Would you take a year off?

Discussion in Travel started by Strykstar • Apr 16, 2014.

  1. Strykstar

    StrykstarActive Member

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    My coworker is taking a year off of work so he can travel the world he says he plans at least to go around it, but plans to visit some key places after that if he has the time.
    Would you do this if you had the chance?
    I'd love to, I'm really jealous but I just don't have the savings to sustain me for a whole year.
     
  2. nwitt

    nwittActive Member

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    It just scares me and sounds very risky. I would LOVE to do it and it would be an amazing experience. I guess I would maybe save up for half the year's expenses and also find a way to make income while traveling to make up the rest. I do some freelance writing, so I may be able to bring in some income. It would be "easy" for me to save up for my expenses like student loans etc. and especially if I didn't currently have a lease with rent, but I just think of traveling as so expensive - especially airfare! What an opportunity, though.
     
  3. Jessi

    Jessi<a href="http://www.quirkycookery.com">QuirkyCooke

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    I would love to do it, too, but like many others, I simply don't have the money to do that kind of thing. It also makes me really nervous that even if I could afford it, I might not be able to get a job when I get back. In fact, that's the even scarier part. I have been unemployed before and it's not easy to find a new job.
     
  4. isabbbela

    isabbbelaWell-Known Member

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    I most definitely would if I had the money for that! Unfortunately even if you save up and travel on a budget, taking a whole year off demands an insane amount of money!
    Also the complicated thing is that I have a stable job, so unless I was unexpectedly fired I wouldn't quit and take the risk of not finding a new job at the stage I am right now. I do, however, wish in the future to spend at least a couple months in Europe travelling around and getting to know my favorite places.
     
  5. Denis Hard

    Denis HardWell-Known Member

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    You guys shouldn't simply wish for something and leave it at that. You don't have to travel the world now. There's always a future and maybe better days. Just make it your goal that you'll travel around the world some time in the future and you'll find a way to do it even if it's after you retire.

    Anyway, I too, given the chance, I wouldn't hesitate taking a year off to travel around the world. I've heard that a freelancer who makes $100 a day can travel the world as they work. Sounds like something worth trying out.
     
  6. pipps

    pippsActive Member

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    Although I want to travel around a lot I dont think I would take a year out. This is mainly because I love booking holidays and getting so excited about it for those few weeks. So I think prefer to take a few holidays throughout the year :)
     
  7. nwitt

    nwittActive Member

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    That's awesome! I think that freelancer bit is very interesting and I do believe that it's possible.
     
  8. Jrh2

    Jrh2Member

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    I think a year off to travel is far too long for me. I couldn't afford to take a years holiday and I don't think you could guarantee you would have a job when you returned with that much time taken off. I would miss my friends and family too much to take that much time off and I would miss not being at home however good travelling would be. I would like to see the world but maybe not all in one go.
     
  9. Strykstar

    StrykstarActive Member

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    That's a good point about missing my friends and family, that would be very hard.
    I guess the appeal is that with a whole year you have no hard schedules for each place so you can really immerse yourself in that country's culture and community, I imagine you would make a *lot* of new friends doing something like this.
     
  10. Athenagdlyt

    AthenagdlytActive Member

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    Travel bloggers and traveling artists have been doing that for years. Considering we're not one of those fortunate ones who can travel and continuously make a living while on vacation, we can start aiming for it.

    I would also love to do that given the opportunity and resources. For now, I'm still working to reach my goal. Life is too short to stay in one place.
     
  11. jewel777

    jewel777Active Member

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    One of my biggest regrets in life was not traveling when I was young enough and healthy enough to do so. If anybody has the chance to travel extensively, especially if they have the opportunity to work while traveling, I would strongly suggest doing so. Now is the time to do it. The older you get, the harder it gets to do so, unless you can afford to travel in style. I agree with the poster above, life is way too short to stay in one place. Enjoy everything that life has to offer.
     
  12. H.C. Heartland

    H.C. HeartlandActive Member

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    No I would not take a year off just to travel. I would find a job that sent me abroad or volunteered where you might have some provisions given you. There are too many options out there for people to go overseas to just waste a year trying to figure it out. If you have a plan then it will be much easier for anyone traveling to a strange place. Now, that being said, my husband did find this Million Dollar trip that took a person all over the world a week here and a week there, in the top 10 best safari's and sites ever dreamt of. This did not last for an entire year however. But if we are daydreaming then I would say that would be my dream of choice. Unless you are going to live in one place and really experience a culture, I think one year is too long. I have lived in several different countries as well as visited and I can say that living in a place is far better than visiting for long term trips.
     
  13. wander_n_wonder

    wander_n_wonderActive Member

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    If given a chance, I would! I think it's good to really discover the world while you are still young. However, I think before I do that, I will look for work which I can do online so that even when I'm roaming around, I can actually still earn money to be able to sustain my trips. Life is not that easy anymore and I don't think I can afford not to have a job for about a year.
     
  14. deathbyprayer

    deathbyprayerActive Member

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    I would love to do that, but the thing is, do you have the money to do that? Travelling is expensive and also a bit risky to say the least, but if I where to be given the chance I would definitely take it, you're life is too short to stay crammed inside your office.
     
  15. whnuien

    whnuienActive Member

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    Some of my friends had taken a year off of work after working for few years to go and travel. I was honestly jealous but I wasn't a person who can work all year without a holiday. So I took a work and travel route but I only did for few countries as I had to live for a year in each country.

    I really would love to do it again but I have a lovely young baby now, so I won't probably get the chance for a while until she's old enough.
     
  16. Thejamal

    ThejamalActive Member

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    I'd love to do this, but I'd think itd be pretty rare circumstances for me where I could actually go and do it. Especially in today's job market, you can't exactly give up any job really to go take a year off just to travel. If I somehow had a good amount of savings, and a job I could come back to after a year, then I would absolutely go ahead and try to see the world a bit. Maybe just start small and going somewhere for a few weeks would be a more realistic possibility.
     
  17. Strykstar

    StrykstarActive Member

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    Job safety is an issue when doing this, as you never know whether you have a job to return to, but let's say you just got unemployed and have a decent amount of savings set aside, then it could be a good idea to try this, if you choose the countries you travel through wisely, your money can last you a long time, as most countries aren't too expensive.
     
  18. Dora M

    Dora MWell-Known Member

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    I am doing it right now. I am already one month into my new life of adventure on a different continent. :) It has taken me three years to make it possible, and I am glad I held out that long, because this experience is amazing. I already feel that I can never go back again to my old life, and that everything is going to change for me in the near future.
    The truth is that there is nothing much to go back to as I sold up everything and just left.
     
  19. 003

    003Well-Known Member

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    No, I don't! First, I can't! I don't have financial capacity and security for that. Also, I simply feel like having a year off is like wasting a time if it would only be for vacation. A year is too much and from it basically a lot would be stalled. Time is very important to spend that long just for leisure.
     
  20. davbopol13

    davbopol13Active Member

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    I have been researching just this topic. My husband and I are going to be going full time in out rv soon! One of the ways to make mney while doing this is the internet. You just have to be careful about the scams. If it sounds too good to be true it probably is! Another way to do this is to join Workamping.com, this site alows it's members to find work at the camp ground they plan to visit!! Freedom here we come!:eek: