When 28 12 months olds Nick Chazee and Mathilde Vougny packed up their belongings to travel the world three years ago, they selected to do it in an unconventional way — of their Land Rover.
Chazee, who was working at a technology startup, and Vougny on the United Nations, were exposed to frequent work travel. But that didn’t abate their craving to travel more.
“Anytime we had free time, we might go around and travel like even when it was five hours away from home,” said Vougny.
Their passion for travel made them realize that they desired to do it full-time.
They thought “would not it’s so cool if we could just keep driving and go to Turkey after which to Central Asia, after which all of the technique to Singapore… and do the entire world,” said Chazee.
Financing the trip
It took the couple nearly two years to save lots of up the cash to comprehend their dreams. Initially, the trip was completely self-funded, based on Chazee.
It was only after the couple began documenting their travel on social media platforms that they might depend on that income stream to fund their trips.
Nonetheless, the couple admitted that they’d not intended to monetize their social media presence in the beginning.
“We’re already doing those videos, nevertheless it was for family and friends, so there was no pressure,” said Vougny.
They planned to stop their journey when funds ran out, but “the cash began coming once we were doing it not for the cash… we’re lucky,” Vougny told CNBC Travel.
The couple took nearly two years to save lots of up for his or her trip.
Source: Nick Chazee and Mathilde Vougny
Their expenses typically cover the diesel and maintenance of the automotive, Wi-Fi, Netflix and music subscriptions, visa, and shipping containers for the automotive to be transported, totaling an estimate of $41,000 per 12 months.
The couple saves on utility bills, rent, and avoid hotels, leading to a way of life that’s less expensive than before they began traveling for a living.
Since Chazee and Vougny have to ship their automotive every time they fly to a different country, the couple tries to get monetary savings by booking flights on the last minute.
That ensures they never must reschedule a flight if their shipping plans are derailed, saving them a variety of money as shipment costs typically account for a big portion of their expenses, at a mean of $6,000 a 12 months.
Travelers who book their shipments and flights upfront risk having to rebook their flights with additional costs to accommodate the unpredictable shipping schedule, said Chazee.
“We literally buy the plane ticket the identical day that we wish to go away, so we pay possibly 10% greater than what it cost two months ago, but at the top, we saved so way more.”
If shipment ever delayed their automotive, they continued traveling by motorbike.
“We do not take planes often anywhere, unless… it’s between our automotive and our motorbike,” said Chazee.
Managing each day routines of their Land Rover
With a 65-liter water tank refilled at fuel stations, a full-sized shower head, a dual-fuel stove system, and a 45-liter fridge, the vehicle was designed to support each day life on the road.
Laundry gets done every two weeks either by public laundry machines or through third-party services. Â
The “automotive setup is ideal in lots of places, aside from the warmth,” said Chazee. “We use fans for the night once we sleep… nevertheless it’s still too hot sometimes and so we’re sweating. It’s hard to sleep.”
Alternatively, when temperatures dropped to -15°C in Alaska, “we were inside in T-shirts and shorts because we [had] a diesel heater… [and] the recent shower,” he said. Â
Bittersweet moments
Of their three years of traveling in a Land Rover, the couple have experienced some rough bumps on the road.
Certainly one of such instances occurred after a draining means of shipping their Land Rover to Australia — a move that cost around $7,000.
“Five days after we start driving in Australia, the engine breaks down entirely… worst experience possible,” said Vougny.
After 10 minutes, a neighborhood stopped to assist.
“We eventually spent 21 days at his home, he helped us fix the automotive… we were cooking for them, [and] they were cooking for us,” she said. “So even that I can not recall as a nasty memory, nevertheless it would totally qualify as a nasty moment for us.”
Certainly one of the highlights of their trip across 160,000 km, is that greater than 300 people globally have invited the couple to their homes.
Source: Nick Chazee and Mathilde Vougny
Other than mechanical challenges, being removed from family meant that they’d to maintain their automotive parked safely abroad while they returned home.
“But again, we’re lucky due to community we built online. We now have people in every country, they usually’re at all times so welcoming,” said Vougny. “Normally they take really excellent care of our home, because in the event that they follow our journey, in addition they know our automotive thoroughly, and so that they care about it as much as we do.”
Highlights on the road
The couple has just a little tradition — “each time we enter a rustic, we try to search out a neighborhood from the country to stay the country flag on our automotive,” she said.
After they were camping in Bolivia, Vougny recalled an interaction with an old man who was afraid that they got here to steal their llamas.
“And that was super nice because you understand, we are inclined to be afraid of strangers, [yet] he was afraid of us… and eventually we talked,” she said. “For me, those small interactions are… my best memories.”
The automotive draws its own attention with its French license plate and a left-hand drive steering wheel. “So once we go eat, we often get a little bit of chit chat. You meet people,” she said.
Though the couple is about on ending the trip in two years, there are plans for “a brand new, greater vehicle” and more travel, Chazee said.
Source: Nick Chazee and Mathilde Vougny
Certainly one of the highlights of their trip across 160,000 km, is that greater than 300 people globally have invited the couple to their homes. “I save all of their names and their location, so once we get to those countries, we write to them again,” said Chazee.
Though they’re set on ending the trip in two years, there are plans for “a brand new, greater vehicle and travel to the continents that we really need to do again, or that we feel like we’ve not seen enough,” he said.
One other possible plan is establishing a house base to welcome other travelers in the long run and “give back… what we received on this trip,” said Vougny.
