nice one 2 wheel herman, thanks. have clicked a few for you. have actually just read the adsense rules, and they can quickly get wind of people asking others to click ads, so we shall see. haven't really written it anywhere on the thing anyway.

good to see you've got a blog going too, having a good old read now. is it really showing my age if i know the final countdown? oh dear... and its good you've put a packing list, we didn't get round to it as started it halfway through..

A Change Of Logic
 

I am 52 yrs old and just returned from 6 months in south east Asia, I lived in cheap accommodations, i ate from local markets. I am home now . yesterday i had o decide whether i should pay 20 bucks for a pizza and what went with it. i could last for two days in asia on that 20bucks. so before you go think aobut what you spend a home. go to the supermarked and get your things, dont spend on takeaways think everyday how you can save to go away. That night you want to go out and party. you will spend a 100 dollars. Thats a weeks accomodation when you are away.

I funded myself on the stock market. i would try to find an internet shop somewhere somehow, even in sumatra and laos i made my trades. I did not get greedy just tried to eke out 300 or 400 at a time which might last me two weeks.
trying to be frugal and careful at home sets you up for when you are away.I plan on riding argentina to alaska soon. so now at home that is in my process. no pizza....I bought a bbq chicken for 8 dollars and some fruit and vegetable and bread and salad. tha cost 20 bucks and lasted me for 3 days.

My $0.02 is that once you've gone through the initial (big) expense of kitting yourself out (camping gear, cooking gear, proper clothes, bike, mods etc), it's not difficult to live rather inexpensively in places other than Europe/North America.

If you choose wisely where you go and what you do, even modest savings can get you a long way. For instance (speaking completely theoretically here) planning a lot of mileage in Turkey where petrol is so expensive is not financially wise...

Alexandros

Too tired to go
 

After completing a trip of 35 months and a bit over 28,000 miles throughout Canada,the U.S. and nortern Mexico on a bicycle i discovered my biggest expence was the medical emergency travel (mostly airfare) to get me back home when other family members needed my presence.
Now i have been bitten (badly) by the adventure travel bug; as apposed to the regular travel bug that had me hitchhicking across the us as a tweenager so i have decided to put my old motorcycle to good use so i can speed up the exploration process before my "Macular Degeneration" ends the scenic beauty.
After spennding everyday the past several weeks looking over this site, i "hafta" say I am still thankful i never read the sister type sites involving bicycle touring.
One of the many things they have in comon is, by the time you think about jumping thru all the firey hoops most posters think are necessary for a journey of any magnitude you are too tired to go.
I think i will use the tried and true method i used for the bicycle tour;"the Braille method"
The bike has been sitting for about 20 years so i will rebuild the carbs and the generator and grab a few spare parts throw my bags onboard,and if it starts I'm gone...
Love the site love the trip journals......
see y'al in the funny papers!
Hope to see some of you on the road.......:scooter:

Saved, Sold, Traveled
 

Like many have already reported, I saved over a 4 year period. I didn't scrimp on everything, I'm not hard core as some (or have as much will power!), but I did forgo the luxuries and stuck to the basics of what I needed. When it came time to leave I sold everything that I couldn't take with me: the condo, the car, the clothes, tv, etc. Everything went. It was very liberating. I can't begin to express how free I felt with no possessions to my name, money in the bank, and the open road in front.

I returned to the world after 6 months. For me it was surprisingly easy. Too easy. I got a job, bought a car, bought a condo, etc. Now I'm right back to where I was prior to my trip -- and yet I'm dying to leave again. I stare at maps, troll the forums, and scan countless blogs.

I guess if I had any lessons to impart its this: if you leave and come back beware of settling back down, of assuming the trappings of your previous life, because sooner than you think the road will call to you and you will want to leave. Your urge to travel will not have been satiated with your first trip. So if you manage to break free, do come back to replenish the kitty, but stay light and footloose. Don't get caught in the quicksand, like me.

After almost a year on the market i have just accepted an offer on my house !
Fingers crossed that the sale goes through and AT LONG LAST !!!
Now my trip of a lifetime can begin ! :D:D:D

best of luck
 

Mr Moto best of luck, I am going to put my place on the market next September. I am planning to be away by March 2011. Let us all know how you get on.

Keith nice site have just PM'd you.

The frustrations of life
 

Hi all,

I'm reading through all the info here on setting up, financing etc etc and I'm really dead set on doing a RTW. I'm a graphic designer and can pretty much pick up work anywhere/ work over the net. I like to think I'm handy with a camera and would be happy to turn in a few pages of writing to a travel mag/blog if I needed some extra cash. Problem is, I'm loving the money I'm earning now.

London life is getting to the pair of us and I've always wanted to do a RTW on a bike and my partner is keen on the idea.

Her parents live in Malaysia so I thought a bike trip to KL would be not too long and not too short of a trip for us. We could probably do that on our megre (about 10k) savings. How far do you think 10k could get 2 people, roughly? I'm quite happy to do this as 'budget' as possible but I know she likes a shower and a toilet so maybe some hostels along the way.

We've been thinking about ways to save more money quicker...I used to be a chef and my partner's family have owned restaurants so we thought of setting up an underground restaurant in our home, doing markets with our food, going to peoples homes to cook for dinner parties, doing some graphic design work, writing our blog and maybe selling some ad space on there and finally setting up a website for something (not sure yet) and selling it.

my main issue (as I've noticed with most things in my life) is that there are too many decisions to make. I usually have the view that I should just make one and stick with it but I can't decide on that either.
I like asking opinions, getting lots of views and making my decision from there so if anyone who might have been there and done that wants to leave some inspiring words I'd really appreciate it.

Through HU I've got on to lots of blogs, people traveling all over and it's fascinating, although, I'm reading Jupiters Travels again for about the 5th time!




Supper Club London

Google Adsense
 

What a great idea google adsense is! Thanks for mentioning it. I have just been accepted. We might as well earn a $ or two from our blogs seeing as we spend so much time working on them.

Too scared to take the plunge......
 

I'm a police officer. I can retire next July (2010). The lump sum part of my pension will clear all of our debts and pay off a big chunk (but not all) of our mortgage. I'd love to take the wife on a really big bike trip - Highway 1 round the Australian coast is our goal.

However, I can think of a dozen reasons NOT to do the trip including;

Our kids - will be 17 and 16yrs old. Both still in full time education. Both want to go to university - which is going to cost us a fortune. How can I tell them that we will NOT support them through university because we want to go off on a motorcycle trip?

My father - is 85yrs old and has lived alone since my mum died 16 years ago. I am his sole carer. He relies on me completely to care for him. He can just about wash, dress and feed himself but that's it. He doesn't walk very well. He is almost completely deaf. He's had 2 heart attacks and 3 strokes. He has no transport and does not like to use the bus as it makes him ill. I do his washing (he's double incontinent - it's not pleasant). I do his shopping. I take him to every one of his numerous doctors and hospital outpatient appointments. I tend his garden. I cut his hair. I have power of attorney and deal with all his legal & financial matters.

My wife has family in Australia. We visited them a couple of years ago. When I told my father we were going, his first words were "Who is going to look after me?". It's just like having another dependent (child).

I feel totally trapped and can't see me EVER going on the bike trip I've been dreaming of for years.

Can anyone out there offer any advice or support?

Thanks

PETE
BEDFORDSHIRE
ENGLAND

Nobody should expect a free university education .What is wrong with the kids working for a couple of years before they go to uni or college ?If they pay the bulk of their own expenses it will make them assess what they really want ,if indeed they need a university eduction at all .

Your dad needs you , pure and simple ,there's no way round that .
Get some help with him ,take some time off ,do small trips on the bike .

Do the big trip later ,don't mope .
You can retire , do it .

You are not trapped ,you are blessed in having a family , look after them ,but don't mollycoddle them .

Australia has been there for a few million years , it ain't going anywhere soon .

Wise words Dodger.

Thanks.

I'm hardly qualified to comment here - but I wanted to add how I have gone about it, and how I would go about it where I planning a very long rtw type venture.

I'd appraise my assets to begin with and see how much actual realisable capital I have tied up in houses, cars, consumer goods etc.

Then I would appraise my professional skills and see if there is any one area that I can maximise my earning potential; education, skills training, writing, photography etc.

Then I would look at fraternities, communities and internet groups like this one and read as much as I can. Don't be put off by the luxury tourers with their GS's and fancy pants electronics and mastercards etc. They are usually a bit older and wiser and have (usually) given up good well paid professional jobs to go and live their dreams. The rest of us will obviously have to make do with less, but you will be amazed how much more less can be.

A well off traveller might look at a Garmin Zumo 550 and might find a good used one for $300 on ebay or the like. A less well off traveller might forgoo GPS entirely or look at a HP Ipaq PDA with a bluetooth device of some sort (card or external) and hit bittorrent to pilfer a copy of Tom Tom Europe etc. Heck even a free on contract smart phone can run Tom Tom these days.

Me personally I was amazed how much 'cash' I had lying around the place, and other people's places that I could quickly access via ebay! I have ebayed almost £2000 of consumer items, spares, bits etc. I notice that Ted did the same! Half of that was my own stuff and the rest was stuff other people, friends and family etc donated to my 'fund'. Its amazing .. sure PayPal and Ebay are a total rip off with their fees but strewth, its still the easiest way to make cash quick in my experience. I paid off the bike in one go and got top insurance etc. Bought all my kit and gadets, health insurance blah blah blah and have £500 left for gas. All good!

Next up is skills, if you can write, illustrate, take good photos, speak a handful of languages, have engineering, bar/social/hospitality, educational/academic, medical skills etc you will never be stuck for work; especially in the developing world. It might not be glamarous but working to eat and fill the gas tank is seriously do-able.

The rest? Dunno. Not qualified to comment on the 'serious' RTW stuff of course. I'm only going a few thousand miles myself - but I am not worried about money. I have £500 for petrol and the rest is in my head and hands and heart. Of course I am taking a cheap small capacity motorcycle that can run on alchohol if it has too. That helps! :mchappy:

I appreciate I am a relatively young chap (30) with no emotional ties to the UK and no health issues or any reason to miss being here. I don't need to worry about kids or loved ones, pets, career etc. So take me with a pinch of salt. :)

- Harry

the way we did it was to save like hell. we saved for a year and a half, and lived in a caravan on a farm to do it. that got rid of most of the rent, and the council tax, and the water, internet and fuel bills which were free. i worked as a secretary, Adam worked as a farmer, and we sold loads of stuff on ebay. we sold almost all our possessions, and we sold off some indian handicrafts stock we had left over from a previous life too. we saved 17,000 for the trip (for a year), and had already bought the bike. and then we left. but our budget is crazily small (20 GDP per day for two people), and we should have maybe saved for a couple of months longer to be able to afford the trip properly.

we haven't yet got work on the way- as i haven't tried i don't know how easy it is to get any, but to me as a tourist, it seems like it would be a bit hard. unless you are a qualified teacher maybe. but then who knows, maybe it's easy. it would mean staying somewhere for quite a while too- no one wants to train a worker who disappears after a few weeks.

in a few months we get to oz, and then need to work for a year again to save to carry on. not sure where we are going to carry on to yet, but we will need more money for it! going to take any job going, and live on a campsite somewhere. and eat beans. its worth it!

its all possible. but yep, again, no dependants, no house etc...

Specialty Skills
 

Question concerning Engineering...

I've noticed working as an Engineer abroad touched upon a few times around the HUBB. Does anyone have any experience doing any contracted or consulting engineering work as they travel?

I graduated with a BS in Industrial Engineering a few years ago and I have my FE certification (no PE yet). It sounds like something too good to be true. Following a dream of traveling around the world AND putting my professional skills to work in communities that don't have access to a trained engineer, all the while making money to continue traveling.

This thread is getting on for six years old now ! Dare i suggest making it a sticky post ? it is such an important topic and is the one big question most of us have to deal with before we think of taking the big trip we all dream about.

Such a great thread! Spent the last 2 hours reading through the posts, very inspiring!

I first heard of this website 3 years ago when I was staying in a Melbourne backpacker. I met this guy who had traveled all the way from the Netherlands down to Australia. Anyways, today is the first time I have actually visited this website, so hi to all. I've never really ridden a bike, but it is kind of a dream for me to do so. I have traveled a bit however, and here is a short story of the past 5 years of my life, and some tips on how to make money while traveling. Should anybody need more info or any topic, feel free to email me!

5 years ago or so I was studying at college and during the summer I started leaving to western Canada to pick cherries and other kinds of fruits. I stayed in a tent, worked here and there and tried (unsuccessfully) to raise a bit of money. But the money wasn't important really, the lessons I learned and the fun I had were worth much more than anything else I could've wished for. By the way, to all those speaking of the "travel blues", I really understand you all. Coming back to Canada has been a quite hard experience to me. I can't even begin to imagine how I would feel like coming back from a RTW trip and having to come back to the "normal" routine life again...

Anyways, after going to the Okanagan valley for 3 summers in a row, doing the fruit picking business, I had the travel bug and wanted to take a year or two off between my college and my university studies, so I left to Australia without a single penny in my bank account (actually, 1000$ of debt on my credit card). I had heard fruit picking was abundant down under so I decided to head off to Melbourne, without even knowing where the hell this city might be on a map, and I ended up picking cherries, grapes, apples, pears and mandarins in Australia for the next couple of monthse. I initially had planned to stay there only for 4 to 5 months and then travel to SEA and then to Europe.

Some fruit picking is not very good money to be honest, but some other can be very decent, really depends on many factors such as weather, the seasons, your ability to work hard & quick, knowledge of good farms, etc. Anyway, when I was in Tasmania for a month doing cherries I was making an average of AU$350-400 a day or so, with my best day being 530$, which I believe is pretty damn good! But for the more usual seasons or other fruits, it would be more like anywhere between 150$ to 250$ a day.

To make a long story short, I met love in Australia and ended up staying with this beautiful Korean woman to whom I am still in love more than ever, and we traveled around Australia by car for nearly 2 years. What 2 beautiful years I have spent! I worked in warehouses in Perth and Melbourne, did some of the fruit picking stuff here and there, and made some extra money buying and selling cars on the backpacker market (sooo easy in Australia!).

Had a wonderful time, and left for Southeast Asia for 5 weeks, traveled over there and then went to live in Korea for a short while. Now here I am in Vancouver since a year, finishing my degree in just 3 terms, and daydreaming reading posts on this website. I am learning a fifth language, I have some wonderful memories that will last me forever, I have learned so much about myself and about the world, I have opened up my horizons, and I met a wonderful woman! Unfortunately, my path is a little bit different from most of you guys, as I just can't afford to leave everything behind, and my girlfriend is not too much of the bike-riding type of girl; but hey, being happy is really the most important thing isn't it? I ultimately wish to get a nice job working in an embassy and actually getting paid to travel. I especially like living in other countries for longer periods of time where you can really get to know the language, culture, people, etc.

Anyways, all this to say, to all those single guys out there wondering how you could earn money on the road, fruit picking in Canada, Australia and NZ is just one option among many others. Getting some working holiday visas and working here and there in warehouses, cafes, or else is easy and often pays decently. In Perth I was making 18.25$/h doing easy work in a furniture hiring company. Same thing in Melbourne. After a couple of months you've got enough to last for months in Asia!

By the way, looking for some nice people out here in Vancouver that would like to share a beer and talk about travels. Let me know if interested.

Cheers to all, have a nice winter (or summer depending on where you are), and a merry Christmas. Miss traveling more than ever!!

I'm an IT Engineer and have been working now in Switzerland (originally from Australia) for 1 year in a bid to save for the next trip.

If you want to work in disadvantaged coutries try RedR an engineering NGO like MSF but for engineering.

Just as relevant today
 

An old thread I know but this is just as relevant if not more so than when first started in November 2004.

How many of you have changed your plans due to the current recession ie put it off because funds have slowly melted away or the house sale has not gone through? How many have gone because of the recession in the hope things might be better when you come back?

How many have come back and thought I should have stayed where I was because the old place is nothing like it was when I left.

Pretty much had to sit back and wait due to lack of house sales, I was supposed to go last year on a rtw. House prices really havnt dropped where I am[except on the really expensive houses] but theres a alack of buyers due to no one giving out loans.
The extra costs invovled with staying have also changed plans, I wanted to travel witha camper van like a unimog but now I am thinking of maybe using a small 125/250 and leaving the dog with my folks[they have already kidnapped my cats]. This would either allow me travel for much longer or have abigger nest egg when I finish.
The costs of living in the Uk are so high it wouldnt cost me much more to go volunteer at an animal sanctuary in bolivia as a back packer which is something I am considering right now while the house sells.

New recession topic
 

This new subject reads a bit like a new poll on the recession and travel plans:

1. Have you changed your travel plans because of the recession?
2. Have you started travelling because of the recesssion?
3. Do you wish you had kept travelling if you came back during/after the recession?
4. None of the above.

Personally i would answer:
1. No
2. No
3. Yes
4. No

Perhaps you can start a new poll or thread on this new topic.

Hi Turbocharger, apologies if this seemed like an excuse for a poll it was not intended to. I was hoping for a bit more substance to answers similar to the one above yours. I have met a few people over the last 12 months whose plans have changed radically because of the recession. Quite happy to start a poll if more people think this is wrong thread?

Take care and ride safe.
GM

That's what it's all about
 

That's what it's all about.


Good day Wakold,

You hit the nail on the head. What is life all about. The things and lessons you have learnt, experienced, the people you have met, countries you have seen,cultures you have enjoyed or not, the horizon you have opened and the friends you made, you can't buy with the money you may have made in the meantime. Material goods often pass away very quickly, memories last forever. It will be on your mind for the rest of your entire life, many people haven't got much to remember, but all serious travellers do.
The box you have opened, will never close. You, like most of us have changed and so has your prospective in life. I am pretty sure, you will never forget the hospitality,help,advice and friendship you have experienced among strangers and pass it on to strangers and people,you will meet on the path of life.

Cheers, Helgo

I know many people are engineers and pay their way on that route...but what happens if you can do a lot of different things but only have a simple BS degree in environmental science. I work as an environmental engineer dealing with erosion control and stormwater...but lack at PE or the schooling. I also can fix bikes, fly planes, write, photograph, and provide personal security due to work as an LEO. I was once told that I was a jack of all trades, but a master of none.

What prospects do I have in finding work overseas?

My plan has been to simply live at home with my parents. Yeah, it sucks, but I can save abotu $2k per month. I'm 17 months away from having $48k in the bank, ready to drive off for a year or so and see how it goes!

The way I afford it is fairly simple : priorities.

Travel for me is a passion. It is where I spend my money. I don't upgrade to the newest electronics when they come out. I drive a 10 year old car which is the only car I have ever owned. I don't go out on weekends and drop $100 at a bar. It is all about choices. Take a look at what you do vs. what you really want and make some decisions from there.

As far as HOW I am able to travel and then get back into the workforce....well, I contract. I work for months at a time and position myself so that I can always have the option of picking up a new contract. I work in financial analysis, so there is generally always work.

My next trip is going to be a UK to Cape Town trip for about 3 months. I have a contract that is ending June 24th and I plan on pushing off for this trip on July 15. I have a network of contacts and utilize that to grab work when I come back.

Plain and simple, that's how I do it.

I don't think that I have replied to this thread, but if I did it would read something like this, well put Jpyrek.

ps if you can run to 4 or 5 months for that UK to Cape Town trip it will more relaxed but you should make it in 3.

Drive a tour coach like I do! - save money, travel!
 

I just thought I'd throw an idea at you as I know it's hard finding a job, quiting, saving money and going round and round.

For the last three years I have been driving a coach around Europe for 6 months of the year. I can save plenty as I've no expenses almost (no car, no rent, food and accommodation is paid, etc.)

If you don't want to drive but you'd love to be a tour guide, well it's in the same industry but I'll talk mainly about driving coaches here.

It's my choice when I go back to work and when I end. Basically, every tour I do is a contract. It's been guaranteed work and money saving and the job is interesting, I meet lots of people and drive all around Europe.
Driving a coach up and down the same road every day wouldn't be for me but it's quite interesting when you're on tour for from 2 to 7 weeks.
It's not practical if you are in a relationship as you'll be away all the time (although this depends on the company - there are many that do day tours).

What does it take? Get a driving license to drive a bus! I took about 13 hours of lessons and passed my test first time.

Some companies DO hire drivers with little or no experience driving coaches. How? They either start you off in a smaller vehicle - like a 16-seater or like where I work, Topdeck Travel, they train you to drive as they need you to drive - safely and knowledgably and train you on the routes.

There are many other companies you will find if you dig in the internet.
There's Topdeck, Contiki, Tucan and a plethora of oher companies. Topdeck and Contiki are for young passengers (18 to 30-something) so if that's not your bag you can look at any other company.

The company I'm with is based in London, however, as a driver, I stay on the mainland, in a quiet town in Holland between tours for a couple of days, which suits me fine.

Funnily, I'm posting on here because I am a biker and in fact, most of the other drivers also ride, so I think this may appeal to many of you.
If it sounds appealing, get your license. There are many companies, believe it or not, are regularly in need of drivers. For some you can work year round, usually with about 2/3 or less work over the winter but that's when you'll be on your bike anyway.

Driving is a professional job and no surprise, professionalism is part of it.
I enjoy my job, it can be hard work but I like it and it's interesting.
Tell me what you think and if you have questions message me or post your reply.

With who I work for, driving in Europe, you need to be an EU citizen and have the EU driving license.

Happy searching!

what an excellent topic!
very timely for me as I'm planning my RTW trip...

Work hard, save and dont waste the money. Traveling and living in a tent can also be cheaper as to live in Europa ;)

http://www.adventure-travel-experien...en_transafrika

Tobi

“To be truly challenging, a voyage, like a life, must rest on a firm foundation of financial unrest. Otherwise, you are doomed to a routine traverse, the kind known to yachtsmen who play with their boats at sea... "cruising" it is called. Voyaging belongs to seamen, and to the wanderers of the world who cannot, or will not, fit in. If you are contemplating a voyage and you have the means, abandon the venture until your fortunes change. Only then will you know what the sea is all about.

"I've always wanted to sail to the south seas, but I can't afford it." What these men can't afford is not to go. They are enmeshed in the cancerous discipline of "security." And in the worship of security we fling our lives beneath the wheels of routine - and before we know it our lives are gone.

What does a man need - really need? A few pounds of food each day, heat and shelter, six feet to lie down in - and some form of working activity that will yield a sense of accomplishment. That's all - in the material sense, and we know it. But we are brainwashed by our economic system until we end up in a tomb beneath a pyramid of time payments, mortgages, preposterous gadgetry, playthings that divert our attention for the sheer idiocy of the charade.

The years thunder by, The dreams of youth grow dim where they lie caked in dust on the shelves of patience. Before we know it, the tomb is sealed.

Where, then, lies the answer? In choice. Which shall it be: bankruptcy of purse or bankruptcy of life? ” ― Sterling Hayden, Wanderer

Wow,
That's a line of philosophy I'd never considered before. And it makes a lot of sense.
I'm from a generation of 'job-for-life' workers (civil service in my case), good salary and now decent pension, as secure as it can be.
And these ideas seem right - wherever I go on a journey, however adventurous I think it is, assuming I'm not killed in some incident or other, there's always the security of medical help courtesy of western insurance, and a flight back to a home with no mortgage if money runs out temporarily or there's some other reason to go home.

So in the ultimate sense, no journey for me is ever truly challenging. Unless I attempt something that on the face of it I'm not physically capable of. Maybe walking around the world. Or even walking around England.
But even then if it gets too much, I can nip straight back home!

A few acquaintances in similar positions (who can do what they like when they like how they like where they like etc etc) get together now and again, and we all say the same - this situation can actually be a bit scary. Look at the options proposed by Sterling Hayden: 'bankruptcy of purse' - well, the pension continues until.......
So we're left with 'bankruptcy of life'. And how do we get over that?

Maybe this situation itself is a bit of an adventure - an adventure in living with few boundaries.
I've met one or two people who have found their own partial solution. In spiritual retreat.
They covenant their pension to a spiritual organisation in return for a basic life consisting of 'a few pounds of food each day, heat and shelter, six feet to lie down in - and some form of working activity that will yield a sense of accomplishment'.
But I don't know if that is really the answer. Is it really a challenge to do such a thing?
Well, I wouldn't, so I suppose it must be a challenge.

On the other hand, Hayden could be suggesting that 'a firm foundation of financial unrest' is necessary to ensure that you'll never know what the next day, or few hours, will hold. Thus generating the 'challenge'.
Well, my experiences have long ago taught me that whatever path your life takes and whatever your situation, you can never ever know what will happen tomorrow.
I've 'dipped into' Buddhism quite a bit since 20 years or so, and often use a meditation that goes something like: "Death is utterly certain. The time of death utterly uncertain. What should I do?"
Looking for the answer to that is a voyage that has a lot of challenge about it. So that'll do for now.

My 15-minutes worth - it'll probably all change if I think about it again tomorrow.

Ooops, no, how could I have forgotten this?
Bradley Wiggins won the Tour de France yesterday. Wasn't his voyage around France truly an adventure-and-a-half and a challenge-and-a-half?
Not a voyage to the South Seas but a voyage nonetheless.
Including reading out the results of the raffle.....:clap:

Those who don't fit in
 

McCrankpin,
+1 for that. Bradley did a "good job" over 3 weeks, but he is a professional after all.
You can have an adventure just about anywhere, but there has been lots of discussion about that aspect.
As you like the quotes in the previous post, you may also find food for thought within this:-
RobertWService.Com : The Men That Don't Fit In - Books and Poetry > Poetry > The Spell Of The Yukon - Archives

Oops, :offtopic: but show me a thread that doesn't go :offtopic:

Hi, always have a word when see someone " living the dream".

This guy found a way.............

UK TRIP

Anyway I met a guy called Jamie THIS MORNING IN EASINGTON, NR LOFTUS, CLEVELAND or North Yorkshire. ts13 4XL POST OR ZIP CODE

Bicycle loaded up with camping gear. I had a chat , his job had finished and he was taking the opportunity to ride the coast of the UK. Wild camping and sounded like he was on a budget.

He started in Blackpool and done 3500 miles so far in clockwise rotation.

He ridden up and around Scotland and heading for Whitby and Filey today.

He reckoned enough cash for about 7-8 weeks. Brilliant adventure and was enjoying time out of the rat race.

His bike was a black DAWES nowt special, if you see this guy have a chat and get him a coffee.

He said his biggest and only cost was food, because of amount of calories he was burning.

Cheers

AArgh killed this thread sorry,

Any more tips or advice on " how to live the dream" ???????????

Nooo!!
I'll continue it with this:




Yes, Thanks for that, I've not seen it before.
Another 'man who would not fit in' is the Ancient Mariner in the Rime of the same name (S.T. Coleridge).

Lots of dramatic images of someone on an adventure who 'Travelled to the Beat of a Different Drum', but maybe not for the best.

I came across this poem at school and it's stayed with me ever since.

549. Rime of the Ancient Mariner. Samuel Taylor Coleridge. The Oxford Book of English Verse

Richard Burton's recitation is quite something to listen to.

BACK to the original question - how do you afford this lifestyle?
All I can say is a bit of hard work and luck.

But also as mentioned in a few posts here - priorities. You've got to get them right, and clear, which isn't necessarily easy.

THERE IS A GOOD SITE WWW.EUROPEBYCAMPER.COM or something like thjat . This couple really crunched the numbers and cost it out really well!

Affording the dream
 

IMHO,

And like most here, bikes and travel have been the driving force for life since I was old enough to experience "freedom" first hand.

How I have managed to get quite a few miles on a consistant bais is to work jobs that give even time off, many oil, mining and sea going companies have on offer. Some rosters are 2 weeks on 2 weeks off up to 6 weeks on and 6 weeks off.

Ok not the obvious choice or career path for all although the positions often pay well and once you get employed on a permanant basis you will get paid in your time off. A little study and a few courses and tickets and you will find yourself in a position to start applying for the numerous positions available.

The beauty of it is you can rent the house out, or not pay rent at all, fly straight from work to your destination and bike and hit the road for 2 - 6 weeks then fly back to work.

I have managed to do this the last 17 years and have managed to keep the house payments up (just) and get plenty of miles under belt on all manner of bikes, mostly the cheap n nasty although all great fun. Keep in mind this is not entirley conducive to good savings !

I now like many before me here have decided to sell up and head for the hills on a permanant basis.

Best of luck to you all in finding your way forward :scooter:

Life
 

as i sit and reed what great thoughts we all have my only question for all is how long are we dead for ???? as for me i don't no so i am going to live the life i no NOW !!!!

I'm always fascinated by the ways in which people fund their tours. More often than not i'm left looking on in envy.

I'm late twenties/early thirties, and don't really have any assets to speak of.

I passed my test in Feb 2008, quit my job in May, and by August rode 5,500 miles to the Black Sea and back. Ever since then I've had the motorcycle travel bug.

Bar this year when my position was made redundant, I've been fortunate enough to do a short 17 day tour every year, despite having low paid jobs.

My ultimate dream is take a 36month tour of the world.

I find it difficult to adjust to the regular 9-5 rat race at the best of times let alone after a tour, so in order to fund my tour my aim is to create a (mainly automated) company, that will pay me at least £600 a month and allow me to carry on touring after any initial saving run out.

I have already started my own company, but it barely makes anything, and I might have to look at other options. In the mean time I've taken on a decent paying 12 month full time work contract to try and get some savings started (I have nothing so far). I'm expecting to be able to save about £5000 in 2013. I'd happily leave with £17,000 and figure out the rest on the road.

The aim is to leave within the next 3-4 years. It's a tall order, but it's good to dream right?

Apart from the full time job, you're pretty much exactly the same as me...

I think you shouldn't wait as long though. Just budget better.

I'm heading to Canada on the working holiday visa to try and get started in the Oil Industry.

If you can't find high paying work where you are, move elsewhere and look for it.


£5000 sounds a fairly low amount to save in year. I'm currently managing to save £150 a week despatch riding in London, I might have to have pinched a little bit out of my savings by the time I'm finished (well alright, by the end of Jan when the double whammy of vat and tax are due at the same time :() but it's mostly a fairly credible savings regime, and could be a lot better if I hadn't got used to daily heavy drinking and living off fast food.

I think that's quite a lot..... Just under £500 a month.

Who really has that left over after you've been squeezed left, right and centre by the government, family, bills, prep costs etc.

Not me doh

I agree.

Ian Coates says
 

Just spent the weekend with Ian Coates who has just returned from a 14 year RTW trip. His budget was £10 a day or less.

Well practised in the art of fixing anything Ian went the odd way round simply helping farmers fix there gear, doing free work for bed and food, and on occasion getting paid in food, petrol or accomodation.

With a credit card for emergencies, he managed with his tent, and has done over 400,000 kms on his old Africa Twin.

Ask him yourself at facebook/iancoates

Oh did I mention he is 70 years old this year.

I can't find him on facebook with that name...


I think it's

https://www.facebook.com/ian.coates.923?fref=ts

I believe this to be one of the most vital threads thus far. Take my word for it, as I've been lurking for quite some time now. :innocent:

Anywho, as we started to set our departure plans in soft stone, we've also started to prep for it financially. Meaning: we started by clearing out decent items at yard/garage sales which were held at inopportune times by the sellers, and stashed the items in the garage, waiting for spring to have our own sale, in hopes to generate a small profit. Stash away profit, re-use operating capital, buy - sell. Rinse - repeat.
Caveat; our vehicles remain parked outside the garage throughout the winter.
Upside; it's personal sales. No sales tax, no 'profits' to speak of, and a nice supplemental chunk of change that goes in the pink pig.
Combine the above with going out less, eating out less, selling the low MPG truck, etc. Money doesn't come easy, and it certainly doesn't come fast, but it comes, and that's the entire idea of the "gameplan".

Not much input, but maybe something to consider for some of you.

M.

Well.... he made it !

None of us want to hitchhike, but I though this story of a Frenchman who travelled for five years, RTW, paying NOTHING for transport, hitchhiking on planes, boats and vehicles was inspiring. And you know he was invited into many homes for meals.

French hitchhiker Jeremy Marie travels 100,000 miles around the world without spending any money | Mail Online

I replied on this thread a long time ago, but find a lot of the responses really interesting in that we seem to put a high value on doing things cheaply/for free as opposed to what I consider more realistic. Granted, selling one's home and all posessions and just flying out of town full throttle is so sexy and legendary, I just find it so unrealistic for MOST people. I find it unrealistic for people with a sense of obligation to what is at "home," let alone those 90+% of us who dont' have the personality to just up and leave.

For me, I want the adventure, but I also want the home to come home to. You can say that is having your cake and eating it too, and it may well be. However, what I tell people any time I talk about travel is that you CAN have both but it is all about choices. I live in a smaller house than I can "afford" because I want to make sure I can pay the mortgage when I don't have income (am traveling). I don't buy a new car every few years, I don't own a flatscreen, I don't go out to the bar and drop $100 every friday night. For me, those are the major things which enable travel from the fiscal side.

I wrote before about how I do contract work as a financial analyst for a couple of years at a time and then plan something and go off for a few months (last trip lasted about 6 months). I come back with a beard fit for nesting birds, tens of thousands of pictures, and several lifetimes of experience.

I hope to travel more, and I also hope to have a (somewhat) stable life here in Richmond, VA. Have I found the perfect answer or some secret formula? ..no, far from it, but I have found what I THINK is a way to make my perfect mix of travel and home time work out.

In the end, I'm always saving, always working to make sure my debt is limited and that when I do get the itch...or I do come up with a plan, I can execute on it more quickly. ...and that I have some sort of fall back when I get home, utterly destroyed from an epic adventure and need to obtain an income stream within a few months.

In the future I hope to be able to generate income through investments that can sustain or help buffer more longer duration travel. Every penny I don't spend on something I don't need gets me that much closer to that goal.

I surprised myself at how little I was spending on my last European trip. I thought it was going to be equivalent to Australian prices but it ended up averaging at 30E a day.
10 on petrol, 10 on food (supermarket) and 10 on camp sites.

In Germany I met a lady at a youth hostel who put a sign up offering 10E haircuts to backpackers. She was busy all day and funded her next weeks travelling with a few hours work.

Note to self - learn to cut hair :thumbup1:

I'm driving around the Balkans in an old Volvo that cost 700 euros
I mostly cook my own food and camp, my expenses here are under 30 euros including fuel.
So 2000 euro for 2 months including car ferrys

Diesel currently 1.50-1.70 (!!) Italy
1.20 Montenegro
1.30 Bosnia
1.50 Serbia
I packed light so if the Volvo dies after a moment of silence for her I can pick up my gear and hitch!
But a mechanic in Serbia earns 400euro a month so I could pay for repairs, they can keep the oldest cars imaginable on the road and thought I must be a manager or doctor to buy the Volvo!
I have done some repairs but this could have been avoided if I had time to replace some simple stuff (old hoses) before I left but.

I'm a seasonal worker so its never a problem to get time off and I get to travel to some exciting places for work too (antarctica, NZ, australia, france, switzerland, italy, maybe greenland next I hope..)

My main motivation for the big trip was that I was in dire need......quite likely in dire medical need...... to wander off and chill out for a substantial amount of time. I was working in the middle east in a somewhat stressful environment and fortunately saw the warning signs that the job was starting to badly effect me.

So, I quit my job and a week later was back in the UK and browsing through The Hubb for inspiration, as to where I could effectively disappear for a while.

I had quite a substantial amount of money saved up.....this was not luck, but damn hard and somewhat risky work that funded those savings, it really does annoy me when people assume that you are lucky to have saved a good fighting fund in the bank.

Within a few weeks I had sourced the hire of a DR650 for eight months in Australia ( incredibly low rate, that I was indeed lucky to get )....Placed my own R100GS into a workshop back in the UK to get rebuilt and packed a travel bag with camping and off-roading gear....and got the Visa/medical/travel cheques/insurance etc for a year.

Two weeks to sort out a one year trip....yeah, I know its not some far flung, foreign speaking/culture but it does show you do not need massive amounts of planning.

When I was being good and focused I was spending very little a day...maybe £20 just mooching about, other days I would have to triple that in fuel costs for covering distance if the mood took me. Then I discovered my inner party animal again after many years of lying dormant and spent the rest of the trip effectively partying after a hard days/weeks riding with the backpackers etc......a little more expensive with the added beer tokens.

Got back to the UK, discovered there had been/was a recession on.....could not get a job in my particular trade....so decided to tour around Europe for another year.

Got back, after spending my allocated funds, and got a job that allows me to take a fair bit of time off unpaid to still go off on some shorter trips ( nine weeks off the other year )

Hi all, I joined HU 10 weeks ago and this in fact is my first ever reply here. This topic is so fascinating that I felt I had to post something myself. :)

Loved the Sterling Hayden's quote about voyage; it's really powerful for me as me and my wife are currently in a process of selling everything we have (we don't actually have that much, just things that accumulated over the years) and embarking on unknown voyage. We don't know how far we will get, or where we end up... but surely it will be an adventure.

After all, life is too short to waste a precious time.

I have just completed an 8 week trip around the Balkans. It was done in a Citroen 2cv not a bike, but the costs may give some idea of the amount of money needed. I spent £2000 in total including ferry , fuel , accommodation and food. More details here

Facts and Figures - bouncearoundthebalkans

I even managed a few beers and I ate out regularly although I stuck to cheaper places. In Western Europe picnic grub and fast food were the only affordable options. I covered a lot of miles in a relatively short time so extending the stay would not have resulted in a proportional increase in costs. If I had been really trying I am sure I could have trimmed a good 10% off my costs.

how can I afford this
 

The best explanation I heard for affording Adventure Travel,is this metaphor. If you want a house or new car you save for it anyway you can. It is the same for RTW travel. If it is a priority for you then you will find a way to afford it.

Karl

I guess I'll have to take my scissors and clippers with me then :thumbup1:

But seriously, I am surprised at the differences of budgets people have in mind for travelling. This is really helpful for me, thank you :)

I'm planning on a trip around the outskirts of Africa and Europe, I'm wondering whether to do Africa first and see what I have left money-wise for Europe after or do Europe and get it out of the way so I can spend more time in Africa.

I have family in Sudan and friends in South Africa I can stay with, it's just everywhere in between I need to figure out :clap:

Mr. Money Mustache
 

Hmmm, sounds like a lot of people should start reading Mr. Money Mustache!

If you're interested in retiring early (or becoming financially independent), or just saving for a really big trip, definitely start reading mrmoneymustache.com. Affordanything.com (not everything!) is good too.

Last year, I paid $30,000 for my master's degree, while dealing with a fairly large mortgage, all on a small teacher's salary. This year, I've quit my job and gone traveling for a year while the house pays for itself (and then some!).

I think most people in developed countries can do a big trip like this (barring young kids, people who you support, or illness), and still come home to something left over (be it money, a house, or a job). It's just a matter of knowing how to budget, or make the most out of your potential. Even so, just knowing 'how' to save is something a lot of people don't really know how to do. I've learned a lot over the last year, and it's given me a whole new range of freedom.

-Elisa
Travelbugblues.wordpress.com

Finally... I read all the thread
 

Hi!

It took me a week but finally I read it all, was really amazing to hear all you guys, gives me more motivation to do my RTW with my girlfriend (we are about 2 or 3 months from departure.

I wish I had found this thread in the beginning of 2010, when I joined this comunity, that should have helped us to save more and prepare better.

I hope in a year or more I will come back to this thread to tell you how we did it, but now I just can tell how are we planning to do it:

We have been saving for 4 years, and gathering the equipment (funny/sad I had to sell the bike three weeks ago, we will buy a cheaper one soon).

as we are both engineers, in a country as Chile is easy to save, we have a cheap house, we didn't have a car (until we came to Australia, were is a must). Now that mining is doing bad I was retrenched (more money for the trip), so now were are going to take a year off to travel in a bike (we hope the money is enough for a year travelling).

to make the trip for cheap we will avoid hotel, we will camp as much as possible, and restaurants are forbidden (maybe once in each country to taste it).

And I'm planning to try to get a job in any non English nor Spanish speaking country, especially in Russia and China (as china is very expensive to ride probably we will go on foot there).

I don't thing our professions will allow us to get a temporary job while traveling (chemical engineer and computer engineer), but we are willing to teach Spanish, work in hotels or bars


from all the post I would like to recall:

THAT'S THE BEST QUESTION EVER MADE!!

Awesome!!!, I would love to do that, but I cant left mi girlfriend alone such a long time. I work in minning too - well... I used to work in mining - maybe when comming back from the trip I will give a look to the FIFO scheme.


I'm glad to hear that, I was quite stressed because I only have 3 months to plan.

Francisco.
https://www.facebook.com/ThereAndBackByMotorbike

been reading Mr. Money Mustache lately because of your comments here and on Adv. thanks ...

hope your trip is going well .. how's the Super Sherpa?

Interesting to read old posts within this thread. I wonder how the cost of RTW travel has increased over the years.
I recently raised a similar question on another forum & was a bit shocked by the feedback. The average traveller estimated I'd spend at least £20k on a 1 yr trip.

I love being on 2 wheels (been riding for 30+ years) but I could backpack for far less. In many countries it can be fairly easy to hire a small bike (or potentially buy one) which avoids the carnet fees. It makes me wonder whether RTW on a single motorcycle is worth it.

Feedback appreciated :)

After a recent 3 month trip in Europe, I came to the conclusion that it may even have been cheaper if we traveled in a motorhome compared to a bike. Granted, we were on a Ktm 990, ie gas guzzler, but did get a respectable 16km/ltr.

The experience would obviously have been different, but by no means not enjoyable. To give you an idea, we camped all the time and made our own food 80% of the time and it still cost us about GBP 45 a day for 2 people.

Edit: Our overall distance would've been a lot less though if we were in a motorhome, but would've had the added benefit of maybe some bicycles which means a complete different experience again.

I think one of the biggest mis-understandings about motorcycle travelling is that it's cheap.... It's not !!

Is it one of the most flexible, free and enjoyable ? Definitely.....


Once you price in MPG, shipping, spares & repairs etc , Walking, cycling, canoeing, budget airlines and public transport are far cheaper.

A small diesel van is actually cheaper too if you consider the food and equipment you can carry and also the option to sleep in it. My kangoo gets 50mpg and I can carry enough cheap food MONTHS.

I've weighed up cost of crossing France from uk to catalunya, Spain after doing the trip a fair few times..I think the ancient xt600 done it for the least if swerving some toll roads but riding it for 14 hours in one hit,I did think of the pushbike option...no fuel versus the amount of food one would eat in the time taken to do trip,I think it may have been more than filling xt up twice..
The small van combined with fuel that's not meant to be in it and taking 2 days,avoiding tolls and sleeping in van could be a close contender...just look out for the lot in blue with douane on their vehicles..:thumbup1:

Average £20k in a year on the road? Wow. I can't even imagine how luxuriously those people must be living. In 2.5 years on the road, Europe has been by far the most expensive and even there it was coming out to less than £15k per year! No camping, no cooking, though I do travel VERY slowly, ride a cheap bike (KLR650) and on occasion sleep at a friend's house. I feel I am traveling in luxury at this price. Far cheaper anywhere in the Americas. Cheaper yet with camping, cooking or couchsurfing.

The bike is incredibly expensive for travel in Europe compared to backpacking, but not so bad in north America and south America.

Since you ask for feedback, I came to this same conclusion a number of years ago; never mind the CdP, all things related to any form of travel can be costly once you are in the hands of third parties (shipping vehicles is a classic example).
In contrast, once on the ground in a chosen location then virtually anything is possible.

I well recall a report of some years ago - seen somewhere, but I don't recall where - of an individual who owns and stores a motorcycle on each of the 5 continents; that covers his needs.

I've got a saying...

"Time is cheap , Miles cost money"

Time costs nothing.....Hanging around in one place for a long time can be cheap if you have the opportunity to sleep for very cheapl and shop/cook locally.

Miles cost money as you're paying for fuel, usually pot luck accommodation, convenience food and whatever tolls, taxes you incur etc...

Agree totally. I dislike public transport and I don't want to rely on it especially in remote areas. I love riding a bike so I'd rather be on my bike for 3 months than backbacking and bussing for six. But that's just me.

I have a question....
What you guys are saying is all good and well, but I just spent two weeks riding around Italy, and, if I couldn't afford an espresso breakfast every day, and the tickets to the museums at the Vatican, and the cable car up Mt. Etna, and divine pizza in a restaurant where I was looking out onto the sea directly from my table, the trip would have been wasted.
You're going to a country in order to see what it's like. As a tourist (and let's not kid ourselves, this is what we are) seeing stuff costs money.
So what I'm saying is, I struggle to see the point of pinching every last penny if, as a result, all you see on your travels is roads and campsites.
But maybe it's just me.

I mostly agree with you. We're trying not to spend too much while traveling but indeed if you can't afford anything, what's the point of going? You'll miss out a lot of stuff from place X if you don't have any cash to spend.
But most of guys who do this, spend their money on beer everyday... doh

I think it's all about prioritising like always!

We spend around 1500€ each month when traveling and we can do what we like but we camp a lot and stay at cheaper places, but we definitely don't have cooking equipment with us... :nono:

I would rather go for 3 months on a 1500€ budget a month than 6 months on 750€ a month... but that's just me!

I'd rather travel endlessly paying $500 a month (I did for five years!) than 3 months etc etc etc. I mean sheesh, expressos are meant to last for hours while sitting in a cafe people watching, right?

I agree with Lorraine. It all seems to boil down to two choices from what I can see:-

1) Spend a fair bit, travel fast and far, have a great, but short trip
or
2)Watch your money, travel slow and really meet the locals, have a great and long trip.

With either option you should have a great time. Beats working in the office right?

I don't think they are mutually exclusive. You can travel slowly, meet the locals, and still see the sights. But you're right, these are all moot points.

...and what happens when you just can´t stop?:)

when i first got to South America I only planned to do Peru on a motorcycle as that was my budget. I stretched it out as much as I could and ended up in Ushuaia, Argentina, having travelled all over in Peru and Bolivia.

I had literally no money left when I was leaving Ushuaia, but I also had no desire to get back to the ´real world´. So I found a job, spent two months working, and now I´m good to go to Venezuela (my next SA leg - Ushuaia to Caracas).

I´m pretty sure I´ll run out of money somewhere in Northern Chile again, and it´s not going to be a comfy trip in a touristy leisury sense, but I simply prefer to stay on the road as long as I can and as long as my bike is alive:) call me crazy but after 8 months biking in South America I lost all interest in going back home and try to ´civilize´myself again :D

Hi Evergreen,

I hope to embark on a similar trip, starting Santiago in Feb/March.

What bike are you using, out of interest? :)

Hi all,

I think it's quite relative but to those of us living in the UK I don't know anyone who seems to be able to save money here any more. I think this is increasingly the case in many western countries, spiralling living costs and stagnating wages, not to mention high rents relative to income and the continual drive towards poor pay, zero-hour contracts, etc! Those who got into the property game early are pretty lucky (one might argue that the babyboomers buying up the property and charging young people a fortune is half the problem).

As a 29 year old, getting on the property market hardly seems viable, and if it was (i.e. I had a partner, parents throw in thousands for deposit), I'm not sure a 25-year mortgage is something I'd really be enthusiastic in signing up for anyway. Meanwhile, I've been travelling around since university and never stuck to a single job nor played at getting those of those things people call 'careers', and yet, the people who did play that game seem to work ungodly hours, and never have time to do anything worthwhile with their money beyond spending it on expensive, glitzy material items - and there is nothing wrong with that either, but I don't think it's something that would satisfy me. So it is the catch-22 of not working and having time, but then not having enough money.

I've been hanging around the HUBB now and take interest in peoples trip reports. It seems quite amazing to me people have the money to appear to be so well equipped with pro-level dSLR's, top-spec camping and navigation equipment and really expensive, top whack adventure bikes (and good for them too!) But I think, relatively speaking, that is as amazing to me as people find me amazing, when I tell them I've lived here and there, and done all the stuff which I've been lucky enough to have done in the past seven years since going overseas. I suppose you must work with what you have. I'm lucky in that between trips, my dad lets me stay at his place and does not charge me a penny, I think if it were not for this, it would be a lot harder to live my somewhat erratic lifestyle, yet I'm sure I could find a way if it was necessary.

Right now I am planning a trip to South America. I've been doing a lot of research and am currently scouring eBay for deals on second-hand equipment, you can find really good deals; for example, so far I've bought my stove, sleeping bag, sleep mat, etc, and saved a lot of money. All I need now is a water filter, a half-decent tent and a basic Garmin eTrex. As for my bike, it's going to be either a new or a used Honda CGL125, which retail at around 700 quid, while ones with low-mileage can be had for as low as 350/400 GBP. I also volunteered with a programme sponsored by the UN called English Opens Doors. I'll teach for six months in a Chilean highschool, and in return get to live with a host family, get the visa paid for, plus healthcare, so this will hopefully take the pressure doing everything at once, give me time to improve my Spanish and generally provide a good platform to launch my S.America trip from... I hope :)

People find my lifestyle strange, and sometimes family members ask things like 'what about a career' or weirdly, 'but where do you think you'll be in ten years time', and yet for me, the career boat has already sailed (bon voyage!), and besides, perhaps I'm still young and naive, but I believe it is essential to follow your heart, and maybe that is to buy a house, settle down, have kids, and then that's great you'll probably be happy, but if it's going solo around the world on a motorcycle, then allowing a house, career, to get in the way of that, well that probably won't bring any joy. We all seem to adopt a strange mentality that we'll get 'on top' of this business we call life, and if we just work through it, and get to the end, everything will be all right. And yet I suspect when people reach the end, all of sudden realise that all we have we ever had was the present, so to keep forsaking it for a future that never comes, well I'm not sure that can work... well, getting rather philosophical now and perhaps I have this all wrong!

Time will tell :)

The ONLY way I can save money for travel and travel equipment is to move back into the family home. I pay my rent with labour (maintaining a very large garden and decrepit house).

I was living in rented accommodation up until 3 months ago. I work a 45 hour week on a humble mechanics salary and I could save NOTHING. Everything is so incredibly expensive in the U.K. It seems being ripped off is law in the U.K.

I struggle to believe how anyone can live and save anything whilst living in the U.K unless they make over £25,000 a year.

Now I am back at 'home' I can save £700 a month. That is a decision I had to make if I wanted to travel again. And I still have to live VERY frugally to save that.

The next 15 months will be a test of my sanity. Losing all my independence and freedom for 15 months to gain it back again on the road for hopefully 12 months or longer.

Can't have the Yin without the Yang..... So they say.

Eàrning the funds
 

Well I can see there are many differnt ways, my way was, sell my 2011 Opel Insignia with all of is goodies, sell the Dethleffs RV. Now I can pay my expeces and my wife takes care of the house while I ame on my way RTW for two years. DOT is june 2014. All of my stuff is ready (collected for years)
Bjorn-rtw.net anyone want to come with??c?

saving in the UK
 

Re discovered this thread after ages. The amount I have been able to save each year has dwindled down to a mere few hundred pounds a year as my outgoings have gone up and my income has gone down in relative terms. I do not see this situation improving any time soon. Short trips to HU meetings are the best I can look forward to for now.

GM

PS not complaining just stating a fact!

It's all about prioritising.

My wife and I are not rich, we both work for the government but still we manage to save up half of our income every month. How? By prioritising... We don't smoke, we don't consume alcohol (I'm pretty sure a lot of you guys spend a fortune every month on booze...) and we watch out at to what we do spend our money. This works for us, perfectly.

So good in fact that we decided to give it all up, to quit our jobs and go for yet another ride and then "settle" again somewhere where we lost our hearts on an island in the sun. Will we make the same money than we do now? Absolutely never-ever. This means that we will 'survive' making only maybe 800€ a month but at least in a place that we like and choose and we know what it will "cost" us, but we don't care anymore... I choose the sun, the ocean and the mountains instead of a big-ass tv with surround sound!

:Beach:

I did my first big, long trip trip in 2007. I decided I was going to do it in 2005. I was earning about £700 a month.. Impossible to most..

I got rid of my car, I didn't smoke, I brewed my own ale.. I ate baked beans and pasta, I wore cheap clothes, I sold everything I could and worked any odd jobs I could.

Even then I only managed to save £200-£300 a month. It took me 2 years but I did it..

Not all, but the majority of people who claim they can't spend that on booze/fags/gigs/cinema/fashion etc etc

If you want it.. You will make it happen.. It's really is that simple.

It just depends if it's worth the sacrifice to you.

$500 a month
 

In one's youth ,, may be even for less,,, especially if you are beautiful like Lorraine. ;)

I did that for so so many years ,,
From age 19 ,, across the USA ,, Canada,, Europe ,, Most of S.America, Hawaii, Guam, Yap, Palau, Sri Lanka, India ,, Nepal ,,, learned to ski in Tehran ,, teached equestrian jumping, in Thailand and Japan.
For some 6 years. Music ,, culture,, history ,, drugs ,, travel ,, good sex ,, Had all sorts of jobs ,, few misadventures ,, jail time too ,, for I seeked out this adventure, for it was impossible to leave Korea at the time.
It was hard but I never felt discouraged or unfortunate,,

Many times ,, it was women, whom I've met on the road that gave me sweet loving, food and bed ,, and connections in next town,,
Learnt 6 languages in their beds ,, best way to learn a language.

From 80s,, due to my job, lived in London, Dusseldorf, Paris, Monaco, New York and Tokyo ,, and travelled three weeks out of month. Breakfast in London, Lunch in Paris ,, dinner in Milano ,, all over Middle East and North Africa ,, I would hire a private jet from Zurich to Tripoli,, then hitch hike a Hyundai construction company's dump truck,, speaking Korean with the driver all the way to Benghasi at 2AM ,, was my norm for some 9 years. But then it was mostly work.

In 90s and 2000s ,, having become a CEO ,, traveled and worked at my leisure ,, some 6 million air mileage points by now and numerous flights on Concord to Rio, NY - Paris, London- Barbados,, in fact just two flights before the Paris crash was my last flight, on the Concord.

My last RTW on a Harley ,, all together 3 months long (just riding time) , cost me ca $54,000
Meaning I would ride hard ,, find the best 5 star hotel, when ever possible ,, fly first class to next destination, when ever possible,, ate well ,,best wine,, went to see the local opera ,, orchestras,, massage parlors , strip bars ,, bought drinks for local bikers,,, had an escort or two in the room ,, made donations to local charities etc. While with two pairs of undies, sox, two pair of jeans, Panama,, a Zara blazer and John Galliano rain coat. (None of that BMW reiter outfit,, bare chest through most of Siberia,. Love sun too much. For Siberia, carried my own coffee and ramen pot)

Not bragging ,,
I have no qualms ,,, no guilt ,, each to his own.
Ewan did it with a million dollar production ,, Jim Rogers did it with truck load of convoy. I did it on my own.

I did my share of mooching in my youth. I would be shamed to do so at my age.

seouljoe any chance of fitting a side-cart to that Harley of yours and take me with you next time...........:innocent:

You seem to have had a very interesting life and if i wore a hat i would take it off to you :thumbup1:

Hats Off ,,
 

Well Wesley,, my hats off to you too !
Every one has their own unique experiece in life,, just different,, for that we all deserve a compliment from each other!
Be well and thanks for the kudos.

work and save
 

as i was sailing across the atlantic, hitchhiking on a boat with no money left after having bummed around europe for a couple years i decided i wanted to travel to south america with a motorcycle. i didn't know people actually did it and that it was very common. i thought i was crazy, well i still am i guess... anyway, i arrived home in LA at 23 yrs old with negative 600 dollars. I lived with my mom, worked two jobs while going to school and in a year i saved 15,000$. a year after that, after having bought all the necessary gear to travel, motorcycle, riding gear, camera equipment, etc. and having gone back to europe for a two month trip and also quitting the second job for the last 6 months, i had 21,000$ and was ready to go. I just focused, ate off people's plates at the restaurant i worked at, rode my bicycle to work when i could, researched good deals for gear, picked up any extra shift.
I set off in april 2013 and spent 8 months riding around america and canada ( i also took a spontaneous trip to europe and an island in the indian ocean with a airline hostess i met, 10percent tickets). in the 8 months I spent 7,000$, 1,500$ of that toward retrieving my stolen bike and replacing parts. I also earned $3,000 under the table working on a less than legal farm. 8 months=$4,000. $500 per month average. I'm back home a couple months working and will leave on the next leg of my journey with $20,000, with the intention of only using $10,000 in a year... we'll see how it goes. point is; i have no education or skills, i was a waiter and worked in an office. yes i lived with my mom, but if i paid rent and food, it would have taken just a few months longer or i wouldn't have traveled to europe during that time. It's possible even for people without houses to sell...
lots of little worlds

I've never sat down and read this thread from start to finish, but there seem to be a few misconceptions from people who think it is 'impossible' to save money either in the UK or elsewhere.

The whole thing is a lifestyle choice, and its not only related to travel.

I make about 30k a year, and for the last 3 years I have also been paying for my partner to do her 2nd degree (accommodation, car etc, not fees thankfully).

In that time I have saved a fair bit of money, travelled for at least a month a year and kept up all my commitments.
I also still go for a few beer when I feel like it and I smoke.

What I don't do is spend a fortune running a shiny new car, buying designer clothes and changing all the furniture every other year.

Its the 'western lifestyle' of spend, spend, spend; consume, consume, consume; borrow, borrow, borrow that prevents people from saving money. Quite simple, despite what the idiot box (probably 60 inch and brand new with surround sound:nono:) tells you, you don't need a new xxxxxx or a magic xxxxxxx to survive. My 1997 car, bought for 350 has done 30000 miles in the last year at a total maintainance cost of about 100.

If you want to save up and travel, well you will have to sacrifice the wonders of the property ladder, designer homeware and new cars. Buy a small house and just keep it, buy an old car, fix it yourself. Its amazing what you can do and how much fun and how rewarding it can be if you sacrifice the magpie instinct for 'shiny stuff'. Even cook your own food instead of spending a fortune on supermarket crap!

It is possible, its not illegal (yet:innocent:), not to live like a mindless member of the sheeple consumer community.

Sit down and ask yourself what you spent the last 20k on, actually gather the receipts etc and the statements. Then ask yourself
(a)what you NEEDED that you bought/spent (food, basic clothes, rent/mortgage, transport, leisure)
(b)what you wasted (shiny stuff, car loans, things you could have fixed yourself, food that was overpriced, designer clothes you wore once/never...)
Remember, a 250 a month car loan costs you 3k a year PLUS the depreciation on the car (at least another 3k) so there is 6k you could have saved and one less noose about your neck!
Then see what you COULD have saved!

Oh and folks, little Timmy DOESNT NEED 3 Xboxes, buy him a bike on ebay for 50 quid and get him outside, that way he won't be morbidly obese and he might just learn to interact with people instead of machinesdoh

great quote :-)

Young Man with a 990 Adventure ready to diassapear
 

I thoroughly enjoyed reading all of you responses to this issue of How to make it happen financially. I have been researching and obsessively studying how one could make a very long distance or RTW trip happen at a younger age without many assets or income to lean on. Im immensely curious as to how you would be able to create an outside funded trip; meaning a trip supported by sponsorship, writing, photography, non profits etc... This method is extremely attractive to me as I am a 27 year old, hard working American a decent wage with bills out the wazoo. I spent every last dime to buy a late model KTM 990 Adventure with low miles, ready to explore the great beyond. But knowingly spending every last dime and letting bills run late to aquire this dream machine makes it hard to depart for the coveted dream trip. Obviously patience and penny pinching is the way to reach any wild goal; but what Im asking you all is how you could possibly do it using unorthodox methods of finance and support I.E sponsorship, Writing, photography etc...

I am at the extreme point in my life where selling all my possessions and abandoning debts seem like the way to depart and pursue the dream in the short term view; knowing that it is the irresponsible and reckless way to go about it.

Selling possessions is rarely reckless unless you are selling the tools of your trade, sentimental keep sakes or long term investments...

Don't let your possessions own you. If you can sell your car for $1000 then be certain you can buy another one for $800 if needed in the future.

Sent from my XT1032 using Tapatalk

Liammons
i think you may be married to / living with my wifes soul mate by the sound of your finances :thumbup1: Have to say if i didnt have bought lots of naughty new sports bikes i would have lots more cash in the bank but then on the other hand i have owned the bikes most people droll over and would give their right arm for so i cant complain :funmeteryes: Saving is posible if you dont stretch your self toooooo much but as you say in the west its all about beating the joneses . I have lots of friends who have sodding great big 5 bed houses , but are relaying on them for their pensions :(

Slightly off thread - Touring Ted have you seen the thread about the job with Motorworks BMW ? No idea where the Wirral is mate but we are going to have to meet up for a jar midway some time me thinks - as long as the chaps are left behind :thumbup1:

Breaking bikes.... I prefer putting them back together. Breaking is boooooorrriiiinnnnngg ;)

Sent from my XT1032 using Tapatalk

Yer but if it means you can save the cash for a world trip then its got to be worth it ?c? Hows that idea panning out for you ?
Sent from a computer with a very nice view of the beach :funmeteryes:

I'm working now..As a BMW tech.. I doubt motorworks pay well for unscrewing panels and shelving broken ASB units ??

I think I'd go stir crazy just breaking bikes down all day. Where's the satisfaction eh ??? As a tech, taking the bike apart is the worst part of the job. But knowing that you'll be fixing it and re-building it better than it was gives you the satisfaction and makes the stripping down bearable.

And working on BMW's, it can takes HOURS to strip a bike down just to change a switch or sensor... Something the Jap's would of made accessible.

Cheers for the heads up all the same.. I few people have given me the nod for this. ;)

Ted

Had a nice car,van, sports bike and dirt bike. Sold them all - worked 12 hour days for a year building a new house. Got a contract in Majorca, four months of 6am till 5pm days. Rented out our house, Spent little money. It's now 11 days till I leave to ride for 18 months. I'll get home skint and start all over again. It will be my third time. To me this life style is work hard and long until you can't stand it any more - then bugger off for a year or more living in a tent and crap accommodation - it's when I feel most alive.

10 sleeps !!

Outside funded/ sponsored trip
 

Any suggestions on gaining sponsors or outside funding for a trip? My idea is based on blogging, writing, photography, etc... If anyone has acquired support from these outlets I'd be very interested. I'd love to be supported by these outlets to travel the world. (Of course quite a fantasy but not un thinkable) I am interested in doing a RTW trip with a support group of followers and media. I feel in this day and age of social media and technology it can be done. I'm rocking a 09 KTM 990 with all the gear to make it happen, and the will to get through anything. Your comments are greatly appreciated.

If you do something big first - then you have more chances of financial help. Lots of people got the same idea and would give all to the media for free.

It's nice to get an offer of help but don't bank on it paying for a trip - more likely get some free gear if anything.

Good luck though

Brilliantly stated!!

Excellent plan!
How's it working out now? Where are you? Got a Ride report or blog on?

bierbierbier

Molly,

We are in the south Island now, Down in Fiord land NP. Very wet weather last few days and back country camping. Backpackers tonight to dry gear out. Been getting good pics and video and will update our blog in a week or so.

Welcome to Two Bikes Running

No way will give myself a heart attack!:innocent: