Nature's Window, Kalbarri National Park

About

Hello and welcome to What’s On Watson’s

Thanks for dropping by and becoming part of the What’s On Watson’s community.

We are Estelle and Greg from What’s On Watson’s. We launched the What’s On Watson’s blog in 2016. In the same year we both retired, at the ages of 58 and 60 years.

The tag line for What’s On Watson’s is “Retirees Enjoying Travel”. We chose this tag line as we love being retired and we love travel. And our guess is we are not alone! Many other people want to retire and travel as much as possible too.

Based on our experiences, What’s On Watson’s is about sharing information, inspiration, tips and suggestions on travel, house sitting and retirement for people 50 years and over.

We aim for you, our readers, to be inspired; just as we have! Join us as we embrace possibilities, think outside the square and try new things. The hope is to make the most of life; to make great memories; have no regrets; to no longer put things off; to simply do whatever it is that is important to you.

There is one thing we know for sure! For us, retirement has been the most freeing experience. In retirement we are free to do what we want, when we want. In fact, retirement has been beyond what we expected. Then, add travel adventures… Hands down, no question, neither of us are sorry we retired. In fact, we ended up retiring earlier than we originally planned, and we are so pleased we did.

Most new readers to What’s On Watson’s are aged in their 50s and over. They are people from all over the world. Whether you are:

  • working full time, part time, or casually.
  • Retired, transitioning to retirement, retired part time…
  • Or
  • NEVER planning to retire….

It doesn’t matter. Disregarding your status, many have a dream to enjoy their retirement years and experience more travel adventures. And the chances are, if you are reading this page, you are interested in travel, house sitting and retirement lifestyle blog content.

About The Watson’s

We are an Aussie couple who enjoy the outdoor life. We have always enjoyed camping, bush walking, fishing, boating, and going to the beach. We also enjoy travelling, meeting new people, and trying new experiences.

In our fifties we caught the travel bug! This was when we became empty-nester’s and had more money to spend on ourselves.

Eiffel Tower Paris
Eiffel Tower, Paris – 2012

Our Retirement Journey

With the freedom of retirement we decided to travel full time. November 2016 saw us set off in our caravan to travel Australia; with only a simple mud map for our future. We decided we needed to travel while we were fit, healthy and able to cope with extended travel.

Travel Australia.
Setting off to travel Australia – 2016.

Estelle is a people person. She is the one who tends to come up with new ideas and is keen to give different things a go. Estelle is the writer of this blog. Greg has a wonderful sense of humour. He is very practical, and a great problem solver. Greg’s problem solving skills have proven invaluable while we travel. Together we make a good team, as we tend to compliment each other.

We consider ourselves to be average Australians. Yet, 2 ½ years into our retirement we have:

  • Sold our home of 17 years (We had a home to return to)
  • Lived a nomadic lifestyle for 2 years (less one month)
  • Travelled full time throughout Australia, plus two overseas trips (Bali and USA)
  • Enjoyed house sitting experiences in Perth and Brisbane, and we plan to do more.
  • Became minimalists – now prioritising experiences and travel adventures over objects
  • Recently downsized and currently living in a unit.

All the above points were not in our retirement plan. While we did plan to travel to the Kimberly region in Western Australia, we thought we would only be away six months. We never dreamed we would do what we have done in our retirement.

Today we are happy to say we have travelled extensively throughout Australia and visited 17 countries. And we hope to see so much more.

Here’s the point –

You can’t decide exactly what you will do in retirement until you are retired.

Plus, age is not a barrier.

Rather, the barrier is our thoughts and beliefs about what is possible.

Anyway, enough about us….

We trust you will find What’s On Watson’s a useful resource for travel, house sitting and retirement ideas. When you check out the content on What’s On Watson’s you will find:

TRAVEL PAGE

  • Information about travel destinations in Australia and overseas
  • Budget travel tips
  • Links to useful websites
  • Stories and photos to inspire you to travel too.

HOUSE SITTING PAGE

  • Information about how to apply to become a house sitter
  • House sitting tips
  • Stories to inspire you to combine travel and house sitting
  • Useful house sitting website links

RETIREMENT PAGE

  • Information about retirement
  • Tips about retirement
  • Links to useful websites
  • Stories about retirement

Please feel free to join in conversations on the What’s On Watson’s website. We’d love to hear from you. Please leave a comments on blog posts as all opinions matter!

The best way to stay in touch with What’s On Watson’s blog posts is to subscribe to our newsletter for regular updates and tips. Subscription is completely free and we promise to keep your details private. Click to read our privacy policy

Best wishes from Estelle and Greg -Retirees Enjoying Travel

PS – While you are here, come and follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest.

14 thoughts on “About”

  1. Hello! Thanks so much for stopping by One Road at a Time and for leaving such a nice comment. We visited Australia in 2004 while our son studies for a semester at the University of Melbourne. We thoroughly enjoyed our time, although of course it wasn’t long enough.

    Welcome to your retirement! I’ve liked your Facebook page and I look forward to following your adventures!

    Reply
    • Thank you so very much Patti for leaving such a nice comment. So pleased to hear you enjoyed your time in Melbourne. And likewise, whenever we travel overseas we never have enough time to see all we would like. Thank you so much for liking our FB page. I have found you on Instagram and will also follow your retirement and travel adventures there.

      Reply
  2. To the lady who saved my life.

    I have completed a Cert IV and Diploma in Community Services, and got Married 2 months ago…I wish you and your Husband the most joyus of journeys, good health and extreme happiness…You deserve the best.

    Reply
    • Wow Lisa, its so lovely to hear from you. And I am so delighted to hear all your great news. Congratulations on your marriage. You too deserve the best! I had a break from blogging, but have decided to get back into it. Perhaps you may like to sign up for our newsletter so you can follow us.

      Reply
  3. This is a great way to share your travels, trips and tips! It sounds like you’re both enjoying life and retirement. I too am having a ball since being made redundant at age 56, the freedom, new lease on life and opportunities are all fantastic fun. I enjoy reading your posts and following along on your travels. It was lovely to meet you again recently and talk travels and blogging.

    Reply
    • Thank you so very much Debbie for your supportive comments. Yes it was lovely to meet you again & to talk briefly about blogging – a real shot in the arm for me. And, yes, we both are really enjoying retirement. We have no regrets about retiring early, nor about our decision to travel extensively. We too have experienced a sense of freedom and a new lease on life following retirement.

      Reply
  4. You guys are so Awesome and Inspirational.
    It’s about time someone showed the Aussie baby boomers that it’s not all about work.
    And that Life is to be enjoyed at every opportunity especially while you are still capable.
    Looking forward to your future stories.

    Reply
    • Thank you Oli for your comment. It made me giggle – in a nice way. I’m not used to people calling us awesome and inspirational. In fact, I now wish we had retired earlier. Life is certainly not all about work. Retirement has offered us incredible freedom and the opportunity to enjoy far more travel adventures than we ever dreamed.

      Reply
  5. Hi Guys, I just found your blog, because one of you was kind enough to click on an Instagram photo that I posted a few days ago. I am always on the search for retired boomers (even ones on the other side of he world) so it was nice to find you two. Seems we have a lot in common, as I am the writer and photographer on our Blog and my husband Malcolm is the planner, doer and all around problem- solver. I just read your tips for pre-travel and you offer some essential advice that is spot on. I am now a subscriber both here and on Instagram. Hope you will jump over to http://www.picture-retirement.com and check us out sometime. Happy travels!

    Reply
    • Hi Suzanne and a very big welcome. I am so pleased I clicked on your Insta photo and that you took it a step further and connected on our blog. I will most definitely check out your blog and follow along. 🤗

      Reply
  6. You guys are my heros. I have 3 years (?) to go before retirement – it’s so close I can taste it. You all were brave to sell your home! I’m not sure I could do that. Cheers to many more adventures and happy days ahead!

    Reply
    • Hi Pamela and thank you so much for dropping by & leaving your lovely comment. Hero’s we are not 😂, yet hopefully we have opened an idea about the possibilities retirement will bring. We had no idea we would do what we have done, especially 3 years prior to our retirement. The reality is you will not know what exact decisions you will make in retirement, not until you are retired. In regard to selling our home, we were always going to sell that home. We were lucky to have other property, so still in the property market. Having no home base was the best. Such freedom. Since retirement we have met many retirees who have rented their home out, to fund their nomadic lifestyle. Others travel as full time house sitters. So, Pamela, make your retirement plans, but.. be prepared to change them. Retirement offers lots of options if you are willing to try something different. Best wishes Estelle

      Reply

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