How This 23-Year-Old Woman Gets Paid to Travel the World

Twenty-three-year-old Aussie Brooke Saward is being paid to travel the world full-time.

Since then she has launched a lucrative travel blog, World of Wanderlust, and has amassed a social media following of 320,000 fans who are living vicariously through her on Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat.

Many of us are probably thinking, “What a sweet life, but I don’t have that kind of money to travel. She must get it from her parents.” That isn’t the case. Brooke estimates that half of her travel expenses are self-funded, while the other half is paid for by sponsors such as hotels and tour companies. Companies such as Skyscanner offer Brooke complimentary flight tickets in exchange for reviews on her blog. Advertisement revenues generated from her travel blog are also a good source of income since her website gets over 950,000 views a month from readers seeking some spontaneity in their lives. She told the Daily Mail:

“This year I decided that I didn’t want to have any plans. It’s really exciting to not know what you’re doing next week. A few nights ago, I went to bed not knowing where I was going the next day.”

Taking on the world one day at a time, Brooke recounts her travel tales and gives readers tips and advice about solo travel on her blog. Her adventures include a recent visit to the Grand Canyon, a flight over Victoria Falls, safaris in Africa, a trip to Easter Island and a hike up a Chilean volcano. Brooke definitely knows how to welcome new experiences with open arms — like the time she took on the world’s highest bungee jump in Macau.

Though Brooke may be a risk-taking adrenaline junkie, she is also a very cautious traveler. A testament to her vigilance, she abstains from drinking and going out at night:

“When I’m back at home in Tasmania with my friends I’ll have a night out, but when I’m by myself in a foreign country I want to keep my wits about me.”

Instead, she often utilizes that time to catch up on work on her blog or to write her series of ebooks, including “The World of Wanderlust Story,” “How to Create a Successful Blog” and “The Solo Travel Guidebook.” She is even releasing a new book this year, “A Year to Myself,” the first of her books to be available in hard copy.

At the end of the day, the ambitious young traveler and businesswoman hopes to motivate readers to travel. She reveals the reason she created her travel blog in an interview with The Irie Explorer:

“For me it was all about sharing my experiences and creating a relationship with readers so that I can inspire them and convince them to travel and find it as valuable as I do.”

Share this Article