Good news! You don’t have to work 9-5 and stay in one location to have a full-time job anymore! Building a traveling career is now more possible than ever.
Technology has opened up so many opportunities to work abroad, to the point where oftentimes the only thing really stopping you from a traveling career is not knowing what’s available out there and avoiding to make the jump.
When abroad, you’ll be experiencing new things and find yourself out of your comfort zone more often than not. Even still, you want to feel somewhat comfortable and make sure the country you’re staying in meets your basic needs, so that you can focus on your work all the while experiencing something new.
If you get the opportunity to choose where you want to go for your traveling career, consider these aspects to help you decide on your first destination.
PS. For each of the following aspects, I go into MUCH more detail on my email newsletter, and in my Ultimate Guide To Growing Your Career Through Remote Work & Travel, which you can get by subscribing below this text.
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How to Choose Your First Destination for your Traveling Career
Budget Requirements
One of the biggest deal breakers for travellers when they are choosing their travel destination is money. A plane ticket and travel insurance are usually the first large expenses, yet what gets expensive over the long run are the day-to-day costs of the places you are living in. Therefore it’s especially important to make sure the country’s cost of living fits your budget.
Numbeo ranks countries from the highest cost of living index to the lowest every year. You can even compare indexes based on specific countries in the world.
If you are planning a roadtrip, costs can rack up pretty quickly as well. The Michelin Guide can help calculate exactly what those costs will look like in gas, tolls and other car-related expenses.
Existing Revenue Sources
Will you be keeping your job, or finding new ones on the road? If you are planning to keep your job, there’s a lot to prep ahead of time, and you should still save up enough in case there are obstacles down the road. A bad internet connection can make an employer quickly second guess their choice of letting you travel and work remotely.
If you do plan on leaving your job, do you have the necessary mix of skillsets, knowledge and network to ensure you find other opportunities? These types of opportunities are available as a freelancer, in work exchanges, or potentially even with the company you are already working with.
Still unsure if you are going on the road? Here are all the things to think about before quitting your job.
Climate & Time of Year
Climate can make or break your decision-making. For example, if you are looking for a warm and sunny country, you definitely don’t want to travel to Norway in the fall time. Thankfully, the official CIA website has a list of each country and their climate based on each season. Check out this list to find the perfect country for your climate preferences.
Treatment of Women & Human Rights
If you are a woman who is planning on starting a traveling career, this point is especially crucial to consider. Many countries don’t have the same rights for women that the U.S. does which could alter your experience. Forbes ranked the top 20 best countries for women based on equality in pay, laws, and treatment. Make sure you do your research on this topic and pick a country that you’ll find enjoyable to live in.
Dietary Needs
Another important need to consider when you are picking your next travel destination is dietary needs. If you are a vegetarian or have allergies, you want to make sure the country you visit has food options for you. The World Atlas ranked the top 10 countries for vegetarianism based on the number of vegetarians in the country. This might be a helpful resource if you fall into this category.
Language Barriers
The first and most important aspect to consider when you are choosing your first travel destination is whether there will be a language barrier. If you don’t speak a foreign language conversationally, it can be difficult to get around a new country with little to no knowledge of its native tongue. Language barriers can be especially difficult if your traveling career involves interacting with locals. However, you shouldn’t get discouraged by language barriers. You can still travel to awesome places where people don’t speak English. You just have to be ready to work hard to learn their language while you are there.
If you want to skip the language barriers and travel to an English-speaking country, you are in luck. Nations Online lists which countries speak English as a first, second, or even third language. It also lists countries that primarily speak Chinese, Spanish, Arabic, Portuguese, French and German. If you have a specific country in mind, Internet World Stats gives a list of each country and what languages are spoken there.
For those who are dead set on going to a non-English-speaking country, there are many apps and websites that can help you start learning now. Rosetta Stone is a great website that gives you daily lessons in whatever language you want to learn. You can practice listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills in any language through Rosetta Stone. The only downside is that this language learning tool costs $7 a month for a 24-month subscription.
On the plus side, there are many free language learning tools out there that are just as effective as Rosetta Stone. The best one is Duolingo, an app that lets you practice a variety of languages on a daily basis. It gives you short daily lessons where you learn minimal vocabulary and grammar, but it’s a great way to get you started. It’s how I’m learning Chinese!
Cultural Barriers
Cultural barriers can stunt a good experience in a foreign country. If you decided to travel somewhere that either speaks no English or very little English, it is more likely that you will also encounter many cultural barriers. A good way to avoid this is to travel to a country that closely mirrors American culture so you’re more accustomed to certain customs and standards of the country. Some good countries to visit that fit this category if you want to travel outside of your comfort zone are France, Italy, Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, and more. The U.S. Department of State lists all the western countries in the world on their official website. You have many options for travel destinations if you want a place with a culture similar to that of America.
If you’re looking for a different cultural experience, check out the Cultural Atlas online. This website sheds light on the cultures of major world countries including Vietnam, South Africa, Samoa, and more. Wherever you choose to travel to, make sure you read up on the cultural norms of the country so you’re well prepared.
Another way to see how the cultures work is to use applications like Hoppin’ World, which allow you to travel virtually with other people using VR headsets.
Safety Warnings (aka COVID19 these days)
Regardless of where you want to travel, you need to check out if that country has a travel warning set on it by the U.S. Department of State. It has a website where you can check out all of the travel warnings set by the U.S. around the world. Your top priority while traveling abroad is to make sure you are always safe, and the best way to do that is to avoid countries that the U.S. has declared unsafe for travel. Sure, you can still venture to these locations even if there is a travel warning set on them. But the travel warnings are just to let you know the level of safety of a particular country at the time being.
You should feel comfortable at your first destination for your traveling career, especially if it is the first time you will be living abroad alone. You should choose a country that is safe for Americans to travel to, but don’t let this limit your options either. The most important aspect is to be aware and informed of the area you are traveling to before you leave.
Your first destination for your traveling career should be special, exactly what you are looking for, and a place you feel comfortable with. Consider these three important aspects when choosing your first place to start, and you will be guaranteed an amazing beginning.
Speed of Travel
Are you going to be traveling to a new country every week, month or year?
After over 4 years on the road, I’ve come to the conclusion slow travel is the best type of travel.
Slow travel involves finding 2-3 month sublets, airbnb, house sits or other alternative opportunities that keep you traveling without having the high costs and distractions that come with always being on the run.
PS. Interested in a slow travel trip? Subscribe to my newsletter and once you receive an email reply directly – I would be happy to help you brainstorm your slow travel trip!
Work & Living Visas For Traveling Career
Some countries are much easier to work in than others.
For example if you are under 30, the Youth Mobility Visa gives you access to work all across the Schengen region of Europe (30+ countries!).
If you are in South East Asia, you can do what we affectingly call ‘Visa Runs’ where you leave the country for a few days every 3-6 months.
Situations like the one mentioned above involves essentially keeping your work under the table and keeping your residence back home while working from everywhere else around the world. As a freelancer, this makes is easier as you don’t have to deal with applying for work visas each time. It also means you still have to pay tax back home at the end of the year though!
For info on every country in the world, here is a Work Visa map I created to help you out (its completely free so let me know if you enjoy it and please share it with anyone else who needs the knowledge as well.
I’ve also put together a Best Resources List which has a lot of the links within this article, as well as many others that have helped me multiple times before.
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Until Next Time!
Joaquim Miro from The Alternative Ways
