Taking off Travel blog

Today I am excited to introduce Jeanne Dee of Soultravelers3, one of my favorite travel people. When I started reading travel blogs, I was immediately inspired by the story of these 3 nomads, so it’s a particular thrill for me to feature her in this series of travel blogger profiles. Over to you, Jeanne.

The Soultravelers3 in Colmar, France

What’s your travel background?

I’ve traveled my whole life to over 80 countries and the last 6 years we have been on an open-ended non-stop family world journey to 43 countries on 5 continents together so far. My father, grand father and great grand father were all big travelers as are my siblings and mother  so I come by  adventuring and globe trotting naturally. I think travel is the best education so wanted to pass these experiences onto my child by traveling as a family. She took her first trip and stayed in her first hotel at 2 weeks old and we started our world tour when she was 5.

What’s different about your blog or site?

What is unique about our blog, soultravelers3 family travel, is we  are the first family to travel the world non-stop and blog about our experiences. We are pioneers in the around -the-world, “digital nomad”, “location independent”, “travel lifestyle”  movement and one of the fist travel blogs to exist. In both the traveling world and the travel blogging world, 6 years is a very long time.

We are case studies in the mega hits Four Hour Work Week and The Art of Non-Conformity and we were on our world tour long before they wrote either book. We’ve traveled over 200,00 miles over land, been completely around the world, traveled by car, plane, sailboat, train, cargo ship, camel, bikes, RV etc, stayed in everything from a Berber tent in the Sahara, to couchsurfing in Bora Bora to luxury hotels in Butan , Jordan, Singapore, Sydney, San Francisco etc, so have acquired an amazing amount of travel experience.

We travel the world for much less than we lived at home, so demonstrate the many advantages as we live them. We travel and live large on just $23/day per person and have for 6 years, including expensive places like Bora Bora and Norway and long stays in Europe.

We’re also monolinguals raising a trilingual/triliterate child ( in Mandarin/Spanish/English) and educating our school age child as we roam the world via local schools and eclectic homeschool, so probably more experienced than anyone on raising a  polyglot global kid through “world schooling”. Thus we blog about these experiences and how we have found travel to be the best education as well as more time to bond as a family.

We’ve got amazing photos and are one of the very few travel bloggers to have had several YouTube viral travel videos and asked to be partners with YouTube. ( Our very first YouTube video went viral with 2 million views). We’re the only blog that won two Lonely Planet Best Travel Blog awards, we’ve been featured in the New York Times, the BBC world wide TV and in much national and international media. National Geographic called us “One of the best family  travel blogs in cyber space”.

What’s the most unexpected thing that has ever happened to you when you travelled and how did you handle it?

On a lovely day biking the Danube with my family in the stunning wine roads and river cruise area of Austria near Melk, on our 19th wedding anniversary, I crashed and severely broke my dominant right arm, needing an ambulance and surgery with pins and rod,  in a hospital where almost no one spoke English. To top it off, my broken humerus bone cut my radial nerve ( typical with this rare kind of break because it wraps around this bone on its journey from neck to hand) and left me with a totally paralyzed arm for over a year.

Most people probably would have ended their travel and certainly put their blog on hiatus at such a tragedy, but we thought it best to stay in Europe and despite the extreme pain and long rehabilitation ( in several countries) we kept to our usual motto that if there is a will, there is a way. It did slow us down, but we found a way around every challenge, including me learning to type one handed with my left hand for over a year to keep up with the blog.

Complete the sentence: I never travel without …  because …

I never travel without my Mac laptop because it’s the key to our travel lifestyle that allows me to stay in touch with family, blog, school, etc where ever we are in the world.

When it comes to travel and travel blogging, who is your mentor/hero and why?

When I started travel blogging in 2006, I was not aware of any other travel bloggers doing it. Almost all travel bloggers and digital nomads came later. I remember 2008 starting the trend when many started doing it after the economic crash.

When we began we named several folks on our blog who inspired us like pioneers of perpetual travel, Vicky and Paul Terhorst ( who wrote the book Cashing in on the American Dream and retired at 35 and started non-stop travel 25 years ago). We also admired a French family and an English family ( the Drapers who we met in person)  who did long term travel using an RV and early retirees Billy and Akaisha Kanderli  and Reads on the Road ( who traveled  by caravan in Europe for two years). Rolf Potts’ Vagabonding book was an inspiration as well. All demonstrated that world long term travel could be done on a low budget. Families on the Road was also a help, although most at that time were RV families in the US.

No one was doing what we wanted to do, but each of these gave us inspiration and ideas to form our plan.

What place is on your travel bucket list? Why?

Long stays and deep explorations of Africa and South America have always been high on our list, but we just haven’t made it there yet as we are focused on deep language immersion in Mandarin and Spanish first, while our child is young enough to make that easiest. We’ve done most other regions but we want to do lots more of Asia this year. We will do more of the USA at some point.

What is your favourite travel planning tool?

I don’t really have one, I just use the  internet and books when I find them and talk to other travelers a lot. I suppose talking to “locals” and insiders who have a similar taste to us is my best tool and often that is done online including through crowd sourcing via our social media channels like Twitter and Facebook or our blog. I am writing this from St Augustine, Florida and we came here because people from our blog, social media and in person, highly recommended it.

Anything to add?

Travel with your children, it really is the best education and our future  21st century global citizens will be so enriched by it and get a head start in life. It is easier and cheaper than most people realize and the key is to travel slowly and live like a native.

Remember that all the studies show that what makes people happy is experiences and connections, not stuff, so go for it as life is short and meant to be lived fully.

Travel light and live a minimalist life. We all need so much less than we think and that gives us so much more freedom. We just went completely around the world to 26 airports over a year and just took one small carry-on piece of luggage each with us. We’re doing a similar trip this year and taking even less. It’s truly a myth that families can’t travel light.

Languages…give your children the gift of languages when they are young. It’s one of the only free lunches on the planet and slow travel makes this very easy.

If you are on a low budget think  about teaching English abroad and bringing your family  or do a winter in a Spanish speaking country.

Be your own hero and know there are no limits in life. Teach your children the same. Don’t ever buy into the lie that travel is expensive because it doesn’t have to be. The best things in life are free!

Thanks for your insights, Jeanne.

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Today, I’m pleased to feature Andy Hayes, aka That Travel Guy, in our series of travel blogger profiles. I’m a big fan of Andy’s approach to the travel business. As well as Sharing Travel Experiences, his Travel Online Partners site is a great resource for travel industry professionals. Over to you, Andy.

Andy Hayes waterfall hiking on the border between Asheville, North Carolina and Greenville, South Carolina.

Andy, what’s your travel background?

Well, my travel days (daze?) started out when I was in the software industry.  As a niche consultant for a large software company, I traveled on average about 250k miles a year.  (In case you weren’t sure, yes, that is a LOT.  Two flights a week on average.)  Can’t say I’d ever be in a hurry to repeat those years, but I learned an awful lot about the sorry state of the traveling public, how to pack a carryon like a ninja, every frequent flyer mile and seating trick in the book, and what airports have decent food options (answer: none).

My later years in that industry I slowed down the travel quite a bit – by intention – and about 4 years ago I left that world to start my own business, focused exclusively on the travel/tourism industry.

What’s different about your blog or site?

From the beginning, I’ve always been focused on the experiences.  Travel itself is an experience and some of the most amazing travels experiences I’ve had are just the simple things – a sunset here, wine and dessert there, a hike with a view.  That’s how the site got its name, Sharing Travel Experiences.

These days we’re also talking about value luxury – about how to upgrade your travels and make yourself feel a little more special while still sticking to a budget.

What’s the most unexpected thing that has ever happened to you when you travelled and how did you handle it?

Hmm.  How about that time I got hit by a car in Amsterdam?  No worries – I was fine – the bike took much of the blunt, and thankfully I had a friend who was waiting on me and came to my rescue when I texted her!  It was a reminder that bad stuff can really happy on a trip so you need to be able to compose yourself and always have a line to a friend who can help.

Complete the sentence: I never travel without … because …

I never travel without my running shoes, because fitness is so important to me.  (Plus it’s a great way to fight fatigue and jet lag.)

When it comes to travel and travel blogging, who is your mentor/hero and why?

Without question, Chris Guillebeau.  He understands business, he understands travel, and he not only is trying to change the world but also help others do the same too.

What place is on your travel bucket list? Why?

Victoria Falls.  I love waterfalls but this one is the largest – like a huge chasm in the earth’s crust, with a huge river running right into it.

What is your favourite travel planning tool?

Google.  You can get to almost everything you need from blog post trip reports, restaurant recs, photos, video.  (Mr. Google is not always right, but it’s certainly a good start.)

Anything to add?

You know it’s funny but now that I have my smartphone (an iPhone, of course), I cannot imagine traveling without it.  Whether it’s the phone, the notepad, or useful maps and apps, it’s just such a useful tool.  Once you get used to it, you can’t go without!

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Next up in our series of travel blogger profiles is Marina Villatoro. Marina’s best known for her expert views on Central American and Latin American travel through the Travel Experta blog. Of the bloggers featured so far, Marina started traveling the earliest – she was a babe in arms when she took her first trip!

Marina and family after completing a canopy tour.

Marina, what’s your travel background?

I’ve been traveling since I was born. I took my first plane ride at 3 weeks old. However, the travels I remember started when I was in high school through Europe, Canada, Mexico, Caribbean and Israel, and then a study abroad program in England, to many cross country trips of the US, until my main gap year and half when I hopped on a bus in NYC and headed all the way down to Argentina and Chile. In total I’ve been to over 36 countries, and counting.

Now my travels are mainly with my family around Central America and the US.

What’s different about your blog or site?

My blog, Travel Experta, is a bit different because I focus on Central America and Latin America. Few travel blogs are so specific and niche. With that I am able to provide more help to readers that have these destinations in mind. I focus on everything about this region from what to do, where to stay, for families and couples and everything in between.

What’s the most unexpected thing that has ever happened to you when you travelled and how did you handle it?

The most unexpected and life-changing for me was when I crossed over the border of Belize to Tikal, Guatemala and found myself camping next to a young Guatemalan. One thing led to another and we have been married for 8 years, with 2 amazing boys and I have been living my dream of being an expat!

Never in my wildest dreams did I think I’d meet my husband camping in the middle of a jungle.

What do you ALWAYS travel with?

My laptop! Unfortunately and actually very fortunately, my business is 100% location independent, so I can work from anywhere. But that also means not going anywhere without my computer.

What place is on your travel bucket list? Why?

I focus on realistic bucket lists. For instance, I know that in the next several years I won’t make it to India, since I prefer to do that when my kids are older.

So my bucket list for now is in the areas that I know I will have a chance to visit. For now, I really really want to go over Mirador Mayan ruins in a helicopter. You can’t get there the conventional way, but either by helicopter or on a mule. I’ll skip the mule!

What is your favourite travel planning tool?

Myself! I am an addict to planning my trips. It’s one of my bigger joys before going! I just sit on the computer and read all I can from every site possible, and do a bit of cross checking with guide books. But I find guidebooks to be bad and unhelpful. That’s why I’m actually creating guidebooks for families to make it so much easier to plan, especially with kids.

Anything to add?

The reason I started blogging, way back when, was to inspire people to travel with their families to the not-so conventional places. And over the years showing my family in the different spots of the world, doing tours and other fun stuff has helped my readers also take trips with their families, which is super!

I hope more people realize how ABSOLUTELY important it is for kids to travel, it opens their minds and makes them global citizens without discrimination and judgements!

Thanks, Marina. I totally agree with you about the importance of travel for kids.

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Lea Woodward’s in the spotlight today as part of our series of travel blogger profiles. Moving beyond travel, Lea embodies the life of a location independent entrepreneur and has run multiple businesses from far-flung locations.

Lea and her husband, Jonathan, visiting the cheetah sanctuary in the Western Cape, South Africa.

Lea, what’s your travel background?

I’ve travelled for as long as I can remember. Growing up in the UK with my father in Hong Kong, I was a frequent flyer from the age of 5. My brother and I were lucky to travel as a family with my father around Asia and with my mother around Europe. My first solo trip was a 6 week inter-railing trip around Europe to France, Spain, Austria, the Czech Republic, Hungary and more. Since then, I’ve made a round-the-world trip, taken a 3 month sabbatical to Australia and New Zealand and, as a location independent entrepreneur, lived and run my business from Panama, Buenos Aires, Grenada, Toronto, South Africa, Thailand, Turkey and more. So you could say I’m quite a keen traveller

What’s different about your blog or site?

Which one? Our online business is focused around a single mission: to help creative entrepreneurs become pioneers of their own lives. We do this by publishing digital resources, running skill-building group courses and professional services. One of our earliest sites, Location Independent, was the first of its kind and is till known as a “go to” resource for the live & work anywhere work style. There are a few things which set us apart – we’re a husband and wife team, we run our business from wherever we are and we truly have multiple income streams from digital products, to professional services, to selling physical goods.

What’s the most unexpected thing that has ever happened to you when you travelled and how did you handle it?

The most unexpected incident was probably being mugged by a group of 10 year old girls outside Nice train station.

A group of young girls crowded round me asking for money and holding out a piece of paper in front of them, asking me to read it. I tried to push them away but they kept swarming round me and pawing at me, asking me to read this sign and surrounding me, despite the best efforts of my girlfriends to help push them away.

After a couple of minutes I felt a small tugging on the security money pouch I was wearing (but hadn’t had time to tuck away properly – duh!). I looked down and as I did the kids scarpered having clearly been rumbled. I noticed the zip was open about an inch and was convinced they couldn’t have taken much from such a small opening. They’d actually snaffled around $200.

I didn’t handle it very well – I burst into tears and sobbed for a good half hour! But fortunately I had my two best girlfriends there to give me hugs and moral support. I then called my Dad who promptly transferred the money I’d been robbed of back into my account!

Complete the sentence: I never travel without … because …

I never travel without a digital camera which is obviously used for travel photos but also because it’s useful to keep digital copies of important documents with you.

When it comes to travel and travel blogging, who is your mentor/hero and why?

I don’t follow many travel blogs and I tend to subscribe and unsubscribe based upon changing interests and travel destinations. A current favourite is Hidden Europe.

What place is on your travel bucket list? Why?

Japan. Despite the recent nuclear issues, I’ve heard that culturally and socially, it’s unlike any other place. Despite having travelled around a lot of Asia, I believe Japan is a whole different experience and I’d love to immerse myself in it.

What is your favourite travel planning tool?

The internet!! More specifically, I like tools like Skyscanner which let you scan all budget European flights on one site. I also think Twitter is excellent for asking your followers for tips – some of the best destination tips have come from my Twitter friends.

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Today, I’m happy to feature Annabel Candy of Get in the Hot Spot to kick off our series of travel blogger profiles. As you’ll see, Annabel has been a nomad since the age of 2 and hasn’t stopped traveling since!

Wedding in Vanautu: Annabel and family

Annabel, what’s your travel background?

When I was two my parents started sending me on holiday with another family every summer. I grew up in the UK and we only went to the English seaside so it wasn’t very exotic but I still think my taste for travel started there. When I was older we started going overseas for our holidays and by the time I was 18 all I really knew I wanted to do was see the world. Ever since then I’ve mostly been travelling. I’ve lived and worked in England, France, the USA, Laos PDR, New Zealand, Costa Rica and we moved to Australia two years ago. I’ve visited more than 40 countries but  there are plenty more I still want to see.

What’s different about your blog or site?

Get In the Hot Spot’s a travel blog for adventurous travel lovers and other writers. The goal is to entertain my readers, make them smile and ultimately inspire them to go off on, or write about, their own adventures. As well as sharing travel stories I also publish personal writing that resonates with busy women and mothers.

What’s the most unexpected thing that has ever happened to you when you travelled and how did you handle it?

One time I was hitchhiking in Tunisia with two friends. We were in the middle of no where. I can just remember this long straight dusty road stretching off into the desert as far as the eye could see. There was barely any traffic but after a while a police man turned up from nowhere. We thought he was going to tell us to get lost or arrest us but he just shook his head and hung around with us. He didn’t speak English and we didn’t speak Arabic so we really had no idea why he was there. We just managed to explain to him with sign language where we were going. At last a car came by and the policeman flagged it down, had a word with the driver and told him to take us to our destination. It all goes to show you should never expect the worst of people. Most people really want to help you when you travel and make sure you get a good impression of their country.

Complete the sentence: I never travel without … because …

I never travel without a good book, a diary and my camera because you’ll never be bored if you’ve got them to entertain you and you’ll go home with some great stories and photos too.

When it comes to travel and travel blogging, who is your mentor/hero and why?

I like Peter Moore. He’s an Australia travel writer who’s had some grand adventures. His books and blog posts always make me laugh.

I like Irish travel writer Dervla Murphy too. She has a much more mellow writing style but she doesn’t blog and she’s not on Twitter which is a real shame. To be fair though she is over 70!

What place is on your travel bucket list? Why?

We really want to go to Tanzania because we want to take our three kids ((now aged 13, 10 and 6) on an African safari. We recently spent 18 months in Central America and we all love wildlife. It’s such a privilege to see monkeys, sloths and toucans in the wild. Now we’d like to show the kids the African wildlife and lifestyle too. My husband grew up in Kenya so he has old friends there and in Tanzania. A place with amazing wildlife and gorgeous beaches is our idea of heaven so I hope we get to spend six months in Tanzania before our oldest grows up and doesn’t want to travel with us anymore. We’re saving up for it!

What is your favorite travel planning tool?

I’m a fiend for planning so I try to get all the guide books I can lay my hands on and will spend hours and hours researching on the internet. We use CheapoAir to book our flights. All that planning is a waste of time in the end because the best thing to do is just get somewhere with no plans. Walk everywhere so you get to know the place properly and ask the locals for help and advice. I always make an effort to get to grips with the basics of the local language and CDs and Podcasts are best for that. Benny the Irish Ploygot has the great language learning tips.

Final thoughts?

It’s amazing what you can pick up on your travels. I met my husband 20 years ago when travelling in the Sinai in Egypt. The photo shows us getting married in Vanuatu four years ago with our three kids in tow.

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