Category Archives: Blog

One of TPG’s favorite online shopping portals is offering a great money-saving deal for new members. If you join Rakuten through a referral link by May 12 and then spend at least $40 at eligible retailers within your first 90 days, both you and your referrer will take home a one-time bonus of $40. If […]

The Bilt Rewards program has rolled out several exciting updates in recent months, from letting members earn points on rent with non-Bilt credit cards to introducing rewards on home purchases. Now, Bilt is adding even more new features — this time geared toward students and former students. Starting today, you can redeem Bilt Points toward […]

What I carry in my bag has changed a lot over the years. Most of that change has to do with the fact that I now carry a lot of gear related to blogging, but it also reflects that I’ve learned a lot about packing since I first hit the road in 2006. I’ve learned […]

When I first started traveling, my dad used to ask what I’m running away from with my travels. Another time, a commenter told me to stop running away from my problems and to start living life. “Grow up,” he said. And, years ago, there was even a blog called “Mom says I’m running away.” I’m […]

Life can be stressful. Work, bills, relationships, the economy, love, family… the list goes on! There are lots of things we can do to do to relax, like changing our diet, exercising more often, sleeping more, and improving our work-life balance. But sometimes we need to do more than just make changes at home. Sometimes […]

As much as I love hostels, there is something nice about the luxuriousness of a hotel: the clean room, comfy bed, desk, iron, strong shower, and bottled soap for the taking (errr…I mean borrowing). They are a quiet, relaxing respite from the world. But luxury comes at a price. Hotels aren’t cheap and I hate […]

Get out a sheet of paper and write down all your set expenses: rent/mortgage, car payments, cable/streaming bill, cell phone, insurance, school payments, etc. Tally them up. Then write down all your discretionary spending. This is what you spend on food, movie nights, drinks, shopping, that daily coffee from Starbucks, your daily midday snack, and […]

Finding the best travel deals is a matter of timing. A lot of people think travel is just expensive, but in reality, there are incredible deals happening all the time. They often don’t last too long, and you have to act quickly. That can sometimes be a problem when a deal requires jumping on a […]

Time. There just never seems to be enough of it. It always seems to move too fast (and, every year, it seems to just move faster). Time is something people always tell me they don’t have enough of and is one of the main reasons why they don’t travel as much as they would like. […]

Before I first went traveling in 2006, I had these expectations in my head based on nothing but my imagination and popular culture. My trip was going to be a nonstop adventure filled with colorful and exciting people. Crazy things were going to happen to me. I’d make friends everywhere. I’d be talking to strangers […]