How To Start Traveling Full Time

“Can we just skip to the part of my life where I travel the world?” I wish it was that easy; however, a long trip like this needs a little planning to pull off, especially with kids. There is not only one way to start traveling full time. All of it boils down to your goals and your finances.

When we started traveling full time in 2022, our plan was to go abroad for 6 months and visit Ecuador, Colombia and Panama. We ended up enjoying it so much we continued on for another 2 months and eventually moved to Europe.

Before we set out on our adventure, we took these steps to make our idea become reality. You can do it too. Find out where to start and how to become full-time travelers!

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Step 1: Set Up Your Finances

Figure Out A Monthly Budget

The first step to traveling full time is to know how much you can afford to spend each month.

Even before figuring out how much you will need to travel, I would suggest learning how much you spend currently each month. This will give you an estimate of how much you will need each month while you travel and will be the basis of your travel budget.

There will be a few differences when you travel. For example, you will be paying for a vacation rental or hotel rooms instead of your mortgage or you will have additional costs for tours and attractions.

On the flip side, if you rent your home out, like we did, you will be making some money on that asset. Additionally, not all countries have the same cost of living as America.

In the end, it was actually cheaper for us to travel full-time than to live in the United States. Since we were able to rent out our home, we made a little profit from that. Our costs for food, lodging and transportation were less expensive as well, depending on where we were visiting.

When we were in the Galapagos, we spent over our budget, $9,628! Yikes. We knew this would be our most expensive month though.

The next month, we were on the mainland of Ecuador and living in Quito. That month we only spent $4,148, which was under budget! We were aiming for $6000 a month.

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How Can You Afford To Start Traveling Full Time?

There are a few different ways to be able to afford full-time travel.

Passive Income

One way that we could afford to start traveling full time was through our passive income sources.

Build up your net worth, passive income, and/or active income strategies. We like Mr. Money Mustache and Choose FI as great resources for learning about this.

For us, we had 3 rental properties at the time that provided us some income while we traveled. We knew that it wasn’t quite enough to live and travel on, so we also had a savings account that we could tap into. That brings me to my next point.

Save Up A Healthy Cash Reserve

Some full-time travelers live solely on a cash reserve. These families know that full-time travel won’t be forever, but they have planned this epic trip to create those life-long memories.

I met a family from Canada traveling full-time that was doing just that. They had set aside a certain amount of money and one year of their life for an exciting adventure!

Knock Out ”Bad” Debt!

You won’t want to be paying off student loan debt or credit cards when you are traveling the world, especially if you don’t have any income coming in. Bad debt is the kind that isn’t helping you move ahead financially.

Some debt can be okay if it make sense. For example, we have mortgages on our homes. These mortgages are debts, but at the same time, we have renters that are paying off these debts for us in a way. We are leveraging this money to work for our benefit.

Whereas if you have 25,000 dollars to pay off on your credit card and have to pay 25% interest on that amount, that debt is weighing you down, not lifting you up.

We would recommend working towards eliminating debt before traveling full time.

The only time it would be okay to travel full time and still have debt is if you have a remote job. That way, you have a steady income coming in, and you can also chip away at that debt while you are abroad.

Regardless of your situation, travel or not, it is always a good idea to get rid of bad debt.

Work Remotely Or In The Travel Industry

Lastly, the most common way you will be able to afford to start traveling full time is by having a remote job you can do while they are experiencing the world.

The other option is to get a job that is very travel heavy. You could be a flight attendant, work on a cruise ship, or find a job in another country like teaching English.

Step 2: Make A Rough Plan To Start Traveling Full Time

About 6 months to 1 year in advance, starting discussing what you want from this trip and lifestyle. The first step, in my opinion, is to make a goal for why this lifestyle is important to you.

A goal will help guide you in making smart decisions along the way and will keep your eyes on that departure date!

Where To Go?

Next, I would encourage you to sit down with the whole family, yes the kids too, and talk about your interests. When we asked our kids what they wanted to see and do while traveling full time, they said they wanted to see lots of animals and nature.

I knew we were interested in going to South America for our trip, so I instantly thought of the Galapagos. I initially didn’t think the Galapagos would fit into our budget, but I was wrong! Well slightly wrong.

It was a little more than we wanted to spend for a month, but we made it work. It was a once in a life-time experience! We also balanced it out by staying the next month in the very inexpensive city of Quito, where we saved money.

Having trouble deciding? Read Next: How To Choose A Travel Destination Everyone Loves

How Long In Each Destination?

Decide if you want to visit a few places or see as many locations as possible. This might be dependent on a few different factors. If you want to travel to many different places, I would recommend trying to take it slowly at first. Moving too quickly can lead to travel burn out.

We sped up our travels once we got to Europe and lost steam quickly. I was short with my kids and the travel planning became too much. We were enjoying it less and less.

However, if that speed ends up feeling too slow, adjust it. Being flexible is key to making traveling full time a success.

Check out our post here to help you figure out if you should travel fast or travel slow.

Once you figure out how long you want to stay in each destination, check the amount of time you are allowed to stay in each country. If necessary, apply for relevant visas.

Other Important Logistics To Do Right Away

Travel Reward Cards – Build Up Your Points

Apply for travel rewards credit cards if you don’t have them already. One of the best ways to save money while traveling full time is to use points to pay for flights and hotels.

Only do this step if you are responsible with your money and can pay off the credit cards each month. If you can, you can save so much money on travel.

For example, our first flight to Quito was almost free because we used points to pay for it. We only paid $100 dollars for the 4 of us in taxes and fees.

School For The Kids

If your kids are school age, figuring out what to do with school is an important piece of the puzzle.

• These days, there are many options for online school. We were lucky enough to have an option in our school district that allowed for our kids to go to school online.
• Homeschool or World Schooling – Some families pull their children out of school and teach them on their own. The world schooling community is growing, and there are so many resources out there. Just do a little search! We met a few families that did this while they traveled full time. Along with learning by experiencing the world, they were also able to meet up with other like-minded families for special events. This helps build a community while you travel as well!
• Attend a local school – Depending on how long you will be in a location, I have heard of many families that register their kids in a local school. Some factors to consider with this option are language and cost.

Passports

Lastly, check the expiration dates on your passport. Most countries will require at least 6 months to be left on your passport before expiring.

Step 3: Getting Into The Details (Last 6 Months Before Departure)

There are many considerations to think about in the last 6 months before leaving on your incredible journey. These are some of the items that we found important.

• Determine a rough itinerary.
• Finalize the exact locations you’ll visit. If you are like us, you will want to have a plan. It is possible to be more flexible with your schedule and book things as you go. When we took off in 2022, I was too nervous and wanted to be sure had a place to stay in each location. Now, after the trip has finished, I can see some real benefits of booking as you go. There were months where we wanted to leave a destination early, but couldn’t because we were locked into an Airbnb.
• Calculate a specific budget.
• Reserve your lodging.
• Book your flights and other necessary transportation.
• Outline and/or arrange for excursions in each location.
• Create a packing list. (If you are moving around a lot, I would recommend packing light! We traveled with a backpack and carry on each.)
• Buy the items on your packing list that you don’t already own.
• Sign your children up and prepare for the school option of your choice.
• Finalize your passive or active income plan or remote job.
• Consider if you should sell items you won’t be using at home during your travels.
• Visit your health department and get necessary vaccinations.

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Summary – How To Start Traveling Full Time

The hardest part to traveling full time is getting started on the planning process and actually going. It is a little nerve racking because of all the unknowns. BUT I promise it will change your life.

Remember to stay flexible and realize it’s okay if things change. You will end up having an incredible experience whatever happens. And if you don’t, you can always go back home.

Start planning the trip of your dreams today.