Today, I have for you our three long term travel tips, or three key aspects to help you have a successful long-term adventure.
And the thing is, when I’m talking about long term travel, I’m not talking, about two weeks in Europe, I’m not talking a weekend away, I’m talking 2, 3, 4 months, half a year, a year for your gap year, stuff like that.
Look, many people have been traveling since before the internet, and it’s not the key thing about long-term travel. Neither is being able to sleep anywhere you can. Yeah, that’s nice. But that’s not the most important. There are three key things for successful long term travel.
One is the mentality, you got to have the right mentality to go travel abroad for a long time.
Number two, flexibility, not just in your schedule, but how you’re doing things and how you really are going to set up your trip is another one.
And the third one, honestly, probably the most important one is the financial side of things.
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If you can get these three key topics taken care of, you’re gonna have a much better chance to have a really excellent, excellent long-term trip, long-term adventure versus one that is don’t quite live up to your expectations or that maybe you have to cut short.
Mentality
The first thing I want to talk about for a successful long term travel abroad is the mental side of it. The mentality. Look, you have to have the right mentality for long-term travel.
Long-term travel is not two weeks in Mexico or three weeks in the Bahamas or sitting on the beach in Rio. No, that’s a vacation. It’s not a vacation. It’s travel. Okay.
There’s a difference because you have to think of it in a different way. Because you have to look at it in terms of okay, I’m going to be doing this the long term, how am I going to plan it out? How am I going to do things? How am I going to look at it? How am I going to take it in what am I going to be trying to get out of it?
It is very different because two weeks at an all-inclusive in Mexico is about having fun and drinking it up and having a good time a year backpacking through South America is I want to learn the language, I want to experience the culture, I wanna get to meet some new people, I want to see all the main sites, I really want to get in-depth knowledge here. And that mental aspect is a really big thing to go from vacation to travel.
Okay, that’s the first thing. And the thing is we look at the mental side of it. A lot of it actually has to do with how you feel about yourself.
And when you do travel, because yes, it’s exciting that first week, everything’s really cool and exciting. The second month, it gets kind of okay, I know what I’m doing, oh, it’s another church, oh, it’s another temple, you have that kind of mental side of it.
And then you get to that third month. And this is something I see in study abroad students all the time, they get to their third month abroad and the depression kicks in, you start getting homesick, you miss your mom, you miss the food, you know, you miss your normal routine, these things happen.
And the thing is, you’ve got to be mentally ready for that. Because if you know that, look, it’s a couple of months, and I’m starting to feel a little homesick and realize that that’s normal, okay, it really makes you feel better mentally in there.
Also, if you’re doing long term travel with your kids, you got to realize, I’ve got to plan some downtime as well.
That mental break, you know, with our kids, when we go for months at a time, we now look we got one day a week, it’s got to be just a kid day. But also, every three or four weeks, we’ve got to have a five-day window that is just kids focus stuff because for the mental side of it, you just gotta have that recharge. Okay, let’s go back and see some more cool stuff.
Flexibility
The second thing to keep in mind for a successful long-term travel abroad is flexibility. Look, you have to be flexible when you’re going to be doing long-term trip. And that’s one of the best things about travels that are long term.
You don’t have to have a set schedule. It’s not like today, I do this tomorrow, do that tomorrow do that. No, you can break it up, you find a city you fall in love with, you find your hidden gem in Europe, you could just stay in a bomb bird for a week or two weeks or three weeks, maybe rent an Airbnb for a month in Japan, you find your spot.
And that flexibility you need in terms of your schedule allows you to do those things. But also looking at that mentality thing. You have to be flexible in your mind as well to say, you know what, maybe this place I always wanted to go to isn’t what I expected to be.
I don’t have to stay here for three weeks, I can go someplace else. I can go to Luca and go ride bikes. And while I can do something else, and you need that flexibility in terms of your scheduling, to go and do different things.
For example, while meeting people, so yeah, you can decide “I’m gonna travel with you guys for a while”.That flexibility you need to have to go and be able to break away from things really helps you to really enjoy your trip long term travel. Look, that flexible nature is one of the most important parts.
Money
The third tip for successful long-term travel abroad I want to talk about is the financial side of it.
Look, travel is not free. Do I get some upgrades? Sometimes? Yes, I do. But it’s not a free ticket. You’ve got to be honest with yourself about the financial aspects of long term travel.
It’s not just ‘oh, I’m gonna go and have fun’. No, do you have the money to do it? Okay, can you afford to have food? Can you afford to have lodging and stuff like that?
And the thing is, when you look at the financial side of it, it’s not just going to a cheap country. Yes, you can go spend six months in Southeast Asia for next to nothing.
We had friends, it’s been two and a half years in Southeast Asia, and they only spent like $30,000 in two years. Okay. So yes, you can do it on the cheap. But the thing is, what if you want to explore other parts of the world?
When you’re looking at the financial side of it, look at that, that price-quality ratio, because you don’t want six months being you know, living in hostels and, and eating bread and cheese. And that’s it? Is it really experiencing Europe? Is it? No, you want to go and try the food, you want to have that, you know, yes, try the duck in France, or, or try the Sardinia, as in Portugal, you want to try these things.
But if you don’t have the money for it, then you’re not really traveling, all you’re doing is kind of bombing it from place to place without really experiencing a really vital part of the culture, which is the eating and the drinking, and then go into the museums and stuff like that.
Okay, so make sure you can lock that up. And the thing is, we have tons of videos to help people learn how to save for traveling, how to save while you travel, all kinds of things like that.
So, you can travel longer, because it does make a difference. Because long term travel isn’t something you can’t do. And I know a lot of people will call it a gap year, some people say, oh, I’m just taking some time off or my personal favorite, I’m doing a career pivot.
No, you’re just taking a long term travel break. And you can do that. But honestly, the three key parts, you got to be mentally ready for it. You gotta mentally prepare yourself.
You need to be flexible with your schedule and flexible with your attitude. And you got to have the financial wherewithal to actually do it, because you don’t want to be stuck playing guitar begging for money on the street. That could be fun though.
Tips for Long Term Travel (Summary Notes)
So, those are my three key points for actually having a successful long term travel experience.
I hope they can help you travel better wherever you’re gonna go. And if you’ve got any long term travel experience, kind of advice that you’ve gone on for your gap year or whatever, put it in the comment section below.
By dropping your comment, other travelers that are gonna be having these long term travel adventures can be better prepared.