Hey guys, So this topic came to mind when I started thinking back to when I first started travelling and how I have kept myself going all these years. Through my job, I also meet a lot of people who want to know about me and my life, one elderly man In particular whom I met in Timaru last week, said something that stood out to me. After stopping to have his third, yes third chat of the morning with me, he began to ask me if I missed home and he assumed I had very wealthy parents to be able to live abroad like this. It's not like he has been the first person to ask me this, but it made me slightly shocked to hear it again that day. We chatted for ages and I told him all about myself and how I have managed to travel this much, of my own accord. His view of me turned right around and he seemed to be pretty happy with what I had told him.
Truth is, there is a lot of misconception out there when it comes to long term travel. A lot of people 'assume' that you have either won the lottery and kept it a secret or have had a 'hand out' from wealthy parents to get you by. Honestly, if these were things that had happened to me, I don't think I would be living as frugal as I do. This is the basic awareness of long term travel. For instance, spending all your money on unnecessary things in the first few weeks of a long trip, isn't going to help you long term, so the trick is in the mind set. Growing up, I have always been good at saving (having squirrel stamps as a kid etc -Irish people will know this lol) and I guess if you're not good at budgeting then you need to learn. Prior to my travels, I cut down on shopping, nights out and anything unnessecary, which helps me save a lot faster, easing the stress away.
Long term travel isn't always about saving a lot though, yes, countries are a lot more expensive than they used to be but in hindsight, there are so many more work abroad options available now and we should be grateful. As an Irish citizen, I am lucky to have so many opportunities to get work visas for so many different countries and this has helped me travel for so long.(Check out visas available for your country!) There are always options to join a help exchange website or do some woofing (working on organic farms). Below is a great international website called HelpX, I used while in Canada.
Truth is, there is a lot of misconception out there when it comes to long term travel. A lot of people 'assume' that you have either won the lottery and kept it a secret or have had a 'hand out' from wealthy parents to get you by. Honestly, if these were things that had happened to me, I don't think I would be living as frugal as I do. This is the basic awareness of long term travel. For instance, spending all your money on unnecessary things in the first few weeks of a long trip, isn't going to help you long term, so the trick is in the mind set. Growing up, I have always been good at saving (having squirrel stamps as a kid etc -Irish people will know this lol) and I guess if you're not good at budgeting then you need to learn. Prior to my travels, I cut down on shopping, nights out and anything unnessecary, which helps me save a lot faster, easing the stress away.
Long term travel isn't always about saving a lot though, yes, countries are a lot more expensive than they used to be but in hindsight, there are so many more work abroad options available now and we should be grateful. As an Irish citizen, I am lucky to have so many opportunities to get work visas for so many different countries and this has helped me travel for so long.(Check out visas available for your country!) There are always options to join a help exchange website or do some woofing (working on organic farms). Below is a great international website called HelpX, I used while in Canada.
Volunteering can be another amazing way to stay away for longer and you could even 'volunteer hop' (I literally made that up, but it could be a thing) from country to country to help others and help yourself at the same time. Beware of a lot of companies that charge you tonnes of money to volunteer though, you shouldn't have to 'pay' to volunteer so do some research first. Au pairing (nannying) is another great way to travel long term, it enables you to save the money you have by 'living in' with a family and still earn a wage per week. It's an amazing chance to gain life experience and live like a local.
I always plan ahead (in some ways), meaning that while I am working somewhere I am putting money aside every time I can and planning my future trips, researching in between. I guess it's how I'm programmed by now. I always save enough money to get my through the countries I'm travelling before I arrive to the country I can work in. If it happens that you arrive and you have no money to get you by until you find a job, then there are options to tie you over. One option is couchsurfing, where you can crash on a locals' couch for a few days, or even a working hostel where you can do odd jobs in the hostel to pay for your stay and in the mean time you can job hunt. Epic right?
There are so many ways to keep going and if you have travelled before, chances are, you will know some friendly faces around the globe with a spare couch until you get back on your feet, that's what happened to me in Mount Maunganui with Midge & Mark, a Kiwi couple I met in Brazil. I can't thank them enough for their help during my first few weeks in NZ. For now, these are my big tips and if I think of anything else, I will be sure to update you all. Don't stress out about how much money you need, just know that taking the first step is the biggest challenge, the rest will fall into place...
Believe me, iv done it all on my own and you can too :) make today the day that you change your life and live your dream :)
Namaste x
I always plan ahead (in some ways), meaning that while I am working somewhere I am putting money aside every time I can and planning my future trips, researching in between. I guess it's how I'm programmed by now. I always save enough money to get my through the countries I'm travelling before I arrive to the country I can work in. If it happens that you arrive and you have no money to get you by until you find a job, then there are options to tie you over. One option is couchsurfing, where you can crash on a locals' couch for a few days, or even a working hostel where you can do odd jobs in the hostel to pay for your stay and in the mean time you can job hunt. Epic right?
There are so many ways to keep going and if you have travelled before, chances are, you will know some friendly faces around the globe with a spare couch until you get back on your feet, that's what happened to me in Mount Maunganui with Midge & Mark, a Kiwi couple I met in Brazil. I can't thank them enough for their help during my first few weeks in NZ. For now, these are my big tips and if I think of anything else, I will be sure to update you all. Don't stress out about how much money you need, just know that taking the first step is the biggest challenge, the rest will fall into place...
Believe me, iv done it all on my own and you can too :) make today the day that you change your life and live your dream :)
Namaste x
http://wwoofinternational.org
https://www.couchsurfing.org
http://www.visafirst.com
http://www.helpx.net
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