For those of you who don’t know me, I’m Aly! I’m a full-time solo traveller from Canada and I’ve started this blog (with this being my first post, YAY) in order to share all my knowledge and expertise. Travel is my happy place, and I want to be able to help others find the same! Travel is for everyone, and lots of people just need a little help getting started. That’s what I’m here for. So expect lots of advice, tips, tricks, stories and laughs from my blog. Loads of knowledge has come with this weird life I live, and I’m going to be sharing it all here. So excited to have you along for the journey!

My love for travel started at seventeen, when I moved to Argentina alone to do a medical internship (at one point in life I thought I was going to be a doctor, but that’s a story for a different day). Shortly after, I went on a backpacking trip through Costa Rica, Panama, Nicaragua and Peru where I fell in love with travel life. Travelling solo around the world became my number one goal in life.

At the time, I had already applied to university, been accepted and paid my deposit. I reluctantly came home from working in Nicaragua (more on that will be coming in another article) and got ready to start my four year degree. I won’t lie, had my parents not REALLY wanted me to get my degree I probably wouldn’t have come back. Looking back, I’m glad I did (obviously my parents were right, they always are). It’s been super helpful in finding jobs while travelling and a degree is of course never a bad thing. For most of my university career I was just counting down the days until I could get out and travel again. 

I left Canada again after finishing university for my first teaching abroad job in Thailand. I was meant to be gone for about eight months, and three years later I’m still travelling with zero intentions of stopping any time soon. The main question I get asked is how in the world I live the life I do. Everyone thought I’d be home in less than a year, and yet I’m still out here exploring the globe. So, let’s talk about how I actually sustain this lifestyle I live.

Full-time travel does not equal constant a holiday with no responsibilities.

First things first, I work while I travel. Lots of people think I’m just on a constant holiday, I most definitely am not. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy my time but there is a balance between work and play. If you want to travel full-time (I’m talking years at a time) you of course need money and I personally need some purpose. I get super bored if I’m not working, and I like feeling some sense of accomplishment. I’ve had both in person jobs as well as online jobs. I’ve volunteered, I’ve worked as a math teacher in a primary school, I ran hostels for awhile, I’ve taught English online, worked as a graphic designer, and the list goes on. 

These days I personally prefer online jobs, as they allow me to be wherever whenever. The digital nomad life is just so convenient for me. I’m not a big fan of location requirements and I personally work best from home. Online jobs are the perfect solution for me. There are loads of ways to find these opportunities, and I’ll be posting some articles about this in the future! Working while you travel will be super important to avoid burnout. I’ll also be talking about solo travel budgeting in future articles, so there’s lots of great content on the way!

Waiting to find a travel partner can be like waiting for rain during a drought.

Trust me, I understand how scary solo travel can be. Sometimes I even still get nervous and that’s okay! If I had waited until I had someone to go with I’d probably still be at home. Travelling solo is a whole different experience as well, you’re forced out of your comfort zone and you’ll end up meeting so many more people. I’m also very independent, and I prefer to be able to do what I want and when I want. Sometimes travelling with others (especially friends) can be complicated too. For me, solo travel means my life is exactly what I want it to be. No having to worry about other people, I’m living life for me! 

Most important thing to remember is it isn’t about going when you feel fully ready, it’s about going even though it scares the shit out of you. The truth is you’re not alone, there’s so many other people feeling the exact same way. You will undoubtedly find each other while you’re travelling, so just do it! If you want to solo travel but you’re feeling nervous about meeting people or hostel life isn’t for you, check out this article.

Full-time travel is a marathon, not a sprint.

This next one is an important one, especially for anyone wanting to travel long-term. I am a slow traveller and I don’t go to a new destination every few days. This is great if you have limited time and loads to see, but long term this is EXHAUSTING and you will get burnt out and fast. It’s also just not my favorite way to travel personally, as I feel you miss out on things. 

I ideally try to stay a minimum of a month in a place to really get the full experience. This way, I can settle into a bit of a routine (something you will appreciate during long-term travel) and I can really get to know the place. The longer you stay the more things you get to see and you’ll find things that tourists wouldn’t normally. I like to find a mix between the typical tourist things and hidden gems, and these take time to find. The other benefit is you’ll make friends and actually get to spend time with them. When you’re constantly moving, part of that process is leaving behind all the amazing people you meet just when you’re starting to get close. Staying for awhile allows you to build genuine connections and really get to know people. Again, travelling burnout is real and if you really want to build a life of travel you have to find ways to make it sustainable.

It is essential to find a balance in your travel life just like you did in your life at home.

Last thing I think is super important but often overlooked is your mindset. This is my life. Just like you wake up and go to work everyday I wake up and travel. If I treat this as a vacation where I’m trying to do everything and anything and not doing anything productive, I’m gonna be sick of it and fast. I’m not out every single night, I have to work which means I miss out on things sometimes and I don’t spend money like it’s Monopoly money. I find a routine, cook meals at home, have lots of nights in and make sure I have balance in my life.

Lots of people think the only reason people don’t travel full-time is money, and that’s not true! Full-time travel is not easy. There are lots of solo travelling challenges I face, and it’s all part of the experience. While I love it and I don’t want to stop, it isn’t something that just happened. I worked hard to be here and stay here. Sustainability is key in building a full-time travelling life.

So there’s my advice for creating a sustainable full-time travel life! Do you practice these same things? Is there anything else super important you would add to the list? Let me know in the comments! Don’t forget you can always reach out with any travel related questions on my Instagram (@travellingaly). I’ve learned most lessons the hard way and made enough mistakes for a lifetime, so I’m happy to share my expertise to make your travel life a little easier. I also share lots of travelling alone tips and solo travel experiences there. See you in the next article.