Family Gap Year

I keep quoting this figure of $41/day as our budget, that’s actually a lie, our budget for Laos is working out at a lot more than that, everything considered. We’re cheating rather too much on cake, beer and coffee but Laos is indisputably cheap, cheaper than Thailand, and low accommodation costs are a big part …

It’s been a very long two days, but we’re here, safe, comfortable and looking forward to a good night’s sleep.  I’ve Learnt a Few Things. The rate at the Travelex counter at Gold Coast airport is negotiable. I wasn’t impressed with the offered rate so she gave me a better one. Which was OK. You have …

In the words of my friend Gabi, I’m freaking out. Freaking out big-time. The boys and I leave in one week, James will follow on later, we are travelling without Dad for a while. So, how am I spending this last part of my life in Port Douglas? Wafting around sipping champagne and having farewell lunches? …

Nine months of planning family travel down, three to go. In just under 3 months we will be on that plane to freedom. So what has changed since I posted about the first six months of planning? My husband has resigned! The worst kept secret in Port Douglas is out, we can talk about it …

Am I scared to leave home and travel the world indefinitely, with no fixed plans? Not really. I can’t wait to go. If I was scared last time we took off round the world back in 2001 on our first RTW, I can’t remember. Maybe I was anxious about finding accommodation or getting off the …

Were you wondering what the kids think about being uprooted and dragged round the world by their crazy parents? Is this a plan that works for them, too? I thought I’d interview them and find out. They are two pretty well travelled children already, they’ve been to Europe, Asia, North America, Africa and Australia, let’s …

We all know that long term family travel is great. Seeing the world, learning cool stuff, developing personal qualities and global understanding. But here are some more reasons to hit the road, ten very real reasons long term travel is great for mums ( or dads, or anyone else looking after children). We’ve been travelling …

What to pack for a round the world trip is largely personal choice. You might like skirts, I like jeans, but there are certain things to take into consideration that we talk about below. I’ve spent at least 7 years of my life on Round the World trips now, I’ve got packing for them off …

 We are half way there. It is six months since we started planning a family travel adventure, 6 months before departure date. I’ve been travel blogging six months plus, how is the planning, saving, preparing, and money, coming along? Planning Travel: Six Months Before Departure  How much closer to our goal of heading off on …

Well, who knows?  We’d like to see a few new places and, of course, we have favourite countries from our previous trips that we’d love to share with the children, to explore further, or just revisit. This RTW, With Children, Will Be Different. We’ll have to travel slowly, build in some quieter times to kick …

12 Reasons to take a round the world trip (RTW). Only 12? There are far more, but I’ve tried to condense them into an even dozen. Our primary reason for travelling is education, learning, and understanding. I’ve always been driven by my thirst for knowledge in the areas that interest me, this is why I’ve …

We’ve been travelling full-time for over 4 years now, without a full-time traditional job between us and loving our new non-conventional life. Raising the money to travel was hard work initially, we weren’t rich, didn’t win the lottery and for the preceding 5 years we only had 1 income, my husband’s chef’s salary. I was …