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7 Reasons Why You Should Take That Round-the-World Trip And Travel Now!

7 Reasons Why You Should Take That Round-the-World Trip And Travel Now!

Part of the reason we created Don’t Ever Look Back was to inspire other travelers to follow in our footsteps and take the plunge into long-term travel. Most people we speak to are envious of the adventure we’re about to embark on, but when we ask them “why don’t you do the same?” – they immediately get defensive and fire off a series of lame excuses.

  • “I can’t afford it.”
  • “I’ve got a good job, I don’t think I could leave it.”
  • “I’ll miss my friends and family too much.”
  • “I wouldn’t want to travel by myself.”
  • “My partner’s not interested in traveling”.

But by far, the worst one we hear is this…

  • “It’s not the right time. Maybe one day.”

Why not now, dammit?! We kick ourselves every time we hear this because we’re probably watching another person let their dreams of long-term travel turn into one massive regret. To borrow a brilliant quote we saw from our friends at Over Yonderlust:

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” – Mark Twain

If that quote and our #rtwsoon interviews aren’t enough to inspire you to make a firm decision and you’re still contemplating whether to head on that round-the-world adventure, here are 7 reasons to convince you on why you should do it as soon as possible!

Break away from the ordinary

In our first ever blog post, Why Long-Term Travel?, we explained why we didn’t want to live safe, ordinary lives like most people we know. You don’t have to live life the way you’re expected to so take a risk – do something extraordinary by deciding to travel long-term and don’t ever look back!

A weaker attachment to home

The longer you delay long-term travel, the harder it will be to take that plunge. From a personal viewpoint, if we delayed our RTW departure date another 12-24 months it may never have happened! Careers, friends, family, mortgages and excessive personal belongings all increase our attachment to our home and with every day that passes, this attachment undoubtedly gets stronger. Break the attachment before it gets too strong!

Greater opportunities

Part of our strategy to extend our travels is to obtain Working Holiday visas for Canada and possibly the UK. If you’ve ever looked at working overseas, you’ve probably heard of them – but what you may not know is that most (if not all) of these programs have age restrictions. Once you pass your 31st birthday, it becomes very difficult to get a visa that allows you to work overseas.

If you’re in that 18-30 age bracket, get organized and apply for a Working Holiday Visa! Your window of opportunity is slowly closing and you may miss out on the fantastic experience of working overseas (and also extending your travels considerably).

Experiences > Money & Possessions

If you ask people what their dream is, many will answer with “to be rich”. In order to aspire to this goal, they’ll work 60-70 hour weeks for the rest of their lives, buy a whole lot of nice things and never truly be happy. Studies have proven that buying experiences, not possessions, leads to greater happiness. Just remember, your experiences improve with time. Possessions don’t.

Destinations are changing

 

12 Apostles

Only 8 of the 12 Apostles remain. How many will still be standing by the time you get to Australia?

Only one of the Sever Wonders of the World remain, the Twelve Apostles in Victoria have dwindled down to 8 and the islands of Thailand are increasing in popularity to the point where some of the most beautiful ones are in danger of becoming the next Phuket. Basically, the world and its travel destinations are forever changing and what you see today might not be the same tomorrow. So if you’ve got these types of destinations on your bucket list, best you do them now before erosion or over-commercialization destroys them. Who knows? The Leaning Tower might just fall over before you get to see it!

Life is too short

For people in our mid-twenties, we’ve seen too many of our close friends have their lives cut short way too young. It’s very scary to think about and we’re sure many people put these thoughts out of their minds completely, but the truth is we all do have an end date and it may be sooner than we think. So take a moment to think about what’s important in your life and make the most of every day! Travel now, while you still can!

You won’t regret it!

And finally, as the Mark Twain quote implies, you’re much more likely to regret something that you didn’t do than something you did. If you do follow in our footsteps and decide on long-term travel, we guarantee that you won’t regret your decision!

Do you have any other reasons why you shouldn’t delay travel any longer and leave as soon as possible? Please share them in the comments below!

Flickr Photos: roybuloy, timmfin

This post was brought to you by international calling cards.

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