Has anyone quit their job, sold their house, got rid of their stuff and just headed out there to see the world?
We've sold up, got rid of all of our 'stuff' and are on the verge of quitting our jobs to go travelling. We are a couple of fifty something 'there must be more to life than this' potential travellers and just wondered if anyone else had any experience of doing something similar at a similar age?
Reply to this In response to: Msg #184256
Yep we did it at your age. Our plan was to travel a few months not a few years but it was marvelous.
We put a large portion in savings for our return and we stuck to our travel budget.
It was grand. It was life changing.
Reply to this So did you get the 'travelling bug' out of your system and settle back into normal life? The main concern for us is that we wouldn't be able to get reasonable employment when we return. It's a little scary but perhaps that's another reason to do it. Life isn't supposed to be comfortable is it?
Reply to this In response to: Msg #184261
Our situation may be a bit different than yours in that we are nurses and would not have trouble finding jobs when we returned. I'm not sure I would have done the trip if I wouldn't have some security on return. That is why we had our savings in addition to our travel budget. We agree that discomfort is not a bad thing. We have no regrets....other than the fact that we keep coming back to work when we want to be out traveling.
Naively we thought we would get the travel bug out of our system but that did not happen. We've been ruined for travel. That is why we took a 2nd trip 5 years later. Travel is an obsession, an addiction, for us, our enjoyment. Another few years of full-time employment and our retirement will be set which will allow us to balance between our travels and a comfortable life back home.
We are always thinking, planning and dreaming of the next adventure.
Happy travels.
Reply to this I didn't quit my job per se (my company had a huge layoff) but I did travel for nine months before seriously looking for another one. I ended up doing volunteer and contract work for almost two years before finding another full-time position. Unfortunately, many employers look at people who have been out a while as having outdated skills, regardless of profession.
Even though there were times in my job hunt when I worried I would run out of cash and live on a friend's couch, traveling was still completely worth it. The trip forced me to examine things in my life that I really needed to, along with being one heck of an adventure.
As the Brinkleys suggested, make sure you have enough savings to cover the job hunt after the trip. I wish I had assembled my references, etc. before leaving; tracking people down afterward can be a pain. Also, practice networking before leaving work; it proved crucial for getting interviews after the long time off.
Enjoy the adventure, its worth it!
Reply to this We packed up and moved lock, stock and mammoth last year to Turkey with the view that it would enable us to cover more of the world rather than just Europe. We did however keep some small investment in the UK for the just in case need 😊
Could never imagine living without travel now!
Reply to this In response to: Msg #184345
Hi Jonjo
Turkey provided a base that would allow us to travel to Asia, Africa and the outer regions of Europe without having to drive through France every single time 😊
My partner was a freelance photographer so we could work on the road but it was feasible that I could teach over here as well, plus weather wise it's a lot better than Britain!
Woolly says - Hi Jonjo, I wanted to go to India and we can get there quicker from here. I think it is a bit to hot in Turkey but they didn't listen to me 😞
Reply to this In response to: Msg #184256 You will never be sorry for the time you spend traveling. Go now and worry about getting jobs later. There will always be work to do. Go now while you are in good health.
Reply to this We did that, although at 30, a little younger. We quit our jobs, sold/gave/threw away most of our stuff, moved the rest to our parents', rented out our house and hit the road. It's coming up for eight years ago and we're still abroad, with no intention of returning for good.
Reply to this I never did it but its also true that i will be never sorry if will do it in future.Because traveling is the best thing in this life.
Reply to this In response to: Msg #184642 Hey Kris and Kate, sounds like you have the perfect life to me. Just away travelling together and experiencing different countries and cultures. Where are you at the moment?
Are you motorhomers or do you find new accommodation at each new place? Renting a property gives you a bit of an income but for us it wouldnt really cover all of the costs involved in a real nomadic lifestyle.
Reply to this We are currently in Odessa, Ukraine. We work in the places we live (we teach English) so that provides us with an income and often accommodation too.
Reply to this Hi all, I decided to do that in 2009, I had a great job that I lived in Houston Texas,but became a casualty of the numbers game after the recsession started in 2009, luckily I had saved for 2 years and accumulated nearly $17,000 for traveling and decided to get rid of my car and apartment along with everything I owned except for 2 bags...and have been that way the last 5 years. It's really the happiest I've ever been all the while traveling around this amazing earth we live in. So I say congrats and have an amazing time!!!!
Reply to this I agree with all of the above. I gave it all up a few years younger than you and took off across the Middle East (it was easier to travel there in those days but no Lonely Planet guide or TravelBlog). Never regretted it. The hardest part, I found, was being willing to give up what I had. In truth, travel so changes you that you won't want to go back to what you had anyway. Go and enjoy!
Reply to this I took a redundancy package from my government job in Australia (effectively one year of pay) and left in December 2012, and I've been travelling ever since. It's a very uncertain life, but as I've learnt, uncertainty liberates you. You definitely need some money behind you to take this path as it takes a while to find where you want to stay and/or what you want to do.
Reply to this We're almost ready to go now, had a few family issues recently that have delayed us for 6 months unfortunately but that's life. It throws these things at you without warning and you just need to roll with the punches and adapt. Hopefully we'll be on our way at the end of June now.
Has anyone had any experience of Airbnb? I like the idea of actually living in different places for a month or 2 and it seems perfect. Just wondered if anyone had any good or bad experiences or advice?
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