My mother lives in central Florida and usually vacations by coming to visit us in Europe. When my father was alive, they would vacation with friends on Myrtle Beach off season (when there are great deals for condos) or they would go on cruises (again great deals, the cruise companies often do presentations at the various 55 plus communities and offer big discounts).

She'll be moving back to PA soon, but her vacation plans aren't changing--she still plans to visit us in Europe as often as possible.

BTilke, If I were your mom, I'd be visiting you in Europe as often as possible too--any time of year! :) What fun. Then you can visit her in FL in March when you are sick of dreary winter.

The great thing about living in Florida is that you can "vacation" over a long weekend, go to the beach, Disney, St. Augustine, etc. Then when it is time to take a couple of weeks..you can go anywhere you want, Europe, South Africa, Canada, Bahamas, Vegas, Chicago.
The other thing is that I never have to sigh "Oh, gee, I HAVE to go home." It is always, "lucky me, I GET to go home."

OO, that's true, I usually visited them for a week in early December and again in March. We don't usually go to theme parks, so spring break weeks didn't have an effect on our plans.

* Except this past March, when I came back to the UK, I was about the only non-Brit on the plane. I sailed through my non-Eu Immigration line in less than 5 minutes while they waited and waited and waited...with cranky, tired kids.

At any rate, Mom is about to move back to PA, so I will be doing fall and late spring visits--my Florida trips have ended. I love PA in late October/early November and also in May. Plus many of my friends from high school and college live there, so now I can see them as well as Mom (and hit the King of Prussia mall!).

Why is she leaving BTilke, if you don't mind my asking? Anything to do with escalating taxes and insurance?? We have Tampa friends, natives even, who have decided to leave too. Has nothing to do with hurricanes, just escalating expenses and they are retiring. Like so many others, they are headed to the mtns of NC. My husband and I are actually giving some thought now to going back when he retires. We miss it. From notes of yours I've read before, it seems your mom has been there for some time. I wonder how she'll do dealing with winter again?

Most of my full-time neighbors in the mountains (N GA) are retired from Florida. N Ga, Western NC and Eastern TN are full of "flat-landers" :-)

There's a descriptive phrase for that movement Starrs. It's called the J-curve. So what would we be moving Dallas-Tampa-San Antonio-Tampa. The Big Z's? :)

She's moving because, as an 80 yo widow, she doesn't feel up to coping with a home of her own anymore. She's also afraid of what would happen if she couldn't drive. The typical active retiree life of central Florida was great for her when my father was still alive and they were in their 60s and early 70s, physically fit and not worried about losing driving skills. Also, she has been able to duck any serious hurricane (or tornado) damage but feels she can't stay lucky forever. But mostly it's the lack of services for older retirees (75+) that's sending her back to Pennsylvania. She's moving back to the town she grew up in, where some of her good friends still live. She'll be in a new apartment complex where she can walk to shopping, there's frequent bus services and medical care close at hand. Right now she's moving into a non-seniors complex but is on a waiting list for an apartment in a nice, new seniors complex...it's much smaller than their retirement community in Florida, just about 50 apartments in a quiet part of town (but with a bus stop right outside the building and shops a block away), plus a few of the people living there are people she went to school with.
Also very important for her is that my brother lives only about 90 minutes away by car. So if there's an emergency, he could get there quickly. He's also relieved about that because he's been having to spend most of his vacation time at her place in Florida...now he'll be able to pop over a couple of times a month yet still be able to go to other places on his vacation.
It's easier for me to get to her as well...it's a shorter flight from London* to Newark or Philly than to Orlando. Cheaper too.
Winters won't bother her...my father didn't like the cold, my mother didn't like the heat.

My inlaws may be doing something similar...selling their freestanding home in Oregon and moving into a condo near my husband's brother in Boston. They're not particularly keen about living on the East Coast, but as with my mother, they're over 75, want to have family nearby and the ability to live a car-free life if necessary.

*There is a small possibility that we'll be moving to Germany. She loves Germany and can't wait to come visit if that goes through. Cross your fingers for us!!

OK, fingers crossed! You are leading an enviable life, here and there in Europe!

Sorry to hear about your mom, but that is the ugly truth of aging in so many places. What to do when you lose your ability to drive. We surely couldn't stay where we are now. The good is that she's returning to an area where she's got old friends, family, and an area she knows. She'll have freedom with public transportation and more contact with your brother. You all will have more peace of mind. It's terrific that she's still heading off to Europe whenever! Hope it all goes well!

We like to summer on the coast of Oregon and Washington

We go anywhere we can escape the oppressive heat and humidity of the summer. Florida is only a paradise in the winter! :)

I try to go to northern Europe when I can afford it, northern US when I can't. In a couple days I'm going to Maine and Nova Scotia. Last summer I escaped to Ireland. Next summer Scotland is planned :) Alaska is on the list, as is Scandinavia.

But then again, I love the cooler weather.