Traveling for me always was very important. In my childhood, I was traveling together with my family but with years I became more independent and I started to travel without my parents. That’s when I needed to learn myself how to plan right my time and money for traveling.
A few months ago my friends asked me how I am able to travel so oft while working every day, from morning till evening?! None of my friends were traveling so a lot and they just couldn’t understand that. Now I am answering to everyone who wants to know that and are trying to travel without quitting their jobs!
GET OUT OF YOUR WEEKEND COMFORT ZONE
Whatever you will say now, in a regular job, normally you are having 2 free days. In year are 52 weekends and it gives us 104 free days! Yes, exactly! And that sound not bad, anymore, right? Don’t use those 2 free days lying on the couch, but take a weekend trip! There are so many opportunities for weekend trips in your country (and no matter where you live now) and to neighbor countries. Of course, you will be not able to travel in 2 days from Europe to Kanada and back, but every trip, also 500km away from your home is a very good weekend getaway! Get out of your comfort zone!
SPEND HOLIDAYS IN ANOTHER COUNTRY
Holidays are one of my favorite time for travel! Every official holiday is again giving us one or a few more free days. We can use them as always or try something new! Last year I traveled with my family to Prague right after Christmas but this year we drove to Bavaria in Eastern time. The most beautiful part was that we all had free holidays! We all could meet each other and do something cool together, like traveling. But that’s not all, I think visiting other countries on holidays gives us a new and very interesting preview about other cultural celebrations. The only minus is hotel price increases, but if you will book your flight and hotel enough early, you also don’t need to worry about that!
ALWAYS USE AND ENJOY VACATION WHAT YOU HAVE EARNED
Did you know that a lot of people aren’t using fully their vacation days, that way losing them? Why do you need to lose those free days what you have earned with your hard working? If the job is giving you 2 or 4 weeks in year free, then take them and plan some good travel. You don’t have enough money for a 7-day trip? Then take your vacation after 6 months and save your money till that! You are having time, just use it right!
WORK AND TRAVEL TOGETHER
If you are lucky enough or just with the right degree, find a job where you can travel. There are a lot of jobs where you can work and travel together, you just need to look around. 2 years I worked for one company which was organizing different events. With this job, I traveled all around Latvia and Lithuania, a little bit in Estonia. I have seen every city, town, and village in Latvia and I am happy about this chance. Yes, the job was not easy but it was worth every single second! Bet the best part was that I was able to travel while earning money, so I really spend nothing!
PLAN WHAT AND WHERE YOU WANT TO DO
One of the things that I am doing (not just doing, but doing very good) is planning! Without planning your weekend getaway can turn into a nightmare! And after that, you will not have a wish for a new trip. At first, write a list with all countries and places you would like to visit and then categorize them! Make research and find out what would be the best weekend escape, what – one week vacation, what is very cheap and what – expensive… so simple list like this gives you a very good review about your wishes and real chances to plan your year with more and more interesting travels.
After you figure out where and when you will go, plan what you will do and see there, especially if you are traveling on the weekend. Your time is limited and you don’t know when you will visit this place again. Make a simple plan about most important attractions, restaurants, museums and so on. I am doing it always and I always succeed with my plan because I know what I want!
FIND THE BEST TIME TO FLIGHT AND RIDE
For a better and longer weekend travel you need to be careful when booking a flight or deciding at what time to drive out with a car. Imagine, that you are having a free weekend, that’s 48 hours long and without thinking you take a flight to somewhere on Saturday afternoon and back on Sunday afternoon. So, from 48 hours you will have only 24 hours, but as we know that we need to be a little bit earlier in an airport and at night we will sleep at least 6 hours, there lefts only about 15 hours! Ohh, and you know, we are stealing ourselves! Our time!
Find a flight maximal early on the Saturdays morning or even on Fridays evening (after work) but back come on the Sundays evening. Use maximal all hours you have! Flight not longer than 2 hours because on the weekend this time is just wasted time! To a car rides applies the same rules! Only in this case, you can take a ride to 6 hours! Most likely in 1 or 2 hours with a car, you will just succeed to leave the city or drive till the point where you have already been. Car is not so fast as an airplane that’s why we need more time for driving, but the good news – you don’t need to wait in the airport.
BUT BEFORE PLANING BE A LITTLE BIT SPONTANEOUS
I am pretty sure, that before planning, my best friend is spontaneity. Precisely speaking, spontaneity has given me the most exciting weekend trips ever! In February I already knew that I want to celebrate my birthday somewhere else, not at home. So, I just sat down at the computer and started researching. My birthday was in March’s Monday and I knew that I will be able to get this day free, but I didn’t know where to go! And totally spontaneously I found a great flight deal to Hungary, Budapest. I took it! And after one month I was celebrating my birthday in Budapest.
With all this, I just wanted to tell you that sometimes the best deals and prices are appearing unexpectedly. That’s why sometimes my friends are really unexpectedly coming to visit me in Berlin because the tickets cost 30 EUR back and forth.
SUMMARY
I really hope that with this post I answered to your question – how to travel without quitting your job! For me traveling is a part of my life and I don’t want to lose it. I needed to learn and find the best ways how to connect everything that I want – job, traveling, relationship, family, pets, friends.. And here is everything that I have learned in my journey around Europe! Traveling without quitting a job is possible and I am proving it! This year, 2019, I have planned 6 trips (4 with airplane and 2 with a car) and I still have few free days left! Who knows, what I will plan more!
If you are interested to know about me more, see my daily life, read about my travels, experience stories and tips, you are more than welcome to follow me on my other social platforms below:
My blog ''My Small Travel Guide'' has all that you want and need to know about traveling in Europe without quitting your job and taking credits. Travel tips. Cheap flights. Good food. And more in https://mysmalltravelguide.com/
My daily life in Berlin, what I do and what I like you can see in my Instagram https://www.instagram.com/sandra.ans/
Newest posts and actual information about my blog in twitter https://twitter.com/small_guide/
And also don't forget to follow my Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/mysmalltravelguide/