Silver Nomads

Indian silvers are redefining retirement by discovering the thrill of travelling. Embracing new horizons and even taking some adventurous risks, these women and men are choosing to travel as a passion, not a pastime. Rachna Virdi profiles the footloose senior and examines the paradigm shift.

- Rachna Virdi

The Singh household is buzzing with excitement. Suitcases packed, visas stamped and hotel bookings locked, the excited silver couple is all set for their vacation to Sri Lanka. And this isn’t their first international vacation. “Our first trip was to Bahrain after our son relocated there for work,” says Paramjit Singh. “The experience was a great confidence booster and prompted us to spread our wings. Our secure finances and the extra time we had encouraged us to explore other destinations. Then, we realised there were other seniors who shared our passion, so we started travelling with groups. It lifts our spirits and gives us a fresh lease of life.”

The 63 year-old Chandigarh resident is not familiar with the term ‘seenager’(senior teenager) even though it’s a word being used to describe trippy seniors with a bad case of wanderlust—just like the Singhs! What’s more, the travel bug is highly contagious and, happily, more and more silvers in India are succumbing.

Indeed, silver nomads have already become an important area of interest with potential for growth in the travel industry and tour operators have witnessed a sharp rise in the travel trend since the turn of the century. Thomas Thottathil, head of corporate communications for Cox and Kings, a leading tour operator in India, seconds this “Our senior citizen travel is increasing by a minimum of 15 percent, year on year,” he says. Meanwhile, a representative from Veena World, another prominent travel player in the country, tells us that silver travellers account for a sizeable chunk of their business. Ever since the company was established in 2013, it has had 18,854 silver travellers in India and 16,045 to other destinations across the world.

Bucking the stereotype