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justin · 03-21-2006, 10:40 AM

I'm of the "travel cheap" mindset. I don't mind budget hotels. Who spends any time in their hotel room anyway? Food - eat where the locals eat instead of flashy 5 star americanized tourist oriented restaurants.

Hop on a bus (or train or slow boat) and sit next to locals. That's what you are traveling for, right? The experience of meeting different cultures, slowing down a bit, and seeing new things.

I have recently been toying with the idea of taking a "sabbatical" for a few months or years. I would probably do it before I get my FIRE nest egg put together completely. Living cheap in some exotic locale while your portfolio silently works away isn't a half-bad FIRE plan in and of itself. We have a 1 year old daughter and another on the way, so the sabbatical is at least 4-5 years away (at least!).

I could wait till I am 40- or 50-something for these experiences, but there will always be reasons to wait. Why not do it sooner rather than later? If you can greatly enrich the quality of your life for the next decade or two by traveling, do it. The extra year or two you'll have to work to make up what you spent on travel will be worth it.

03-21-2006, 10:40 AM	#2
justin Thinks s/he gets paid by the post Join Date: Jun 2005 Posts: 4,009	I'm of the "travel cheap" mindset. I don't mind budget hotels. Who spends any time in their hotel room anyway? Food - eat where the locals eat instead of flashy 5 star americanized tourist oriented restaurants. Hop on a bus (or train or slow boat) and sit next to locals. That's what you are traveling for, right? The experience of meeting different cultures, slowing down a bit, and seeing new things. I have recently been toying with the idea of taking a "sabbatical" for a few months or years. I would probably do it before I get my FIRE nest egg put together completely. Living cheap in some exotic locale while your portfolio silently works away isn't a half-bad FIRE plan in and of itself. We have a 1 year old daughter and another on the way, so the sabbatical is at least 4-5 years away (at least!). I could wait till I am 40- or 50-something for these experiences, but there will always be reasons to wait. Why not do it sooner rather than later? If you can greatly enrich the quality of your life for the next decade or two by traveling, do it. The extra year or two you'll have to work to make up what you spent on travel will be worth it.