-class seats with travel bloggers to make things easier for most of us.
A few questions for you...(1) when you applied for your Chase IHG Premier Mastercard how long did it take to get approved, (2) how did they notify you, and (3) how long did it take to physically receive the card?
I very recently applied for the Chase IHG Premier Mastercard (because of the 100% points match), which was on a Saturday, and I was approved basically instantly on-line. The notification was by on-line response and by e-mail. The physical card arrived in the mail the following Saturday (5 business days).
I applied a few months ago and had the same experience - instant online approval and the physical card about a week later.
@@TheWolfyDaddy - Thanks!
@@sheilaa1333 - Thanks!
@@TheWolfyDaddy - Thanks!
Thanks for sharing your strategies on the business class flights. Im curious, how much do you value the Amex points at - a penny each? Less? How long were the flights in hours?
Usually we say 2 cents, but the redemptions do vary, can be more like 1.5 cents. They were roughly 3-4 hours.
I don't do spicy either. I'm curious what Rob enjoys in Thailand. I would LOVE to visit Thailand and am an adventurous eater, but I'm afraid I won't enjoy enough of the food. Would love Rob's insights. TIA 😊
You may have already covered this but I'll ask since you offered .... I just returned from a 2-week trip to four countries in Europe. I want to talk about packing. We like to go with only a carry-on and personal item. It works for us. Tell me how and what you pack, please. Are there rules or tricks you've learned that help you move about easily?
We will do one soon, but the short answer is we pack a lot more than most people on a one month trip because we are carrying everything we own at all times.
Wifey looks like Trina Braxton!!! Great videos!!!
Say hi to Kevin and do a collab!
Awesome on using the points for business class. Curious if you used any points searching/tracking service that you could recommend. I have alot of UR and AMEX points buy still living in US. Not able to get good redemption so far.
We use pointsyeah
❤❤❤ ! Thanks for sharing !
Thanks for watching!
This would be great if you could share what the points equate to in dollars:)
Great information!!!!
What app/spreadsheet do you use to track. The summary looks really nice.
I look forward to these monthly wrap ups :) Question for you - if I don't have any specific travel planned and IHG offers me the BOGO for points should I do it or can I expect another offer shortly?
If they offer a 100% bonus take it as it is not always 100%. Buy the maximum points you can afford at 100% match.
Thankypu!
Great unique approach to retirement which makes for unique content Thanks for sharing all the details.
My question is are you buying points based on your CZcams income? Or another way to put it is if I didn’t have income and retirement how much do you think I would pay/year to purchase the points needed to travel/retire as you are doing?
Thanks, there is a limit with IHG of 500k points per year that can be bought, so we don't go over that.That costs $2,500 if you get them on the 100% match sale.
You guys have great information! I am new to the game. Is it best to use your hotel points for just hotels or do they work for flights also? Thanks
Hotels are best
Thanks for the video, you mentioned Amex points you converted over to Air Canada. I’m assuming you converted the Amex points to Aeroplan. Can you confirm?
So how much can one expect to pay for a month of hotel rooms before he or she accumulates enough points to start using points?
Thank you for sharing your knowledge! I have a sweet dog that I travel with. Do you think it would be acceptable to the hotels to stay with my dog for the 30 night stays at hotels?
Lots of them are pet friendly
Great video. Question: do you have any strategies to use in order to satisfy the spending requirements to satisfy the welcome offers for the platinum credit cards? Sometimes the requirement is something like spend $6000 in three months. What if you don't have any need to spend that much money during that period. You don't want to waste money either. Any ideas?
I’d wait until you have a larger expense coming up (like a vacation, dental work, Xmas, property tax, etc.). You could also buy gift cards for places you know you’ll use in the coming months - grocery stores, gas stations, favorite restaurants, etc. Just make sure you have the cash on hand to pay the bill so you’re not incurring extra fees.
Have a good time with 30 And A Wak Up
So what visa did you do coming into Bangkok? Did you get it before arrival?
In an Ihg hotels with a platinum card, do you get a lounge access automatically or you need to earn it?
Need to earn it with 40 nights stayed
I already took your initial course. I don't see an option for adding on the new course. What is the cost if I already paid for the first course?
There is a coupon inside the CZcams course for $100 off. It is in the very last chapter of the CZcams Course at the bottom.
@@GroundedLifeRetirementTravel Thank you!
How many points do you guys usually accrue per month or year?
It just depends totally, in December and January we bought 800k in total so that put us over a million pretty easily. We are still using those.
Do you charge for your courses?
What times did you visit each country?
Last month
New camera?
I don’t get where that was accounted for either or the purchase of IHG points they aren’t shown, I appreciate these cost videos so I don’t see how the numbers are really accurate.
The IHG points were accounted for in this video. We said we bought points at .5 cents per point and spent 10.8k per night or $54. We account for the points when we spend them not buy them so you get a more accurate picture of what the month cost.
Closed captioning, Please!!! and thank you! I'll have to unsub otherwise😥
I have no problem seeing the captions after clicking on the little "cc" symbol at the bottom right of the screen.