Welcome back to the Ready to Wander Podcast! I am your host, Sydney Breann, and I am super stoked  for today’s episode: The Benefits of Traveling. I am joined by the incredible Sahara Rose who will chat all about budget travel, her career as a travel coach, and where the last 10 years of world travel have taken her. 

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The Benefits of Traveling

Sahara Rose De Vore is wanderer at heart and has spent over a DECADE traveling on her own budget and terms. Her solo adventures have led her to 84 countries and given her a lifetime of stories (and tips) to share. She has started her own wellness travel coaching business and also founded a global community of travel coaches through The Travel Coach Network. Sahara has been featured in 140+ media outlets (including Forbes and Travel weekly) for her story and travel expertise. Last year, she took the stage as a TEDx speaker on the topic of how embracing travel can help build happier and more united communities. And as if all of that wasn’t enough, Sahara is also a published author of a travel and mindset book called “Hey You, Just Go!”.

Sahara Rose: Certified Travel Coach

Sahara Rose was just 22 years old when she decided to book a 1 way ticket to Ireland. After spending many years dealing with an anxiety disorder and uncertainly of what she wanted to do with her career, she thought “why not”. Believe it or not, this world traveling entrepreneur didn’t grow up with a family that traveled the globe. Rather, she grew up as an only child to a single mom, who only had the capacity to go on the occasional roadtrip. It wasn’t until she entered university that she noticed the number of well-traveled students who had nothing but insight.

I was curious how Sahara decided on making a career out of her newfound love of travel. Funnily enough, she did study hospitality and tourism management in college. Even with a degree in hand, she struggled to find what career path she wanted to pursue. Very early on in her journey, she realized she 1) hated flying and 2) really didn’t want to be a travel agent. She also knew she didn’t find joy in the idea of corporate America, living for only 2 weeks of PTO, and watching her years pass her by. So while she wasn’t certain what she was going to do, she knew what she didn’t want to do. Sahara set a goal to figure her life out by the time she turned 30, and sure enough…

Come age 30, Sahara decided to buy a laptop and take it with her as she traveled. While in the North of Spain, she opened up her laptop and googled “how to start an online travel business”. Like many entrepreneurs, she didn’t find what she was searching for. So what did she do? She created it. The “coaching” industry was still in its’ early years, but the market was definitely untapped.

The Journey to Becoming a Travel Coach

As mentioned earlier, Sahara grew up as an only child to a single mother. She watched the struggle, and she didn’t want that for herself. She shifted her money mindset and set out on creating her business. Sahara’s passion for helping others experience the transformations she has while traveling fueld her to create a company that understands the wellness benefits of travel. Corporate culture has engrained in us that traveling is only a means of relaxation and indulgence. What it fails to teach us is just how mentally, physically, and spiritually beneficial it can be to our overall wellbeing.

Before she knew it, Sahara had travel professional after travel professional reach out to her. Thus The Travel Coach Network was created to help teach others around the world about the benefits of travel. Over the last few years, her business has continued to flourish as her philosophies have taken the world by storm.

 Travel Coach vs. Travel Agent

When people hear ‘travel coach’, they may not understand exactly what one does. There is a definite difference between a travel coach and a travel agent. The job of a travel coach is to help people set their intentions for their trip. By setting intentions, travelers are able to raise their personal awareness of exactly what they hope to gain from their trip. Travel coaches are a tool designed to help travelers thrive.

Travel agents assist travelers with their accommodations, itinerary, and even booking of trips. There are several systems, programs, and data bases that travel agents have access to to assist their clientele. No one career is more important than the other, and both are equally beneficial to travelers.

Traveling + Money Mindset

I was curious as to when exactly the ‘shift’ happened from traveling simply for leisure to traveling for further purpose. While there certainly wasn’t a particular destination where everything shifted, the shift occurred while on a journey to happiness. The happiness and the answers she had been searching for came to her through each place she visited. Her soul was being fed in a way that went beyond a paycheck. Naturally, the empowerment she felt as a solo traveler pushed her to share with other female travelers.

Hey You, Just Go!

I found it quite interested to learn that Sahara sometimes forgets that she even wrote a book! Shocking, right!? I even purchased the book to read before having Sahara on. As she traveled more and more, people constantly were asking her to share her budgeting tips and travel tips. While it is certainly something that she has a tonnn of knowledge in, Sahara’s passions were telling her to pour more of herself into helping other travelers.

Deciding to write a book was one of the first things that she did on her journey, and it made such an impact in her life. Now her tips, budgeting hacks, advice, and mindset are all gathered in a book for travelers around the world to learn from.

Advice to the Wanderlust Folks

If you want it enough, it will happen. While I definitely recommend picking up Sahara’s book for yourself to get all the nitty gritty details, traveling on a budget isn’t as difficult as it’s made out to be. Psst, this is a great time for you to check out Ready to Wander Podcast EP3: How to Travel on a Tight Budget!

Traveling is often sold to people on a very surface level. The parts that are marketed towards consumers is how big the room is, how good the food is, how many drinks are included, how private the transportation is. There is a massive lack of depth and experiences that are marketed. The lack marketing towards mental, physical, and spiritual well-being leaves so much room for interpretation. That’s exactly where a travel coach comes in!

As an elopement and intimate wedding photographer who also travels the world, I always like to encourage others to fully embrace the traveling experience. I choose to do so by journaling about my adventures. Sahara embraces her experiences by sharing them with her mom. No matter how much money flows (or doesn’t), we are only ever left with memories and experiences.

TEDx Talk with Sahara Rose

Last year, Sahara was featured in a TEDx Talk about community. Sahara decided to put her own spin on it and focused on how embracing travel can help build happier and more united communities. Personally, I am such an advocate for getting outside, adventuring to boost morale, and foster a relationship between nature and humans to create happier communities. Sahara has witnessed first hand how integral building trust is to create happier communities. But beyond that, she also embraced just how contagious a smile can be. Wherever she goes, you can guarantee Sahara will have a smile on her face. 

Ready to Wander EP6: Benefits of Traveling Wrap Up

Today’s episode was such a fun one to dive into the real of travel coaching. If you’re looking for more from Sahara Rose, you can find her on her website or on Instagram (@sahararosethetravelcoach). And hey, you know the rest! You can tune into the Ready to Wander Podcast every other Thursday. You can also find me on Instagram (@sydneybreannphoto). Are you ready to wander?