Can I really afford to travel the world? That sounds expensive.
Almost anyone can go on extravagant, life-changing vacations without increasing their overall monthly spend. And as a CPA freelancer, it’s even easier.
Recently I wrote on Going Concern about how you can completely take back control of your life through freelancing, while still progressing your career and saving for retirement.
Consider this posting part 2 of that concept, geared towards those of you interested in extended travel.
Here are 3 ways to get the most travel for your buck:
#1 Use your client-reimbursed expenses to hit credit card signup bonuses.
There are insane signup bonuses out there for new credit cards. And if you’re freelancing, you can put any client travel expenses you incur on your own cards, which of course, you’ll then be reimbursed for by your client.
In 6 months of freelancing, you can easily hit the minimum spending to achieve the signup bonuses for 3 – 5 new credit cards. The lower end of that range should get you approximately the equivalent of $1,500 – $3,000 of free travel.
I bet you’re worried about what applying for a bunch of credit cards will do to your credit. The short answer is: not much… but feel free to do your own research.
Your credit may immaterially go down a few points for a year or so, but the credit hit is temporary.
And let’s face it… if you’re scheming to travel the world, you’re not going to be buying a house in the next year anyways. Who cares if you take a temporary, minor hit to your credit?
#2 Take advantage of ‘in lieu of’ travel for domestic travel.
For those of you who are frequently on out-of-town client engagements, you likely fly home on weekends. But typically clients don’t care if you fly somewhere else in lieu of traveling home (so long as the costs are comparable). And why would they?
If you’re clever about timing long weekend or week-long vacations, you can get one or both legs of your flights to be client-sponsored. During my nomadic stint I referenced in the GC article, I managed client-sponsored or rewards-based travel to twenty-one different cities in a 4-month span without spending a single of my own dollars on airfare.
#3 Go off the beaten path.
If you want to stretch your adventures as far as possible without blowing your budget, travel to lesser developed countries and avoid all-inclusive resorts. Target South America, Eastern Europe, and Southeastern Asia for unforgettable experiences.
Stay in hostels if you’re up for it. They’re typically a lot nicer outside of the US. If the idea of sharing a room with ten strangers freaks you out, get a private room at a hostel instead of staying in a dorm.
You can safely budget $50/day to travel comfortably around the regions I just mentioned.
Interested in learning more about accounting freelancing? Contact us – we’d love to hear from you.