Europe for Aging Bodies: Here’s What to Know to Ease the Way

11 practical strategies to stay comfortable, while keeping mobility, safety and health in mind

By

Jane Wooldridge,

 
AARP
Published July 14, 2026
a harbor in birgu, malta with yachts and fishing boats
There are some key points to keep in mind when older adults travel to Europe, where cobblestone streets and steep climbs may require an assessment of walking conditions or the use of luggage service to avoid carrying luggage, among other concerns. Malta was a birthday trip destination for a group of friends.
Getty Images

Key takeaways

  • Travelers over 50 are embracing Europe: Many are adapting plans to be in line with their physical limits.
  • Small adjustments like packing light, taking taxis and requesting help can reduce strain and make travel safer and easier.
  • Planning ahead for accessibility, transport and health coverage helps avoid costly and exhausting surprises abroad.

I’ve dragged my suitcase a mile along the stone streets of Barcelona, Spain, thinking I’ll get in my steps for the day. But my not-quite-tamed sciatica has my back in revolt. My own advice echoes through my head. Take a taxi.

Even though I don’t like to admit it, I’m not 42 anymore. Like an estimated 125 million fellow Americans, I’m well past 50. And while I may be as feisty as ever, some body parts have gotten sticky. My husband, who is 80, is finding that long airport corridors are more than his replaced knees can handle.

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Aging hasn’t stopped older Americans — including us — from traveling abroad. The latest AARP Travel Trends survey notes 41 percent of adults 50-plus planned to travel both domestically and internationally in 2026. Nor should aging stop you, says Sara Czaja, a professor in gerontology at New York’s Weill Cornell Medicine. Two of the components of successful aging are inherent in travel, she says. “One is continued socialization; [the other is] continued cognitive engagement. Travel [affords] opportunities for both.” Czaja, who is over 65, travels frequently to Europe for work and with friends; her 92-year-old husband, Jim Herron, often comes along. 

Nancy Frehling and her husband, Robert, of Miami, are also longtime globetrotters who have traveled for pleasure and to source products for the design-importing firm they founded, Oggetti. Now in their 80s, they avoid remote locations that once filled their itineraries if those locations don’t have good medical care. “We want to travel as long as we can, so we have to … make these accommodations,” says Frehling.

a group of people talking and laughing outside a building in malta
For her husband’s 85th birthday, Nancy Frehling arranged a four-day trip to Malta and invited friends to join them. Frehling booked three guides so the groups would be small. One was dubbed the “slow walkers” group, with a less difficult terrain for those who preferred a slower pace.
Courtesy Jane Wooldridge

The following tips come from Czaja, Frehling and Road Scholar, a tour company geared toward older adults. I’ve also included advice from my own travels over the past several years, as I researched my recent book, Comfort in the Wild: 100+ Idyllic Nature Destinations, No Roughing It Required.

Pack lightly

Packing less is always a good idea, Czaja says. Frehling agrees: “We’re definitely cognizant of [the need to travel light].” That’s especially true when she’s lifting a roll-aboard suitcase into the airline overhead bin, she says. She often has to help a frequent travel companion who can no longer do so.

Request airport assistance

Ego-deflating, yes. But if standing in long security queues or hoofing it for 20 minutes through London’s Heathrow Airport or the Josep Tarradellas Barcelona-El Prat airport is going to crank up your hips, requesting check-in-to-gate assistance is the way to go.

Warning: Most major airports transport travelers to and from centralized transfer stations that are sometimes far from restaurants and shopping. Staff prioritizes passengers with connections, so when you reach your destination, you can end up waiting for transport to the airport exit for what seems like eons.

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Grab a taxi

When you’re hauling bags, taking public transport can increase exhaustion — and can make you more vulnerable to thieves looking for tired or distracted travelers. Grabbing a rideshare or taxi may not be the cheapest option, but it’s often the smart way to go, Czaja says.

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Order luggage service

Trains go far and wide in Europe, typically dropping passengers conveniently in city centers, but porter service is a mere memory. When it comes to hauling your luggage up the train steps, you’re on your own. Czaja recommends using a meet-and-greet service — but warns it’s pricey. Options include Well’Com Rail, Deluxe France and Airport VIP Services.

Check lodging accessibility

Rather than rely on hotel and short-term rental listings, email the property directly to get a clear picture of its accessibility. Some promise an elevator — but getting to it involves stairs. Other listings are just plain inaccurate, as I’ve learned the hard way.

Vet local transport

Just because where you’re staying is convenient to public transit doesn’t mean you can use it. Older systems like the London Underground and Paris Metro still have some stations that are only accessible by stairs; buses are often more accessible but harder to navigate. Check out the particulars of your “local” station before you book lodging.

Slow the pace

Set up a base. Being in one place for several days is easier on the bones than constantly packing and moving. Once you’ve arrived, pick one activity per day to fully enjoy instead of trying to pack in every museum in a single day, Frehling says.

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Consider walking conditions

Steep climbs and cobblestones are often stoppers, Frehling says. For a recent trip to Italy, she had to either scratch part of the itinerary or find workarounds for things that were difficult to get to on foot.

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Don’t stand in lines

“We look for a way to see that attraction without waiting in the line, even if it means paying a little extra to reserve a ticket or to go with some kind of a guide,” Frehling says. Booking tickets in advance for popular attractions can help, advises Elizabeth Gerecitano, senior public relations specialist at Road Scholar.

Check your insurance policy

Some high-end credit cards, such as American Express Platinum and Chase Sapphire Reserve, offer travel coverage for trips booked with them. As for health insurance, Medicare and most Medigap policies provide limited coverage for hospitalization outside the U.S. Thirty-five years ago, when we first started traveling abroad, some foreign countries charged visitors the same price for health care as locals. That’s no longer true in many places. Over the past decade, my husband and I were charged nonresident rates for emergency room visits in Iceland, Turkey and Malta.

The cost was far less than in the U.S., but it wasn’t free. And had those turned into longer hospital stays or surgeries, the costs would have been far higher. Add in medical transport to the U.S., and you can be in for a tab of $200,000 or more. We purchase an annual insurance plan covering medical treatment and evacuation to mitigate those costs. Plans can be purchased by trip or by the year; many include other trip disruptions. You can compare policies at sites such as InsureMyTrip, Squaremouth and TravelInsurance.com. (Tip: All have human agents. Talk with one before you buy.)

Prepare for potential problems

If you do need medical care, it’s best to figure out in advance where you would go, especially if you’re staying at a short-term rental. Hotels can often provide direction, but the advice might not be the best for you. When my husband had kidney stones in Istanbul, we went to the closest hospital, not realizing that the emergency room was tiny and ill-equipped (no urinals), and that the care might be different at another hospital, though the cost might be the same.

The key takeaways were created with the assistance of generative AI. An AARP editor reviewed and refined the content for accuracy and clarity.

Jane Wooldridge is an award-winning travel and arts writer who lives in Miami. She is the author of the recently published Comfort in the Wild from Frommer’s.

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