Travel. Six harmless letters. Six letters that, in the right order, will change your life forever and will open your eyes to indescribable experiences.  Some would say they are six of the best letters out there…

Travel fuels both of us. Arguably it’s the best thing we’ve done, both together and separately and it is the one of the biggest things we have in common. Most importantly it is the way we like to spend our time together. These days unfortunately my job gets in the way (yes I do need to change the ‘about me’ section on our blog). That’s not a dig at my job. Not at all. I really enjoy it and above all it only serves to make us enjoy holidays more.

So it may come as a surprise to hear that a few years ago I once advised a friend (who had largely holidayed at home) not to travel. They were asking me to justify why it was worth all the money I spent on it (trust me when we work it out, Dean and I could have bought a holiday house in the country mortgage free with what we have spent). Humm I thought and my answer was ‘don’t do it’. My reason for this was simple. Travel is more addictive than any drug out there. In the words of a famous advert, “once your start you just can’t stop”. Therefore my logic was if you don’t catch the bug (which is more infectious than the common cold) then you don’t have to drink the vitamin c to get over it….

Do I still agree with this? Well in short, I’m a little older, a (very) little bit wiser and the answer is a resounding no. We may not have as much money to put towards our next house, but we have enough and better still we have irreplaceable memories. Memories forged whilst out on deck in Antarctica, stood in front of the magnificent Taj Mahal, walking the Great Walk, Inca Trail and Mt Kinabalu. Seeing Uluru (next time Dean!), Santa in Lapland, staying at the Heartbreak Hotel in Memphisis, pretending to be John Wayne in Monument Valley, watching cheetahs stalk in Tanzania, flying over Victoria Falls, swimming with whales sharks, diving in top dive spots and enjoying the view at the top of the always remembered twin towers. I could go on, but you get the picture. Once you’ve travelled you NEVER look back. To pick a highlight is impossible. To regret spending the money unthinkable. Each and every moment precious.

So whether you have £100 or £1500 for your next holiday spend it wisely on a memorable shared experience. I’m lucky my soul mate loves travel as much as me. Or maybe you make your own luck? I’m sure I make a better buddy for him when we are away, however not doing that all the time only makes you appreciate every holiday more.

It is true what they say. Travel is the one thing that really does make you richer.

– Natalie

Chilling with my travel buddy