There has to be some university somewhere in the UK doing a course in eco travelling or overland sustainable tourism or something. Sign up and get yourself a student loan. That'll fix the finances as you'll never have to pay it back.

Back in the real world it's hard to give advice as it's a problem I've kicked around for decades without coming to a definitive conclusion. The only thing I would say is that, although I've never met you, (although I did see you once in the bar at a rally surrounded by fawning female acolytes kneeling at your feet!) I get the feeling that it's a serious issue for you.

Something like that is only going to get worse as the years pass. Not because you're going to be too old and too knackered by 35 but because it becomes increasingly difficult to dump everything you've achieved in other areas of your life. Weighing up doing the trip vs having to start virtually from scratch when you come back has the scales tipping more and more towards the stay side as the years pass. Even at the age you are now many men have wives, children, houses, lifestyle and "career progression" to consider. Dumping some or all of those to travel may be beyond what is possible.

Even if you don't tick many of those boxes atm you may wonder how vanishing for a year or two will impact on them in the future. I don't think it's an coincidence that a lot of long term travelling is done by people in their 20's with nothing to lose and people in their 60's (post retirement) with everything to gain.

On a more philosophical bent have you wondered why you want to do this? I don't want to start spouting psychobabble but there's usually some underlying motivation for people wanting to do anything unusual that goes beyond the obvious. This forum probably isn't the right place to bare your soul but you ought to be aware of your own motivations. Back in 2008 I cancelled a trip to Africa - something I'd spent a year planning - about a week before departure for a reason I've never told anyone but which goes right to the core of my life experience.

So, bottom line, do it or don't do it, but weigh up the consequenses of each option and decide which takes you further in the direction you want to go. Heart may be saying go now and sort the mess out when I get back but head, looking at the world of finance, employment and long term prospects, may have different ideas. If you're hoping people on here may come up with an angle you haven't considered, well, don't hold your breath, we all look to you for answers.

My own philosophy: NEVER EVER travel on debt.

Here is a thought: You have £5000. Just leave. Now. Get jobs along the way. Work in bars. Work on a cruise ship. Work on farms. And Volunteer a lot in return for food and a place to sleep. Hitchhike from place to place. Cook your own food. Couchsurf. I've met people who left with $1000 USD in the bank and traveled for years. End result compared to saving money ahead of time? I couldn't tell a difference talking to them....

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Traveling The World Since: 2011
Blog: The Seductive Life (General Travel)

Nearly 34 eh.
I didn't know people as young as that were allowed to join this forum.

I think you have to put to one side the elderly parents potential problem as your parents could easily be around for many many years so that is always, hopefully, going to be a factor.

I don't know how much you expect to need in total for this trip but you will effectively lose £2,280 of your £10,000 loan as that is how much you need to pay back while you are away.
So that leaves £7,720 to add to your £5,000 but you'll probably need a little more from the loan as you'll need funds when you get back to find a job, and digs, and you won't get paid in your new job for a month.
But you know all of that.
So probably need to assume you'll only have £7,000 of your loan as "available" money.
I'm making the assumption here that you won't be earning while you're travelling.

I wouldn't go for the loan myself, but good luck in whatever you decide although my 50P says you'll take the money and run.

Lot of good answers here.

I do not comment if you should take the money and run or not.
But, when you get stuck to a career, you will suddenly wake up one morning and wonder where all those years have gone.
I have noticed that older I get, faster the time is running…

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Riding round the World

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One parent... She's 72. And already disabled. She lives in a big house with big gardens which I have to maintain. I don't have to be there 24/7 but I need to be 'around' if you know what I mean..

I'm an impatient person. I'm restless. I get bored easy and frustrated with being stagnant. Although I've already done a lot of cool stuff which I am grateful for, I don't want to be looking back in a few years regretting not doing it.

I also think people are more judgemental when you borrow money for travel. People don't seem to think twice about buying a car on finance, taking out a mortgage or taking student loans... Do you know ANYONE truly debt free ?? I'm the only person I know completely in the black.. Hmmmmm again.

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Did some trips.
Rode some bikes.
Fix them for a living.
Can't say anymore.

Hi Ted,

well my answer would be, you've got the health to do such a trip, so do it before it stops you!

Me, I'm in a low paid, crappy job, that I've just had to reduce my hours by half to look after my mum (who's suffered a series of strokes). My credit history's naff (due to previous releationships which have cost me thousands and left me in serious debt), combined with having a previous job where my wages were alomst haved, before the position wa closed. I'm 51 years old and can honestly say that my chance of any future travels are nil.

So even if it leaves you in debt, do it, life is far to short and unpredictable not to take chances.

Regards

Reggie

I'm sure you've pondered this many times but how about a shorter trip ?
No need for a loan at all that way, no worries about leaving Mum for too long although I know you've done shorter trips in the past and possibly won't feel satisfied unless it's going to be a long trip.

I think you're worrying too much about looking back with regrets as in my book you've got with many, many travel years ahead of you.

And yes I'm debt free but when you get older you ideally have to be as you don't have the income to pay loans back, and I suspect banks and the like don't like giving loans to the old folk.

God knows I really don't want to offer advice as, based on my record of my decision making over the years, you'd probably be better off doing exactly the opposite of anything I suggest, but ...

Maybe, if you really have the characteristics you mention above, just twirling spanners day after day with little variety might have some part to play in your unease. Ok you're working with bikes which is one tick in the plus box but take a look at your fellow workers - what motivates them to turn up every day? For the owners, building a business and achieving something maybe. For your co workers - perhaps their family is paramount and having a regular income is what matters. Or maybe not. Any of them planning an RTW or something similar where the job is just a means to an end for a while?

My daughter is working on the checkouts in Sainsbury's atm to finance a trip to the far east for the summer, then uni. She's not planning a career in retail management but others in the shop are. At 18 though there's very little to lose when she quits. I don't want to suggest a career move will be the answer but I wonder if the RTW idea is your way of dealing with a lifestyle you see going nowhere.

What I'm trying to get round to is that personalities are complex constructs. If you're like me there is no way you'll get through life without regrets and the older you get the more there are (and I'm a lot older). No matter what you do you're going to be looking back eventually regretting something because many alternatives are mutually exclusive and the best you can do is minimise the damage. What if I'd done engineering rather than life sciences at uni, what if I'd married her rather than her, been more pushy, taken more chances etc.

The money side may seem like a mountain at the moment but in the long run, if it's peace of mind you're after, it's almost an irrelevance. Just make sure you're spending it on the right thing. Maybe you should have joined the army!

Is this the way you want to be?

Hi Ted,
Surprise surprise. So you want it all, and you want it now. You could write a song about that. Bugger saving up for it, get it on the never never.
Availability to credit certainly has changed how people live. My parents scraped and saved merely to get a roof over our heads. For my generation, I'm 61, it was a bit easier, I had to be on friendly terms with the bank manager in order to get a house mortgage. But for my kids, the bank computer says "Sure, how much do you want?".
Last year I met an English chap, 78 years old, and he never had a mortgage in his life. When he was in his 20s, he came out to Australia with a mate for a look see. After 4 years working in various jobs including a stint at Mt. Isa mines he returned to England and paid cash for a house and a bit of land. Times have changed I suppose.
So, you want to travel on credit. Well I think that is entirely in keeping with our times. Just pay the piper on your return.
Cheers,
Mark

I am who I am... Many a woman have tried to change me hah.



Yes.. My job and where I live does have a lot to do with wanting to up and leave. Its a normal feeling. Unlike many around me though, I don't/won't put up for it. I'm very very conscious that life is an hourglass and no one is going to turn it over and start again once its empty.

A new, more independent and varied career is on the horizon but that will take a while to become established. Hence again for my eagerness to get in the road sooner rather than later...

__________________
Did some trips.
Rode some bikes.
Fix them for a living.
Can't say anymore.

Tried... And the RAF,Navy, fire service, paramedics etc.

I'm red/green colour blind. Only slightly but they don't distinguish..

So.. I'd be limited to a driver or handing out uniforms to cadets. Not my idea of fun.

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__________________
Did some trips.
Rode some bikes.
Fix them for a living.
Can't say anymore.

You say you are afraid of regretting things when you get old(er), are you not afraid of regretting that you are impatient, restless, bored etc? Don't you think feelings like that takes away joy from travel and life in general?

Well, I guess this is not helpful. I'll go and play in the snow (with my EXC).

Reminds me of the old joke about the vicar advising a bride to be how to remember what's going to happen during the ceremony - you'll walk in, meet me at the front and then we'll do some singing". On the day she comes in whispering repeatedly "aisle, altar, hymn".

Many a true word etc ...

Yeah.. I'd love to be content. I often look at people who are very happy with very little or with very boring lives and envy them.


Or are they just simple ???? Maybe they don't know any better ??

Does one envy a lamb sunbathing in a field without a care in the world.. Even though it will be on a plate by the end of the summer.

I don't see how I can change my personality. Bar some hypnotism or maybe a partial lobotomy

I've had a few people suggest that I might be ADHD and Dyslexic (you've seen my spelling)... I'm a restless person and a little bit obsessive. A rattle or whir on a bike will drive me insane.. MUST FIX IT.. :P I think that's how I got into mechanics...

Anyway.. Too deep.

__________________
Did some trips.
Rode some bikes.
Fix them for a living.
Can't say anymore.