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You've Heard of the Staycation, But What About the 'Greycation?'

Where: Germany
September 9, 2009 at 3:18 PM | by | Comments (0)

You've no doubt heard of the "staycation," but "greycation" might be a new term to familiarize yourself with, especially if you belong to the silver-haired faction of jetsetters. While the travel industry often takes great pains to appeal to younger demographics, what with the influx of advertisements for debauched Spring Break getaways and MTV branded guides, those 50 and over crave the same kind of exploration that their younger cohorts do.

And where do these baby boomers choose to spend their hard-earned cash, or, in some cases, retirement fund savings? Today, Club Med and timeshares don't mark the height of senior citizen travel. According to a recent report by Reuters, culture-hungry greycationers are enamored with Germany, a country that is not only attracting many an international visitor these days, but whose older citizens are stimulating the national by booking holidays and supporting local businesses in the process. Says Reuters:

'Seniors today are more active, financially independent, and eager to travel,' said Klaus Laepple from Germany's DRV travel association. Their favourite destination is Germany.

While grandma and pop-pop may not be rappelling down steep cliffs on their summer vacation, they certainly aren't experiencing a dearth of excitement, albeit senior citizen-style. The Reuters article cites health-centric spa vacations and resort getaways, such as to the German town of Binz, as popular options for older travelers.

Of course, older non-Germans aren't exempt from the fun. For instance, "[i]n Britain, where domestic holidays are also in vogue, summer rock and folk festivals are multiplying and boomers seeking to shun the coach-tour badges of old age are taking road trips in cult autos like the Volkswagen Microbus." If this is the case, we can't wait to see a flock of salt-and-pepper heads stomping around in the mud at next year's Glastonbury festival with the likes of Kate Moss.

Related Stories
· In ageing Europe, "greycationers" seek local thrills [Reuters]
· Germany Travel coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: Fr Antunes]

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