Many tourists want to live like locals. getty

Overtourism has sparked a vocal backlash among residents in cities such as Barcelona, Amsterdam, Venice, and more.

Ironically, many veteran travelers also have frustrations about European travel. They are weary of the crowds and hectic pace of their trips, and they yearn for slower, more authentic, and more meaningful experiences.

The Good Life Abroad (TGLA), founded by Andrew Motiwalla, is an innovative travel company that aims to fill the niche between escorted tours and independent travel.

The Good Life Abroad: Filling A Niche for Older Travelers

The tour agency enables adults over the age of 55 to book one- to three-month-long apartment stays at a single destination with a small group of kindred travelers.

This slow style of immersive travel allows them to live among locals and get to know a city more intimately and deeply than most tourists.

Seeking: The Slow Travel Experience

“One of our daughters traveled extensively during college via study abroad opportunities,” says Diane Cook, 64, of Louisville, Kentucky. “We often commented how fortunate she was to be able to spend time in a country like she did.”

Diane, a retired marketing executive, and her husband, Bob, had gone on a number of Seabourn cruises that offered guided excursions to exotic international locations. They had rented a house in the south of France for several weeks and had booked personalized tours through luxury travel companies like Abercrombie and Kent, and Andrew Harper.

When they learned about The Good Life Abroad on social media (the company advertises on Google and Facebook), they were seeking a travel experience that was slower and would offer opportunities for connections. They booked a month-long stay in Palermo, Sicily.

Seeking: A Sense of Community

Linda Scena, 71, is single and lives in Manhattan. Since she retired from a global software technology firm three years ago, she has been involved in volunteer work and is a museum docent in the city. Also well-traveled, she was planning a solo trip but was intrigued by the sense of community offered by TGLA.

Linda booked a one-month stay in Paris, France, intrigued because the program offered the possibility of alone time as well as opportunities for support and companionship, should she wish to partake in them.

Seeking: Hassle-Free Travel

Sharon Grandinette, 67, of Redondo Beach, California, is a legal consultant focusing on traumatic brain injury in children. She still works remotely; her husband Paul is a retired corporate trainer who has lived abroad. After their marriage, the two traveled extensively throughout Europe, returning to Sweden and Italy multiple times.

“I hate planning trips, and I hate wasting time trying to figure out what to do,” says Sharon. “I thought it might be nice to live in one place for a while to get to know it, and to share travel with a community of people,” she says.

Sharon and Paul booked a month-long trip to Lisbon, Portugal, with TGLA, and extended it for another week, traveling themselves to Porto by train.

What The Good Life Abroad Provides

The TGLA provides a package with furnished apartments with equipped kitchens, weekly housekeeping, and high-speed internet connection.

Andrew explains that while these aren’t high-end, luxury apartments, they are modern, clean and relatively new. Participants can opt for one or two-bedroom units.

One essential component of the program is a group’s Community Manager, a local tour guide who knows the ins and outs of the area. That individual plans weekly community meals, happy hours, and other activities to bring people together.

“They are like an ‘in-country concierge’ who can help you plan local transportation, recommend activities, restaurants, and not-to-be-missed sites,” says Diane. “They help educate you and demystify the culture and geography.”

Everyone in the group has access to the Community Manager via WhatsApp, who also troubleshoots any problems that might arise. Participants love that they learn about activities, events, places and foods that they may never have discovered on their own.

“Our farewell dinner was on a boat anchored in the Seine,” says Linda. “She [the community manager] also planned visits to Montmartre, Versailles Gardens, the St. Denis suburb, a walk with an architect around the Marais, an exploration of the passageways around Paris, and a cooking class.”

Linda notes that the community manager also reached out to the group every day with suggestions of things they could do on their own.

Another reassuring inclusion, especially for older travelers: The TGLA program provides travel medical insurance, evacuation insurance and facilitates access to a global network of medical providers in case of an emergency.

Participants are responsible for booking and paying for their flights, with everyone arriving on the same day, and are responsible for all meals except those sponsored by TGLA.

The Genesis of The Good Life Abroad

Founder Andrew Motiwalla is a seasoned entrepreneur and 30-year veteran of the travel industry.

His overseas travel experience began as a Peace Corps volunteer in Honduras. After that, he founded several successful programs, including Terra Education, all of which can be described as “meaningful travel” or “travel with a purpose.” One such effort, Discover Corps, organizes group tours to allow travelers to connect with local people through volunteer work.

Andrew’s vast experience underpins the design of The Good Life Abroad. “Even savvy travelers discover that planning an independent trip isn’t as easy as it might seem,” he says. “Accommodations aren’t like the photos they saw online; they may not speak the language, and they can feel isolated and lonely.”

He describes TGLA as independent, community-based travel. The term “community” embraces both the locals in the neighborhood where clients reside, as well as the friendships formed with other travelers in the group who live in the same building or adjacent ones.

The Chance To Live Like A Local

Participants expressed that some of the most satisfying experiences were derived from simple day-to-day pleasures.

“Most mornings, my husband would walk through the neighborhood discovering coffee shops and bakeries,” says Diane. “In no time, he knew what time his favorite baker’s pastries would come out of the oven and where he could purchase the best fresh roasted coffee beans for the coffeemaker in our apartment.” Then the couple would head out to explore museums, markets and historical sites.

“We became known to the local shop merchants (bakery, fruit store, grocery store, etc) and felt like it was our home,” says Sharon.

“As someone who is used to city walking and public transportation, I felt comfortable getting around Paris much the same way as I get around NYC,” she says. Besides planned group activities, Linda used her time to explore the arrondissements of Paris, and visit department stores, food markets, cafes and restaurants. A friend from London even popped over to visit for one weekend during her stay..

The Good Life Abroad: Forming Connections

Each group typically includes 10-20 people, usually a mix of couples and solo travelers.

“Because we were all in the same building in Palermo, we had lots of opportunities to plan meals or activities with other members of the group,” says Diane. “We became friends with others from the group with whom we still remain in contact,” says Sharon.

Linda explains that there were just enough activities planned so that the group could get to know each other. Then it was up to them to reach out if they wanted more than that.

“We wanted something a little different than a tourist experience,” says Diane.

Since its inception in 2023, The Good Life Abroad has facilitated some 2,000 bookings, many from repeat customers, demonstrating its success in attracting travelers seeking a distinctive experience. It also provides an excellent opportunity for those considering international relocation to see what living abroad might be like.