How a Family Spent a Year Traveling - Travel Like Anna

Saving money on family spent year traveling does not need to be complicated. Here is a clear, no nonsense rundown of what works and how to make the most of it.

Key Takeaways

•   In Sucre, Bolivia, I bumped into the McGuinness family at breakfast at our hostel.
• I was instantly inspired by their story - a family of four traveling together for a year!
• How far in advance did you begin planning your year abroad?
• Over the next few months, I kept my eyes open for a house.

Where the Real Savings Hide

Cath shares all the details of their trip including finances, their teenage daughters’ school schedule and excellent advice for all travelers!  Name: The McGuinness Family: Rob (age 52), Cath (age 50), Beth (age 16), and Megs (age 14) (Cath is a General Practitioner, and Rob is an Urban Designer.) Hometown: Truro, Cornwall SW England Blog: https://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog/mcgrtwtrip/1/tpod.html 1. Worth noting: four years ago, Rob and I had a conversation in the truck on the method home [to England] from a excellent camping holiday in France saying, “Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could travel for a year?” We realized there was one specific year when it worked with the girls’ school - September 2014.

• We just needed money.
• We found a tiny, basic two-bedroom cottage, which we liked a lot and had potential.
• More importantly, large decision to purchase it and sell our main house, but we eventually took the plunge and bought.
• It took two years to sell our main house, which was a disaster.

A Closer Look at Family Spent Year Traveling

It was a massive financial struggle, renting out the cottage, both having to work 60-70 hours per week, but eventually, we bought our rucksacks and boots, booked our tickets in early September 2014 and were going! The McGuinness Family at the Excellent Barrier Reef in Australia (All photographs courtesy of the McGuinness family.) 2.

• Remember that what was your route on the trip?
• Our flights took us through Greece (island hopping to get into the backpacking routine), then to India (mainly Rajasthan), on to Nepal and the Annapurna circuit, Hong Kong for a few days, and then, Australia in a camper van down the East Coast to Melbourne.
• We went onward to New Zealand, then flew throughout to Chile, Bolivia and Peru, before flying up to the California coast, and the final five days in the Large Apple - New York - before arriving home in June 2015.
• Our trip was cut short due to issues with my work, but in the end, that turned out to be a solid aspect.

What to Know About Family Spent Year Traveling

As a rule, we were traveled out after ten months, I think. It felt right to be going home.

• Left: Beginning out on the Annapurna trek in Nepal; Right: A wild river crossing on the trek.
• Share one of your travel highlights.
• In short, there were highlights and low lights - highlights were to me, the camel trek overnight in the desert in Rajasthan - wonderful.
• I’ll at no point forget the laughs we had on those camels, the wonderful guides and herders - so helpful and kind; watching them cook from nothing, producing the most impressive meal as the night fell over the sand and sleeping under the stars.

How Family Spent Year Traveling Really Works

Some of the treks in New Zealand were genuinely beautiful, and as a family, we worked genuinely well together when there was something active going on. Learning to dive on the Excellent Barrier Reef.

• Worth noting: the Salkantay trek in Peru to Machu Picchu was also a real highlight.
• Favorite cities were New York, Sydney and San Francisco.
• Don’t miss staying in Undarra near Cairns and visiting the lava tubes if you’re close!
• Lows were hitting the blizzard on the Annapurna circuit, which killed some 200 people - we were half method up when it hit and had to turn near from our trek.

Getting the Most From Family Spent Year Traveling

More importantly, it genuinely was an education to see and hear the stories of fellow trekkers that had been caught right in the storm and sad to see the terrible losses of foreigners and Nepalese. With the assist of friends back home, Cath and Rob made sure their daughters Beth, age 16, and Megs, age 14, did not fall behind in their education while traveling.

• They planned the trip according to their daughters’ school schedules.
• How did you manage your daughters’ education/school schedule during the trip?
• Remember that education was straightforward in some methods - I did the sciences, math and French.
• Rob did geography and history, and a friend of ours, who teaches English, helped us with that online.

Tips That Make a Difference

We had little assist from [Megs’] old school regarding the curriculum. She certainly wasn’t behind when we got back.

• As a rule, for Beth, we worked through some of her math, she did geography with Rob and French by herself (unsuccessfully).
• The difficult bit about home education whilst travelling was that you’re moving near all the time so there is no routine, and Wi-Fi is highly, and, I mean, highly variable.
• The main part of our work was done in Australia and New Zealand when we had a car or camper.
• The moving near was easier, and we could organize lesson times more simply and still see what we wanted.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

In short, we had to be genuinely strict about it at times, and there were arguments, but overall, it went well considering the circumstances. It was hard sometimes for them to see the relevance of some subjects but on the other hand - why just read about glaciers, volcanoes and lava tubes if you can walk up them?

• See the effects of earthquakes in Christchurch?
• Learn about our part in the history of Sydney, the silver mines in Bolivia and its’ relationship to the American dollar, and checking out buildings built by the Incas in Peru?
• Worth noting: and, also learning about people near the world, different cultures and different languages.
• Our girls saw poverty, struggle and disease.  People coping with those lives and living solid lives.

Frequently Asked Questions

How can I save money on family spent year traveling?

Compare prices across a few retailers, look for active coupon codes, and time bigger buys around sales events. Worth noting: four years ago, Rob and I had a conversation in the truck on the method home [to England] from a excellent camping holiday in France saying, “Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could travel for a year?” We real....

Is it worth shopping around for family spent year traveling?

Usually yes. We just needed money.

Smart Ways to Save More on Family Spent Year Traveling

• Check for student, military, or first order offers you may qualify for.
• Time non urgent purchases around major sale events for the deepest cuts.
• Leave items in your cart for a day; some stores send a follow up discount.
• Pair cashback with a coupon so you save twice on the same order.
• Stack a coupon code with an existing sale whenever the store allows it.

Final Thoughts

Before you check out, line up family spent year traveling against current promotions and any codes you can stack. Small habits like these add up to real savings over a year.

Originally published at savingswitch.com.