Thanks for weighing in, Jayne. I’m sorry you’ve found that most of the gigs you’ve searched for expect accommodation fees. That has not been my experience, however it has been a couple of years since I’ve searched for gigs on the platform; perhaps it has changed.

yes that makes sense for sure, it’s better to set aside work and focus on being present. That’s what I learned, at least for me. I bet volunteering in Hawaii was a really cool experience!

Hi Sherman,
Thank you so much for the great comment, for getting my book, and for your support!

There are some really interesting gigs on WP, so who knows – you might find a good fit for volunteering plus working.

I’ll admit, since I wrote that article about traveling with checked luggage for longer than a month, I’ve been on a few multi-month trips with carry-on only.

It depends on the trip and what I’ll need at my destination(s) as to which option I go with. If I’m going to be in multiple climates – especially cold ones – I might want checked luggage. Or, if I’m just going to one place (so I’m not having to do a lot of luggage schlepping) where I know I’d like to have a few extra creature comforts, then I might go with checked.

But in general, the lighter the luggage, the easier the trip. 🙂

My wife had read your post this evening about how you travel with checked bags for trips longer than a month, and sparked a good discussion about how we would travel in the future. Our trip in October to Italy and Greece is less than a month long, so we’ll continue our OG plans to only travel carry on. I’m still up to the challenge of fitting all my items into a Ryanair-sized personal item bag, but something tells me it’ll be a FAIL, LOL!

Nora, thanks for sharing so openly so we can glean some travel wisdom from your priceless stories and experiences. Grazie!

Hi Maria,
I volunteered in a hostel in Hawaii and it was a fascinating experience and a great way to connect with so many travelers and learn from their adventures and plan a few of my own.

But I agree; working online – especially if it’s full-time or requires you to be online certain hours – is very difficult. As a result I don’t tend to volunteer much any more unless the conditions are amenable and/or I can take time off or reduce my workload.

That’s totally fair! If your travel possibilities are limited to shorter-term vacations during which you want to relax and unwind, then volunteering might not be right for you.