How to Plan your sabbatical: Tips from our six month adventure
In 2020, my husband (then fiancé) and I started dreaming about a career break. What if we took off six months—or even a year—to travel the world? Some call it a mini-retirement—an intentional pause to recharge and explore. Of course, we all know what happened next. With COVID-19, those dreams took a back seat. Instead, we worked, took small adventures throughout California, and planned our wedding for 2022. But that little sabbatical dream never fully disappeared.
By the end of 2023, things started shifting at work, and we decided 2024 would be our year. We packed up our lives, put most of it in storage, and drove from LA to NJ to save up and spend time with Ryan’s family before our big adventure.
If you’re thinking of taking a sabbatical, career break, or mini-retirement, here’s everything we learned—from budgeting to packing—to help you prepare:
1. Run the Numbers and Budget
One of the first steps to planning your sabbatical or career break is figuring out how much you’ll need. We broke our budget into a few key categories:
- Daily budget — This depends on where you’re going and what type of travel experience you want. For example, Europe or the US is pricier than Southeast Asia. If you plan to splurge on tours and activities, factor that in!
- Big flights — Intercontinental flights can be a big chunk of your budget, so plan accordingly.
- Ongoing costs at home — Think student loans, subscriptions, or any bills that don’t disappear just because you’re traveling.
- Emergency fund — Save for those unexpected hiccups—like a surprise visa fee or a stolen phone—and for your return home.
We aimed for a mid-range budget, allowing us to stay in shared hotel rooms, eat out occasionally, and do a few adventures. We estimated:
$250/day for Europe and Japan
$175/day for Southeast Asia
We stuck to this budget by tracking our spending closely—especially in Europe, where we cooked at home often and prioritized free activities like hiking and exploring temples.
2. Decide Where You Want to Go
Budget and destination are closely linked, so these decisions often go hand in hand. We limited ourselves to two continents—Europe and Asia—to keep our route manageable.
Tips to consider:
Distance between destinations — Long travel days can be exhausting and expensive.
Visa requirements — Some countries require pre-approval, others don’t. Check fees and processing times in advance.
Accommodation and food costs — Cambodia, for example, was cheap for lodging and meals, but visiting Angkor Wat cost more than we anticipated.
3. Logistics to Sort Out Before You Go
Here are a few key logistics we tackled before taking our sabbatical/mini-retirement:
Phones and Connectivity
We kept our home phone plan but reduced the service to the minimum. We used eSIMs (via Airalo or Saily) for local data and stuck to iMessage and WhatsApp to stay connected. A VPN also came in handy for accessing services back home.
Travel Insurance
We chose SafetyWing with coverage for health, lost/stolen items, and emergencies. It reimbursed us quickly for a few minor issues. Pro tip: We canceled our US health insurance while abroad to save money, but make sure you’re comfortable with that risk.
Mail
We opted for a digital mailbox, which worked great for managing our mail while on the road.
4. Credit Cards, Points, and Cash
We upgraded our Capital One card to the Venture X to earn points, skip foreign transaction fees, and get airport lounge access—perfect for a career break. We also opened a Charles Schwab debit card, which refunded all ATM fees—great for cash withdrawals abroad. We kept minimal funds in that account in case of loss or theft.
5. What to Pack
Packing for a mini-retirement or extended sabbatical is tough. We each used:
1 carry-on suitcase
1 backpack
It worked fine on international flights and most airlines, but on budget airlines, we often had to check them (hello, fees!). We also picked up a small extra bag in France for overflow items and souvenirs.
A quick note: packing light is key! Anything larger than a carry-on becomes a hassle when moving often. We’ll share a detailed packing list in a future post.
6. Where to Stay
We mostly stayed in home stays, Airbnbs, and small hotels. Hostels weren’t always cheaper—often, a shared hotel room cost the same or less.
7. How Long to Stay in Each Place
We found 5 days per city to be a sweet spot. It gave us 3 full days to explore and 2 travel days. In Europe, we moved too quickly at times and felt burned out. Lesson learned: slow down when you can!
8. How Far in Advance to Plan
Have a big-picture plan—which countries and main cities—and then plan specifics (accommodations, trains, activities) 2–4 weeks ahead.
We found Europe’s fast pace made last-minute bookings challenging, so we planned Japan in advance (accommodations, trains) but left room for spontaneous activities.
Don’t forget:
Check visa requirements (some countries require proof of onward travel).
Accept that you can’t do everything. Pick a few must-sees and leave room for spontaneity!
Final Thoughts
Planning a career break, sabbatical, or mini-retirement can feel overwhelming, but it’s absolutely doable—and so worth it! Budgeting, logistics, packing, and planning destinations all take time, but with the right prep, you can create the adventure of a lifetime.
