Tell us a little bit about your tribe and your holiday style:
It’s very all or nothing!
We are a family of 4- with 2 boys aged 5 & 7 who couldn’t afford a foreign holiday when we were working- we used to holiday in the UK, camping and going to festivals.
Both Mike and I worked lots of hours in the Public Sector and then his mum passed away in 2015 which sowed a seed of needing to do something else. We realised we were missing the children’s childhoods and were working just to pay bills but weren’t sure what we wanted to do.
One Friday evening Mike jokingly suggested we sell up and hit the road. I agreed immediately- it seemed like the only sensible thing to do once the idea was out there. We sold up and set off within 6 months to spend time with the children before they grow up, to give them a broader horizon and an education that school can’t provide.
We have put some money aside for our return, paid off all debts and set off with 25k in the bank for travelling. We will come home when it runs out, so we are planning to do Workaways and stay with friends where we can, to make the money go further.
I travelled Asia independently before children, and my husband had spent some time in the States- we have never done package holidays or liked resorts, even though they look invitingly easy.
What has been your favourite family holiday and why did you love it?
We have so far loved Indonesia it was the first stop on our trip and it was magical. We arrived in Bali and then headed to the Gili Islands. Gili Air was laid back, friendly and had great snorkelling straight off the beach. The boys swam with turtles and we saw dolphins in the sea- it was like a dream. The locals were friendly and loved children so we were made to feel at home even when they took some time to adjust to their new adventure.
We took a boat to Lombok, which was quite untouched and hired mopeds to explore the island. It felt like ‘real’ Indonesia and not just a show for tourists. We got invited to a wedding and were treated as guests of honour- it was so touching. We made good friends we will definitely return to see again. Now there is an airport on Lombok it is really easy to get to from Bali- a much more family friendly option than the 6 hour ferry/ 2 hour bumpy speedboat ride that we took.
Indonesia is also very cheap, which is handy.
What 3 destinations are on your family Bucket List?
We are lucky enough to be travelling to most places on our bucket list.
1. Mexico- we are buying a cheap car and driving it through California, Mexico and as far into Central America as we can manage. I can’t wait- the food, the sights, the people! It is going to be a real adventure.
2- Iceland- we are hoping to make this our final stop in the way home to the UK. Igloos, Northern Lights, husky sledging and the Blue Lagoon all look spectacular.
3- Fiji and the South Pacific islands- we can’t afford to go there on this trip but we would love to go. It looks really interesting anthropologically and beautiful.
If you had to choose 1 travel item that made life easier what would it be?
A power bank. When the children are listening to audiobooks/ playing minecraft on the plane, when you’re out for the day and your phone or camera dies, a decent Powerbank saves the day. We have a Power Monkey Extreme- which charges with solar power and is waterproof.
What’s you best piece of advice for the Our Tribe community?
Research!
We made the mistake of hiring a camper van in Western Australia for 6 weeks. It was tiny and we were unaware that Western Australia would be so windy and rainy in places- I foolishly thought it would always be warm! As such we spent a lot of time in very cramped living space- 4 of us in 1.5m square. 6 weeks. 6 WHOLE weeks. It took our relationships to the brink but we survived!
In hindsight, we didn’t research the weather sufficiently and took the budget van option which wasn’t fit for purpose. It’s funny to look back on, but I wouldn’t do it that way again.
Follow their round the world adventure here: The Wheelers on the Bus
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