How I Got Paid For 2 Years Of Travel: A Complete List Of Every Travel Job I Have Worked

How I Got Paid For 2 Years Of Non-Stop Travel:
A Complete List Of Every Travel Job I Have Worked

Get paid to travel

For the first 26 years of my life, I barely traveled anywhere. My passport sat essentially empty. And on top of that, I had barely explored my own country.

Yet when I was a young girl, traveling had always been a dream of mine. So what happened?

When I took an honest look at my life and my choices, I realized I hadn’t prioritized my dream. I never made an actionable plan to travel. I spent my money elsewhere. Essentially, I dreamed about it without pursuing it.

But in 2018, I decided that I wouldn’t let another year go by without traveling. I was finally going to see the world.

But when I looked at the year ahead, I had no idea how to fund an epic around-the-world trip. I knew I wanted to travel for at least a year even though I had very little money saved up to cover plane tickets, accommodation, train rides and excursions.

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My Solution: Get Paid To Travel!

If I didn’t have the money for an extended trip, I decided I would find another way. I would get paid to travel!

I began researching travel jobs & volunteer positions around the world. Since I wanted to see as much as possible in my first year, I wasn’t interested in travel jobs that required a long commitment.

So I ruled out year-long positions teaching English abroad. Even though that’s a wonderful option for many people, I had itchy feet and knew I would want to explore a great many new places in the year to come instead of just one place!

So I began looking for short-term freelance travel jobs or volunteer positions. This would greatly reduce my costs, allow me to have incredible experiences with locals and still see a variety of countries.

In addition, I was interested in slow travel. I didn’t only want to only sight-see briefly in each country. By volunteering for a few weeks, I would get to immerse myself in my new surroundings.

Guide with Stoke Travel For Hogmanay–
The New Year’s Eve Festival in Scotland

This was an excellent introduction to the world of travel jobs. I was assigned to guide a party train on New Year’s Eve from London to Scotland for the annual festival Hogmanay.

So I booked my flight to London using points from a credit card sign up bonus and prepared to go abroad. It was my first time in Europe, my first international trip (aside from one family trip to Mexico) and my first ever solo trip. I was so nervous/excited I could hardly stand it.

I explored London for the week leading up to the festival and couchsurfed to save money on accommodation. And on New Years Eve, I reported for duty to help serve breakfast and welcome the guests. A few days prior, I had been trained on how the day would go.

My job at Hogmanay: Welcome the guests, help get all 300+ guests checked in, serve breakfast and drinks then lead everyone to the train. Once on the train, collect the necessary information, pass out welcome drinks and assist in letting the party rage!

By the time we arrived in Scotland, everyone had already had a sufficient amount to drink for the festival. It was a wild, unforgettable New Years Eve!

And if you can believe it, I didn’t take a single photo of the experience. My first travel job, I just soaked in the experience & loved every second of it!

But a video recap was made, check it out!

English Speaking Volunteer with Diverbo

After my time in London and Scotland, I boarded a cheap flight to Frankfurt with little more than my backpack.

Again, I couchsurfed for two nights in Germany to explore before reporting for the first day to volunteer with the program Diverbo.

This program provides free accommodation at a resort, 3 delicious meals a day & free drinks at each meal in exchange for speaking English all day with foreigners eager to improve their conversational English. I absolutely loved my time in Germany at Diverbo.

Read more about it here.

Spring Break Host with STS Travel
in Cancun, Mexico

This was my first travel job where all flights, accommodation and food were included.

And on top of that, it was a paid position! I only made $200 a week in cash stipend but my round trip flight to Mexico was covered. And I lived at the Grand Oasis, an all inclusive resort, for a full month. (Meaning all alcohol and food was 100% free!)

In addition, the company sent me on my first scuba diving excursion totally for free!

So what was my job exactly?

Read more about it here.

But essentially, I welcomed the spring breakers as they arrived, was in charge of wristbands, assisting at major events and leading nightly trips to party in downtown Cancun.

I lived at a resort for a month in paradise and left with $800 in my pocket still in shock that I could get paid to travel!

Festival Crew at Oktoberfest in Munich, Germany

While this is a volunteer position and not paid, I wouldn’t have traded this experience for the world!

Yes, we were camping in Germany for nearly 6 weeks.

Yes, we worked some very long unpaid days setting up the festival.

But working with Stoke Travel as part of their festival crew during Oktoberfest, introduced me to my new group of travel friends.

My best friends back home could never be replaced but until this experience I didn’t have any friends who were able to go traveling for weeks on end with me!

While just working festival crew isn’t paid, there are some other perks:

• Fun loving, party atmosphere of workers from around the world
• Commission sales when people book with your promo code
• Free unlimited beer, wine and sangria
• Accommodation (which is a tent at this festival!)
• A trip to Greece at the end of the season that is half paid for by the company

Things to note: You can make good money selling trips through Stoke Travel if people book with your code. There are also paid staff positions if you accept a year-round job. While I chose to work a short term, volunteer position it is possible to actually get paid to travel with this company!

Read more about working at Oktoberfest here.

Assisted With Looking After Sled Dogs and Photographing Our Experience
in Ottsjo, Sweden

The next travel job I would work involved helping out at the kennels for Wild Spirit Sled Dogs and assisting the company by taking photos for their social media.

While we were only visiting for a few days to see our friend Adrian and to help out in exchange for accommodation, he was actually working as a paid full-time employee with the dogs.

Working or volunteering with a dog sledding company is a great travel job you can find all over the world in places like Iceland, Sweden, Canada and Alaska.

Read more about how to find work with a dog sledding company here.

Pub Crawl Guide in Krakow, Poland

I loved every minute of this job. The housing we were provided with wasn’t great but we were having too much fun to care. It honestly only added to the fun.

Not only was I living just a few blocks from the main square in Krakow but I was there with my friend Morgan who I had met during Oktoberfest. We would go on to travel together non-stop for 2 years and still do today!

During the day we explored Krakow by going on walking tours, taking day trips to nearby cities and eating more than our fair share of pierogi.

And at night, we worked on the pub crawl guiding travelers from around the world through Krakow’s legendary network of bars and nightclubs.

Read: 10 REASONS TO WORK AS A PUB CRAWL GUIDE WITH KRAWL THROUGH KRAKOW

Spring Break Host with STS Travel in
Cabo San Lucas, Mexico

In 2019, I returned to work with STS Travel in Mexico. But this time, I was being sent to Cabo San Lucas instead of Cancun and I recieved a pay raise as a returning employee.

I was thrilled to explore the oppossite side of Mexico.

Again, I lived at an all inclusive resort and managed the guests who booked spring break packages. We attended concerts, parties and even got sent on an ATV excursion.

Leading Road Trips Across America with
Topdeck Travel

Spring 2019 brought a big change! I flew back to the USA from Poland for a final interview with Topdeck Travel. I landed the job and began a month long training process on the road to guide road trips.

Over the course of the next year, I would go on many road trips ranging from 10 days to a month long all over the USA.

From hiking in Yosemite National Park to listening to jazz on Bourbon Street in New Orleans, it was one adventure after another.

Favorite Topdeck adventures included:

• Jeep Tour of Monument Valley
• Party Bus in Las Vegas
• Hiking in Yosemite National Park
• Sunset cruises under the Golden Gate Bridge
• Line dancing in Texas
• Snowmobiling in Colorado

All my flights, hotel rooms, meals and excursions were covered. On top of that, I received an hourly wage, health insurance and daily stipend.

This job had insane perks. But it was also a TON of work. I was the only one in charge of groups of 30-50 people. While sometimes it felt like vacation, it also frequently meant running around like crazy making reservations, dealing with crazy issues that come up on the road, taking care of drunk guests etc. I wasn’t just getting paid to travel. I was paid to be a tour guide, counselor, therapist, friend, DJ on the bus, entertainer and just about everything else to the guests!

Travel Blogging On My Personal Site

Travel blogging is not easy money. There is a lot of work upfront before you ever see a dime. And usually when you start making money, it’s still just pennies compared to the hours you have devoted to your blog.

So you’ve got to make sure you go into travel blogging because you love it and want to share your passion not because you’re looking for a get rich quick scheme.

That being said, I do make money through my site from various affiliates. People may click and purchase a product I recommend or book a trip through my site (at no additional cost to them) and in return, I make a small commission off each purchase.

In addition to affiliate links, I may be offered free or sponsored travel in exchange for sharing my honest opinion about it on my blog.

When I was first starting out as a blogger, some of my first “free” trips included:

• This hostel in Jerusalem
• And this train trip through Colorado

I was careful to never accept anything I wouldn’t have already been using or paid full price for myself. And all of my reviews were my own honest thoughts.

(I think it helps to be transparent and honest about which trips I’m paying for myself and which ones are hosting me!)

Once I arrived back in Minnesota during the coronavirus pandemic, I was able to take time and grow my blog further which resulted in a number of local partnerships with truly incredible companies.

Recent Minnesota Sponsorships Included:

• Voyager Campervans
• Gunflint Lodge
• Covington Inn
• Kerfoot Canopy Tour

Party Crew with Stoke Travel for
Barcelona Boat Parties

After working with Stoke Travel in Scotland and Germany, I knew a lot of the company members so I was able to stay in Barcelona for free and help out at the spring and summer boat parties.

All we had to do was set up for the party and hand out drinks while the guests were onboard! This left plenty of time for exploring Spain with my friends.

Freelance Travel Writer For
My Life’s A Travel Movie

Once the coronavirus pandemic broke out, I was staying at home and putting a pause on all my travels. Fortunately, I was still able to work through my travel blog.

I wrote both for my own site and as a paid guest blogger for Alyssa Ramos of My Life’s A Travel Movie.

Freelance jobs are a great way to help support your blog in the early stages!

Read the articles I contributed to or wrote below:

• https://mylifesamovie.com/best-photography-poses-in-2020/
• https://mylifesamovie.com/airlines-offering-discounts-in-2020/
• https://mylifesamovie.com/empty-cities-during-lockdown-in-2020/
• https://mylifesamovie.com/eat-pray-love-drinking-game/
• https://mylifesamovie.com/15-family-movies-to-inspire-wanderlust-at-home/

Future Travel Jobs I Would Like To Work:

So what’s next on my bucket list? After traveling so much am I ready to settle down in one place? Not yet 🙂

Here’s a few more travel jobs I would like to work in the future. I share these because you might be interseted in applying as well!

Guiding Sail Croatia

I think I’d like to live onboard a ship that sails around the Croatian islands for awhile, wouldn’t you? I’ve also found I love working as a trip leader so I look forward to applying to work this job in the future.

One Life Adventures

This company does epic itineraries around Indonesia, India, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Philippines and Japan. And while I’ve been to India and Indonesia, I haven’t traveled the rest!

Even if you don’t apply for this company, check out their awesome trips!

Intrepid Guide

This is a favorite company in the travel community! They lead smaller group trips on amazing itineraries around the world. Great to work with and great to travel with as a customer, check them out!

Volunteer with Animal Aid India

You might have seen this company’s viral videos on Youtube of miraculous animal rescues. They are quite popular on social media. But as a volunteer, you can help out at the center while the animals recover.

“We want YOU to come to Animal Aid and join in the magic that is animal protection and care. Animal Aid is a happy place where animals are healing and loved. Whether you have technical skills with animal health care or whether you are a motivated animal lover who wants to help by giving tender loving care, Animal Aid has the right animals for YOU!!” – Animal Aid India

Follow in my footsteps to do your own gap year!

Feel free to apply for these jobs and volunteer positions or reach out and ask me questions!

I share all this information to be fully transparent and show how I, a girl from a small town who had never traveled and didn’t have a lot of money saved, was able to travel for 2 full years non-stop.

It is my hope that no matter the size of your bank account, you’re able to travel for as long as you desire.

Whether it’s for a few days or a few years, I’m here to help!

Things to note: Even if you can afford to pay your entire way for a gap year, you might find you love giving back and volunteering and building a connection with a destination that goes deeper than fly-by sightseeing.

Have you worked any travel jobs you loved? Let me know in the comments how you get paid to travel, I love to hear from my readers!

Shop My Travel Essentails

More info on how to get paid to travel:

• TRAVEL JOBS: THE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO FINDING PAID WORK AROUND THE WORLD
• 12 COMPANIES THAT PAY YOU TO TRAVEL- APPLY HERE FOR A TRAVEL JOB!
• HOW TO FIND HOSTEL JOBS AND WHERE EXACTLY TO APPLY
• HOW TO GET A JOB AT A NATIONAL PARK