Clever way retirees Peter and Glenice are funding their travels
Peter and Glenice are using DoorDash to make extra cash while they travel the country.
Retirees Peter and Glenice have been funding their travels around the country by working as delivery drivers.Peter and Glenice retired in 2013 with plans to travel the country but, when the cost-of-living crunch took hold, their plans were left up in the air.
“It was always our plan when we retired to get a caravan and travel and do plenty of it,” Glenice told Yahoo Finance.
“We never thought at our age that we would have to be going back to work. Because, even though we're on a pension, we were still able to save money and then go on a six-month holiday. But when all this happened we could no longer do that because the economy was just chewing up any money that we had, the same as anybody.”
It wasn’t just massive hikes in petrol costs causing them stress. Camping costs were rising as well.
“A few years ago, we would pay something like $25 to $30 for a night. But now, you could be paying up to $50 or $60 a night,” Peter said.
That’s when the couple had to sit down and have a serious conversation about what their next move would be, but they were determined to get back on the road.
“We could either sell our caravan, sit on our bums and grow old, or we could get off our bums and go out and get a job and continue travelling the way we've always wanted to,” Glenice said.
Perseverance pays offNow the couple make around $230 a day as delivery drivers using DoorDash, but it was a rocky road when they first started out.
“Our daughter and granddaughter were already doing it. So, they showed us how we went from there,” Peter said.
“A couple of times, I wanted to throw the phone away because we don't even have a computer at home. So, the only device we had was our telephones,” Glenice said.
“And for us, at our age, to turn around and have to learn an app like DoorDash was quite daunting. We made some mistakes, as everybody does, but we got through it. And now it's just so easy for us. It's second nature and we love it.”
Peter and Glenice said they usually worked around four days per week and did a minimum of four hours per shift, making sure not to work over the maximum allowed to still qualify for the pension.
“Glenice is the brains of the operation and I’m the brawn - not that there’s a lot of brawn left at my age,” Peter joked.
And not only is the money helping them continue on their travel plans, they've been able to cover other costs as well.
“Pete and I have both had to have eye surgeries. So, now the money that we're dashing for is actually paying for that as well, and we’re not eating into our holiday fund,” Glenice said.
As for their future plans, Peter and Glenice are planning their next trip to Western Australia to go swimming with whale sharks.
“We’ve been to WA maybe three or four times, but we’ve never had the money to swim with the whale sharks. Now we will,” Glenice said.
“It’s allowed us to do a lot more on our holidays instead of just going somewhere and sightseeing. Even though we're in our 70s, we're pretty different and we love to hike and canoe and bike ride.
“We're pretty lucky at our age that we've got the ability and the fitness to do this as well as DoorDash because some people just wouldn't be able to.”
au.finance.yahoo.com/news/clever-way-retirees-peter-and-glenice-are-funding-their-travels-211831794.html