15 ways to make money while traveling

Traveling is often thought of as an expensive hobby, but what if it could be a way to make money? Imagine being able to explore the world, take in incredible sights, and make money along the way. In this article, we will explore 15 unique and creative ways to make money while traveling. Plus, you can use the income you earned to finance your trip and make the experience even more enjoyable.

From becoming a freelancer to teaching English online and working in the hospitality industry and many more, this article will be your guide to start earning income while fulfilling your dreams of traveling the world.

Without further ado, let’s get started.

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1. Become a Freelancer

Working as a freelancer is one of the most effective ways to make money while traveling. What makes freelance jobs great for people who travel a lot is that it gives you the flexibility to work from anywhere in the world and make your own schedule. Additionally, you get to choose different projects and clients you want to work with.

What can you do as a freelancer?

Freelance is a huge area that covers pretty much every career. Any job you can do remotely can also be completed through freelancing. For example, if you like writing and editing, you can become a freelance writer. You can also become a graphic designer, a software engineer, a web designer, social media manager, a consultant for business, data entry, bookkeeping, and many more. The choices are endless.

How to start making money while traveling as a free freelancer?

While making money when traveling as a freelancer can be rewarding, there are a few things you need to do to make it a reality. First and foremost, you need access to reliable internet just like any other remote work. In addition to having good internet, you need to have video conferencing software or apps such as Zoom, Microsoft Meets, Google Meets, or other services.

You should also update your resume and cover letters to meet freelancing job requirements. Having samples of your work to showcase your skills and experiences is essential to getting a consistent supply of clients.

Furthermore, having a profile on freelance websites such as Fiverr will enhance your visibility. Social media accounts such as LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram can also help clients know more about you and your experience. Working remotely while traveling sometimes requires that you collaborate with other freelancers and keep up with industry trends. For this reason, you need to join online forums and freelance groups and attend freelance events in your area of interest.

What skills do you need to work as a freelancer while traveling?

Some of the skills you will need to make money while traveling as a freelancer include the following.

Expertise in your area
Time management
Ability to work independently
Communication skills
Basics of computer software

How much can you make while traveling as a freelancer?

The pay rates for freelance travelers differ by industry and experience. For example, if you work as a freelance travel consultant, you will make around $30/hour, according to ZipRecruiter. But, if you work as a freelance travel writer, the average salary you should expect to make is around $56,671 according to Salary.com.

Some careers pay even higher than these rates. For example, if you work as a freelance software engineer, you should expect to make around $107,866, according to Salary.com. Again, how much you make will depend on what you do as a freelance traveler and your experience.

Best websites to find freelance traveling jobs

Making money while traveling means that you will find side gigs online from the most reliable freelance websites. You could also get freelance jobs from other sources such as referrals and social media. The following is a list of the most reliable websites to find freelance jobs and start making money traveling.

2. Work in hospitality and in restaurants

One of the easiest ways to make money while traveling is to work in hospitality and restaurants. You can either work as a chef, waiter, host, hotel maid, manager, and more. You don’t need a special degree or qualification to perform these jobs.

In addition, making more while traveling as a restaurant worker or hotel employee requires less training no matter where you travel. Usually, the tasks are the same, and skills from one place can be directly transferred somewhere else. Finally, working in hospitality is an effective way to make money while traveling as it can allow you to get paid under the table when you don’t have proper work permits.

The top skills to start making money on your travel while working in restaurants and hospitality include the following.

Knowing the language
Having excellent customer service
Ability to learn fast
Self-starter
Attention to details
Time management, etc.

Even if you don’t speak the language, you can become a cook. Being a good cook has nothing to do with languages.

3. Work as a translator

Making money while traveling sometimes requires that you use the resources, knowledge, and skills you have already to make money. One of the things you can do to earn a living and travel at the same time is to work as a translator. Becoming a translator is the easiest way to make money online while traveling.

For example, if you travel to France from England and speak French fluently, you can become a translator for English-speaking tourists who visit French. Putting your language to good use will help you make some extra bucks to cover your expenses.

What skills do you need to work as a translator?

The following are basic skills you need to successfully become a translator.

Speaking multiple languages
Customer service
Attention to detail
Time management
Public speaking
Knowledge of the area
And being friendly (good attitude)
You might also need the basics of computers and have a degree if you work as a freelance translator.

Best websites to find online translation jobs

Although you can work locally as a translator for tourists, you can also find remote translation jobs. Many companies usually seek individuals to translate different documents such as books, manuscripts, and proposals in different languages. These types of jobs, however, may require a bachelor’s degree or higher depending on the projects.

To start making money while traveling as a freelance translator, search for jobs on the following online translation job boards.

4. Become a teacher

One of the easiest ways you can make money while traveling is to become a teacher. If you have the required education and have been teaching for a while in your home country, it will be easy to continue that career abroad.

The subject you teach will depend on your area of focus. For example, if you are a Math teacher in your home country, you will more likely make money while traveling by teaching Math. Many countries around the world are looking for teachers with enough experience and expertise in all domains. This is why you can put your knowledge to work and earn money as a teacher while traveling.

5. Sell online courses

An easy way to make money while traveling is to sell online courses. If you have expertise in a particular subject, consider creating an online course and selling it while traveling.

While developing an online course is time-consuming, the rewards are worth it. After the course is prepped, the hard work will be over. You can either have a:

Prerecorded course: Where students or clients receive access to the course after creating an account or making payments. This course can also be in the form of a pdf document where they read the material themselves.

Live course: This will be a live course where clients will attend the course at a given date and time at the same time.

Having a blog can also help you market your course since you will have an audience already. You can also market your courses on social media such as Instagram, Facebook groups, Pinterest, TikTok, etc.

6. Make money while traveling by becoming a tutor

There are thousands of people out there who have problems with courses, especially in STEM degrees. If you happen to have experience in these areas, consider a tutoring position and start making money while traveling. You can either become a tutor in the country you are traveling in or an online tutor.

Tutoring in countries you travel to will help you interact with local people and learn their languages. But, you need to speak the local language to communicate effectively. Additionally, you can become an online tutor which is essential in reaching a larger audience. Hence, increasing how much money you can make while traveling.

Best websites to find tutoring jobs online

If you are interested in making money while traveling through tutoring, the following is a list of websites to find online tutoring jobs.

7. Write a book or eBook

Writing a book or an eBook is one of the best ways to make money while traveling. If you like writing, consider writing a book on a topic you enjoy or understand better.

For example, you can record your traveling experience in a book and sell it. Yes, there is someone who is willing to learn from your experience.

This works well for people who travel and stay in a country for a while. Spending much time in a country gives you adequate time to collect enough information about the country or a particular location in that country. You can also write a travel guidebook and include details about what a person needs, where to travel, how to find rental cars, tour guides, etc. Additionally, you can include your own experiences and recommendations for locations you have traveled to.

Once your book is finalized, you can sell it to your blog, social media platforms, or online retail stores such as Amazon, eBay, etc. You can also find a publisher to do the work for you.

8. Make money while traveling by renting out your car

Is your lifestyle changing from a home-based lifestyle to traveling? If so, you can rent your car out to people who can use it while you are traveling. This trick will earn you a steady stream of income which can help you pay off some of your travel expenses.

Make sure that the car has insurance at all times and that the person driving it has a good driving record. You should also have a written agreement with the driver to minimize conflicts. The contract should specify what the driver can and cannot do. Additionally, you must include in the contract who pays what and the methods of payment.

9. Rent out your house

Just like renting out your car, your home can also generate a rental income while you are traveling. Instead of closing your house for months, find someone who can stay in it and pay you a month-to-month rent or sign a long-term lease depending on how long you are traveling.

There are tenants who don’t want to sign up for yearly leases or pay premium monthly rents on apartments. So, you can target these tenants and offer them a good deal.

Make sure that you follow your county or state landlord regulations and have the lease signed before anyone moves in.

Since you will probably be gone for a while, you can have someone to take care of maintenance problems while you are gone. You can also have the property managed by a third-party company in exchange for a small fee. This will ensure good customer service and resolve your tenants’ problems should something arise.

It is also a good idea to have a contractor who will take care of maintenance issues. If a pipe is broken, you are not going to fly back home and fix it on time.

Related: How To Invest In Real Estate?

10. Earn money while traveling by doing online surveys

Another way to make money while traveling is to do online surveys. You can generate a few bucks from survey sites like SurveyMonkey, Survey Monkey, Survey Junkie, Swagbucks, and many more.

This will be a better use of your time compared to spending your days in bed or watching movies or tv shows.

Online surveys do not pay a lot of money. For this reason, you should not rely only on surveys for your travel income.

In order to do a lot of surveys without interruption, have access to reliable internet and allocate enough time to survey-related activities.

The following is a list of the best-paid survey sites to make money while traveling.

You might also like: 20 easy ways to make money from home in 2023

11. Trade stocks and related securities

Making money while traveling comes with a lot of potential, flexibility, and unlimited possibilities. Unfortunately, millions of people cannot achieve this lifestyle due to their jobs. Even when most people get a small vacation, they use it for fun stuff and end up spending every penny they made.

What if you can be able to travel and use your free time to make money while traveling? One of the easiest things you can do and make money while traveling is to trade stocks and related securities such as cryptocurrencies and traditional currencies.

There are many ways you can trade stocks and earn money while traveling. Most people become day traders where they buy and sell stocks on the same day. Others elect to become swing traders which is a method where they buy stocks and hold them for a few days, weeks, or months before selling them.

Keep in mind that trading stocks come with a lot of risks that can wipe out your entire investment or more. For this reason, you need to learn stock trading strategies and know at least the basics of the stock market. You should also have loss mitigation strategies in place and diversify your holdings to protect yourself from major losses.

For more information about the stock market, refer to the following articles.

12. Keep your 9 to 5 job

With remote work options being promoted in every company, the chances of keeping your job while traveling have also gone higher. If you are currently working your dream job, ask your boss if it is possible to keep working while traveling. For example, if you are a copywriter or a reporter for a newspaper, you can keep your job and report news related to locations you are traveling to.

Any jobs that you can do remotely such as data entry, bookkeeping, computer-related jobs, social media management, consulting, etc, can all be performed while traveling. Negotiate with your boss the possibilities of keeping your job and working remotely. If your boss does not allow you to work while traveling, find another job that aligns with your new lifestyle.

13. Sell products where you are traveling

Another way to make money while traveling is to sell products and trade with the local people. That is you will buy products for low prices and flip them for much higher returns.

In order to succeed, you should have the following experiences:

Solid understanding of the market
Know the local currency and market values of goods and services
Have good customer services
You need sales experience

14. Working for NGOs is a great way to make money while traveling

Non-profit organizations (NGOs) are perfect to work for if you want to make money while traveling. These organizations can station you in a particular country or move you around depending on your job specifications.

Having a professional degree such as a bachelor’s degree or higher will make it easy for you to get hired. Most of the time, these organizations prefer people who can start making a difference from day one. In other words, having experience or expertise in your area of focus is essential as you require little to no training.

15. Become a tour guide or travel agent

If you have been traveling to a country for a while to a level where you know so much about that country, why not become a travel agent in that country?

You can utilize the knowledge you gained throughout the years to make money as a tour guide. The fact that your information will also reflect your own experience will also help tourists and boost their enthusiasm for the information you give them.

You can also work as a travel agent where you help clients book flights, hotels, cars, etc. Many travel jobs will allow you to work from home or while traveling. If you are a travel agent already, talk to your current employer about this opportunity.

PS: Before you adventure into working while traveling, make sure that the visa you hold allows you to work. Many countries will not allow you to hold any type of job (regardless of what it is) on a tourist visa.

You should work with your immigration and destination authorities regarding securing a work permit for the duration of your stay.