How much do you spend in retirement ?

Jaco70

Murphy_The_Cat said:

zagfles said:

ratechaser said:

Zagfles - coming back on your points on travel economies....  So although the MSE in me will be looking for good deals on J class travel (wife isn't going to buy into tricks like ex-EU or convoluted indirect routings so that's out), and nicer hotels, it's likely to net off versus the relatively cheap and cheerful family holidays we have right now. And I haggle hard when booking them, believe me!

Plus the kids have got wise to the fact that mum and dad pay for nice holidays and have suggested they'll be happy to tag along for some years yet 

Yes, I'm with your wife, the travel board is full of people coming up with weird convoluted routes to get cheaper BC flights!

If you are ever able to change your respective minds, flying ex-eu is a wonderful way to ease the pressure on your wallet, whilst
flying on a flatbed, enjoying a good meal - the positioning flight pre and post holiday is all part of the trip !

Sorry to seem dim, but these messages have been a bit lost on me. What’s ‘ex-eu’ and ‘BC flights’? I gather it’s about doing things more cheaply, which is common to us as we regularly travel to Manchester or Gatwick even though we live in Cardiff, but I didn’t understand the abbreviations. 

zagfles

Murphy_The_Cat said:

zagfles said:

ratechaser said:

Zagfles - coming back on your points on travel economies....  So although the MSE in me will be looking for good deals on J class travel (wife isn't going to buy into tricks like ex-EU or convoluted indirect routings so that's out), and nicer hotels, it's likely to net off versus the relatively cheap and cheerful family holidays we have right now. And I haggle hard when booking them, believe me!

Plus the kids have got wise to the fact that mum and dad pay for nice holidays and have suggested they'll be happy to tag along for some years yet 

Yes, I'm with your wife, the travel board is full of people coming up with weird convoluted routes to get cheaper BC flights!

If you are ever able to change your respective minds, flying ex-eu is a wonderful way to ease the pressure on your wallet, whilst
flying on a flatbed, enjoying a good meal - the positioning flight pre and post holiday is all part of the trip !

Way OT - but for me far too much messing around, positioning flight to somewhere in EU, hanging around airport, collecting bags, going through passport control, finding hotel, one night, getting up and back through it all again, what if positioning flight is cancelled etc..unlikely to be on the same booking...

As an example when we went to NZ, we deliberately booked a 10 hour connection in Singapore and booked the airside transit hotel. Landed there about 9am, about 2am UK time, so didn't need to sleep on the plane. Straight to transit hotel in the airport, no need to collect bags as they were checked through, no immigration, passport control etc, airside all the time. Quiet private room, no windows, so wouldn't know it was daytime. Lovely 8 hours kip, then up for the evening flight to Auckland, which for us was morning as we'd just got up!

So no need to kip on either flight, could make full use of the free booze, inc cocktails, plus SIA's extensive entertainment range inc recently released films.

I've been on loads of long haul economy flights and even for 12 hours or so they're much more enjoyable than typical 3-4 hour budget airline flights which I find a chore. I think a lot of people think if they fly economy they'll get a Ryanair type experience for 4 times as long and shudder thinking about it...really not the case IME, but may depend on airline, I've mostly used flag carriers.

But the big difference is getting a good kip - I'd consider BC if I couldn't spare the time for a long connection, but as we talking retirement here, we'll be time rich so taking an extra 10 hours or so to get there won't be an issue. Also getting to kip in a private hotel room with private facilities rather than what is effectively a "sky dorm" with shared facilities with people snoring around you (I remember my days in hostel dorms!).

IIRC the transit hotel was quite cheap, under £100 for 4 of us, ie £25 each, compare that to the difference between economy and BC!

Sorry for the OT rambling...

Sea_Shell

I've just been updating our figures, and for the 12 months to date, we've spent a whopping £10,716.   £3,600 of that has been in 2020.  If this carries on, we'll be breaking the £9,000 barrier!!!    

Against an expected/budgeted spend of £15-20k pa (couple)

At this rate we will be able to charter a private plane for our next holiday....or maybe just a helicopter....or limo....or just go in our own car.....(tight gits) 

avoidtheupsidedownbottles

kuratowski said:

An alternative source of retirement income figures from October 2019:

			SINGLE		COUPLE
MINIMUM			£10,200		£15,700
MODERATE		£20,200		£29,100
COMFORTABLE		£33,000		£47,500

Presumably the numbers are in addition to State Pension?  Couldn't see anyone living on £10,200 if they still pay rent or mortgage.

zagfles

Jaco70 said:

Murphy_The_Cat said:

zagfles said:

ratechaser said:

Zagfles - coming back on your points on travel economies....  So although the MSE in me will be looking for good deals on J class travel (wife isn't going to buy into tricks like ex-EU or convoluted indirect routings so that's out), and nicer hotels, it's likely to net off versus the relatively cheap and cheerful family holidays we have right now. And I haggle hard when booking them, believe me!

Plus the kids have got wise to the fact that mum and dad pay for nice holidays and have suggested they'll be happy to tag along for some years yet 

Yes, I'm with your wife, the travel board is full of people coming up with weird convoluted routes to get cheaper BC flights!

If you are ever able to change your respective minds, flying ex-eu is a wonderful way to ease the pressure on your wallet, whilst
flying on a flatbed, enjoying a good meal - the positioning flight pre and post holiday is all part of the trip !

Sorry to seem dim, but these messages have been a bit lost on me. What’s ‘ex-eu’ and ‘BC flights’? I gather it’s about doing things more cheaply, which is common to us as we regularly travel to Manchester or Gatwick even though we live in Cardiff, but I didn’t understand the abbreviations. 

Sorry we can sometimes forget this isn't the travel board!

BC is business class, generally bigger seats which can convert to a bed, more room, better food and a few other advantages, however usually considerably more expensive than "economy", perhaps £1000+ more each!

Ex-EU means getting a long haul flight originating in an EU country eg France, Germany, which apparently in BC can be considerably cheaper than BC from the UK. Probably due to taxes.

So what some people do is book BC ex-EU but this of course means they need to get to France/Germany first, for which they need a "positioning flight", usually on a different booking/airline, which means the long haul airline wouldn't cover you if your positioning flight were cancelled/delayed. As such contingency is needed, I think most people book the day before, which obviously means they need an overnight stay.

MACKEM99

Sea_Shell said:

I've just been updating our figures, and for the 12 months to date, we've spent a whopping £10,716.   £3,600 of that has been in 2020.  If this carries on, we'll be breaking the £9,000 barrier!!!    

Against an expected/budgeted spend of £15-20k pa (couple)

At this rate we will be able to charter a private plane for our next holiday....or maybe just a helicopter....or limo....or just go in our own car.....(tight gits) 

"At this rate we will be able to charter a private plane for our next holiday....or maybe just a helicopter"

The way things are going at the moment you may have to. 

JoeCrystal

avoidtheupsidedownbottles said:

kuratowski said:

An alternative source of retirement income figures from October 2019:

			SINGLE		COUPLE
MINIMUM			£10,200		£15,700
MODERATE		£20,200		£29,100
COMFORTABLE		£33,000		£47,500

Presumably the numbers are in addition to State Pension?  Couldn't see anyone living on £10,200 if they still pay rent or mortgage.

Not precisely in addition to State Pension, avoidtheupsidedownbottles. And the retirement income figures are after taxes as well. The authors who did the report said that among their participants, it is reasonable to expect that the pensioners would not be paying rent or mortgage in retirement.

ratechaser

zagfles said:

Jaco70 said:

Murphy_The_Cat said:

zagfles said:

ratechaser said:

Zagfles - coming back on your points on travel economies....  So although the MSE in me will be looking for good deals on J class travel (wife isn't going to buy into tricks like ex-EU or convoluted indirect routings so that's out), and nicer hotels, it's likely to net off versus the relatively cheap and cheerful family holidays we have right now. And I haggle hard when booking them, believe me!

Plus the kids have got wise to the fact that mum and dad pay for nice holidays and have suggested they'll be happy to tag along for some years yet 

Yes, I'm with your wife, the travel board is full of people coming up with weird convoluted routes to get cheaper BC flights!

If you are ever able to change your respective minds, flying ex-eu is a wonderful way to ease the pressure on your wallet, whilst
flying on a flatbed, enjoying a good meal - the positioning flight pre and post holiday is all part of the trip !

Sorry to seem dim, but these messages have been a bit lost on me. What’s ‘ex-eu’ and ‘BC flights’? I gather it’s about doing things more cheaply, which is common to us as we regularly travel to Manchester or Gatwick even though we live in Cardiff, but I didn’t understand the abbreviations. 

Sorry we can sometimes forget this isn't the travel board!

BC is business class, generally bigger seats which can convert to a bed, more room, better food and a few other advantages, however usually considerably more expensive than "economy", perhaps £1000+ more each!

Ex-EU means getting a long haul flight originating in an EU country eg France, Germany, which apparently in BC can be considerably cheaper than BC from the UK. Probably due to taxes.

So what some people do is book BC ex-EU but this of course means they need to get to France/Germany first, for which they need a "positioning flight", usually on a different booking/airline, which means the long haul airline wouldn't cover you if your positioning flight were cancelled/delayed. As such contingency is needed, I think most people book the day before, which obviously means they need an overnight stay.

To an extent yes, but really more about marketing. BA for example can't fill its planes just selling to the UK market, so they advertise globally - problem is if you're in The Netherlands (for example), why would you really want an indirect BA flight from Amsterdam to London and then on to <wherever> ,when KLM would fly you directly to <wherever> - leading BA to have to sell it cheaper from that indirect starting point. And you do get some very good sale fares. Crazy that it's cheaper to actually fly more overall, but that's how it works, very consistently. Indirect is cheaper because it's more hassle.

Personally I'd be all for taking that positioning flight and spending a weekend in Amsterdam to start a holiday off. But on the way back you'd have to do the same - your end point wouldn't be London and the airlines take a dim view of people that repeatedly skip the 'last leg' flight because they are obviously gaming the system to get a cheaper flight...

Hence why I don't think I'd ever persuade Mrs RC. Far more of a functional traveller than me.

ElephantBoy57

I have just added up how much I will get if I retire at retirement age, 67, I will get £20k if you add up my private pension, state pension and be better off by not paying my mortgage.

My earnings have varied in recent years, between £15k-£18k

I am surprised it's so much. I work local for a local authority, so the £7,573.72 will probably increase. Not sure if that estimate includes what I am likely to earn in the future.

£9,141.69 state pension

Jaco70

zagfles said:

Jaco70 said:

Murphy_The_Cat said:

zagfles said:

ratechaser said:

Zagfles - coming back on your points on travel economies....  So although the MSE in me will be looking for good deals on J class travel (wife isn't going to buy into tricks like ex-EU or convoluted indirect routings so that's out), and nicer hotels, it's likely to net off versus the relatively cheap and cheerful family holidays we have right now. And I haggle hard when booking them, believe me!

Plus the kids have got wise to the fact that mum and dad pay for nice holidays and have suggested they'll be happy to tag along for some years yet 

Yes, I'm with your wife, the travel board is full of people coming up with weird convoluted routes to get cheaper BC flights!

If you are ever able to change your respective minds, flying ex-eu is a wonderful way to ease the pressure on your wallet, whilst
flying on a flatbed, enjoying a good meal - the positioning flight pre and post holiday is all part of the trip !

Sorry to seem dim, but these messages have been a bit lost on me. What’s ‘ex-eu’ and ‘BC flights’? I gather it’s about doing things more cheaply, which is common to us as we regularly travel to Manchester or Gatwick even though we live in Cardiff, but I didn’t understand the abbreviations. 

Sorry we can sometimes forget this isn't the travel board!

BC is business class, generally bigger seats which can convert to a bed, more room, better food and a few other advantages, however usually considerably more expensive than "economy", perhaps £1000+ more each!

Ex-EU means getting a long haul flight originating in an EU country eg France, Germany, which apparently in BC can be considerably cheaper than BC from the UK. Probably due to taxes.

So what some people do is book BC ex-EU but this of course means they need to get to France/Germany first, for which they need a "positioning flight", usually on a different booking/airline, which means the long haul airline wouldn't cover you if your positioning flight were cancelled/delayed. As such contingency is needed, I think most people book the day before, which obviously means they need an overnight stay.

To be fair I should’ve worked out what BC meant, but I wouldn’t have guessed ex-eu, so I’m glad I asked. Thanks