I’ll go anywhere as long as I haven’t been there before

I love travelling.

That’s probably the most defining sentence about myself that I can make. I’ve been to over 80 countries and I’ll generally go anywhere as long as I haven’t been there before.

My love of travelling definitely impacts my way of life. Here’s how:

I only work one season of the year (and travel for the remaining months)

My friends all have real jobs so I travel alone (although occasionally they fly out and join me for a week or two)

I don’t own or rent a house

My life fits into three storage boxes and two rucksacks and lives for most of the time in my friends garden shed

My only monthly outgoing (direct debit) is £9.99 for Spotify Premium

In the summers, on the rare day when I’m not working I’m exploring the UK in my tiny Berlingo van, which I also kind of live in

My love of travel started after university. I always assumed I’d get a good job with a good company (not sure doing what though) and live a normal life. But circumstances all came together to send me off to New Zealand when I was twenty-two to work and travel for a year on a Working Holiday Visa. Two and a half years later I finally returned home to the UK, but not for very long! I quickly discovered I could easily work and save for half the year, then travel for the other.

I worked my way up in the seasonal accommodation industry, always turning down offers to work in Head Office, Recruitment or other random departments during the off-season and instead took myself off exploring.

Now I’m 39 and have a great job with a boutique camping company, travelling the UK all summer planning and building glampsites at music and sporting events. Every winter I have five months off to indulge my love of travel and add a country or two to my list.

But it’s important to remember that backpacking doesn’t have to involve far away exotic destinations. Everyone can indulge a love of travel, even without getting on a plane.

“Not all those who wander are lost” J.R.R Tolkien

To read more about what countries I’ve visited and get a flavour of how I travel, have a look this travel blog post which details the eighty-one countries I’ve backpacked around to date.