Travel Life: How to Make Your Dream a Reality

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It was a cold January morning when we first asked each other the question: “What if this is it?” What if the 9 to 5, the morning commute, the rushed dinners and weekend countdowns were all we had to look forward to for the next 30 years?

We weren’t unhappy, but we weren’t fully alive either. And so began the spark. The slow-burning desire that would soon grow into a bonfire of change: to live a life of travel.

This isn’t an overnight success stories though. Our path to the travel lifestyle we have now was anything but instant. It was a mess of spreadsheets, discussions and disagreements, savings goals, radical downsizing, career pivots, family conversations, and honest questions about what really mattered. We didn’t just want a long holiday. We wanted a life that felt like the best parts of being on the road: curious, free, connected, and full of purpose.

And we want to share how we made it happen, so that maybe, if you’re sat there wondering if it’s possible to live your travel dreams, you’ll know: it absolutely is.

We Started Way Before We Were Ready

We didn’t wait for the perfect moment, although maybe we should have done. Instead, we started where we were: busy careers, a mortgage, lots of monthly bills and a nagging feeling that there had to be more.

Our travel life began during weekends away, road trips around Europe everythime we could manage a holiday, and late-night planning sessions fueled by passion and too much wine.

That’s when the research began. We devoured blogs, watched YouTube videos on repeat, stalked every Instagram account tagged #travellife and #vanlife, and made endless lists of places to travel. But we weren’t just looking for travel inspo, we were looking for a way out. Or rather, a way in to a different kind of lifestyle.

Collage of images of Italy — Touring Italy on a bike on our annual vacation

The Big Pivot: From “Normal” to Nomad

Quitting our jobs and selling our house felt terrifying and exhilarating in equal measure. But we realised something crucial: we didn’t have to retire to chase our travel dreams. We just had to get creative.

We downsized. We budgeted like pros. And when we drove away from our home for the last time, we weren’t escaping, we were starting an adventure that soon became a new way of life.

We’ve now travelled full time across Europe in our self-built truck, shared our adventures on social media, and built a digital business that supports our nomadic lifestyle. We’ve made it work not because we had everything figured out, but because we were willing to learn, adapt, and keep moving forward.

Two people in hiking gear walking across a makeshift wooden bridge in a lush forest setting — Hiking in the Lagodekhi Nature Reserve on the Georgia Azerbaijan border

Practical Tips for Living a Life of Travel

So how do you do it? How do you turn the scrolling and dreaming into actual tickets, road maps, and sunrises in new countries?

1. Build Your Financial Runway

Living a life of travel doesn’t mean luxury hotels every night, and it’s definietly not one long holiday! Start by tracking your spending, cutting what doesn’t serve your future, and saving for a travel fund.

The more flexible your expenses, the more flexibility you’ll have on the road. For us, swapping a mortgage and bills for van life gave us the freedom to explore without draining our savings.

2. Define What Travel Means to You

Is it slow travel with your family? Digital nomad life from beachfront cafés? Off-grid road tripping around Europe? Or ticking off iconic destinations with a camera in hand? There’s no one-size-fits-all approach. Once you know your style, it becomes easier to design a life around it.

3. Start Creating Content (Even If It Feels Awkward)

We became travel bloggers by accident. We just started sharing stories from the road, posting photos, writing guides, and letting our passion show. Slowly, our blog grew. Our Instagram following grew. And eventually, brands, readers, and fellow travellers began to notice. You don’t need to be perfect, you just need to be real.

But, it is hard work if you want to make enough money to sustain your travels. We put in 60 hour weeks when we started, and have had to adapt to many changes along the way. Get rid of the rose-colored glasses before you start a digital nomad career!

4. Invest in Experience, Not Stuff

A big shift for us was learning to prioritise experiences over things. We stopped caring about fancy clothes and started caring about mountain views, coastal drives, and the way we felt every morning without an alarm clock. Your “stuff” won’t make you happy, but the right life just might.

5. Be Open to All Kinds of Work

We’ve met people funding their travel life through freelance writing, remote coding, photography, online teaching, seasonal hospitality gigs, and even house-sitting. If you’re just starting out, take jobs that get you closer to the road. Then build from there.

6. Choose Progress Over Perfection

There’s no perfect time. There’s no perfect travel style, route, or income stream. But every step you take, learning a skill, selling clutter, starting a blog, saving £10, is a brick in the foundation of your dream.

Enjoying a glass in the hots springs of Thermopylae in Greece

From Dream Life to Daily Life

People often say to us: “You’re living the dream!” And we are. But not because it’s perfect. We still have rough days, flat tyres, wet weather, arguments and spotty Wi-Fi. But we also have sunsets over fjords, spontaneous roadside coffees, overnight stops with incredible views, and the kind of perspective that only comes from being out in the world.

Our nomadic life has taught us that you don’t have to follow a script. You don’t have to wait for retirement or someone else’s approval. You just have to start.

So if you’ve ever felt the pull, the whisper that says, “There’s more out there…”, listen to it. Whether it’s a weeklong escape, a grown up gap year abroad, or a new forever, your travel life is waiting.

Let us know how you’re planning to make your travel dreams a reality – drop us a comment, DM us on Instagram, or say hi on the road. We’re always rooting for the next dreamer to make the leap.

metal sign post totem showing many travel destinations — Where will you go?

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