Traveling the world – how do people manage income?

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Unarmed_Character@reddit

I used to work until I had the cost of the plane ticket plus around $3000 in the bank. I'd travel for 4 to 6 months on that, depending where I went (2000s). I had a holiday working visa for NZ on my first trip and was gone for 11 months. I worked about 3 months doing agricultural labour to top up the funds on that trip. At home I was doing low level jobs, ski rentals in a resort town, Home Depot, construction labourer. Even at home I wouldn't stay with a job longer than 6 months before moving on, chasing snow in the winter and rock climbing in the summer. Sometimes I lived in a tent or out of a truck, eventually I had a van to live out of.

Someone looking in would think I was poor, but it was a choice to prioritize skiing, climbing and international travel. I did what needed to do to afford it and I didn't have or need help. Now I have a real job and the frugality I learned in my 20s keeps lifestyle creep at bay meaning someday, when my kids are a bit older, I'll be able to show them a few pieces of our world. Hopefully they'll have the same wanderlust I have.

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AskCurrent1279@reddit

What did you end up doing? Ive been doing the same traveling for over 2 years and working random minimum paying jobs when back at home. I’m now seeking to either acquire a skill that i can do in most places or some jobs that are very intense then a lot of time off. Love being on the move, can’t stay at one job for more than a few months. Thanks

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Unarmed_Character@reddit

I fell into scaffolding through a friend. I worked my ass off while I was employed and the company already had a high turnover rate. They had no problems with me repeatedly quitting and coming back a few months later. Eventually I switched to an oil sands maintenance job that was full time and paid well. I planned on staying until the contract didn't get renewed just to load up my bank account. 13 years later I'm still here and running a portion of the show.

That being said, if you're in Canada, there's lots of demand for trades in fly in-fly out gigs. Iron working, pipe fitting, welding, scaffolding and insulating are in particularly high demand. If you can suck it up for 4 or 5 years and get qualified (scaffolding is especially easy if you don't mind hard labour and are good with heights), there's an opportunity to chase shutdowns. Shut down season is typically April through June and September through November. Companies are usually looking for guys to stay in camp for 30 to 60 days. A journeyman can clear $10,000 a month on a shutdown.

On full time maintenance jobs, the schedule is typically 7 on 7 off or 14 on 14 off. I've known a few people who, on 14-14, lived overseas or just had no home and booked plane tickets to wherever for 14 days.

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Unarmed_Character@reddit

I'll throw this out there too - Good workers are really hard to find. Be a good worker and be the guy that the boss knows will consistently bring problem free productivity and you'll always have work somewhere. When those guys quit here, every time I'm hiring I check in with them to see if they're looking for a job.

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Delicious_Drag_6954@reddit

If you’re traveling full-time, you’re either working remotely with a super flexible schedule... or you’re a content creator. That’s the reality for most people making it work long-term

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AffectionateCamel586@reddit

Nobody travels the world full time unless Theyr really blessed or lucky with moolah.

Cash flow always runs out.

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SunBelly@reddit

Most of the full time travellers I know are either digital nomads or English teachers

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Dragt_peak@reddit

Most digital nomads are just taking a gap year. But saying digital nomad looks cooler lol

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spyder52@reddit

So true

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impatient_trader@reddit

Not only to sound cool but also to have something in the resume while also keeping you from getting too rusty.

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Tardislass@reddit

Or rich folks. I know a lot of nomads who get paid by mom and dad.

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SCDWS@reddit

English teachers who teach online while traveling are also digital nomads though

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MikeAndAlphaEsq@reddit

Read the book Vagabonding. It really isn’t that expensive .

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indigothirdeye@reddit

I saved up for 5 years to travel without having to think about income. I lived out of a backpack from Jan 2015 to Nov 2019, visited 39 countries, and hit my target to keep my budget around $1000-$1500 per month.

I would recommend saving for a 3-6 month trip and get a feel for it. $5-$6k can go way farther than you’d think.

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arthuranymoredonutz@reddit

Would love to hear more about this, sounds a lot like my plan. Where did you spend most of your time? Any challenges/limitations?

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indigothirdeye@reddit

I started my trip in Cancun and traveled to Ushuaia by land or sea, then back up to the border of Brasil in Uruguay. I wasn’t able to get a visa to Brasil, so I came home for a short time. That was around 18 months of travel I think. Then over to SE Asia starting with Indonesia. Bounced around a lot and ended in Perth Oz. I flew over to Tbilisi Georgia and started a long stretch through Eastern Europe. I decided in Czechia to hop over to Spain for a little over a month and decided to come home. I was tired, kinda bored, and felt this draw to come home. So glad I did because the world shut down a few months later and I probably would have been in India when it did.

One of these days

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NaneunGamja@reddit

What did you do for work afterwards?

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indigothirdeye@reddit

I worked as an IT Sysadmin before at an MSP. I was lucky enough to come home and get my old job back. #dontburnbridges. Sadly COVID hit a couple months later and we were acquired by a company that didn’t care, so I was only able make it work for a year. But it helped me get back on my feet for sure.

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Rubadub777@reddit

work in the oil and gas industry working 60days off 60days on - live nomadic when off.

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mikesorange333@reddit

have you read the book this is not a drill?

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scummy_shower_stall@reddit

How did you break into the industry?

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HaydenJA3@reddit

Get an engineering degree

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JoshyRanchy@reddit

I have an engineering degree and am from trinidad. Any advice on opportunities abroad?

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Jubair4645@reddit

which engineering degree???

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Beach-Guacamole@reddit

Try Mechanical Engineering.

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scummy_shower_stall@reddit

Darn, I'm bad at math. Sounds intense, but cool!

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Rubadub777@reddit

I was on UK fishing trawlers for about 20 years, then I moved to oil rig standby vessels in the North sea working a 28day on/off rotation - after doing a few more tickets I moved onto rig supply ships mainly out of Angola and a few other African countries and the rotation shifted to 60on/off. More than 20 years later I’m now working ashore in vessel operations still doing 60 on/off. Lots of people in the industry came up through similar routes.

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hotcheex11@reddit

This is pretty cool. Did you ever go visit the African countries you worked in? I’m from Angola!

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Important_Average_11@reddit

It sounds even better than digital nomadism.

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kittyykikii@reddit

Learn how to sail. I work in yachting and I’ve traveled to expensive destinations i wouldnt be able to afford, while getting paid a decent salary. It’s been seven years and ive traveled to around 20 new countries and I’ve saved over 200k. I can find work in nearly any country that touches the ocean. It’s a great skill and really fun career

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aguachilenegro@reddit

I’m an immigration lawyer with my own practice, and have been a nomad almost my entire adult life. Traveling full-time, as in constantly being in motion, is exhausting and incompatible with an active work life. Either you’ll be drawing down savings to do so, or using the fund that mommy and daddy gave their lucky trustafarian brat.

I need to stay put for several months at a time, usually in three or four places a year, max. That’s because I’m super busy with work, and getting settled in a new place takes a lot of time and energy. Most travelers who are successful at establishing a nomadic lifestyle move slowly, and eschew cliquey labels like Digital Nomad or empty traveler vs. tourist arguments. You really need to test-drive the lifestyle to see if you like it, because most people are not well suited for it in the long term.

If you don’t have remote work to sustain you and you don’t have significant travel funds, or don’t want to dip into savings, you’ll need to find work along the way. This usually requires a facility with foreign languages, resourcefulness, and often a willingness to bend the rules. Outside of your country of citizenship, you’ll rarely have authorization to work. Before I became a lawyer, I did this by working in bars and restaurants, writing for travel guides, picking fruit, teaching English, writing journalism (old-school print journalism), and other activities that I don’t think I’m allowed to describe here. This means staying put in one place rather than traveling. In my opinion, this permits a visitor to get to know a place in far more depth than passport-stamp collectors gain from their four days in a unique country.

My first big international trip solo was a bit over six months in Europe and North Africa, when I was 19 (in the mid-90s). I’d originally planned on three months, but then realized I could find work and stretch my travel time. I bartended in Berlin, waited tables in Paris and Montpellier, followed the fruit harvest south through France and Spain, wrote articles from the former constituent republics of Yugoslavia as they emerged from war, worked in a hotel in Barcelona, and sold hash to backpackers.

How much you need to travel is way too vague a question to answer, with too many variables. What’s your tolerance for discomfort? Are you a picky eater? Do you pick up languages quickly? Do you have family and/or friends to bail you out of a bind?

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fullofuselessthought@reddit

Back in 2017 I spent a year in Australia (work and holiday visa def recommend if you’re young enough) and had $10000 in savings. I did get a job for a bit and worked for accommodation

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CorpsTorn@reddit

Join the Military, volunteer for all kinds of dangerous but fun stuff. Get injured but survive. Get awarded thousands per month for life. Go to college still get a tech degree and work in tech for 3 years, take a year off and just travel, go back and work again every year for one year and take the next off. The money you make from working is just play money so, that 20, 40, 60, 80k you made is just for travel for the off year. Or the govt. money is the travel money and the work money is the savings. Either way, you can travel for a year at a time or more without losing a penny and even still saving money.

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akaTheLizardKing@reddit

A trust fund helps. Our cousin gets a dividend stipend yearly and as long as she travels within that budget shes good. Btw, its more than i make at my career.

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Wide_Standard_6204@reddit

Moved in with parents and saved £36k in 18 months. Been travelling since February and will be gone for a while

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Normal-Flamingo4584@reddit

Start an online business. When most people hear this, they think you need to be earning $100k+ a year. But I started traveling when I was earning about $2k a month doing graphic design.

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morganproctor_19@reddit

Is graphic design still (going to be) in demand? How did you get started?

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Normal-Flamingo4584@reddit

I think it will still be in demand, but even if it's not, the skills I've learned running my own business will transfer. And it's not like I'm just waiting for AI to take over, I'm moving with the times and incorporating AI into my workflow.

Who knows what I'll be doing in 5-10 years. I'm certainly not doing the same thing today that I was 10 years ago. I've been doing the digital nomad thing since around 2021.

Plus I'm self-taught. I learned most of what I know from LinkedIn Learning (free access through the library). It's not like I spent money to go to school for 4 years. And if it's no longer in demand in 5 years, I'm not afraid to piviot

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Particular_Fan_2945@reddit

I’ve been traveling full-time for a few years, and honestly, managing income is just about finding a rhythm that fits your lifestyle. I’ve got one main remote job that pays the bills, then I pick up freelance work here and there when I have downtime. I try to slow travel staying a month or two in one place keeps costs low and makes it easier to focus on work. I also keep a small emergency fund in case payments are late or gigs dry up for a bit. Internet access is non-negotiable, so I always double-check that before booking a place. It’s not always smooth, but once you find your flow, it becomes second nature.

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TrulyLivingYT@reddit

I think it's just like whenever you walk in places you say I came in

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Minimum-Log1432@reddit

I spent the last 5 years in the oil and gas industry while making some insane money. I took all of that and invested it. It beats working hundreds of hours in a paycheck so I’m likely to never return back to working for someone.

I’ll be 35 in two years and hubby will be 34. I’d like to hope that our house will be paid off with 750k-1M in liquid asset. We will pretty much be spending half the year abroad at that point.

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corporate-therapist@reddit

Therapist. You can work online when fully licensed

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Thesorus@reddit

Some people have a lot of family money. (investment, inheritance ... )

Some people manage their income to be able to travel a lot. (I know a couple that live frugally for a couple of years and go on sabbaticals)

And now, with technology, some people can work remotely (digital nomads) or use social media to create some income.

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anothercar@reddit

You would need to already have money. Most countries don’t let you visit and work at the same time. They have tourist visas which forbid working.

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vairaagya@reddit

That's not true. If you work digitally, you can work out of anywhere.

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wanderingdev@reddit

Generally not accurate. People like to claim it's a grey area, but for most countries, it's illegal. But, unless you're an idiot, you're unlikely to be caught.

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aceinthehole001@reddit

"can" and "are allowed to legally" are two totally different things

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NoSuggestion2836@reddit

This also depends on the country, if you don’t want to break laws while abroad

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SCDWS@reddit

Laws that are vague and never enforced because most of those laws weren't written with remote workers in mind, but rather with foreigners who take local jobs while on a tourist visa in mind.

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wanderingdev@reddit

there are tons of people who are doing this. it's generally called being a digital nomad. there are multiple subs devoted to the topic.

i've been traveling full time for almost 17 years. most recently i was working as a technical project manager for a small dev agency. everything financial is managed online. how much you need depends on how much you spend. personally i started traveling full time when i was making $600/month online, but that was 2008, so you'd want more these days to live is some level of comfort.

tip: get a job and build skills that you can do fully online. become very good at it and develop your network and reputation. start freelancing. once you're making enough freelancing, hit the road.

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experienced_invest@reddit

Bank of mum or dad usually only wealthy people can do this

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iLLiE_@reddit

Wealthy? I travel all over the world the place and have lived to travel for over two years now and my budget is about $3,000 usd a month. Thats less than a McDonald's salary.

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The_Real_Jedi@reddit

Wrong. My partner and I just finished a 15-month trip 100% funded by us. We worked, saved everything we could, then quit our jobs and put our stuff in a storage unit to travel. We came back with enough money to start our lives back up.

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experienced_invest@reddit

Like i said wealthy if you can quit your jobs and also pay for storage got to have some money. Me i would have to sell all my posessions.

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The_Real_Jedi@reddit

Yeah, you have to have some money, but a year of travel for 2 people cost us less than the average new car costs in the US. We spent significantly less travelling than we do to live our fairly frugal lives in the US. And a storage unit doesn't cost that much, at least where I'm at.

My point is you don't need a ton of money, you need to choose your priorities. We chose to travel over new cars, furniture, new clothes, etc. and let be real, not having kids is the real secret.

If you are TRULY living paycheck to paycheck, yeah this is a dream. But there is a wide gap between every penny goes to food/rent/bills and wealthy.

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SC_Gonzo@reddit

Did a similar thing a few years ago, hardest part was adjusting back to regular life stateside haha. Looking forward to doing it again.

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The_Real_Jedi@reddit

Adjusting back to regular life has by far been the hardest part. We threw ourselves back into our hobbies and social circle but the depression is rough.

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SC_Gonzo@reddit

It got better over time and with smaller trips to look forward to after getting jobs. We also had the bright idea of taking in a rescue puppy a week after getting back so that took up some time and attention.

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calcium@reddit

So says someone who’s unable to do it and salty.

Many people live and work remotely, even more so now that a lot of work can occur online.

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Patent6598@reddit

This haha

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apoortraveller@reddit

Both my parents are dead, left me no money and I do this full time. I work as an English teacher online. I just budget very well although in some areas i need to spend more than the average shoestring traveller (like private accommodation, no hostels, and the best wifi money can pay)

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patiti88@reddit

Good for you. I saved some money as an ESL teacher on the road but also from my job during university

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apoortraveller@reddit

yeah, I have a degree in the area and years of experience teaching in person in a few countries so switching to online only helps.

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patiti88@reddit

Funny.... I saved for years for my solo trip. My mam and dad wouldn't fund my travels. What a sweeping generalisation

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bidet_sprays@reddit

Ok, and did you travel the world, full time with those savings, like OP wants to? Are you still travelling now? Or was it one trip, for a few weeks?

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patiti88@reddit

I travelled for a year full time with those savings. In that time my parents might have given me 100e for my birthday but they money I travelled with was mine and mine alone.

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bidet_sprays@reddit

Damn that's some savings. Good on ya.

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Patent6598@reddit

Don't listen to this and get your information from a sub like sole travel. This is just not true

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bidet_sprays@reddit

Right, we forgot about believing ourselves to manifest funds.

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BalearicInSpace@reddit

Of course. You can also be a druggdealer..

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break_from_work@reddit

A lot of people have the privilege of working from home type of jobs that they can just log on somewhere on a beach and work. Some just safe a whole bunch and start, some make it into a youtube thing and some just have money.

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soulstrippedbare@reddit

Airbnb my apartment while I’m away and have an online hypnosis business.

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roleplay_oedipus_rex@reddit

I work two salaried remote jobs simultaneously and have been mostly on the road for the past 5 years.

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Crist1n4@reddit

What type of job?

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Veggiemon-@reddit

If you are under 35, look into work visas in different countries. You can live and work in certain countries usually for a year max.

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robyn_capucha@reddit

Working holiday visas

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anthonymakey@reddit

A lot of people get remote jobs, or they are travel content creators they get paid to travel with brand deals

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Remote-Blackberry-97@reddit

Maybe just save and travel? A form of geo arbitrage. It's likely the countries you are traveling to are less developed, thus save before when you travel makes sense. To travel, managing finance is a must have skill

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Gallex88@reddit

You have to read shantaram and then not take inspiration from the protagonist

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mbrasher1@reddit

I travelled around SE Asia and India for a year 20 yrs ago. It was life changing. I purchased a home and used some of the money earned when I sold it for travel expenses. I did travel with an eye towards business, and started a small business that kept me travelling until I had a family and no longer wanted to travel.

The many ways: finance, writing, freelancing, bug bounty, having a successful no touch app or website. I am sure there are others!

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Tardislass@reddit

Lots of rich folks getting funding from parents.

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green_sky74@reddit

My nephew took a gap year before college. He traveled around the world and wound up spending 2 years in Australia. He left Australia with more money than he started, enough to pay for the rest of his trip.

He worked at resorts, beaches, and as boat crew.

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Groundbreaking_Ad972@reddit

Lots of people are doing Workaway! I'm sure you know it but basically you match with NGOs, farms and businesses that give you room and board for 20-25 hours of work a week, then you're free to roam. I've met people who have done it for years.

I only use it for NGOs, like horse sanctuaries and social projects, and I've had amazing experiences. Be warned that they don't require the host to be a non-profit, so it's also full of horrible people offering you indentured servitude for businesses that make them tons of money, like ski resorts.

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The_Real_Jedi@reddit

While I agree with you that doing workaways for NGOs is "better", there is a place in the world for doing this for for-profit businesses.

If you want to spend a winter skiing, and through work away the resort will give you housing, food, and a lift pass, go for it! I'd happily work for housing & food on a farm or a small hotel/hostel/homestay even though it's someone's for-profit business.

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Groundbreaking_Ad972@reddit

I agree, as long as the conditions are decent. But for what I've seen they're mostly not. Places that are rotting in money piles will make you share a tent or some run down building without running water with other workawayers while you provide 5 star service to their 5 star guests, and think nothing of it.

And don't get me started on the "come join our family at our farm!" ones that expect you to do your 25 hours and then be a free babysitter for their children whenever you're awake. And this is presented as a perk. As "you're not working, you're just hanging out with my kid cause you really like each other and we're so nice we've made you part of the family".

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SCDWS@reddit

what kind of work can they do to earn money while traveling?

Either remote work or local jobs if you have the right visa (work and travel or working holiday, for example)

Are there any people here who are already traveling globally?

Plenty, it's very common

How do you manage your income and expenses on the road?

Just don't spend beyond your means unless you have savings to keep you afloat

Also, what is the minimum amount someone needs to start a world travel journey?

Depends what part of the world you want to travel in and the lifestyle you want to have, but I'd say aim to have at least 2k per month available to spend

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Pruno_Bills08@reddit

We’re from Canada (in the Quebec part) where we receive between 75% to 50% of our salary for almost a year during maternity leave.. What we did is : we put money aside for 3 years, and then we rented our house (so we don’t have to pay for mortgage) and we left with the baby in countries where the cost of living is lower than ours. We don’t have big salaries.. But I’ve always wander how people can afford to do this full time or during many years. At one point, you have to get back to work, no?

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64-matthew@reddit

I left for six months holiday in my 20s and didn't come back far 13 years. I did any job that l come across. You have to learn to travel light and frugally. I don't mean going without when l say frugally. I never went hungry, butcwas rarely fussed about accommodation. I managed to work legally in 5 countries. Getting work in third world countries is easier when there than applying for work in the West to do the same job in the same country. Teaching English is always a job. Rarely legal but pays well. There are always opportunities to do it. I was travelling India and was in this small town and they offered me food and board to teach English. I stayed six months. It was fantastic. There is no secret to doing it. Opportunities arise and you have nothing to lose by giving them ago. Working the black market is one source of income. Some places alcohol is illegal for locals to buy in anything but small quantities, but tourists can legally buy shit loads. The locals will approach you and say if you buy this l will pay you this. Its extremely lucrative. Just give it ago. It isn't a life for everyone, and it isn't always easy, but l have no regrets

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carlosrudriguez@reddit

I'm doing exactly this.

My wife and I have our own digital marketing agency. We make websites, online advertising, community management, that kind of stuff. We have always worked from home, and our relationship with all our clients is 100% online. Thanks to this, we have the freedom to work from anywhere in the world.

We budget to spend each month more or less what we spent back home. We stay in each country for a maximum of three months, which is what tourist visas allow, and we rent Airbnbs by month (28 days), which is cheaper because many of these apartments give a discount for long stays. We try to pay each month the same rent we were paying back home. So we usually spend the same as when we lived in our city. The only obvious extra expense is the flights, but we can afford it.

With this strategy, you can slow travel around the world, working from anywhere, and you don't need to be rich. It takes some planning, budgeting, and a lot of thinking to optimize resources, taking into account the cost of living, flight prices, et al.

Hope this helps.

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PunishedWagie@reddit

I'm doing this now for about a year. I saved up for about three years and expect to spend about 30000-40000USD. Working a regular jobs overseas is a good way to save a lot because those kind of jobs tend to pay for your housing

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Captlard@reddit

Some have full time or part time employment that allow them to travel

Some have freelance / self employed / own a small company that allows them to travel

Some work whilst travelling: Low-skilled roles or teaching their native language.

Some have have achieved FIRE and so have savings

Some are on a sabbatical and so have savings

Some are on a gap year and so have savings

Some have rich parents or a trust fund.

Minimum: Say $1.5k a month to the sky is the limit I guess

Personally, I was freelance, but I basically travelled, then returned home as a hub.

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WoodenWhaleNectarine@reddit

The minimum amout is probably a very high negative number. Since it is always possible to leech of others if you a skilled talker.
Then you also don't need a job. Since others will always pay for you. The hard part is to find a family and friend that supports this lifestyle.

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LetsAdultTogether@reddit

I met a couple that works festivals March/April - August/September. It's 7 days a week, non stop work. Then in off season they dont work and go to Asia. They have a deal with the owner and get a monthly wage year round for their festival work

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SalamancaVice@reddit

what kind of work can they do to earn money while traveling?

Can only speak from personal experience. I do remote consultancy work meaning I can work from my laptop. I also have some passive investment income.

How do you manage your income and expenses on the road?

Track spending diligently, don't go crazy with the partying (though that seems to be less of an issue as I get older...)

Also, what is the minimum amount someone needs to start a world travel journey?

Honestly depends on where you're planning to travel, how long you're planning to be away. I'd say maybe have 3-6 months of savings/expenses in the bank before you consider anything long term, just in case.

As u/anothercar mentioned, you also need to be careful about where you work and what visa you have.