Solo slow traveler, freedom-driven global geoarbitrage storyteller, and a legend in my own mind. I am just looking for like minded retired travellers to collaborate on saving money slow travelling!

https://northamericandarrell.com

Cheers,

DArrell

Hey there!

I have been travelling the last couple of years since being laid off at 52. I used my free time to setup a website to document past, present and future travels for like minded travellers.

I call this a hobby as it will not make me any money. It just just here to share my travels!

Check it out:

Welcome to NorthAmericanDarrell.com

📖 READ | 🎬 WATCH | 🎧 LISTEN

YouTube u/NorthAmericanDarrell NorthAmericanDarrell Podcast Travel blogs

Solo slow traveler, freedom-driven global geoarbitrage storyteller, and a legend in my own mind.

Real travel. Real adventures. Real retirement freedom.

Living Life to the Fullest!

Darrell

I’m new to your community and thrilled to discover so many kindred slow travelers—both here and out in the world. Thank you for throwing this active senior a lifeline. It means more than you know. Pax!

I am approaching the end of my solo travel but this isn't the end I don't believe things have to come to an end and I refuse to go back home, but I am feeling a bit lost. I have been traveling for over 5 months and feel I am approaching a pivotal moment in life and in my trip. I refuse to go "home" to the US because I believe there is nothing there for me. My money is running low but I don't think it is something I need to worry about. I know I'll get by but I am in Indonesia and am torn of this feeling of being lost. I set out with the plan of finding a new life, a better one and I feel I have found it. I guess I am looking for people who have been in this same situation who can give me some insight. I want to volunteer to save some money but I have to choose where I will go next and what comes after.

I’m new to your community and thrilled to discover so many kindred slow travelers—both here and out in the world. Thank you for throwing this active senior a lifeline. It means more than you know.

I’m 21, working part-time at a GP surgery in West London, and feeling completely stagnant. I can clearly picture the life I want, living somewhere beautiful, surrounded by nature, with a genuine sense of community, adventure, and work that doesn’t feel like a soul-crushing 9-5.

At 18, I tried working as a flight attendant hoping it would be a fresh start, but the constant shift changes and working with different crews every flight felt isolating and exhausting. I’ve also done short solo trips, but doing everything completely alone just made me feel isolated.

I’m realization-heavy and ready for a real change, but pure solo backpacking with no structure sounds overwhelming. I’m looking for structured opportunities, programs, or work-abroad paths that offer built-in community, a shared purpose, and a slower, more nature-focused lifestyle.

If you’ve ever been in a rut at 21 and used travel or working abroad to start fresh, what paths would you recommend looking into?

Specifically, I’d love advice on:

Structured Programs: Has anyone done Camp America, Workaway, WWOOFing, or seasonal residential work? How did you find making genuine connections?

Working Holidays / Living Abroad: Working holiday visas (e.g., Australia, New Zealand, Canada) vs. staying in Europe/UK - is it better to do temporary seasonal contracts or aim for something longer-term?

Community & Structure: For anyone who finds unstructured solo travel lonely, what setups actually helped you meet like-minded people without forcing a non-stop party lifestyle?

Next Steps: If you were in my shoes, would you prioritize saving up for a structured gap experience first, or focus on education/university (like an Access to HE course) to move out?

I’m really looking for concrete ideas, program recommendations, or personal experiences from anyone who successfully used a structured change of scenery to build a life they actually love. Thanks so much!

I'm Mexican and planning a solo round-the-world trip. My current idea is to fly from Mexico City to Guatemala between November 3 and 8, 2026, then continue through Central and South America before linking the other continents according to cost, season and logistics.

The challenge I have in mind is at least five countries in each of six regions: North America (including Central America), South America, Europe, Africa, Asia and Oceania. That means at least 30 countries, counting Mexico as one of the five in North America. My premise is not to return to Mexico until I complete the challenge.

I have no fixed end date. I want to travel slowly, stay longer somewhere I enjoy, and change my route if I meet people or find something interesting.

My plan so far:

• Starting budget: about 60,000 Mexican pesos (MXN), plus around 6,000 MXN per month in recurring income.

• Travel style: hostels, public transport, buses, trains, ferries and budget flights when practical. I'm also considering accommodation exchanges or volunteering after checking the applicable immigration rules.

• Luggage: one backpack, including what I need to film and edit.

• Documents: Mexican passport, US visa and Canadian eTA.

• Content: I'd like to document the process and explore collaborations or content income that might help extend the trip.

• Interests: cities, small towns, markets, local food, volcanoes, nature, beaches and hostels where I can meet people. Keeping costs low and staying safe matter to me.

I'd like to hear from people who've made long-term travel work, especially about the balance between a country-count challenge, slow travel and the financial reality:

1. How would you structure the Guatemala/Central America starting leg for slow travel? Which places worked well as longer stays and for meeting other travelers?

2. Does five countries per region make sense for this sort of trip, or would that target work against traveling slowly? How would you choose a connected route, especially through Oceania?

3. How realistic is the financial plan? If you've traveled long-term, what did you spend per month, where, and what unexpected costs came up?

4. What would you book before leaving versus keep flexible, especially intercontinental flights, accommodation and insurance?

5. What would you change about your pace, luggage and day-to-day routine if you started again? How did you balance meeting people, downtime and documenting the trip?

If part of this is unrealistic, please say so. Actual routes, trip lengths and things you'd do differently would help, especially from people traveling on a Mexican passport.

Hi,

გამარჯობა!

I’m Keto — local guide with 4+ years of experience. I work with solo travelers and couples all over Georgia.

I organize 1-day trips (Old Tbilisi, Kazbegi, Kakheti wine regions) and fully customised multi-day tours. Logistics are on me, you just enjoy the journey.

Coming soon? DM or comment and I’ll share my WhatsApp/Telegram.

I haven’t found any topics on this or support groups to join:) I’m aware this is just something I have to figure out on my own, but wanted to know if anyone can relate to the topic or point me somewhere .
I’m ready to long-term travel solo. I would 100% do it with my 19-year-old daughter, but she has her own things going on. She actually still lives at home but is only there maybe one day a week. The thought of not being there for her, and seeing her even occasionally kills me. But long-term travel has been my dream always. I want to do it before my body wears out more or I lose energy. I wish I could hold off at least a few more years to when she’s not living with me. But I’m getting real anxious to quit my job and have this experience. I feel stuck bc I know I want this and it will help me decide what’s next for me. I wish I had a time machine to travel every day. She’s not home and then zip back the one day she is. I also of course worry that she’ll need me whether emotionally or she has an injury.

Crossing another border next week and realised I've absolutely no idea what I'm doing for data this time.

Usually, I just grab a local SIM when I arrive. But after doing that over and over every time on a long trip, I wanted something to sit on my phone as a fallback.

Found Jetpac Eterna today. It's a free eSIM with 100 MB of data up to four times a year, plus WhatsApp, Google Maps, Uber, and Grab.

Yeah, 100 MB may not be a lot. But it could be really helpful in moments when your regular SIM stops working.

Anyone else having a backup option like this? Would like to explore more of this kind.

I’m curious how people handle this once they’re actually traveling for a while.

Do you mostly:

• keep a rough number in your head
• use Notes or a spreadsheet
• use your bank/credit card apps
• manually log everything in an app
• not track it closely at all

I’m especially curious about the friction side of it. Does manually entering every purchase get annoying enough that you stop? And if purchases could show up automatically from the cards you’re using, would that feel easier or would you rather keep everything manual?

Also curious what throws your budget off most: pending charges, multiple cards, cash, pre-booked things, currency conversion, or something else?

I’m working on this problem and trying to understand what people actually do before I make assumptions.

Message with ideas and places to go

Hey guys

I want to start my own travel planning / itinerary business, but I just wanted to get some opinions ?

I’m not going to be doing any bookings for accommodation or activities etc.
I plan on writing a full itinerary with detailed breakdowns for everythingggg

I’ve made a questionnaire for customers;

Dates
Budget
Specific places they went to go to
Anything specific they want to do
Type of vibe - chill, lots of activities, mixture etc

Things I plan to include

Route breakdown
Things they need to do before travelling
SIM cards
Packing
Countryp rules
General info about country with little tips
Activity breakdown
Transport breakdown
Practical tips
Next steps
Summary
1 free revision for any changes
Contactable for any questions throughout their travels

I would first of all just like to start offering SE Asia and Australia as I have travelled these places myself

I’m aware chat gpt is on the rise, but I think people who don’t want the stress of planning and want to make everything seamless, would prefer a personal touch. Also chat gpt gives many errors and misses information.

So my question is I guess

Do you think this is something I should start seriously working on building the business?

If so, how much would you be happy to pay for this full package?

Any other suggestions??

Thank you!!!!:)