Spent €9k on travel in 7 months. Am I being wasteful?

LegacyUser

I feel a bit stupid right now. I caught the travel bug about 2 years ago on a trip to Asia which I took a few months after finishing college. Vowed to go back some day.
Found a job back home, got lots of overtime and saved up roughly €11k within a years work. Took off again in February with the intention of finding work somewhere abroad.

Been on the road since February and worked only 2 months - some on a farm and some work in a supermarket. All of this work was done in New Zealand (working visa). Rest of my time has been spent wandering around Asia. I just feel im being a bit silly with my money. im not respecting the value of money. I've found that when i'm abroad it's very hard to get into "work" mode. All I want to do is travel. I'm down to about 3,000 euro in my bank account right now. I've returned to New Zealand and all i'm doing is thinking about going back to travel around Asia with my remaining funds and then coming home to work instead of finding a job here.

It's a once in a lifetime chance to live here but ive found that doing jobs such as waiter, barman, kitchen hand, labouring etc doesn't interest me. I almost feel more comfortable with coming home to work for another couple of years in my field and travelling again. But I see so many people make it big in this part of the world. Having a great time - the facebook posts of nights out, beaches, exotic places and animals etc.

For me it has been much more of a sobering experience - nothing like I imagined in terms of making loads of new friends, going to great places etc. It's hard to make it out here for me. The farm work was a good experience, it thought me the value of a proper hard day of physical work. Im very shy and the hostel environment where people gather in big groups has made me uncomfortable at times. I've certainly grown out of my shyness a bit - I can approach almost anybody alone and strike up a chat with them - but when it comes to big group gatherings I always avoid them which obviously hampers my friend making abilities. I'm guess im just happier just travelling around on my own, doing my own thing. Prob introverted aswell as shy.

The advice im lookin for is whether it would be idiotic of me to get out of here, travel a bit more and come home sometime next month and try return to work? A rough budget calculation tells me ill have around €1k in my bank if I take this path. That adds up to a total of €11k spent on travelling in 8 months. It's what I love to do but I feel like ive wasted a lot of money and not tried hard enough for work. I hear of people being able to travel and work for 2 years at a time but for me ive just found it too hard to get into work mode, and ive found that when I was working, the only thing I was thinking about was how soon I could afford to go back to travel mode. Has this been a colossal waste of time and money?

Merkin

I don't consider it in the least wasteful. You worked hard and you saved the money to do exactly what you're doing. You can't put a price on seeing the world and broadening your horizons imho.

dellas1979

moneywaster3 wrote: »

It's what I love to do

Its never ever a waste if its what you love to do.

You have gained life experience, put yourself out there, met new people, learned about yourself, and all on your own and all while remaining debt free.

Youll only regret the things you wanted to do and didnt do OP, even though you could. Enjoy the moment and the thrill when the opportunities present themselves .

bren2002

If travel was free you'd never see me again.

I spent my ssia on world travel 10 years ago. It was a fantastic year.

Enjoy the freedom. I'm here with 2 kids, up at 6am this morning. I wouldn't swap them for the world, but I'd love to travel again.

professore

No way. Believe me, memories are worth more than money in the bank. No one ever says on their deathbed they wished they'd saved more money. And hey, you're not up to your eyeballs in debt - so you're way ahead of many people !

duffman13

You love doing it so don't stop. I travelled a bit 4 years ago and came home with the urge to do more. I didn't, I sunk into a career which has gone really well and invested in a house. About 2 months ago I served my notice as the itch got so bad, I'm hitting the road again next month and I know I will never regret it but I definitely would have regretted not going back.

On a serous note though as you say you need to work to travel would ya not just do some regional work in oz/nz for 2 or 3 months, easy to save and it's rainy season in a lot of Asia now anyway and from past experience I find it the worst time to travel.

wdmfapq4zs83hv

Your living the dream. You have the rest of your life to work. Enjoy it while you can.

IvoryTower

Spent about 18k in 10-11 months myself when I travelled. Lived like a king, no regrets, I won't get to do it again!

The Princess Bride

moneywaster3 wrote: »

But I see so many people make it big in this part of the world. Having a great time - the facebook posts of nights out, beaches, exotic places and animals etc.

On a sobering note, you'll never see anyone posting on FB about cleaning their bathroom, scrubbing the floors, clearing up after their children - the everyday mundane stuff. People will make their life look as exciting as they can.

You've worked hard, it's your money. Enjoy your experience and never feel guilty. Life is precious and is to be lived fully.
Believe me, not everyone is blessed with a good one.

shane9689

See nothing wrong with it if youre happy.

The only problem occurs is when you want to settle down. but youre not at that stage yet it seems, so you have nothing to worry about.

only thing id suggest, is just save a little bit, not even much, just abit, so when you do decide to stop travelling, youll have abit in the bank

coolcat63

If you want to keep travelling - or go back once you've built up your savings again - look at www.workaway.info or www.helpx.net, both are volunteering sites and allow you to swap work for accommodation and food. We've hosted over 40 volunteers here in Portugal in the last few years and if it wasn't for all our animals I'd definitely do it!

FactCheck

I remember your many, many previous threads on this topic. I'm very glad you've enjoyed travelling so much and it sounds like you've really come on socially in a short amount of time. IIRC you were also really unsure whether or not you wanted to work in your field again so it looks like you have clarity on that which is also great. Money well spent IMO - in the grand scheme of things it isn't that much and if you are a happier, more confident person and know yourself a little bit better that's brilliant.

It's a shame you didn't just update the same thread rather than starting new ones every time, as it would be easier to see the progression and change in your outlook. And I think you'd have gotten better advice.

iusedtoknow

I've spent that in 1 month of traveling this year, and will spending a hell of a lot more next month going to Africa. If you have the cash, and are enjoying life then do it! No bad can come of it. You're young and it's not like you're taking food out of your child's mouth by doing what you are doing

Live life and enjoy it guilt free, it's what we're here for!

freshpopcorn

You did nothing wrong. I'd waste my money on a car/household stuff but cause that's I'm into(hate travelling). We all spend our money on things we like.

The_Conductor

You have to be sensible on some levels- but on other levels- you need to enjoy these times in your life. When you're my age (early 40s)- memories of time you spent travelling will always bring a smile to your face. I have young children now- and I dream of bringing them to some of the magical places I visited when I was younger- silly places that few people see around Europe- like Dianalund where Hans Christian Andersen was a school teacher, the very first rollercoaster in the world- at the Tivoli Gardens in Copenhagen, Harlem on the outskirts of Amsterdam where I worked in a garden centre. Freiberg in Germany where I had the privilege to study as a student. All the different parts of France that I visited with family and friends. All the many friends I've made all over Portugal- and the jokes with them about the silly Irish guy who put so much effort into learning Portuguese, but didn't know there was a difference between Brazilian Portuguese and Portugal Portuguese. Various parts of Israel, the Palestinian Territories and Syria that few people can visit these days. Going to school as the only European in a school in Kenya. Walking across a river- populated with Crocodiles in Uganda. Finding my pet tortoise hiding behind a signpost announcing the equator- and bringing it home- for the few weeks before it escaped and went on its travels again........ I could go on and on- detailing memories from any of a large number of countries- including many in Asia- and the Indian subcontinent.

Life is short. You will have responsibilities and indeed, limitations, as you get older- which will constrain your abilities to do many things that you might like to do. The ability to pull up memories and feelings you experienced at various points in your youth- are priceless- its impossible to put a monetary value on that smile you brought to someone's face who had no hope- or indeed- a memory of the picture that you gained of particular place- the scents and noises that great you, the tuk-tuk drivers fighting for custom- the so many things that you are experiencing.

Treasure the memories you're building- they are a reservoir on which you can draw for the rest of your life- come what may.

Money is only money- you cannot put a price on experiences- enjoy yourself- and if you're feeling generous with your time- start a blog and tell us about your travels.

Money spent gambling- or drinking to excess- is money wasted. Money spent travelling and educating yourself about parts of the world few of us will ever have heard of in our younger years- is something that is priceless.

amdublin

Money spent on travelling and memories is never wasted.


Saying that, it does sound a little excessive to me. For me travelling should still be done on a budget, particularly if you are going to come home with no savings or debt.


If you are fine with no savings then ok, but I would not be fine with that for me.

rodge68

It's your money, just go enjoy it..I'm sure there's alot of people on Boards who would love to be doing what you are doing..think of all the memories you will have...

Wompa1

Probably comes down to your parachute. If you have a safety parachute. Mum and Dad...Brother or Sister..that can rescue you if you get really stuck financially then continue to throw caution to the wind and enjoy yourself.

If there's no support structure in place for you. You may want to give yourself a little bit of a buffer for safety.

The_Conductor

Wompa1 wrote: »

Probably comes down to your parachute. If you have a safety parachute. Mum and Dad...Brother or Sister..that can rescue you if you get really stuck financially then continue to throw caution to the wind and enjoy yourself.

If there's no support structure in place for you. You may want to give yourself a little bit of a buffer for safety.

Why must he rely on a parachute?
I've camped out in woods- when funds ran low- or slept in barns in cold weather (in Ireland- never mind abroad- and that was while on a work placement with a State Body here in Ireland- the stipend wasn't sufficient to pay bus fares, never mind anything else).
If he is having a good time- let him be- but I don't get this- sure he needs a parachute in case he busts his finances. If he spends all his money- he spends all his money. He has to learn to cut his cloth to suit his means. If this means his budget goes from a thousand this month- to 100 next month- so be it- its life- its a learning experience. You don't need a lot of money to have remarkable experiences and happy memories. You need *enough* money to get by- preferably without unduly stressing yourself- any more is a bonus- but not entirely necessary.

Teyla Emmagan

Just don't spend everything OP. If you do decide to come back you will need a month's rent up front, money to live on until you get a job, new suits etc. Most of us aren't cut out for living in barns!

Glad utterly is going well, you are flying. Maybe tick a few more places off the bucket list and then see how you feel?

Wompa1

The_Conductor wrote: »

Why must he rely on a parachute?
I've camped out in woods- when funds ran low- or slept in barns in cold weather (in Ireland- never mind abroad- and that was while on a work placement with a State Body here in Ireland- the stipend wasn't sufficient to pay bus fares, never mind anything else).
If he is having a good time- let him be- but I don't get this- sure he needs a parachute in case he busts his finances. If he spends all his money- he spends all his money. He has to learn to cut his cloth to suit his means. If this means his budget goes from a thousand this month- to 100 next month- so be it- its life- its a learning experience. You don't need a lot of money to have remarkable experiences and happy memories. You need *enough* money to get by- preferably without unduly stressing yourself- any more is a bonus- but not entirely necessary.

And when the budget goes to only have a couple of hundred left and being unable to find work, afford transportation, accommodation or a flight home? What if he gets hurt and needs to go to the hospital...does this person have any insurance? What if they get sent to jail. Then what?

If he's not in Ireland, he may not be in a country that is sympathetic towards him. If that country doesn't have an Irish Embassy...good luck.

You can fly by the seat of your pants with more ease if you have a parachute. You get into trouble and have to go to Hospital, get a flight home at short notice, need some money for an emergency...a support system in place will back you up. If you don't have that and you're in some back water hole with corrupt police, pay up front care for foreigners etc. All of a sudden, you're in a pretty grim predicament. And if that does happen and you're not prepared. You only have yourself to blame.

Sleepy

Nothing wrong with coming home and working another year or two to get the cash together to head off again. One of my best friends totaled about 4 years of travelling in the decade after leaving college. Popping home every year or two to replenish the bank account. The guy had an incredible 20's and, honestly, I envy it.

FURET

As long as you are living within your means, more power to you.

LegacyUser

Didn't expect so many replies! I don't really regret the travelling, but I suppose my main gripe has been with the work part. This is what is leading me to believe im being wasteful with time and money.

If I had put more effort into working while i'm away, I'd be able to travel even longer. Instead im here now with €3k left in the bank and thinking about just using up the majority of it to travel more. I have been away since February and worked only 2 months! I'm not sure if its laziness or anxiety about trying new jobs, possibly a mixture of both. I guess I am worried about turning up for a construction job for example and being fired the next day because im terrible at it. And there's also the feeling of anxiety when stepping out of my comfort zone like that. I hide from it too much I think. If I put more effort into the work part, I could enjoy the travel part for longer. But having just arrived in a new city, the thought of having to put myself out there and try a new job etc is something which isn't appealing to me and im thinking of bailing to Asia.

Wompa1

moneywaster3 wrote: »

Didn't expect so many replies! I don't really regret the travelling, but I suppose my main gripe has been with the work part. This is what is leading me to believe im being wasteful with time and money.

If I had put more effort into working while i'm away, I'd be able to travel even longer. Instead im here now with €3k left in the bank and thinking about just using up the majority of it to travel more. I have been away since February and worked only 2 months! I'm not sure if its laziness or anxiety about trying new jobs, possibly a mixture of both. I guess I am worried about turning up for a construction job for example and being fired the next day because im terrible at it. And there's also the feeling of anxiety when stepping out of my comfort zone like that. I hide from it too much I think. If I put more effort into the work part, I could enjoy the travel part for longer. But having just arrived in a new city, the thought of having to put myself out there and try a new job etc is something which isn't appealing to me and im thinking of bailing to Asia.

What jobs do you have skills or experience at? Why would you roll up to a Construction job if that's something you have no experience in?

I say more power to you. If you can go travelling, that's what I'd do. I'd travel some more and then come back to Ireland. I'm 30, started working part time when I was 12 years old. The longest period I've had off in the last 18 year was 6 weeks about 9 years ago. I really envy those who get to do what you're doing.

I'm hoping I live long enough to retire and do something similar. I know it won't be the same experience at that age. I'm just hoping it's not miserable with age! You'll have long enough to work, if you have the support in place to help out if you get stuck. I say go for it

fits

Travel away but dont let your reserve fund go below 3k. You may need that to get setup somewhere. Id say its time now to bed in somewhere for a while and replenish the funds a bit.