It’s difficult for many of us to appreciate, having grown up in the era of technology, but the age of long-term travel is infinitely more accessible today than ever before. With online help systems and guides, finding our way around distant locations for months or years can now be done without a travel agent, and without years of planning. It still does require forethought and careful consideration, however.
If you’re travelling with your friend group, even if you have a friend or two who are seriously experienced, not everyone is created equal. Challenges that might have been nothing to them could be major roadblocks to you, so it’s important to cover your plans carefully. Taking from personal experience, here are a few lessons we’ve learned, to you and the girls planning the perfect long-term trip.
Secure Your Finances
Travelling will almost always be more expensive than you initially planned. You’ll uncover exciting new opportunities along the way, get distracted, and experience unforeseen complications that require you to head to the bank. Keeping well over your predicted costs in savings is a great starting point, but you might also consider renting a property you own to a system like Airbnb for ongoing support.
You could even take this a step further, and sell your property. Even if you’re just a few weeks out, modern systems to sell a house fast are extremely streamlined for new users. These can provide free cash offers in minutes, where your bank account could see a turnaround in as little as seven days. Whether you own a second property or are looking to change where you live when you return anyway, don’t ignore this option.
Photo by Levi Guzman on Unsplash
Don’t Get Lost in the Fun
We all tend to cut loose on holidays, and this can be great for short trips. For longer travels, planning some debauchery with the girls will eventually add up. As much as it can be disheartening, longer trips mean you’re going to have to still watch your diet, and maybe even work on some exercises at home or in a gym. As a bonus, coming home in better shape than when you left is a great way to make people’s jaws drop.
Organise Your Memories
Getting too stuck into social media can take you out of a travel experience, but at the same time, it can be difficult to remember parts of your trip if you’re away for longer periods. Regardless of whether you’re a social media person, it’s important to carefully organise your memories with dates, locations, and notes on the interesting or funny things you saw along the way. Digital scrapbooking software is a great way to facilitate this process, and to provide memories you can your family can look back on in the future.
Our best advice for anyone who hasn’t experienced long-term travel before is to plan carefully, and understand that most people will experience periods of being overwhelmed. This could be different for each friend in your group, so remember to be supportive, and that a solution for one person might not work for another. Stick together, embrace new experiences, and step outside your comfort zone to make memories that will last you a lifetime!
