Over the past several months, we’ve been asked variations of the following question by the amazing people we’ve met during our trip:
“How are/were you able to travel for so long, especially at your age?”
With a few exceptions, most of the people Catherine and I had the honor of meeting were traveling at a later stage of life than we were. We’d often hear comments like “We wish we traveled more when we were younger” or “You two are doing it right by traveling now.” In a way, these comments validated our travel/life philosophy (“If you want to do or achieve something, do it now– because tomorrow is not guaranteed to anyone”) and helped propel us in the direction of fulfilling many of our travel goals.
Here are five simple ways you can make your own travel dreams become a reality:
1) Create your travel ‘bucket list’, and then write it down.
I know– it sounds simple. However, when you start brainstorming the places you want to visit and the things you want to see and do, they become more real in your mind. Taking it a step further, writing them down is like throwing down the gauntlet– at yourself.
For example, a few years ago Catherine and I brainstormed about 20 places we wanted to visit before we died. What did we do? We wrote them down, ranked them individually in order of personal preference, and then combined our individual rankings to come up with a total ranking. This helped us get a better idea of what places we both liked the most, and what places we both like the least. So go grab a pen, think about where you want to go, and put it down on paper. (And yes, I am throwing down the gauntlet.)
2) Create a budget for your trip(s) and save some dough.
Again, I know- this sounds simple, too. And it can be simple– as long as you know how much you’ll need to save in order to make your trip a reality. This is why step 1 is so important. Different parts of the world have varying costs of living (lodging, food, activities, car rental, etc.), which means you need to know where you want to go in order to know how much to budget for it.
For example, a one-week stay in Bali might cost only $400; however, that same one-week stay in Paris might cost $1,000. Once you know your locations and how long you want to spend in each location, you can determine a budget and start saving to reach your goal. Here are some rough lodging numbers (based on our experience/research) that might be helpful for certain parts of the world (as of July 2012):
- Thailand/Indonesia:
- 3-star hotel = $40/night
- 4-star hotel = $60/night
- 5-star hotel = $100/night
- Argentina/Ecuador/Peru
- Private hostel = $30/night
- 3-star hotel = $70/night
- 4-star hotel = $90/night
- South Africa
- 3-star hotel = $60/night
- 4-star hotel = $70/night
- 5-star hotel = $85/night
- Paris
- 3-star hotel = $130/night
- Prague
- 3-star hotel = $50/night
- 4-star hotel = $60/night
- Amsterdam
- 3-star hotel = $70/night
- 4-star hotel = $90/night
- Tahiti
- 4-star hotel = $100/night (using a Groupon offer)
3) Plan your itinerary wisely.
If you don’t want to pack everything under the sun for all four seasons, the best thing to do is research temperatures and climates of your desired destinations. For example, Catherine and I wanted to keep the temperature above 50 degrees Fahrenheit at all times while we traveled. Using this knowledge, I was able to plan an itinerary based on average temperatures around the world and allowed us to lighten our luggage quite a bit. Less is more (especially when you don’t have to pay those extra baggage fees).
Here’s another reason why packing less is a good idea: it decreases the likelihood that airlines can lose your luggage. This happened to us in Africa while traveling from Nairobi to Johannesburg through Dar Es Salaam. Our carry-on bags weighed too much, so we had to check them in Nairobi upon departure. The airline told us we could just pick up our bags in Johannesburg without having to re-check them en route in Dar Es Salaam. The result? We got to Johannesburg and our bags were nowhere to be found, and we wound up living out of our backpacks for seven days until we got our bags back. The lesson? Fewer bags equals fewer chances for something to go wrong.
Also, keep your eyes and ears open for political turmoil. The last thing you want is to hop off your plane in a country that is in the midst of violence and chaos.
4) Around-the-world tickets aren’t always the best option. It pays to look around for low-cost airlines in different regions and alternate modes of transportation.
Another question people sometimes asked was “Did you get one of those around-the-world airline tickets?” My answer was no, because there seemed to be quite a few restrictions on traveling with those tickets. Here are a few restrictions/issues to consider when planning your itinerary: 1) You generally need to travel in the same direction for the entire trip (east to west, west to east); 2) Typically, you can have up to 15 total flights, which is important when you factor in flights with layovers; and 3) it may not be less expensive in the end anyway, considering the number of budget airlines that offer regional flight deals. Some of these airlines we used on our trip included Thai AirAsia, JetStar (based in Australia), and Vueling (based in Spain).
In Europe, you also might be able to find better options traveling by train. For more remote destinations (like French Polynesia), check out cruise deals and itineraries. You might be surprised to find that an entire cruise that visits your destination can sometimes cost less than a flight!
5) Meet and talk to those who have already traveled the world, are traveling the world, or want to travel the world.
Got a question about traveling, budgeting, etc.? Feel free to email us or post your question on our Facebook page!
Also, one of the things we recommend is to attend a Meet, Plan, Go event. What is Meet, Plan, Go? As their home page explains, they are “encouraging and teaching others how to travel the world and have it be beneficial to their career.” We attended a local event before we left, and by doing so we were able to gain insights, meet new people, and learn more about some of the areas we were planning on visiting. One of the best and easiest ways to learn is from other people’s mistakes, and people are happy to help and share their stories with you!
