We saved £30,000 for our first RTW trip and it was hard. Like titanium alloy hard. Titanium alloy edged with diamonds hard. We swore that we’d never be that frugal again – what possible reason could anyone have for putting themselves through such an ordeal TWICE?
Six months after the end of our last amazing trip we were at it again.
There’s a travel bug going around and we got a bad case of it. We wanted more – we wanted to do it forever and we wanted to start immediately. So we reduced our living expenses right down and managed to live off just 25% of our combined salaries, sending the other seventy-five percent straight to our savings accounts.
This time, we managed to save over £23,000 in just 9 months and it really wasn’t that bad. Having had a taste of what’s out there, owning an iPod Touch suddenly doesn’t seem as important as getting to the party capital of Brazil.
We aren’t rich by any stretch. We both earned below average salaries for the UK, but we chose to prioritise travel over buying ‘stuff’ and spending money on big nights out. Many people say they want to travel but they can’t afford it. We think everyone can if they want it enough. It may take some people longer than others, and you’ll have to make sacrifices, but the trick is simple – start saving now!
We are Simon Fairbairn &