Hello Reader,

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🧭 Where in the World?

We're in Valencia, Spain, on the last leg of a six week sojourn in Europe that has taken us to France, England, Ireland, and Spain. Highlights are too many to list here, but dozens of fresh oysters in Sète, France, seeing Stephen Fry as Lady Bracknell in The Importance of Being Earnest on the London stage, and staying in a centuries-old manor house in Ireland will all rank on our all-time list. Check the links below for more details on the French part of our trip with Elective Study Abroad in Montpellier.

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🛫 Get Going: Join Us in South America

Jump on this chance to join us on our custom tour to Chile and Argentina, February 21 to March 3, 2026. We're excited for this chance to revisit and share the wine, culture and magnificent scenery of South America. We'll take in two UNESCO World Heritage sites, city tours including the Notable Cafes of Buenos Aires, wineries, tango venues, and great food. We lived in South America for a year, and have been back several times since, so we're ready for your questions. Only three spots remain for this small group tour (max 12 people).

Ask questions and book directly with us by emailing kristin@travelpast50.com, Subject: South America Wine and Culture. Click here for more details.

🧳 Our Latest Posts

Here's our post about the wonderful time we had with Elective Study Abroad in Montpellier, France. Read our story and you'll see how Elective's approach, though new to us, was definitely up our alley, representing the increasing interest in scholarly travel among 50+ travelers. The destination became the classroom. In Montpellier, the curriculum centered around the French "Art of Living." Yes, it was as fun as it sounds. Highly recommended for the next time you want to dive deeper into what makes a travel destination special.

Look for Elective Study Abroad's offerings for 2026, including the new course in Palermo, Sicily. Now Travel Past 50 readers get 10% OFF any 2026 course enrollment, using code TP502026.

If you are interested in learning more, join a free video conference on Sunday, November 9 at 3 p.m. Eastern (Noon Pacific). Register from the banner notice on Elective's Home Page.

🗞️ Travel News From Around the Web

• National Geographic has nominated its list for the best places to travel in 2026. There are some surprises, and some standbys here, but the highlight of the article is, of course, the always stunning National Geographic photos from each destination. (Spain, Uzbekistan, Quebec, and Japan are on our wish lists for next year.)
• Marie Kondo, of decluttering fame, has a few ideas on travel, and how to decide what to pack. Hint: spark joy!

💸 This Week's Best Deals in Travel

• One of our essential travel accessories, Apple AirTags are on deep discount at Amazon now. More than one third off the list price.
• The corollary to the VPN mentioned above is using a data blocker on your charging cord when you plug into public charging stations in airports. Those charging stations can be manipulated to download your phone or laptop's data. Don't chance it. Use a data blocker. They're cheap.

✈️ Points and Miles News

In just the last week, our subscription to Thrifty Traveler Pro has notified us of super cheap airfares (under $600 round trip) to London, Croatia, and Mallorca. Also, they've published detailed instructions of how to fly in Business Class to Europe for only 60,000 points each way. If you take advantage of just one of their notifications per year, you've more than paid for your annual subscription. Use this link to sign up, or use the promo code TP50 at checkout to get $20 off your first year's membership.

📖 What We're Reading

Tom is reading, in conjunction with our trip to Ireland, the Antarctica collection of short stories by Irish author Claire Keegan, and a selection of the poetry of William Butler Yeats, He's also been intrigued by A Collection of Irish Fairy Tales and Folklore, edited by the poet himself.

Kris just finished Arundahti Roy's Mother Mary Comes to Me, part autobiography, part biography of her mother, and part whirlwind history of India's political climate over the past few decades. It's intense. On the other hand, she's been chuckling as she listens to the Audible version of This is Happiness by Niall Williams, a charming novel about a small town in Ireland the day the rain stops and electricity is introduced.

We're recommending books at Bookshop.org. If you buy a book from them, it benefits independent local booksellers. For our previous book recommendations, check out this list..

❝Travel Quote of the Week❞

All journeys have secret destinations of which the traveler is unaware. – Martin Buber

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Happy travels,

Kris and Tom

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

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