How do travel bloggers afford to travel? My story
How do travel bloggers afford to travel? This is my own story.
I feel there are about half a million articles about how travel bloggers can afford to travel for seemingly years on end, yet this is the single most commonly asked question I receive, so I thought I would address it once and for all. To be painfully honest, I’ve run out of travel money a couple of times those last few years. But money comes and goes, and I always seem to find a way to continue, because I make travel my priority.
I’ve taken a huge leap of faith on a few occasions this last year, trusting that things would fall into place if they were meant to be, and so far, they have. I understand that living this way isn’t everyone’s cup of tea: my lifestyle isn’t about financial security or comfort, but rather doing what I love and making sure I have the means to do so. And I do that mostly by living extremely frugally. The funny thing is: I am making the least money I ever have and traveling more than ever.
TAKING THE PLUNGE
When I decided to go travel, I advertised stuff for sale on Craigslist: books, kitchen appliances, furniture, old cameras, games, perfume, clothes: everything. I sold a lot of stuff and put all of the earnings straight into my travel fund. I made over $1,000 from this. I had worked both as a full-time graphic designer and freelance photographer without spending much for about a year before the trip. I left Canada with the US $10,000 and didn’t start working for nearly another year into my travel. I also have a savings account with Tangerine, which started generating really good interest once I had reached a few thousand dollars. If you’re in Canada, you can use my orange key 20100771S1 and we each get $50 when you open an account with them and deposit $100.
TRAVELING TO CHEAP DESTINATIONS
I’ll have a separate post soon about how much it cost me to travel through South East Asia, but it is no coincidence that I settled there while I figured out how I could make long-term travel profitable.
South-East Asia is so cheap. Pick a place where your currency is worth more than theirs. Visit this site to have an idea of the cost of living by country worldwide.
Everything in South East Asia is cheap, from accommodation to food, to transportation, and this made it possible for me to generate enough income to not have to dip into my savings account so much after a while. When I converted to bicycle touring, at some point my daily cost of living was under US $10 per day! At the present time, I do not make enough money to live off my online earnings in places like Europe or North America, but there’s a way around that too! Couchsurfing and Warmshowers are great help, but keep reading for more.
WORK EXCHANGE AND SLOW TRAVEL
A work exchange is an arrangement where you work a few hours a day in exchange for accommodation, meals, or both. In 2015, I spent three months volunteering at a backpacker hostel in Malaysia and it was the best of all worlds for me: in exchange for 3-4 hours of work each day (which mainly consisted of hanging out with other travelers!) I got to stay in a centrally-located hostel in Malacca with free breakfast, ample time to visit the surroundings and do my online work, and I even got a little pocket money, which was plenty to cover all my other expenses. So from May until August, I generated some income and had no expenses. And I still felt like I was traveling – three months in a big unknown city to me is time well spent. I’m a slow traveler and I love to take my time. I felt like I became “in the know” enough about this city to generate good content for my blog also.
Check out: WWOOF, Workaway, Help Exchange, Yoga Trade, & Yoga Travel Job.
FREELANCE WORK
Before I started earning from this blog, I first made money doing freelance graphic design work. Some jobs were for returning Canadian clients and some I found through scouring online job boards such as Craigslist and applying for dozens of jobs each day. I designed websites, blogs, logos, etc. At some point, I decided to broaden my field of expertise and applied for content writing and translation jobs also, and I have had success doing this as well. I haven’t had any luck yet with sites such as UpWork or Fiverr, but they may still be worth checking out. There is so much money to be made online; it’s really just a matter of digging around and finding it. I also took on a few clients for whom I do social media remotely.
Check out: Freelance Writing Jobs, Remote OK, Starting an outdoor blog to share your adventures.
TEACHING YOGA AND GIVING THAI YOGA MASSAGE (OR WHATEVER IT IS THAT YOU DO!)
I’ve taught yoga and given Thai yoga massage on a donation basis during my time in Malaysia and, not only did I make a few extra bucks, but it was also an awesome way to connect with new people. So, whatever it is that you do – reiki, haircutting, photoshoots, web design, anything you can do away from home, really – put a sign up at the hostel or find a way to spread the word. Get crafty!
BLOGGING
After over a year of blogging, I finally started to get an income and some indirect perks from my blog. Most of it is from advertising: my biggest income streams being affiliate marketing, ads, and sponsored posts. These are always labeled as sponsored so as not to be misleading. I use Cooperatize to find gigs mostly, but some just come my way from interested partners, and I also do outreach myself.
Not a direct income per se, but I also do a lot of bartering. I partner with tour companies, hotels, and restaurants for complimentary things in exchange for a mention in a blog post and online exposure on my main social media channels. This allows me to make my travel costs much lower and sometimes treat myself to a little luxury I could not otherwise afford.
As you can see, it’s really a matter of adding up small incomes here and there to make the ends meet and it worked perfectly for me while I traveled through South East Asia. But as I seem to find comfort a petrifying thing, I had to throw myself at the deep end again and move over to Europe.
WORKING HOLIDAY VISA
I got approved for a German working holiday visa and have been based in Berlin for a year now. The visa, alongside giving me the obvious opportunity to find a part-time job to supplement my online work, has also allowed me to remain within the Schengen zone for a year without having to get out (I get 90 days outside of Germany). I have previously done a working holiday visa in the U.K. and loved my experience, so I thought I would do it one last time before I am too old!
Depending on where you are from, there are several working holiday visa opportunities, and some, as is the case with Germany, will allow people up to 35 years old to apply. Check out the countries and territories offering working holiday visas.
OTHER WAYS TO TRAVEL FOR CHEAP OR FREE
HOUSE SITTING
Living in and looking after someone else’s home and pets while they are away opens up so many opportunities to travel cheaply to expensive destinations and have a comfortable place to call home for a few days/weeks/months whilst exploring a new place and doing some work at the same time. It is a favorite of many long-term travelers, and understandably so. I have created an account with Trusted Housesitters, but there is also House Carers, and Mind my House. There is a sign-up cost attached to all of those.
TRAVEL HACKING
This is something I really should have gotten into long ago, but my brain seems to refuse to let me read about credit cards and loyalty programs. Travel hacking is the simple act of using frequent flyer points, loyalty programs, and credit card travel reward programs to your advantage in order to score free flights and more. I have not got much to say on the topic, but I keep reading of people scoring amazing free flights with this method, so I really should get to it.
Check out: Nomadic Matt’s guide to travel hacking and this beginner’s guide to travel hacking.
Got any more questions? I’d be happy to share more!
Disclaimer: This post includes affiliate links that give me a small cut if you make a purchase. This comes at no cost to you and allows me to continue running this blog! Thanks for your support!
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Great ideas to travel on a budget! If hitchhiking is not your thing, I would definitely suggest CouchSurfing as well. It’s a great way to meet locals and not pay for accommodation. And yes, if you plan to travel for a long time, like you did, it’s a good idea to sell most of your possessions you wouldn’t be using on the road. We did the same thing before our Long Way Home trip but didn’t get nearly as much money for it as you did.
Duh, of course, why didn’t I put that on the list! Doing it now! Thanks for reminding me! 🙂
Reading this just makes me want to travel so much, I have always had a desire to travel and what you are do just appeals to me so much however I just feel I like things at home would tie me down. I’m still at school but once I finish I definitely want to travel it’s just finding time, money and someone to come with me! How do you manage to travel alone and be so uncertain of your future?
Hi Ellie! To me that’s part of the excitement! Nothing is ever certain anyway, so why not have a blast! However I do have a student loan to pay off, so at some point I will probably need to come to Canada and work to pay it off for a couple of years. No worries though! 🙂
There was a guy we met in queens town New Zealand that was a river surfing guide. He did that during the summer and worked up at the mountain during the winter.
Nice one! When it comes to being able to travel, the work options are really up to people’s imagination! 😀
Some really great tips! I’m looking at changing my lifestyle (getting rid of the nine to five) and figuring out what shape it will take. Appreciate you sharing a little more about how you got where you are. Thanks!
Sure thing 🙂
I might have ventured these when I was younger but no, I chose to work hard on my career. Now I travel fulltime and am able to do so from the benefits of my earlier work!
There really are no magic tips for traveling long-term other than as you said…make it a priority! People are also surprised to know this same mentality works for average part-time travelers, too! As for me, I am obsessed with travel hacking. I haven’t paid for a flight in years and often can get free or low-cost accommodations. You should definitely take a look and see how using miles and points can be added to your skills for traveling where and when you want.
Ah! Yes! Whenever I look into I seem to find that I am not organized enough or don’t have big spending enough to make it work. I will definitely read more about it, I bought Nomadic Matt’s guide to travel hacking and will be studying it!
Awesome blog post. Very good tips. I will definitely be looking into those websites you listed. My focus this year is to make money from my website. Great advice.
Great tips. I have stills lots to learn from you. Thank you for your sharing and it’s indeed a honor meeting you.
Thanks so much Peter!!!!
🙂
This is a really useful post. Agree that the Working Holiday Visa is a great way, especially when travelling in countries where cost of living is higher. I’m doing one in Australia at the moment.
Awesome! How was it finding employment in ‘Straya?
Great tips for the long term budget traveler. Looking forward to seeing where your journey takes you next!
That’s such a great post Amélie! Wow! I already read several of these kind of posts and quite often I didn’t find them useful as there was no real new information in there! But, yours does indeed! I also blog now a bit over a year and finally some things start to change…aka working together with tour companies, hotels, earning a bit of money. It just all takes some time. I signed myself up for Upwork but never got anything (didn’t try in the last couple of months). Thanks for sharing some of the websites which work for you, will try them out soon. Also, definitely want to do housesitting soon (maybe after my round the world trip) and need to check out some travel hacks 🙂 Love from Costa Rica! Melanie
Thanks for stopping by! Best of luck to you 🙂
Fabulous post. It’s a true insight into the nature of travel blogging and how you have to try and earn money in a thousand different ways. I applaud your open-ness.
Thanks! I just get a bit annoyed when people assume I’m rich or my parents are backing my travels, as it’s really not the case. I work bloody hard!
Glad to know that things are working out well for you!
Super useful post Amelie! Like you, I travel half the year at least, am Canadian, and I’m working on relaunching and monetizing my blog. I’m currently doing a copywriting certificate to better qualify myself to work while travelling and I have a couple other little writing things I do while travelling to make cash! This post gave me huge insite into how monetization works, and introduced me to coopertize, so thank you! I would love to hear more about how you increase traffic to your blog and if you have a blog schedule, etc. Thank you!
Thanks for the suggestion, I’ll try to write about it! 🙂
Really great and useful post! Thank you so much, I will be using some of your tips! 🙂
🙂
This post is so great for those just on the edge of deciding whether or not to give up the life of a 9-5 for travel. Throughout all my working life, I never made much money, but like you, I always prioritized travel. I had a specific travel account and put $100 from every paycheck into that account. I don’t spend money on things I don’t need. Plus, with our Chase Sapphire card, we’ve gotten our flights to both Europe and South America using miles, paying only the travel fees.
Thanks for sharing your tips!
I really need to instruct myself more on credit card bonus. This is all science fiction to me right now O_o
Wonderful practical tips about how to travel affordably. Agree with your point about trusting that things will fall in place. They always do. Very interested about your upcoming post about traveling affordably in S.E. Asia. Please let me know when it’s out. Happy travels!
Definitely, thanks!
Great post; thank you so much for sharing! I’ve read a number of these posts but there are definitely some new ideas in here! 🙂
Sure thing! 🙂
Great post! In couple of months I’m going to my round the world trip with almost no money. I plan to work while traveling and trying all those ways that just helps you to travel. That’s great that you shared your experiences, I hope it will help those who think that they don’t have enough money to travel!
Awesome, I hope it helps you! Where are you traveling to?
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Great tips! Right now the hubs and I just put away a little each month into our travel fund as well as the money from stuff we sell, etc. Right now we’re just trying to travel as much as we can from our home base in Salt Lake City but the goal is to be completely nomadic in a few years 🙂
Thanks so much for posting this, it is one of the best ones that I have read (and I have read a few). What I really appreciate is the links that you have provided. A lot of others say “I do freelance work” but then don’t really give you information on how they find that freelance work!
Thanks again
Thanks so much for your comment Zita, I’m glad it was helpful 🙂
Amelie,
When you barter with travel providers for accommodations (or what have you) in exchange for a mention on your blog and via your social media, do you also label that as sponsored?
Curious how you handle the ethics of that situation.
Thanks!
David
Hi David,
Yes, I always put a disclaimer at the bottom of my posts when I receive complimentary stuff. 🙂
If you plan to visit switzerland i’ll be happy to host 🙂
Thanks a lot Patrick! 🙂
such a fantastic post, travelling full time sounds fantastic and it’s completely worth living frugally to experience so many parts of the world. malaysia is such a great place full of travellers, must have been a lot of fun working in a hostel! x
yes, it was lovely! 🙂
[…] HOW THE HELL DO I AFFORD TO TRAVEL? […]
Thanks for the tips! I’ve just relocated to London, so this is going to be helpful.
Henry
http://www.henryhq.com/
Nice! Have fun in London 🙂
Awesome tips Amélie! You list down some great points here! Thank you so much sharing this post I learnt something new. Surely I will recommend this and will be included in my Social Sharing:).
Thanks! 🙂
Good, honest and inspiring article ?? Thanks!
Thanks a lot! 🙂
I was wondering who you started your blog through, and how did you get started with your travel blog?
Hi! It’s a self hosted WordPress blog. I just bought the domain, installed WordPress and started blogging! 🙂
Great post! I’m happy to hear that I’m not tooo old for a working holiday visa for Germany!
Thanks! There are a few countries where you can do them until 35. Maybe I should write a post about this 🙂
Hi Amelie,
Just came across you site. Great article! I too am such a big fan of working holiday visas and that wiki link you provided is a great resource. Will look forward to following along with you now!
Best, Tiff
Thanks so much Tiff! Welcome 🙂
This is a great post. Thank you so much for sharing all of these tips. I’m certainly going to pursue some of the writing opportunities!
Awesome! Hope you find some good gigs 🙂
Thank you for this post! Trying to gear up for more travel myself. I’ve been designing for a while, but I need to figure out how to pick up more clients. I KNOW I can do the work. It’s just tricky finding people >_< Keep up the great work!
Thanks Danyon! Best of luck to you! 🙂
Hi!! Great tips! I like how you explain what freelance jobs you do and your optimism! I do not travel full time but is something that I am planning on doing and your ideas of how to make extra money are great! I followed the link to the translating jobs website and I would like to know your opinion about it, since you have to pay a small fee to get started,do you think is worth to try? Would youu get enough jobs to make some money, it looks too good to be true but I think it’s a grat way to make some extra money! Thanks!
Wow this is literally my dream. I am a graphic design student right now who cannot wait to get out in the world and travel and I am a big fan of yoga too. Thanks for writing this! It was very inspiring to read and also has some great ideas that I’ve never thought of before.
<3
Some great tips, Amelie. After 18 months of travel and blogging, I’m in that period of trying to work out where I go from here and you’ve given me some tasty food for thought. Keep up the good (and hard) work!
Thanks! And best of luck <3
I loved reading this and I love that you included links to different sources under each topic. Bless your heart and I wish you safe travels:)
Thanks so much Courteney!!
Great read, in the near future I plan to get on the road for as long as possible so I think I will refer to your tips. With my blog and photography I am making some passive income to keep me going but need more streams. Thanks for the tips! 🙂
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I’ve seen a lot of atricles on this topic but yours is the most useful! Had no idea about that working holiday visa. Thank you:)
Sure, I’m so glad it was helpful! 😀
perfect information
😀
Inspiring post. Thank you.
If you are still in Europe and planning to go to Denmark I will happily share my home with you for some weeks. Or if you know other travel bloggers let me know. I am making it a part of my business to build network and relations internationally by opening my home.
Oh wow thanks so much Marieke! I am indeed in Europe, still in Berlin <3
[…] How The Hell Do I Afford To Travel? Amélie has used numerous ways to keep herself in the world, including teaching yoga and freelance graphic design. […]
perfect information
Came here from a Google Image search expecting Time Travel. Left disappointed but amused. 😉
Perfect information
Just found this post and it has some really nice content. Like a previous commenter said Couchsurfing is gold. I wrote an article about it: https://www.carryontravelfitness.com/carryontravelfitness/2018/2/15/hustle-karma-and-couchsurfing-5-secrets-to-travel-with-any-budget.
Also, I do jiu-jitsu so another way I travel is through a site called BJJ Gloebtrotters and they have mat surfing, which is couchsurfing for jiu-jitsu people. Cool concept. I feel like we need one for digital nomads. Hmm.. Thoughts?
Anyoneany recommendations for I strange for travelling through south east Asia for a few months?
I recently came across volunteering and i find your Malaysian experience very intriguing. Work for accommodation sounds to be an easy and a nice way of enhancing one’s travel experience. I first came across the concept on Hippohelp. Have you tried it?
Fantastic Photos and Great Content! We Love this! Safe Travels – Stay Awesome!
Wow great post. My eyes are really opening to the amount of money making opportunities available online and while traveling. Thanks for sharing!
This is really refreshing to read another individuals account on making travel full time I’m currently doing this working as a full time travel blogger. One day I hope I generate enough revenue to fund my dream.
Best of luck Alexandra!! <3
Great job! Very useful tip. Thanks for sharing.
Yes I so relate to this!! I’ve ran out of money a few times on the road but I always find a way to make it work. While I was in Israel, I way overspent because I hadn’t realized just how expensive everything would be!
Great blog post!
Yes I really relate to this! I have ran out of money a few times while traveling as well. Especially when I went to Israel for the first time and didn’t realize just how expensive the country is, yikes! But you always find a way to make it work 🙂
Great post!
Great coverage of the topic!
Thank you for sharing
I just switched to a remote position and have been traveling more. The goal is full time travel in an RV. I’m not nearly as brave as you but my finances are set and my emergency fund is there. I plan to work in exchange for a place to stay when I’m on the road and I just signed up for a travel card!