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If young people want knowledge there are many sites that provide university level courses at a low cost. However if you want a certfied university credential it will cost a lot more. However the costs of getting a degree in many European countries (from Germany, Austria to Italy) is vastly cheaper than the US as is China. This also has the benefit of learning a new language and experiencing a different culture.
Also learn to do something that you can sell - there are so many options in the gig economy for anyone who can deliver something of use or where there is a demand. In many cases this is not the case with some (most?) degrees.
As far as travel is concerned "if you want to do something you'll find the reasons, if you don't you'll find an excuse". There are so many options today to make travel affordable - housesitting, home exchanges, AirBnB, low cost airlines, etc.
Dual income and no kids. We don't blow money on much else, so we try to do 2-3 nice international trips a year and 2-3 domestic ones to NYC, New Orleans, LA, etc.
Sounds great.
I would love to do this.
Right now I'm only doing 1-2 domestic trips a year and 1 international trip.
1 of the domestic trips is usually to Hawaii and the international trip is usually to Europe.
So much exploring to do and so many things to see...yet so little time off to take for vacation. That is always the dilemma. I want to see so much before I get to a certain age but 2 weeks a year internationally just isn't enough. I hope I am able to say one day I got to most of the places I wanted to see yet feel I will be one of those people who 'always' has a new place on the list I want to get to.
Also learn to do something that you can sell - there are so many options in the gig economy for anyone who can deliver something of use or where there is a demand. In many cases this is not the case with some (most?) degrees.
Dual income and no kids. We don't blow money on much else, so we try to do 2-3 nice international trips a year and 2-3 domestic ones to NYC, New Orleans, LA, etc.
Similar boat. I'm being bumped up to 20 days of vacation next year. Right now we do 2 international trips per year (usually May and September) w/domestic trips mixed in. I think that's enough for now, but yeah we're in the same boat...it's just my wife and I, no kids (yet) and we don't spend a couple hundred bucks every weekend going out like most of our friends do. I mean we still have nice dinners and stuff but if you add up on the $ we would spend if we had that lifestyle, it's enough for a round trip ticket somewhere.
Choosing to spend your disposable income on travel.
My husband and I live in a modest condo. Our monthly housing expenses (mortgage, HOA, utilities, etc...) are around $1,100 a month. We cook at home most of the time (though we do shop at Whole Foods), brew our coffee at home, and rarely go shopping for clothes (usually once a year). We share one car with a modest monthly payment and use public transit any time we can.
In addition, we exclusively use our Gold Amex for the points. It is a charge card, meaning the entire balance MUST be paid off at the end of the month or the interest charges are insane. We've never not paid it off so I can't even say what the interest rate is.
We accumulate the points and then use them for our international flights. Domestic flights out of Denver are generally very reasonable no matter where you want to go.
It's not as difficult as you'd think. So far this year we have been to Mexico and San Francisco, with trips already booked to Los Angeles, Chicago, and Seattle.
Last year we went to Mexico, the Netherlands, and Iceland.
Next year we are going to Sweden and Denmark.
It is about the choices you make in your day to day life that allow you to travel more. I don't need fancy clothes or a nice car. I would rather get out several times a year to different areas to experience new things.
Choosing to spend your disposable income on travel.
My husband and I live in a modest condo. Our monthly housing expenses (mortgage, HOA, utilities, etc...) are around $1,100 a month. We cook at home most of the time (though we do shop at Whole Foods), brew our coffee at home, and rarely go shopping for clothes (usually once a year). We share one car with a modest monthly payment and use public transit any time we can.
In addition, we exclusively use our Gold Amex for the points. It is a charge card, meaning the entire balance MUST be paid off at the end of the month or the interest charges are insane. We've never not paid it off so I can't even say what the interest rate is.
We accumulate the points and then use them for our international flights. Domestic flights out of Denver are generally very reasonable no matter where you want to go.
It's not as difficult as you'd think. So far this year we have been to Mexico and San Francisco, with trips already booked to Los Angeles, Chicago, and Seattle.
Last year we went to Mexico, the Netherlands, and Iceland.
Next year we are going to Sweden and Denmark.
It is about the choices you make in your day to day life that allow you to travel more. I don't need fancy clothes or a nice car. I would rather get out several times a year to different areas to experience new things.
I can relate to this post.
Just got my Chase Sapphire Preferred card in the mail yesterday. Everything will now go on this card so I can get the 50k bonus. Along with about 60k other points I should be good to go for a flight to Europe this fall (hopefully) and at least 5 days of a room paid for. I've also been Ebaying all day long. I've sold over $200 worth of stuff this week...trying to get as close to $500 as I can which will mostly go into the travel fund.
I'm single so I don't have the advantage of splitting costs of accommodations. I don't own a car. My rent is less than 25% of my net. I do have a clothing addiction (a small one) but I buy used via Goodwill, Ebay, Poshmark, etc.
I used to travel a lot when I was a kid/teenager with my father who did many trips for his work.=
That's how I got to travel so much! My father worked for an international firm for 30 years, and was able to take us along on many business trips... the company would even pay most of our expenses (at least airfare and hotels), as long as he was doing SOME official business while there. For example, we got to spend almost a month in Australia, and he only had to make an appearance at their Melbourne office.
He also racked up an enormous amount of frequent flier miles during those years, which allowed him to travel "free" even after retirement.
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