How We Travelled Around the World with Our Kids (Without Going Broke)

 

One family, four kids (under ten), fifty-four weeks travelling from Argentina to Australia…all on a tight budget. When we describe the year our family spent living and travelling around the globe, everyone asks the same questions: How on Earth did you afford to travel? Did you inherit money? Were you totally broke by the time you got home?

 

Honestly, if I’d just met us, I would wonder how we afforded it too.

 

We’re a pretty down-to-earth crew—definitely not ritzy or independently wealthy globetrotters. We worked hard to afford to travel and we implemented some savings strategies like bunking with friends in Japan and splitting up our time in Melbourne to save on airfare. We also adopted a down-to-earth approach to travel. We ate street food, shopped at local markets, and stayed in hostels—no fancy hotels or restaurants for us (with the exception of one or two worth-it splurges).

 

One of our favourite treats in India; fresh, hot, and frothy milk served in clay cups.

 

When you embark on a big, extended trip like we did, your mindset shifts. It’s not so much “vacation” as living life in different places. We still worked while we travelled. We typed and Skyped at Parisian cafes. The kids studied history in Rome and worked on science homework in New Delhi. We still did everyday chores (like laundry). And yes, to make the trip happen, it took a great deal of planning ahead (and we had to let go of pretty much all our belongings). But in the end, it was SO worth every moment of sacrifice.

 

Understanding how to afford to travel abroad with your family is definitely challenging. Heck, taking a weeklong family vacation on a budget is tough, let alone making a whole year of global travel work. But I’m here to tell you if you want to travel with your family (whether for a week or a year): it’s possible and worth it, even on a budget.

 

The first country we went to on our first trip.

 

So, if you want to learn how to afford to travel abroad with your family, here are the lessons we learned from our experience.

 

How to Afford to Travel Abroad with Your Family

 

Before you Travel Abroad with Your Family

 

Our trip took a fair amount of planning. Honestly, it started over a year ahead (and we’d built up savings several years before that). We were both working very hard on our entrepreneurial businesses to ensure we could afford to give our family this amazing experience.

 

1.    Become an Obsessive Saver

 

Ryan and I are both savers. We’ve lived below our means ever since we got married—and especially for a few years before the trip. When Ryan received a raise at work, we still stuck to our budget and tucked the extra money away. We lived on our previous income, even though we could have been more comfortable.

 

It’s rare that we get pictures together, so when strangers offer, we accept.

 

We both knew we wanted to save our money for something special (A down payment on a house? A big investment?) but we weren’t sure what it would be. By the time we settled on travelling around the world, we had over $15,000 squirrelled away in our savings account.

 

2.    Set a Clear Goal

 

Once we decided our goal was to afford a year of global family travel, the real work began. We started planning and figuring out the logistics of how we could spend a year abroad. We knew we would both need to continue to bring in an income while we were living abroad. We decided to set up a budget using YNAB.

 

Fortunately, being entrepreneurs, both Ryan and I had jobs that would allow us to work during the trip. Thankfully, this made it possible for us to continue to earn money and run our businesses overseas. Yes, running companies remotely meant putting in very long hours on the frontend, delegating and relying on wonderful teams to ensure our businesses could continue to do well while we were on the road. We worked a lot during the year before the trip and we saved every bit we could. With a clear goal in mind, we became singularly focused (even the kids)!

 

3.    Minimize Your Belongings

 

Before the trip, we sold nearly every belonging we owned. We held several garage sales to get rid of the items we no longer needed. We sold stuff on Craigslist. We sold both our cars. We even sublet our home, so we wouldn’t need to pay rent while we were away. We pared our possessions down to the bare minimum: what we could take with us on our trip.

 

Because we’re Canadian, we were able to keep our healthcare but we did switch to a travel plan. We learned to live with minimal possessions. The only items we bought were for the trip—backpacks, shoes, etc. It was a great lesson on minimalism and narrowing down to what really mattered to us. While a shorter trip might mean a less robust approach, I highly recommend using a garage sale to clean out and save up for your travels. It feels refreshing to live with less.

 

Caden pulling all of our luggage in Norway

 

4.    Plan for Your Biggest Expenses First

 

We knew our biggest travel was going to be airfare and we planned accordingly. If you’re wondering how to afford to travel abroad with your family, one of my biggest recommendations is plan your transportation and airfare first! Get an idea of the exchange rates and understand what you’ll be looking at for transportation costs.

 

Even though we knew we couldn’t buy all our tickets up front, we did most of the math ahead of the trip, so we knew we’d have what we needed for every destination. We knew we were expecting about $30,000 in airfare, so we set that amount aside first before planning other activities. With that budget in mind we were able to plan other expenses, including some amazing excursions because we knew the parameters we were working under.

 

5.    Purchase Gear Ahead

 

Anyone who’s purchased ANYTHING at an airport (headphones, travel pillows, even mints!) knows airports have their own economy. The prices are exorbitant because travelers are at the mercy of the airport services. We were able to refrain from buying items at the airport by travelling prepared.

 

Similarly, when travelling on a budget, plan for and minimize purchases on your trip. We bought all our gear (including extra computer cords and converters) ahead of our departure. Of course, we had to buy a few items while we were travelling, but we tried our best to plan ahead. We knew emergency needs get really expensive, especially when you don’t have the luxury of a drugstore or grocery chain around the corner. (Fortunately, we also met very helpful people along the way, who were often willing to share, lend a hand, or let us borrow what we needed.)

 

6.    Keep a Plan B

 

We made it our policy to always have enough money set aside to afford to travel home if we needed to. Fortunately, we didn’t need to make the trip back to Canada during our year, but it was a comfort to know we could if things got dire. (Ryan did travel back for work for two weeks, but other than that we didn’t return.)

 

We also kept our businesses going because we knew we needed to keep a steady income. While we tried to think of ways to keep work as hands-off as possible, we certainly had to work a LOT on the trip. Our businesses were doing well when we left, but we realized if we wanted to be comfortable during and after our trip, we needed to think of additional ways to keep our businesses thriving. We launched Ultimate Bundlesduring our year abroad, which took tons of work (and meant early mornings, late nights, and saying no to some activities because we had to keep up on our business).

 

On Your Trip: How to Travel for Cheap

 

Once we were on the road, we embraced the experience. We knew all the planning in the world wouldn’t cover everything. For example, when we spent a month in Argentina, their economy had just experienced major inflation. What was supposed to be a very reasonable place to stay turned out super expensive. Even though we studied exchange rates before, there are some things you can’t plan for.

 

7.    Save to Splurge

 

We saved ahead and cut out the little extras, so we could splurge on the good stuff during our trip. Yes, we could have done certain aspects of the trip “cheaper” but there were choices we made because we saw them as once-in-a-lifetime opportunities. Looking back, I have no regrets on the items where we splurged. They were part of an amazing experience.

 

Ryan playing guitar in Antarctica

 

Ryan took a “bucket list” trip to Antarctica, fulfilling one of his life-long dreams, which set us back about $4,000. A safari in Africa was another major splurge of the trip at $6,000 but it was well-worth the educational experience. This was especially true because our kids were home…er “world schooled” so every experience was part of their learning. Lodging in certain parts of Europe, Australia, and Japan were also a splurge, but were offset by countries like India, where lodging was very inexpensive. Eurail tickets were expensive but worth the ease of travel for our family.

 

8.    Get Cheaper Flights (When Possible)

 

Whether you save up airline points, join frequent flyer clubs, or simply try to be flexible with flight times, do what you can to save money on flights. If you want to know how to afford to travel abroad with your family for cheap, focus your efforts on your airline expenses.

 

There are many ways to save on air travel, especially if you’re willing to be flexible with changes. One great tip we discovered is that it’s often less expensive to enter in one city but leave from another—ground transportation is almost always cheaper. This saved us quite a bit on airline miles.

 

Our epic 27-hour bus ride in Argentina

 

Book single legs of the trip to get the best prices. We also found “round the world” tickets didn’t offer any savings. It’s so important to be flexible with your air travel. You may need to split up seats or take a redeye. We avoided flying over holidays at all costs and we made every effort to pack lightly throughout the trip. Not only was it easier from a logistical point of view, but we saved money by not paying baggage fees.

 

9.    Eat Like a Local

 

No matter where you’re travelling, food costs adds up quickly. If you eat meals out at restaurants, your trip will get expensive fast—especially if you’re travelling with your family. One of the best ways we found to afford to travel was to eat like a local. Fortunately, we have fairly adventurous kids who are usually willing to try new foods.

 

We visited shops and markets to get fresh, basic ingredients. We ate simple meals—bread, rice, fruits and vegetables. When we sampled local fare, it was often from street vendors, not in sit-down restaurants. While I’m grateful for Starbucks and McDonalds around the world because the free Wi-Fi allowed me to work while on our trip, we tried not to spend money on restaurants and fast foods we could have back home.

 

One of our favourite foods in Argentina; the glorious empenadas

 

10.  Skip the Luxury Accommodations

 

We rarely stayed in hotels during the trip. Most of our accommodations were in local homes, Airbnb’s, rented apartments and condos, or hostels. There were a few exceptions but for the most part our lodging was always inexpensive. For this reason, we really “heart” Airbnb and are so thankful for our network of friends around the world. We just needed a safe, relatively clean spot to sleep.

 

Travelling on a budget doesn’t have to mean staying in crappy places. This was one of our favourites in Turkey.

 

This meant that we had to make do with certain situations—wash our laundry in the sink or snuggle up with limited bedding—but we always made it work. When we stayed with friends, they were always so accommodating and welcoming. We tried to always be good guests by giving them space (putting up a family of six is a big job) and thanking them for their hospitality. We also cleaned up after ourselves as room service certainly wasn’t in the cards. Each place we stayed we settled in like “home.”

 

11.  Choose Experiences (and Skip Souvenirs)

 

While our year abroad could have been done for even less cost, we almost certainly came in well under where the budget could have been. We limited our spending to experiences and covering our basic needs. We tried to focus on what we wanted to do and see, rather than buying items to take back with us.

 

Following this philosophy, we really didn’t buy souvenirs during the trip, as they were tough to carry around with us anyway. Our kids are quirky and creative, so they had no problem exploring and making the most of their experiences, even without the toys and extras. They came up with games and went on plenty of adventures. The trip was an extension of their home school experience, so each place we went offered lots of room for learning and imagination. Who needs toys when the world is your playground?

 

We loved riding camels in Morocco

 

12.  Be Flexible

 

If you’re wondering how to travel abroad with your family on a budget, the biggest rule is be flexible! Yes, there are times when it was against my nature to “go with the flow” but every time I took a step back and stopped worrying, I enjoyed myself more.

 

We realized as we were planning the trip, emergencies happen at home, as well as they happen on the road. People get sick or injured the same on a trip as they do in their own backyard. You can plan and prepare for every situation imaginable, but something could still strike out of the blue. So, we embraced the experience. When urgent situations came up, we dealt with it just like we would have back in Canada.

 

Part of going on a long-term trip like this meant we had to resolve to simply “live life” on the road. We couldn’t take a year-long vacation from everything. We had to keep going with the day-to-day job of living life. Yes, it meant we worked hard during the trip. There were many early mornings and late nights working by the glow of our laptops. It meant we said “no” to certain luxuries—souvenirs, cushy bedding, fancy dinners.

 

 

 

But the experience was completely worth every sacrifice we made along the way. Travel offers a unique opportunity to bind together as a family. You get to know each other and become closer and closer. This benefit can come from ten days on a road trip, six-months in Europe, or a year around the globe. A once-in-a-lifetime experience is priceless. If you want to know how to travel abroad with your family on a budget, start planning ahead. Save your money, find ways to make life on the road work, jump in and go for it.

 

Our trip was an experience we’ll never forget. We highly recommend travel to any and everyone. It’s an amazing experience for growth, learning, and bonding with your family.