Travelling the world without much money is a reality that most people nowadays can actually achieve. The advent of the Internet, cheap air travel and the sharing economy has made travel easier, faster and a lot cheaper.
Not so long ago the dream of travelling long-term meant having loads of cash reserves.
Sure if you had amazingly won the lottery playing theLotter or something, then travel for years on end would be possible, but most people don’t win the lottery or have significant trust funds.
Today, however, you only have to look at the multitude of travel bloggers and Instagramers that are travelling full time to realise that long term travel is something that everyone can achieve.
In this article we look at ways that you can travel the world without money, and without having to be a travel blogger!
1. Know How To Travel Cheap
The first thing that you are going to have to accept is that luxury travel to tourist hotspots with fancy hotels and restaurants is unlikely during the early days of your journey. That’s not to say that luxury is out of the question, but it will definitely need to be moderated.
The key principle is making every dollar go as far as possible.
This usually means starting out your travels in countries that are relatively affordable, for example, countries in South East Asia, Latin America or potentially Africa (assuming you are a more experienced traveller) are good starting points.
Use the sharing economy to get free or very affordable accomodation and travel. For example, Couchsurfing is a great sharing platform and a cool way to meet people!
And make sure you look out for awesome deals or take advantage of travel hacks like high reward travel credit cards that give you air miles.
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2. Get A Travel Related Job
One of the best ways to travel the world with little money is to get a travel related job. There are seriously loads of options here and as long as you are not too picky you can get a job relatively quickly.
Here are a few that we highly recommend:
Teach English: There are literally 1000s of English teaching jobs around the world. Hot spots include South Korea, Vietnam, Thailand and Japan. Usually you need to have a basic TOEFL teaching qualification to walk into a job quickly, so we recommend you get this before you leave on your travels.
Work on a cruise ship or yacht: Again, there are countless jobs in the cruise ship / yacht support industry. Barriers to entry for the former are almost negligible and jobs range from waiting staff to entertainment. If you have a professional qualification, like nursing skills, you can actually get really high paying jobs.
Seasonal worker: Places like ski resorts, casinos or amusement parks are always looking for seasonal workers. Or if that doesn’t take your fancy, what about working on farm (popular in Israel, Australia, US and New Zealand).
Tour guide or instructor: If you have a specialist knowledge in history or geography you can become a tour guide. Approach city tour companies or museums to see what they have on offer. Moreover, if you are skilled in something like diving (certification required) or any outdoor activity (e.g. climbing, surfing or kayaking) you can become an instructor.
Other ideas include au pairing, waitering and bar-tendering.
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3. Become a Digital Nomad
For us the most exciting and inspiring option is to become a digital nomad – using your computer, the internet and your specific skill set to setup a business.
The opportunities to be a digital nomad in the 21st century are significant. Here are some of the main paths digital nomads follow:
Travel or niche blogging: If you love writing and believe you have a specific angle on a topic area then blogging can be very lucrative. Nowadays, travel blogging is very saturated, but there are 1000s of other niches to choose from so don’t limit yourself to travel. Just beware that it can take years to build a successful blog that makes money so you might need to combine option 1 and 2 to become a successful blogger.
Setup an eCommerce, consulting or SAAS business: Nowadays one can setup a business from literally anywhere and use cloud service tools to run and market their enterprise. eCommerce is a great place to start if you have some skills and experience in selling physical products. We recommend selling on Amazon! Alternatively if you have specific knowledge skills then why not setup an online consulting business or SAAS business.
You may also like: The Ultimate Carry-On Bag For a Digital Nomad
As you can see the opportunities to travel without much money are significant. All you need to do is be savvy on where, when and how you go, and be willing to undertake informal jobs along the way. Alternatively, you can make a life out of being a digital nomad!
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