As I’ve shared my plans for this upcoming year, a lot of family and friends have had questions about how I’ve come up with such an outrageously ridiculous plan. Just kidding. Kind of. I have had some people ask me about long-term travel, however – how to plan it, how to afford it, how to live out of a backpack, etc. So I thought I would share with you some of the tips and tricks I’ve found while researching how to do this:
· Resources: Read the book “How to Travel the World on $50 a day” by Matt Kepnes. This book will forever change your perspective on travel. Matt goes through from A – Z how to save money for travel, what to pack, what kind of backpack to get, travel insurance, how to log airline miles, and how to save money in different countries. It really is eye opening to the fact that long-term travel is do-able, especially when you are not a kagillionaire. Another great book I read was “Paris Letters” by Janice MacLeod. She very eloquently explains her process of downsizing, saving money, traveling, and her lessons learned along the way. It was quite inspiring!
· Exchange Programs: In Matt’s book, he talks about several exchange programs. There are so many of these out there and I had no idea! You can house sit, pet sit, WWOOF (World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms), couch surf, and Workaway. I chose to sign up for Workaway. This is a website where you pay a small yearly fee and create a profile based on your skills. I’ve indicated on my profile I am happy to clean, help with childcare, can assist with computer work or website creation. Then, people from all over the world have a profile as well based on the assistance they need. Here are some that I’ve come into contact with: family in Italy asking for my assistance in teaching their daughter English, a husky sled dog farm looking for help caring for and training their dogs, working on a vineyard in Tuscany…the possibilities are endless! It is a review-based site – so the family/individuals are reviewed based on travelers that stay with them and the traveler is reviewed by the host (similar to airbnb). In exchange for your assistance to the host, they house you and feed you for the duration of your stay. For the last two weeks I was in New Zealand, I stayed with a family in Auckland and helped them with a variety of tasks around their house. In Sweden I will stay with a couple that owns a hotel and restaurant, and in Norway I will stay with a woman who owns an historic garden that is used for parties and weddings. It is a fabulous way to meet local people, learn the local culture and really get to know a different way of life. An added bonus is that it allows you to save a good amount of money during your experience! I only spent money on souvenirs during my two weeks stay with the family in Auckland. And now, I have friends in Auckland! And when they travel to the U.S. they will come stay with me. The length of stay and amount of work done are worked out between you and the host, and most of the hosts are pretty flexible based on your travel schedule. It is just as much fun for them and their family to host an international guest as it is for you to be a part of their family!
· Accommodations: When not doing a Workaway experience, I’ll try to stay at hostels or in airbnbs. In Australia and New Zealand we stayed at a lot of YHA Hostels. They were always very clean, had places to lock up your belongings, and affordable. We got YHA membership cards prior to going which gives you a 10% discount on all YHA bookings. These hostels are located all over the world and have a great standard. The hostels are also able to book you experiences – so we booked our Great Barrier Reef tour and Whitsunday Island tour through the hostels, which usually have the cheapest options for budget travelers. These hostels are located all over the world and are also listed under the Hostelling International (varies country to country).
· Packing: The hardest part! Again, Nomadic Matt has some great tips on how to pack for long-term travel. I am taking a large backpack and a day backpack and will try to pack as little as possible! You just have to come to terms with the fact that: 1) You can always do laundry 2) You’ll be wearing the same thing in most every picture 3) Nobody cares what you are wearing and 4) Sometimes (more often than not) you may or may not smell or be wrinkly. Packing light will make moving from location to location, hostel to hostel so much easier. As I’m packing now, I’ll just have to keep reminding myself of this!
Hopefully some of those insights may help you on your journey to travel. Or maybe those excellent books will inspire you as they inspired me! If you have any further questions for me, please feel free to reach out: beholdcollectivedesign@gmail.com.
Thanks for reading!
