Seasoned citizens, after decades of raising kids, pursuing careers and tackling other tough responsibilities, look forward to their sunset years. The typical dream is relaxing on sunny beaches, leisurly watching the waves and sipping well-earned drinks.

Then, after a few months of doing nothing, many seniors realize that retirement shouldn’t be the end of an active life. Today, most can look forward to another 20 or more productive years. According to recent studies, life expectancy in the U.S. is now almost 79. In other countries, including Italy, Japan, Singapore, Australia and Canada, it’s into the 80s.

When roaming the world, do you ever get the urge to break away from the usual restaurant seating for two or four? Instead, it could be fun to join a group of up to 10 strangers at one table, all hosted by talented and friendly private chefs in their own homes.

Dine on fine Italian food in a Roma villa, enjoy fish and chips with a London family, sit down to dinner with a Russian babushka borscht expert or enjoy a New Orleans meal with a crawdad chef. Consider a sumptuous family-style dinner in Pennsylvania Dutch country.

When your travel schedule is being put together, and you would like to try the home-cooking experience, go to MealSharing.com to find those welcoming homes.

There are many options for the holiday weekend travel plans. Active seniors hit the road for a favorite beach, forest, park or mountaintop. Others with more ambitious plans book flights to exotic lands, posh resorts and sunny isles.

If you plan the traditional holiday travel routine, a few suggestions may ease your way through the busy weekend with less trouble, some savings and possibly more enjoyment.

First, if you’re going on a four-meal-a-day cruise or to buffet-crazy Vegas, this basic rule should be for you. Just eat smaller portions of low-calorie food and get regular daily exercise.

However, if it were so simple, why do you see so many senior tourists huffing and puffing around Paris, Rome, Hollywood, Las Vegas, London and New York: They’re just barely able to drag their excess pounds along. And seagoing seniors waddling along the decks of those luxury liners. Observe others loading fourth-helping platters of pastas and pies at a Vegas buffet.