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The RTW Guys

Live More. Travel More. Spend Less.

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The Round the World Guys – Who We Are

Welcome to our Travel Blog. We are Michael and Halef. We are a couple from Atlanta, Georgia and we’ve been traveling the world together since 2008.

In 12 years of traveling together, we’ve gotten around quite a bit. Together, we’ve been to almost 60 countries, and even while working full-time, we’ve seen and done more than we ever dreamed possible just a decade ago.

But full-time work meant that we were confined to how much (or little) holiday time we got at our corporate jobs. While we usually traveled together, that inflexibility meant there were times we took separate vacations. Still, we’ve been able to

  • swim with a sperm whale in the Sea of Cortez
  • attend some huge religious festivals
  • see a glacial lake at 15,000 feet in the Andes
  • run a marathon on the world’s most remote island
  • visit one of the most closed countries in the world
  • hang out with penguins, seals, and whales in Antarctica

Every trip we took increased our desire to travel even more. And though Halef loved his job as a Landscape Architect and I loved my 25-year career as an Instructional Designer, we wanted more.

Antarctica, 2019

In 2016, we started saving everything we had, knowing that full-time travel would be our goal before I turned 50 in November 2019. We met that goal on August 2, 2019, when we both quit our jobs and traveled to Peru for 2 months.

Further reading: Read more about how we were able to save money to travel the world full-time.

What you will find here

Mostly, we enjoy writing travel guides for the places we’ve visited. But we also occasionally write about other things. For example:

  • Interesting things to include in your travel journal
  • Our experience diving on Liveaboards
  • Food around the world (for example, Indonesia!)
  • Stuff to consider before traveling to remote places
  • Quirky stuff, like diving in aquariums!
  • Weird places to visit
  • and ideas that worked for us
  • Couchsurfing

We send out a bi-weekly newsletter when we’re on the road that not only lets you know what we’re doing and where we are but also how much it’s costing us – right down to the penny. Subscribe to our list by entering your email field at the bottom of this page.

Our mission is to show you and others how we’re living a life of travel – even if you’re in your 40s, 50s and above. We’re living proof that if you set your mind to it, the possibilities are endless.

Our travel style

Nasca, Peru – 2019

We generally try to set an upper limit of $100 per day when we travel.

“How is that possible? A hotel costs that much!” Right! So if you want to do what we do, you’re going to have to make some decisions about your travel style.

When we travel, we tend to stay in one place for a while. That means we can rent an Airbnb for two weeks to a month at savings upwards of 40% off the nightly price. We’re also completely open to hostels instead of hotels when the circumstances are right.

We have a “clean bed and bathroom” philosophy. If the bed and bathroom are clean, that’s what’s most important to us if we’re only staying for a short while. If we’re staying longer, we further emphasize comfort, noise-levels, food prep, and a few other things.

Cooking Class – Nha Trang, Vietnam – 2015

But we always emphasize the cost. Why? So we can save money to do really cool things like this and this. We place a high premium on understanding where we are. And at least for us, we can’t do that if we’re experiencing a Southeast Asian country but going home every night to the Ritz.

So if you want to stay in Marriotts and W hotels while you’re on the road, then you’ll have a completely different style from us. But that doesn’t mean you can’t benefit from our experience.

Our tentative RTW Itinerary

Cusco, Peru, 2019
  1. Explore Peru for two months [DONE]
  2. Head to Italy for a month [DONE]
  3. Come back to Atlanta and apply for Michael’s citizenship [IN PROGRESS]
  4. Fly to Southeast Asia and spend 4 months there [January, 2020]
  5. Next to China and Mongolia for awhile
  6. Maybe take the Trans-Siberian Railway through Russia
  7. Down through some of the “-stans” and India
  8. Through Iran and over to Turkey
  9. Fly to Dubai and then to Djibouti for an overland trip all the way to South Africa
  10. Somehow, we’ll make our way to France and visit friends for a week or so – a vacation from our vacation
  11. Then, … who knows?

Stay Up-To-Date

Where are we? How did we get here? How much did it cost? Where are we going next? All in one weekly summary email. Plus personal stuff you won’t find on the blog. Easy signup. Easy unsubscribe. No spam. Ever.

How long will it take?

All in 2 years? Or 5-10? Permanently? We’re not sure.

Our fellow divers int he Maldives
The Maldives – 2017

But for a glimpse of some of the stuff we want to do, here is our Ultimate round the world bucket list! We think this is a good list!

We really don’t know where our round the world trip will take us. We just know we’re doing it.

We’re both really excited to share our journey with you. It’s going to be different, for sure.

Petra, Jordan – 2014

Want more like this? Subscribe to our newsletter below (mobile) or in the sidebar (desktop) to get our posts delivered to your mailbox! And like our Facebook page and Instagram feed. We’re also on YouTube. Watch our Travel vlogs right here.

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Stay Up-To-Date

Where are we? What are we doing? How much did it cost? All in one bi-weekly email. Plus personal stuff you won't find on the blog.

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