Advice on a world trip on the cheap?

DezUk

DezUk

DezUk

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So I have been thinking of doing a life changing thing recently and had some inspiration from a recent post I read here.

I would like to get myself in a position where I could jack in my job and go around the world and take in the sights. Not a holiday but a long term thing spanning at least 6 months to a year and hopefully just continuous. I am stuck in the 'rat race' and its pretty depressing tbh, don't want to get to old age and look back and say "what did I do with my life". After reading the article above it got me thinking and anything is possible I guess.

Point of this post is to ask advice from anyone else that has done something similar and how they achieved it, what your story is?

I have some money in savings but wondering what a realistic number is to be able to pack everything in, rent out my flat and just head off around the world. The guy above did it on 12k but I'm wondering if it's possible to do it on less, obviously getting jobs along the way and living cheap i.e. hostels or couch surfing etc.

So just looking for more inspiration and opinions on how to go about travelling the world on a low budget. Something like 10k.

I've been told to consider doing contract work in other countries but this is still working and doesn't let me really explore the place. I'm thinking more the back packer/touristy type approach i.e. not being ties down to a proper full on job.
 
Contract work is the best way to do it. Then your cash is still in the bank for a rainy day.
I saw\lived a lot of the USA but that took me 4 years and I never scratched the surface :)
 
Well that guy did it on 12k Euros which is under 10k GBP.

Are you expecting to return to your job after your trip by negotiating a sabattical or just leave and find something when you get back?

The money you need will dependin where you are going; Europe/America will be more expensive than South America/Asia.

Flights will still be your most expensive outlay though.
 
You can certainly live for a year on 10k. If you're willing to camp, accommodation becomes very cheap/free. If you're willing to hitch-hike, travel on the ground becomes free. If you're willing to cook your own food, eating becomes very cheap. Your main worry really is the cost of flights as that is a fixed cost. Everything else can go as low as you like.

For reference: I spent 3 months travelling around Queensland for £750 (exc. flights)
 
I'm off to SE Asia for at least 5 months a week tomorrow with a rough budget of £3500. Though there is more available if needed. A lot of the World is pretty cheap and you could easily live off a budget of $20USD a day once you're there. Flights will be your biggest expense, but they are a one off every now and then, or never if you're really keen!

The secret? Just do it. Don't sit in your office thinking, "oh, it would be great to do that". Instead, go and book a flight. Everyone in my work said they were so jealous of me going away and when I asked them why they don't do it no one gave me a decent answer.
 
I'm planning on quitting my job soon and setting off for however long i can last. Australia, New Zealand then back through Asia again.

I do intend to work (yes i have a work travel visa for Australia), just hoping i can pickup some short term contract work in IT support something similar.
 
I'm five months into a ten month trip. Total budget is about £4,500. Got about £2.5 left so going ok. Only spending about £8 a day at the minute but was more like £15 a day at the beginning in Europe.

Main ways of keeping costs down.

  • Prepare most of my own meals. This combined with finding a cheap food to live off in whatever country you are in is helpful.
  • Use Couchsurfing.com and camping for free accomodation. Use hostels or cheap hotels for other times.
  • I'm cycling so have no transport costs which saves a lot
  • Again cycling and seeing the scenery is my main activity so I don't spend much money visiting sights.
  • Avoid going out drinking too much, it's a money pit
 
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if you can work when away and not worrying about your laptop do it. you won't miss out on things. at some points. youll probably quite apprectiate the fact that you can ' have a day off ' from travelling. yes it happens.

as for cost. google around. there are a lot of blogs etc on how to do it on the cheap but also a rough estimate. in SE asia you can get a hostel for 3-8 quid a night. food at a pound a meal and getting about on bus is cheap. depends on distance obviously. have a google. and have a look. can be done :) oh and just go. if youre depressed with your life. just screw it an go!

oh one more. before i went i managed to get a great great bag second hand for 20 quid. better than most peoples i met which were new. normally people buy them new for 200-400. so look around!!
 
What do you do for work is there any way you could work your way around the world? I've worked in a few countries and I found it pretty good as you get more time and get to know people so get to see more that you may otherwise miss.
 
I think I spent around 20kGBP when I went backpacking for 18 months. I flew to Romania then overlanded through there and Turkey, the middle east (Syria, Jordan, Lebanon) down and across north Africa (Egypt, Libya and Tunisia), chucked in a bit of Rome (to escape the Arab Spring occurring around me!) then flew to Tanzania. From there I headed over to India and Sri Lanka for 4 months. Next was South East Asia (Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, Malaysia, Singapore and two months in Indonesia) before finally spending three months travelling around Australia (every state except WA) and finally a month in NZ before flying back to UK via a five day stop in New York.

If you cut out Oz, NZ and USA, I was probably close to the 13k for the rest. Not really sure though as I didn't keep close track. I also learnt to dive and went diving all over the world too - this isn't the cheapest thing to do - but WELL worth it - and that's the reason you're going right - to see the world, and experience new things.

Some places (like Oz) I just used various hostel booking websites, but throughout India and SEAsia you just rock up in the town/city you want to explore and then wander around looking for cheap accomodation - it's really a lot easier than it sounds. I always took the cheapest travel option (local busses, 3rd class Indian trains etc). But even within this budget I could have done it a lot cheaper. Some places I managed to get for around $1.50 a night (Sumatra springs to mind) other places was upwards of $30 a night.

Do it. I quit my job of 10 years to do that - best thing I ever did. I'm currently saving up to do another year and a half through the America's. :D
 
Thanks for all the replies folks, some useful tips and information in here :)

I am currently working as a Business Analyst and have done BA and light Project Management work in the past. Its always been on a FT basis but I would like to try and break into the world of contracting, that way I could save quicker and possibly work abroad and move around.

Sounds like I am going to need at least 10k to get me going, so will need to get saving which is gonna take time obviously. Not really fussed about doing USA, more the East and Oz and NZ as never been to that side of the world.

One problem I have is a have a criminal conviction which could prevent me from getting into some countries. I know to get a visa for the states I would have to apply prior to going and hopefully it gets approved. Dunno what its like in other countries?
 
DezUk said:
Thanks for all the replies folks, some useful tips and information in here :)

I am currently working as a Business Analyst and have done BA and light Project Management work in the past. Its always been on a FT basis but I would like to try and break into the world of contracting, that way I could save quicker and possibly work abroad and move around.

Sounds like I am going to need at least 10k to get me going, so will need to get saving which is gonna take time obviously. Not really fussed about doing USA, more the East and Oz and NZ as never been to that side of the world.

One problem I have is a have a criminal conviction which could prevent me from getting into some countries. I know to get a visa for the states I would have to apply prior to going and hopefully it gets approved. Dunno what its like in other countries?
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Could be problematic for Australia/New Zealand. Having a criminal record won't bar you, but if it's substantial (as in a lot of convictions, or a serious crime) then you'll probably fail their test.

However, you'll be fine in SE Asia. A Cambodian visa is $20 plus a $2 fine, no questions asked. Thailand is 30 day visa on arrival if flying in, again no questions. Malaysia is a 90 day visa on arrival, and again no questions asked. Vietnam is a little bit more tricky, most people go through a company to get one as you normally need letters of invitation.

The only time the record would really be a problem would be if you're applying for an extended visa or residency - or Oz/NZ.
 
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