Craving an adventure? Does life keep pushing it to the back burner?
Adventure doesn’t always mean you need to sell your house and sail off into the sunset. Here are 10 alternative adventures that you can make your own.
We explored family-friendly ways to have adventures and modern ways to make a living. This allowed us to travel full-time for a few years and show others how to do the same.
Now, we’re wondering what other adventures are out there. For our subscribers who love adventures but don’t feel full-time travel is right for them, we hope to inspire them to make the most of this year and this moment. Don’t keep putting life on hold; you don’t know what’s around the corner.
We’ll share what we’ve learnt about the following
- Full-Time Travel
- Van Life
- Buying Land or Property to Renovate in Your Own Country
- Buying Land or Property to Renovate Abroad
- Communal Living
- Staying at Home
- Part-Time Travel
- Volunteering Abroad
- Sailing the World
- Starting a Family Business
We’re going to tell you:
- How to start.
- What we’ve learnt first-hand (pre- or post-kids)
- What we learnt from other people
- The Good
- The Bad
- The Ugly
- Family-friendly rating
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1. Full-Time Travel:
How to start
We’ve covered this a lot, you know the score: Save money or start a digital nomad business. Best advice, just try it. Most questions are answered on our home page.
Our experience of full-time travel
We’ve seen families sell their homes to fund a once-in-a-lifetime adventure, often putting immense pressure on themselves to make the most of it before returning to rebuild from scratch. Knowing you can come and go whenever you choose makes travelling, especially with a family, far less stressful.
We had a modest income from our online business. We weren’t making enough to quit our jobs and certainly not enough to cover bills and travel. But by AirBnBing our home and taking on some remote freelance work, living abroad was more affordable and exciting than 9-5 life. Ironically this gave us more time, and money to invest in our business and more experiences and insights to share in growing our online business to become our primary income and giving us more time and financial and geographical freedom to explore and make the most of our time as a family.
In terms of what to do when we travel, our first few weeks were like back-to-back holidays. We put unnecessary pressure to have the most amazing days and show everyone we were having a good time. Our best experiences however happened when we slowed down and came off the tourist track and connected with each other and local families. You also get some amazing deals on booking.com when you stay for a month plus often around £300 a month.
Other People’s Experience
The Bucket List Family were a huge inspiration for us. The Bucket List Family sold a company that could have set them for life. Instead, they put the money in reserve and started from scratch. They sold their home and documented their journey through a blog that eventually began to make money. While having a financial safety net certainly eased their transition, it’s not the only path to full-time travel.
Pros and Cons
Pros:
- Exposure to Diverse Cultures and Experiences – really does develop your character and broaden your mind.
- Strengthens Family Bonds – It’s so easy to get into a routine at home, travelling helped us see each other in different lights and engage in new activities together
- Educational Opportunities – learning about things in the abstract to pass a test has never worked for us. learning a language or history to engage with a country, seeing biology in action and using maths and English to run a business has been educational for us and the kids.
- Amazing Memories– We’re not living for the sake of survival and some far-off goal, we’re making every day count, you never know when it will be your last.
Cons:
- Financial Instability: Travelling full-time can lead to uncertain finances and budgeting challenges.
- Peer Pressure: Navigating societal expectations around education and conventional work can be difficult.
- Lack of Routine and Stability: The constant change of environment can be unsettling and disrupt daily routines.
- Potential Challenges with Schooling: Finding suitable educational opportunities for children on the road can be a challenge.
Family-Friendly Rating: 9/10
2. Van Life
How to Start
Find a suitable van or build your own. You can use it for permanent road trips or weekend getaways. However, if you want a family-friendly and safe motorhome with big beds, you need to invest, usually upwards of £60,000.
Our Experience
Keri and I loved the idea of van life. Before we had kids, we purchased a 90s Mercedes Vito with a rusty hole in the door and spent our weekends transforming it into a camper. It was an interesting project—my carpentry skills are creative but rudimentary at best—so we ended up with a wooden bed frame in the back that doubled as a storage area. It was cosy for the two of us. However, for a family, it was a death trap. You need to ensure your back seat is crash-test approved, so check out professional second fitters like Autohaus to understand what’s up to code.
Our biggest van adventure was a trip to Ireland on the ferry, but Keri was pregnant with Charlie and had terrible morning sickness. We ended up booking into hotels. Campsites in the UK can be more expensive than Airbnbs, and if you dream of pulling up in the middle of nowhere and camping for the night, most places make it clear that’s not allowed.
Our van would not have been appropriate or safe for one kid, let alone more. And as romantic a spilling out into the wilderness to have a morning coffee might sound the reality with family is having to get up in the night to try and get shoes and coats on to take your kids for a wee in the pissing rain.
Occasionally, van life seems attractive. Then, we come to our senses and do the maths.
A reliable second-hand car + however many nights of accommodation will always be cheaper than a camper that can fit and sleep a family, site fees, fuel, and inevitable repairs, insurance.
Other People’s Experience
We have a lot of friends who bought campervans with dreams of bugging out on the weekends, but just ended up with an expensive, inappropriate vehicle that sits in the best parking space. Many couples who’ve tried van life have shared their adventures online. Kinging it and Eamon and Bec were our favourites when we were younger, but they all ended up buying cabins in the woods, so we’ll talk about them later.
When you look at family channels doing van life, most of them are in Australia, where you can have a massive trailer/RV and drive in straight lines and pull over anywhere. There’s not the same freedom in the UK. However, https://www.vanlifefamily.uk/ have done a great job of sharing where to go in the UK and abroad and how to convert vans for family.
Pros and Cons
Pros:
- Freedom to travel with your home on wheels
- Opportunity for spontaneous adventures
- Sense of independence and simplicity
- Not as big a commitment as travel.
Cons:
- Limited space and privacy
- High upfront and running costs
- Potential mechanical issues
- Restrictions on overnight parking in many places
Family-Friendly Rating: 4/10
3. Buying Land or Property to Renovate in Your Own Country
How to Start
If you have capital, buying property can be a real adventure. If you don’t, you’ll need to get creative with how you afford it, perhaps running the land as a business.
Our Experience
We both wanted to live in the woods or wilderness, ideally being self-sufficient. I worked as a farmer after uni, and I then met Keri working in outdoor centers. Having hit the whopping £19k a year ceiling in the outdoor industry, the next logical step was building our own outdoor centre. We were lucky to get funding working in partnership with a training provider to renovate a dilapidated outdoor centre in the Welsh valleys and find a niche in post-16, behavioural and SEN (basically the groups other centres avoided). We made money by throwing kids off waterfalls and teaching them to grow beetroot. It was a lot of fun, but required us to be there more or less 24/7, and we barely made a profit.
We’ve discussed this in previous posts, but to cut a long story short, buying a place in the country to run as a brick-and-mortar business was hard 10+ years ago. With the cost of living rising and less funding available, it’s even tougher now, especially with a family.
Other People’s Experience
Buying land for you: The couple behind the YouTube channel “Kinging It”, Craig and Amiee, are an awesome Welsh duo who travelled in their van “Custard” for many years. They’ve recently bought a house in the Scottish Highlands and are hilarious and inspirational to watch. https://eamonandbec.com/, who we mentioned as van life inspiration, also went and built a cabin in the Canadian wilds.
Starting an Outdoor business: You don’t actually need land to run an outdoor business the outdoors project offer a franchise
There are some fantastic families who want more of a self-sufficient farm life however, it’s incredibly complicated to buy land in the UK. You can build a property on farm land, but you have to be producing sellable food and prove you are working enough hours.
Pros and Cons
Pros:
- Investment in real estate
- Opportunity to create a personalised home
- Stability and roots in a community
Cons:
- High upfront costs
- Time-consuming renovations
- Potential for unforeseen issues
Family-Friendly Rating: 7/10
4. Buying Land or Property to Renovate Abroad
How to Start
Have a look on Rightmove and get way over-excited.
Eastern Europe and northern Portugal are good places to look.
Our Experience
Keri’s dad writes about wine and, over 10 years ago, bought a vineyard in Slovenia. It’s been a bureaucratic challenge, but they’ve loved it. Here’s a video of us making wine there.
I love farming and permaculture, and I’m happiest when working on a project. Many countries are desperate to inject life back into dying communities, so they’ll pay and help you move there. Some properties are sold for a token amount of €1, though these come with strict stipulations on how you live.
Other People’s Experience
Families like those featured in Bournemouth to Bulgaria used the money they were saving for a wedding or a down payment and bought a farmhouse in Bulgaria outright for £7k. Not bad. It’s something we considered, but we’re doing two more years of travelling first.
Pros and Cons
Pros:
- Opportunity to immerse oneself in a new culture
- Potential for a vacation home or rental income
- Adventure and new experiences
- Hugely more affordable and a much better quality of life!
Cons:
- Legal and bureaucratic challenges
- Language barriers
- Higher risk and uncertainty
- missing family and having a stake in the UK
Family-Friendly Rating: 9/10
5. Communal Living
How to start
Don’t sell your house and join a commune straight away. Get involved in local projects that require teamwork and cooperation, or look for volunteer projects abroad. Find out if this suits you and your family.
If buying land by yourself is out of financial reach, you could look at buying land with other families. Consider doing this as a corporate entity so people can invest and sell out at any time. It will also be easier if you need to get finance.
Our Experience
I’ve always romanticised communal living (probably too much Lord of the Rings and wanting to live in The Shire), growing food, children playing, and a vibrant community. But communal life has its challenges; shared responsibilities and clashing visions can make it difficult, as I’ve seen firsthand in failed setups where cooperation breaks down.
When we left our outdoor centre, I wanted to focus on my strengths in a larger organisation with clear roles. I believed teamwork would make the dream work, However, the project I joined struggled without a clear purpose. Now, I envision a shared piece of land with friends and family, purely for fun and experimenting with new ways to live.
My experience pushed me towards financial independence and clarity about my goals and values. Running Alittlemoreoutdoor.com taught me to set boundaries and choose the right people to involve, both online and offline.
Other People’s Experience
One project that seems to be getting things right is Wild Minds in Taunton, Devon. A few families have got together and bought land. Some families live on it, and some families maintain their jobs and homes and have a share in the land. They often offer shares in the land as well as education and resources.
Pros and Cons
Pros:
- Strong sense of community
- Shared resources and reduced costs
- Support network for families
Cons:
- Lack of privacy
- Potential for interpersonal conflicts
- Shared decision-making can be challenging
Family-Friendly Rating: 7/10
6. Staying at Home
How to Start
You don’t need to be doing something wild and novel to make life worthwhile…
What makes you happy? That doesn’t have to involve turning your life upside down. Staying at home can still be an adventure if you are willing to give time, energy, and money to what matters. What needs to change? Your health? Your wealth? Your Self? Your relationships?
Travel and adventures are amazing and give life flavour, but sometimes, they’re just a way to escape your problems. What nourishment do you need to provide for yourself and your family? With the same tenacity we’ve discussed the other adventures, get intentional about what you want and put yourself in a position to change.
Our Experience
In 2023, we had an experience that completely turned our world upside down. Physically, we weren’t able to travel for a few months. Even when the physical limitations stopped, we realised emotionally we weren’t ready either. After quitting our jobs and being laser-focused on travel, it felt almost like a defeat to be trapped back in the home we tried to escape.
We debated putting the kids back in school, but in the end, we decided to explore the opportunity. First and foremost, this allowed us the time and space to explore our grief and trauma together without pressure to be ok at school or work.
We live in Devon, where there is a huge home-education community. I have to admit I had a few prejudices about this community; some of which were confirmed, and some of which were challenged. However, the best thing about the home-school community is that neither you nor your kids are forced into cliques, awkward conversations, or school-gate politics.
It allowed us to reconnect with friends and family for whom we had never had the time, money, or energy before alittlemoreoutdoor.com. We explored our health as we transitioned from “young” to “middle age”.
We worked in the house and the garden and developed more skills, and we got involved in our local community.
Changing your environment doesn’t always need to be about escaping. Sometimes it’s about reassessing the world that’s around you.
As we recovered, we started approaching our own country in the way we approached travelling, we found beautiful spots and beautiful people. However, it gave us time as a family to assess who we were as individuals and what was important to us.
I’m passionate about neurodiversity, it was what our outdoor centre did very well. Charlie and I are very ADHD (and Keri probably), and travel suits our constant need for stimulation, but for autism, that can be the opposite. As a society, we often lament autistic people for not adapting to whatever situation they are forced into. We teach neurodivergents to mask enough to fit into sub-optimal slots. I think having the freedom to create an environment where we could heal and become productive on our terms has been hugely liberating and helped me see my neurodivergence in a new light. It’s something I want alittlemoreoutdoor.com to champion and support people with.
Other People’s Experience
There’s so much content on YouTube and other social media channels for whatever takes your interest: farming, cooking, mechanics, science, and fashion. If you love it, someone else does, so go and find what excites you and find your tribe. I want to take this opportunity to share some content on neurodivergence and home/world schooling with channels that have put great effort into supporting others. You won’t agree with everything you see out there, but that’s the point. Take what you need, leave what you don’t. Stay open to new ideas, but be subjective about what’s right for your family.
Pros and Cons
Pros:
- Stability and routine
- New appreciation for your environment
- Support network of friends and family
- Time and space to explore what’s right for you.
Cons:
- Easy to get complacent
- No external challenge
- Need to be very self-motivated
- You might need to support your child’s desire to become a computer programmer.
Family-Friendly Rating: 9/10
7. Part-Time Travel
How to Start
Rather than put the pressure on yourself to quit your job and build a business and travel full-time, look at small taster adventures rather than holidays.
If you’re staying in school and working full-time, there’s such a thing as an “Anti-vacation”: Going somewhere challenging so you appreciate the mundane luxuries you took for granted in your own life.
We were horrified at how expensive trips abroad were during the holidays, so we went off the beaten track and found places that others didn’t usually go. Go to booking.com and look at some of the stranger locations
Our Experience
We love travelling, but after our trauma in 2023, trying to travel like we did before kept overwhelming us. Smaller trips in the UK are a great way to start. Going to an Airbnb off the beaten track rather than a resort on your holiday is a great way to save money and gain new experiences. We love travelling, but there came points where we felt homesick. Where we were choosing our next destination, not out of excitement but an obligation to maintain this new lifestyle we aimed for. On reflection, we realised how stupid that was and came home. We then did smaller trips around the UK and said yes to small adventures with friends and family.
Other People’s Experience
Lots of blogs and vlogs you see online are not people travelling full-time. They simply prioritise travel over big homes and fancy cars. Families who balance work, school, and travel, like those featured in Travel Babbo and Family Travel Magazine, offer inspiration and tips for part-time travel.
GoOutsideAndExplore is a great family based in Maui who travel part-time during the school holidays.
These guys are a British couple who do one month of travel and one month of work.
Pros and Cons
Pros:
- The balance between stability and adventure
- Lower costs compared to full-time travel
- Flexibility in scheduling
Cons:
- Limited travel time
- Need to juggle work, school, and travel
- Potential for disrupted routines
Family-Friendly Rating: 8/10
8. Volunteering Abroad
How to Start
We wanted to give back while showing our kids the world, so we decided to try volunteering abroad as a family. After researching different programs, we found one in South America that focused on education and community development, which was a perfect fit for us. We spent several months preparing—getting necessary vaccinations, securing visas, and participating in pre-departure training sessions. To help cover costs, we did some fundraising and reached out to friends and family for support. When we finally arrived, we were challenged by the new living conditions and the emotional intensity of the work, but it was incredibly rewarding. We learned so much from the people we met, and it was an experience that deeply impacted all of us.
Our Experience
I did a lot of volunteering as a kid, quite often against my will, but it did have an impact on me. When I was 16, I did a “World Challenge”. It was my first real travel experience getting involved with communities around the world. To keep our hand in after sailing, we volunteered on Challenge Wales. It’s worth looking at local boats as they are often run as trusts and welcome families such as the Pilgrim of Brixham.
We haven’t done anything significant as a family unless the kids have directed it. Charlie got his Blue Peter badge when we did a community litter pick. However, as the kids are getting older, they are keen to do more, so watch this space.
Other People’s Experience
Families who have volunteered abroad, like those featured on GoAbroad and Volunteer World, often share their experiences and offer advice for others considering this path.
Pros and Cons
Pros:
- Meaningful experiences and contributions
- Exposure to new cultures and environments
- Teaching kids the value of service
Cons:
- Challenging living conditions
- Potential emotional toll
- Costs associated with travel and volunteering
Family-Friendly Rating: 7/10
9. Sailing the World
How to Start
Sailing as a family is an ambitious and adventurous lifestyle. Start by learning the basics of sailing through classes and practice, then plan to either buy or charter a boat suitable for family living. It’s possible to make money by offering trips if you have your own boat. If you are qualified, you can work as a skipper or a charter couple. Some boat owners may be open to a “charter family”, but it’s a hard sell.
Our Experience
Before kids, Keri and I spent time working at a sailing school, getting qualifications so we could be a charter couple: This means if you fancied a sailing holiday but didn’t want the hassle of cooking, cleaning or sailing the boat, you’d pay for us to sail you around and look after you. We took out a loan to get our qualifications, justifying the cost with the high earning potential.
Skippering: Yachtmasters can take on the role of skipper, leading the crew and navigating the yacht.
Crewing on Superyachts: A Yachtmaster qualification is highly sought after in the superyacht industry, where skilled crew are in demand.
Charter Skippers and Flotilla Skippers: Working as a skipper on charter or flotilla holidays is another avenue for Yachtmasters.
Instructing at RYA Centres: Experienced Yachtmasters can become instructors, sharing their knowledge and skills with aspiring sailors.
Watersports Management: Some Yachtmasters may find roles in watersports management, overseeing activities and ensuring safety.
Delivery Skippers and Crew: Yachtmasters are often needed to deliver yachts between locations.
Workboats and Other Commercial Craft: The qualification can also be used for commercial work on various types of vessels, including workboats.
Progressing in the Industry: A Yachtmaster qualification can be a stepping stone to higher-level positions, such as Officer of the Watch or Master, in the maritime sector.
The idea of living aboard a boat always appealed to us. We haven’t yet taken the plunge, but we know many families who have. It requires a lot of preparation and knowledge, but it offers unparalleled freedom and the chance to explore the world’s coastlines and remote islands. We’re still considering this as a future adventure once the kids are a bit older.
As we mentioned above, if you don’t want to commit full time, look for family-friendly volunteer opportunities: https://pilgrimofbrixham.org.uk/join-the-pilgrim-team/
Other People’s Experience
Families like those behind Sailing Totem and Sailing Zatara share their experiences living aboard a boat, offering tips and insights into the realities of sailing the world as a family.
Sailing La Vagabonde is kind of the go-to family famous for this lifestyle
Pros and Cons
Pros:
- Ultimate freedom and adventure
- Opportunity to explore remote locations
- Self-sufficient living
Cons:
- High cost of entry (boat purchase and maintenance)
- Requires extensive sailing knowledge
- Potentially dangerous, especially with young children
Family-Friendly Rating: 8/10
10. Starting a Family Business
How to Start
Start with an Outcome. WHY are people coming to your business, WHO wants it, and WHAT do they need to achieve? Now figure out HOW you can help them.
Our Experience
I’m what some people refer to as “psychologically unemployable”. I’m not unprofessional, unfriendly or unskilled. I go out of my way to help people, but I’m terrible at doing what I’m told. If I think there’s a better way, I will explore it and express it. That might sound like a good quality, but I imagine to an employer it’s much the same as asking your kid to put their shoes on, but they decide it’s a better idea to draw you a nice picture on the wall.
After 3 “redundancies” during my run in the working world, and a resistance to the idea that “Man provides, Woman cooks” we decided we needed to build a business that would work around our family. Our first idea was a 9-5 forest school. An outdoor daycare that we could do with our young kids and continue when they start school. The two things we lacked were start-up capital and marketing skills.
It was in learning marketing skills that we realised we didn’t need a physical location (min £50,000k or a bugger load of rent) to start a business. A website costs less than £100 to host a year. What started as a platform to share family-friendly outdoor activities, evolved into a platform about travel, world schooling, and now we feel it evolving again with our family as we figure out our next adventure. If you still don’t know how that works, watch this video.
For us it’s been about setting an example for our kids rather than “You must get good grades figure out what you are going to be by 16 and then spend the next 5 years getting qualifications so someone will employ you” We are showing them how to create a platform that allows you follow your passions and make the world a better place on your terms.
Other People’s Experience
We share lots of examples of businesses that our people who have joined our email series have started, as well as a comprehensive guide on finding the right kind of business for you in our email series.
Pros and Cons
Pros:
- Flexibility to work from anywhere
- Opportunity to involve the whole family
- Potential for financial independence
Cons:
- High level of risk and uncertainty
- Requires time, effort, and investment
- Balancing family and business can be challenging
Family-Friendly Rating: 9/10
Exploring different lifestyles can be an enriching experience for the whole family. Whether you choose to travel full-time, start a family business, or simply make the most of your current home, each adventure offers unique opportunities for growth and connection. Consider what aligns best with your family’s values and goals, and take the plunge into a new way of living!
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