Hello Reader,

🧭 Where in the World?

We were just reminded this week by a Facebook prompt that it’s been 16 years since we picked up and moved to Quito, Ecuador. That was the first step, and it was also the longest we’ve stayed in one place since: nine months. I can’t say we had a plan in mind beyond that first stop, which might explain why we’ve rarely, if ever, been disappointed by our travels. (Unhappy? Move on.) The highlights? Our compass leads us to new places and new discoveries, but we’ll detour every chance we get to connect with old friends and family.

As we turn to September, our energy goes to clearing the way for more travel – a couple months coming up in Italy and Spain. Declutter, simplify, pack light. Our stuff is not our home.

✏️ Our Latest Posts

We have been using eSIMS for phone data for a while now, and just got around to sharing what we've learned in this post: How to Use an eSIM for International Travel: A Step-by-Step Guide for Travelers Over 50. Using an eSIM is easy – and a lot cheaper than paying exorbitant fees to your US carrier for an international plan. They aren't any trouble to set up, if you follow instructions. Use one on your next trip out of the country.

🛫 Get Going: Tours We Recommend For You

You know we love listening to experts when we travel. That’s why we’re recommending Elective Study Abroad. No matter which course you choose, you can expect a relaxed slow-travel approach to learning.

If you act fast, you might be able to grab the last spot in Sicily: Palermo & the Evolution of the City — October 4, 2026

Or, join us in Spain to discover the region we find endlessly fascinating: Andalusia: The Art & Architecture of Andalusia — March 14, 2027

Inquire with Carrie at Elective or with us for more details.

NOTE: Travel Past 50 readers save $250 with the code TP50-2026. There’s no single supplement. Through September 15, get an additional 10% off enrollment for any 2027 courses. Use code EARLY2027

🗞️ Travel News From Around the Web

• Thinking "shoulder season" traveling means lower costs and fewer tourists? Seems like that's not so much the case anymore. Shoulder season prices and crowds are climbing to meet those of the traditional summer months. Go in winter. We do.

💸 This Week's Best Deals in Travel

• Pretty much our favorite overall outdoor brand, Patagonia is having an up to 50 percent off sale on a lot of items that are in our bags all the time, such as the Torrentshell rain jacket we've both been carrying for years.
• Our go-to store for travel gear is REI, and they're also having a big Labor Day sale, with up to 50 percent off plenty of items, and, for members, an additional 20 percent off one item from the outlet store with the code LABORDAY26 at checkout. · Kris swears by the featherweight wind shell she touts in her packing video. A similar one is on sale at REI.​
• We've recently been converted to American Hat Makers for our travel hats, and they're running a great Labor Day sale right now. There are lots of very cool hats to choose from, but for a crushable/packable travel hat, we are both using the Nero straw fedora. Love it. Many hats are on sale, and there's an additional 25 percent off when you use the code LABOR250 at checkout.

📖 What We're Reading

Tom is finally finishing One Hundred Years of Solitude after starting it about six times over the years. Next on the list is American Scoundrel: Roy Cohn's Dark Journey from Joe McCarthy to Donald Trump, by his college classmate Kai Bird and his wife Susan Goldmark. Bird won the Pulitzer Prize a few years back for his biography of Robert Oppenheimer, the basis for the Academy Award winning film.

Kris is reading Python’s Kiss, a collection of short stories by Louise Erdrich. Though Kris is trying (not very successfully) to box up books to pass along, this mesmerizing volume won’t be among them, nor will any other of Erdrich’s books, for that matter. Keepers. BTW, we buy Erdrich's books from her bookstore, Birchbark Books, in Minneapolis. If you buy them there, you can get a signed copy. Be sure to call to confirm.

Find most of our recommendations at our Amazon book shop — or, if you prefer supporting independent booksellers, Bookshop.org is excellent. Art book lovers: Taschen's catalog is a rabbit hole worth falling into.

If you buy a book through our links, we make a small commission at no additional cost to you.

❝Travel Quote of the Week❞

I travel not to go anywhere, but to go. I travel for travel’s sake. The great affair is to move. ― Robert Louis Stevenson

See our list of amusing, insightful, and pithy travel quotes here.

Read past editions of our newsletter here.

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Have any feedback? Ideas for future posts or email topics? We'd love to hear from you. Email us at feedback@travelpast50.com.

Happy travels,

Kris and Tom

Tom Bartel and Kristin Henning ​Travel Past 50​ Connect with us on Facebook and Instagram. Join our Facebook community.

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