Traveling the world is a dream many of us share. Doing it for free — much less getting paid to travel — is the ultimate fantasy. It’s also 100% doable. It just takes a little nerve, a little luck, and a willingness to actually work.
Below are some of the easiest and fastest ways to get out there on the road. Some of them require you to skill up a bit or think ahead a little. Some of them you can go and do right now. Either way, these are jobs and opportunities that can change your life.
TEACH ENGLISH ABROAD
Teaching English abroad is a classic way to get paid while living somewhere cool. Yes, you’ll have to teach a few classes a day, Monday through Friday. After that, your time in-country is yours. Big companies like English First offer positions all over the world and usually include accommodation, travel, and health insurance in their contracts. If you have a teaching certificate or a degree, you can parlay that into a real career of globetrotting.
Dave’s ESL Cafe is a great place to start your search. TEFL.com is another great entry point.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BSe9v83AMxR/
WORK ON A FARM
Food is a huge part of life and thereby becoming a bigger and bigger part of tourism. A great way to get some free room, board, and maybe even some extra scratch in your pocket for travel is to work a farm somewhere far from home. While a lot of these gigs don’t pay beyond necessities, you’ll still find yourself in a new country, surrounded by new people, and experiencing a new slice of life.
WWOOF (Willing Workers on Organic Farms) is the biggest database for farm jobs. Another option is to hit up Israel and work at a Kibbutz for a spell.
FOREIGN SERVICE OFFICER
Do you have a clean criminal record and good credit? Then why not see the world on the US government’s dime. Foreign Service Officers can chose between careers in Consular, Diplomacy, Economics, Politics, and Management. Once trained in Washington, DC FSO’s generally take two year bids around the world at a US embassy or consulate. You’ll be paid well with retirement and health care benefits. You’ll also get enough vacation time to fully explore whatever region you’re stationed in.
Register for the exam here (not a promotion from the US government, just a really, really dope f*cking job to have).
TOUR GUIDE
Tourists may do it for two weeks a year, but tour guides do all year long. Becoming a tour guide is a rigorous process of training and traveling at the same time, sometimes for up to six months. Then you get to take people around the world and experience the wonders of travel anew every couple weeks. Oh, and you get paid the whole time too.
Contiki has a very good (and hard) tour guide school and hiring system. Smaller companies like WSA Europe also offer tour guide positions that focus specifically college-aged students living abroad in Europe.
JOURNALIST
You don’t have to be a travel writer to get sent around the world to cover events. Start small by writing about what you know and submit that shit to appropriate sources. Build. Eventually you’ll have a freelance job that may start sending you out into the wild blue yonder to cover a startup conference, or a financial summit, or Star Wars week. But first you have to take that risk and write something.
Travel websites like Matador Network are always posting new travel writing gigs that are open to anyone.
CRUISE SHIP TEAM MEMBER
A cruise ship is basically a floating city. And that city needs all the staff it can get. Seriously, if you have a minor skill, it’ll probably be needed at some point or somewhere on a cruise ship. Even if you’re still unskilled and unemployed, apply for a gig as a bar back or room custodian. At the very least you’ll be getting paid to sail around the world.
Cruise Ship Jobs is your one stop destination for all jobs related to cruise ships. They’re easy to score and you’ll be hanging out with other young, adventurous people.
TRANSLATOR
Can you speak and write a second language? Do you have a laptop? Then you too can become a translator. This is the ultimate digital nomad job. You can bid for assignments and complete them literally anywhere. If you have a slow month? Go live somewhere cheaper the next month and crank out more work, then live like a baller the month after that.
You can search google for established translators to offer your service to. Or you can use online resources like Translator Base.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BStVV6OArjc/
SEASONAL WORK
Seasonal work is another winner for a lot of wanderlusters out there. People will work the ski slopes of Switzerland for the winter and then bug out to Greece to work behind a bar or teach scuba in Thailand. Rinse. Repeat. Often times you’ll make enough cash while living for free in a resort to fund your trips in between.
Adventure Work and Anywork Anywhere are great resources to land that perfect winter/summer gig somewhere breathtaking.
OTHER SKILLED WORK
This list could go on and on when it comes to skilled jobs that afford you to travel. International lawyers, sailors, certain athletes, scientists, and filmmakers all spend a large amount of their professional lives on the road. Maybe it’s worth thinking about how much you want travel to be part of your day-to-day and point yourself towards a career path that’ll accomplish that goal.
Chefs can work pretty much anywhere in the world. So can bartenders. Some filmmakers, producers, and buyers live on the festival circuit meaning they’re likely to hit 30+ fests in one year. Being an archaeologist or a biologist can mean a lot of field research if you’re into it. Doctors and nurses can work sans borders. Hell, even if you can sail a boat you can get a job crewing a yacht.
JUST GO
The last option is to wing it. There are people out there traveling the world based on their Instagram followers alone. This may be a bit riskier way to see the world, but there are plenty of people making it happen.
A couple is traveling around the Nordic countries right now for free by simply asking for free room, board, and transportation wherever they go. And it’s working. So what are you waiting for?
