We all come up with excuses not to do something at one point or another. An excuse not to go the gym? I’m on it. An excuse to buy yet another pair of shoes? Guilty. An excuse to put off booking your next travel adventure? Yuuuup.

So I was talking with mum the other day discussing my next Europe/UK trip. I was ummm-ing and ahhh-ing over whether I should book it now, whether I should book a twin share room or a room to myself, whether I should wait until I’ve done my South Island Contiki, or whether I should wait to book until 2018 so maybe It’ll be cheaper….

Until mum made an excellent point (as always):

“What do you work for? What do you earn money for? For the $$ to sit in your piggy bank doing nothing but collecting dust? If you have the means, book it now. Do it now. And if not, you can make it happen – you have 6 months to come up with the dough!”

Money doesn’t necessarily buy us happiness – but it can buy us travel – and that’s pretty darn close 😉

And if there’s a super sweet deal for flights going on with your travel agent right now (cough cough, Chelsea), and if tour companies like Contiki let you put down just a $200 deposit in the first instance, why the hell not?

I mean, you know you’re going to go anyway right, no matter when you book? So why keep putting it off with the excuses and questions and what-ifs?

Do. Not. Wait. To Travel.

• Do not wait for the ‘right time’ When is the ‘right time’ anyway?
• Do not wait until your friends have saved up their money, too.
• Do not wait until you’re 60 years old. When the kids have left home and your student loan has been paid off.
• Do not wait until you’ve found your partner/husband/soul mate/etc.
• Do not seek permission from anyone (well you might need to request annual leave from work, but that’s your legal right anyway).
• Do not let other people’s opinions of what you should or should not do (or when you should or should not travel) stop you from following your heart’s desires.
• Do not wait until you’re on your deathbed and then all you have is regrets and repeats of “I wish I had…”

You have my express permission (not that you need it) to say “watch me” to their face and then proceed to spam their Insta feeds with glorious photos of the Swiss Alps.

Thanks mum for the reminder.

p.s. England/Scotland/Ireland trip booked for May 2018 😉

Don’t know here to start? Solo traveler? I recommend a Contiki– they’ve got heaps of different types of tours to suit your travel style (and you won’t be alone!)