For the last two months we have featured photos from all over the world. Some amazing travel bloggers came forward and shared their photos – even travellers were so kind to leave photos on our facebook page to be shared here at New Life on the Road!
Travel Blogger Featured
Instead of photos we are now sharing a different Travel Blogger every Monday. Where you can read a bit of what they are doing, where they are travelling and why they decided to live a different life.
For our first Travel Blogger Featured here today we have Jess from “With 2 Kids in Tow – Its backpacking we Go”
Q:- When did you decide that travelling was important to your family?
My husband and I had backpacked quite extensively, both before we were ‘together’ and after. Between us, we’ve been to 35 countries. We love exploring new cultures. After we got married, and ‘settled down’, we had always hoped to be able to do it again once we had children and when they were old enough (ie out of nappies and walking)
Q:- Did you sell everything and decide to travel, or did you store everything (somethings) for when you return home?
We had only ever intended to travel for 1yr, so we decided to get rid of what we didn’t want/need and to store the rest and to rent the house out. We were lucky enough to be able to store our things in a couple of rooms in the house, locked and out of the way of the tenants. We kept the car (but took the registration and insurance off), but we had to find a new home for our dog.
Q:- How many of you travelling in your family?
We are a family of four: mom, dad and the children who were aged 3.5yrs and 5yrs when we began our trip
Q:- What was the one inspiration that helped you to decide to travel? (or wasthere more than one?)
We like the more ‘simple lifestyle’ that traveling in developing countries can bring. Somehow when you are are home, it’s such a struggle to be able to ‘live simply’–it’s too easy to get caught up in the ‘wants’ vs ‘needs’. We also wanted to expose our children to a lifestyle free from material ‘wants’ as well as to broaded their points of view. At the end of the day, it turned out that we had the perfect timing as my husband had just finished a 4yr apprenticeship, our eldest child was just about to start school and the renovations were mostly done on our house, so it was a good time to go.
Q:- Do you have a plan for your travels, or do you play it day by day?
We have a loose itinerary so that we can ensure that we can have enough time for our desired destinations and enough destinations for our desired time. A loose itinerary also ensures that we are using our travel time and money wisely. Good planning ensures that we don’t have to ‘back-track’ which wastes both time and money. From that, we play it day by day. We’ve always traveled this way, and found that with the children, it also worked best to be able to be flexible. Long term travel allows you to achieve this
Q:- Do you and your family have a bucket list?
No, we don’t have a ‘bucket list’ per se, but we do have some places that we’d like to visit more so than others
Q:- More Information about Jess and Family:-
We’re a Canadian/Australian family who backpacked on a budget for 12 months around SEA, including India, Sri Lanka and the Philippines, with our 2 pre-schoolers in tow. We visited 10 countries via 18 plane trips and countless buses, trains and even a few boats. We had 2 main backpacks and just a day bag each.
How Amazing is this one ~
Travelling on one bike with all four of them…Love it!
Our blog chronicles our journey from the point of view firstly of independent budget traveling and secondly of a family on more than just a holiday. Lots of practical information from places to stay to sights to see to things to do with young kids. And of course, lots of information on our costs too.
Imagine the education this family is having?
Jess is the blogger/photographer/planner/mom/wife of the group. Jim is the muscle/negotiator/adventurer. Maddy and Yasmine are the world-traveling, back-pack-toting and surprisingly versatile offspring, who were 3yrs and 5yrs respectively at the start of the trip.
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Thanking Jess for being the First Travel Blogger Featured at New Life on the Road. If you have any more questions about their plans for travel or their amazing lifestyle please connect with Jess at With 2 Kids in Tow.
Have You Any Questions for our First Travel Blogger
Cheers
Lisa
Hi Jess and Jim, What a wonderful trip you have had. I have checked out your site (inspiring) and read your itinerary. I notice you went back to Cambodia again at the end of your trip. Was that one of your favourite destinations?
Lisa, thanks for featuring With 2 kids in Tow, it was a great read!
jan recently posted..THE GOOD OLD DAYS – NO?
Hi Jan,
Thanking you for your gorgeous comment – I have been reading about Jess settling back in Australia after their amazing 12 month trip. They sure are one amazing family 🙂
Cheers
Lisa
hi jan
thanks for your comment! at the end of our trip, we had 2 weeks which we wanted to spend relaxing on a beach, preferably somewhere we’d already been so that it would be easier. There were a few contenders, but in the end, we chose to return to Sihanoukville in Cambodia because it had the perfect blend of beach, friendly locals and good value.
Wow!! what a start to life for the 2 young kids, travelling can be the best education for young people.
Well done Jess and Jim for having to courage to follow your dreams and desires too.
Cheers,
Cade
Cade@MurrayRiverGuide recently posted..Murray River Water Levels in NSW, VIC and SA
Hi Cade,
Its incredible to read about other families travelling with their children….its so good as it gives us all inspiration to keep on going!
Thanks for stopping to read Jess and Jim travel story.
Cheers
Lisa
Thanks Cade and thanks Lisa for featuring us 🙂
It sure was fun having your story about you and your family travelling overseas for a year!
What an amazing trip!! We just arrived home from the USA and traveling with small children can be difficult so I can see they are pros. The US is a fairly easy destination compared to the places they went. However traveling with a baby who doesn’t travel well and a toilet training toddler posed some challenges. What a great start to a series!
Hi Kym,
How amazing – a trip to the USA. So good to hear that another family is travelling. We cant wait to see overseas!
How did the toilet training go?
Cheers
Lisa
Kym, can definitely empathize with you recent travel experience to the US–in fact, I recently posted about my views about ‘the perfect age to travel with kids’. Good on you for giving it a go! Hopefully it’ll get easier as they get older 🙂
Jess recently posted..I’m A Travel Writer!