Holiday jobs for grown-ups

With the recent plethora of travel fiction such as Driving Over Lemons and A Year in Provence, it’s clear more mature couples are trying life abroad. So were Paul and Anne Marlow, but their story was a little different. Instead of wanting to set up home in a different country, they wanted to keep travelling...

What attracted you to the job of writing route notes for Headwater?
Paul: The opportunity to travel and spend time together doing what we enjoyed - hiking and cycling. In our jobs as IT manager and PA, our holidays were like journeys where we squeezed as much in as possible. The thought of doing that and getting paid was appealing. In addition, I’m a bit of map nut! When I come to the Headwater offices, I loved spending time in the map room poring over all the different maps that are sent out each day.

And how did the reality of doing the job compare to your pre-conceptions?
Anne: What struck me was the physical stamina required. We knew the job would be painstaking in terms of detail. Many of Headwater’s destinations are so off the beaten track there’s no up to date map available – in Italy, we’ve sometimes relied on 60 year old ordnance survey maps! - so getting the description right is essential. The note taking part of the job was no problem. But I’d underestimated how physically as well as mentally tiring it would be.
Paul: Yes, normally when you’ve finished a 6 hour long hike, you relax with a cold beer and a three course meal! Whereas we’d be busy writing up our notes, and researching tomorrow’s route.

Were there any occasions when you regretted your new career?
Anne: Yes! We’d imagined walking in the sunshine. But route notes have to be prepared before the season – which often means walking in February and March. We’ve had some quizzical looks from farmers as we’ve trudged through waterlogged fields!
Paul: My worst moment was when we were researching a new route in Tuscany. We’d decided to drive it first to check it first. Big mistake! At one point, the track narrowed to a trail and the front wheels of our hire car were bogged down in mud. When we tried to get out, we were met by angry farm dogs! It took a good few hours of Anne darting in and out of the car, building a ramp out of branches before we could escape!

But there must have been some pleasant surprises along the way?
Paul: Oh yes: the friendliness of the people that you encounter. We’ve been offered fresh fruit off the tree from farmers. Once in Andalucia a couple of English ex-pats invited us in for our opinion of their house renovation!
Anne: Some of the hotels we’ve stayed in have been really special. I loved being a guest of Riet’s at the Hotel Meierhof in Davos. He’s the most attentive host and visits you at your table each evening to hear about your day. We’ve also had some wonderful hiking lunches. My favourite is a little Gasthof above Oberammergau, Bavaria that you can only reach on foot. We ate our lunch looking over the Austrian Alps.

So what was your favourite day?
Both: The last day’s hike in the Queyras National Park. It’s not always possible due to the location of hotels and the length of walking trails to ensure the last day of each tour is the most unforgettable. But here it is – the view from the Crête de Chambrette (2852m) over the Southern Alps is breathtaking. We had to drag ourselves away to make the descent.

What advice would you give anyone looking to take a career break?
Paul: Be realistic about the impact on your income. It’s possible to “train” at home living off a reduced wage to see if it’s for you.
Anne: Buy less clothes! Seriously though you have to focus less on material things and more on what experiences your new lifestyle can offers. We go home once every two months to check on our house. When we’re at home I’m always tempted to get a new Hoover or a new fridge but I have to say to myself “Why if the old one still works?”

See our work for us section for details of how to apply for overseas jobs with Headwater.