Hey,
Most people that travel have developed a life passion for it. Once you catch the “travel bug”, it is hard to not spend your free time thinking about your next vacation destination. There is one glaring disadvantage when one decided to travel as much as possible, and that is the fact that it is hard on the bank account. Travelling is expensive. Even if someone is a budget traveller, it is still expensive to purchase flights and hostels. Some people grew up taking many family trips around the globe, but I did not experience this luxury as a child. It could possibly be why I enjoy intercontinental travel so much. However, it is possible to travel or live abroad (especially if you are young!) without going extremely in debt. So, here are some ideas on how you can also afford this luxury.
1. Be a Teacher
This was a huge factor why I chose to be a teacher. Of course, it is important that you also have a passion to educate others. However, being a teacher in Canada is really worth it since you get 12 weeks of vacation every year. Many other jobs offer only 2-4 weeks of vacation so it is rare to find a job with so much opportunity to take holidays. Although, you are working a lot throughout the year so it is harder to take vacations in the off-season. Also, when you are travelling, so is everyone else, so you often are visiting countries during their high season. Being a teacher in Sweden is less enticing since Swedes get so many vacation days already. More on that later!
2. Teach English
This is obviously targeted to native English speakers. Even if you are not a certified teacher, you can usually find jobs, especially within Asia, where you are teaching English. If you are a qualified teacher, the salaries can be quite high. If you are not, you are sometimes offered perks such as free flights or accommodation so that means that you are spending most of your money doing activities and travelling. Most people I know have taught English in Asia, which means you have tons of flights in the area where you can experience new countries, cultures, and more importantly, food.
3. Study Abroad
My biggest regret during the time I studied is that I didn’t study abroad. Universities have an agreement with other schools so that you can pay the same tuition as in your home country. If you are a student, then you are already used to living quite cheap. When you study abroad, you basically have the same expenses to cover (bills, transport, school stuff, entertainment, etc.) as at home. So, you are only forking out a large payment for the flight, and if you are good at hunting on Skyscanner then you may be able to find a cheap flight to your destination. Not only will you really immerse yourself in a new culture, but you can also meet friends from all around the world (and potential free places to crash if you go and visit them!).
4. Au Pair
This is another thing that I wish I did when I was younger. You do not make a lot of money. But your host family will cover your food expenses as well as provide accommodation for you. Thus, all the money you make can go straight to travelling. This is a great alternative if you like working with small children.
5. Do a Working Holiday
So many countries have amazing agreements if you are under 30 or 35 (it depends on the country). I know that Canada has good agreements with the UK, Australia, New Zealand, and many European countries. When I applied for a working holiday in Norway (it was the easiest way to move to my partner), it literally took less than a month to get approved. You usually have to show that you have money to support yourself. I think I worked around this a bit by having a family member deposit some money in my account to prove that I could live on the money that I had. In reality, I had to find a job as quickly as possible. I have had friends that have done this in Australia and it worked quite well. And in Australia, if you do 3 months of “farm work” then they will renew your working holiday for a second year. Please be advised that most countries only allow you to do this one time in your life, and you cannot renew it. This means that if you fall in love with this new country, you probably need to find another type of visa (e.g., work or common-law partner) to continue living there.
6. Move to a County with More Paid Vacation Days
If you are successful in moving abroad, then think about choosing a country where you get a lot of vacation days. For example, in Canada, the amount of vacation depends completely on the job that you have. However, in Sweden, everyone is entitled to around 5 weeks of vacation. Think about how much more you could travel if you actually had the time (and got paid for it!).
7. Stop Partying
I can tell you this: all of the partying I have done has been fun, but it is also crazy expensive. Sometimes I get a bit of anxiety thinking about all of the things I could have done instead of wasting money on a crappy nightclub. When I was in high school, I worked at a tanning salon part-time. After one year there, I made about 7 000 CAD (47 000 SEK, 5 300 USD, 4 500 €). I had nothing to show for it since I bought food and clothes, and I partied. Think if I had saved that money instead! That would have allowed me to backpack for at least 1 month in any reasonable destination on the entire planet! I still think it is about doing a little bit of everything, and unfortunately, I am usually out somewhere every week. However, the amount of alcohol I consume now is a lot less. So, think about ways to save money. Is that 20-dollar entrance fee really worth it if you are tired and wanting to go home soon?
I hope some of these suggestions helped. You don’t need to be rich to travel since travelling makes you rich!
xx
Jasmine
Photo credit: here