How in the World Can I Make Money Traveling?

One of the questions I get asked most often is how can you afford to travel as often as you do? Not easily is normally my question. We don’t live lavishly, in fact we are continuing daily to realize how much stuff we have an need to get rid of to make room for our travels. We don’t go to restaurants as often as I would like, we skimp on everything we can, and save the little we get. its definitely not for someone with a lot of material possessions, or someone prone to homesickness, or anyone who enjoys luxury. If you think you are one of the above, then I can help give you a few options to look into to make some extra cash while traveling and living the adventure.

• Work at a Hostel - You never know when someone needs a little help, and who better to ask than someone who can give you a free bed? Hotels and sleeping accommodations take up a huge chunk of travel costs, so if you plan on staying for a bit in one city, how about asking a few hostels if they will barter? a few hours of work for free room is an easy swap!
• Online freelance - Really fast typer? Amazing Adobe Photoshop skills? Enjoy writing no matter the topic? Check out online freelance cites like glance.com or freelancer.com for making money doing what you do best. Bid on a job, and if accepted, money is transferred right to your account when everything is complete, and you can work from anywhere as long as you have internet!
• Travel Blogging - Not the best money maker right away, but if you keep it up and gain interest, within a few months you could be seeing a steady trickle of money from sidebar advertisements and promotional posts. This is best when combined with another money making venture, but there are bloggers who make 3-figures blogging! (one day I pray… hehe)
• Massages - Are your fingers magical? Ask a popular hostel if you can post up a sign in the evening and steal a chair, and get to work! Charge depending on your expertise and time limit, and don’t forget the tip jar!
• Au Pair - Great with kids? There are American expats ALL over the world looking for english speaking babysitters or nannies. and Au Pair is a live in sitter with a few more duties, but they typically pay for housing, food, and a little extra cash. work out a schedule that works for both the family and you, so you can hop on a bus and travel during the weekend, or certain days of the week.
• Tour Guide - Know of a local museum or tour group in need of an english speaking guide? Perfect! Not only will you get paid, but you get to go on the tours for free and travel the city and learn amazing facts and about city legends.
• Stock Photography - If you have thousands of photos from your travels, but they don’t all get used (end up sitting in my hard drive collecting pixels) why not make a profit off of them? SmugMug.com, Stockphotos.com and many other stock image sites pay you a percentage of each image sold. and who knows, maybe your photo will be used in some awesome advertisement somewhere!
• Cruise Ship Employment - So what you have to work on a cruise ship for a few months, you are traveling, getting paid, and on vacation all at the same time! You get pretty decent benefits too as well as amazing experience.
• Help out on a farm - In exchange for 4 or 5 hours of work, many farms with exchange room and board, and sometimes food for labor. If you don’t mind getting down and dirty, that leaves you with plenty of time to explore and sightsee each day!
• Sell your crafts online -  Selling on Etsy or Ebay is quick and easy! Have something you love to make, or made a design that everyone always ask where you got? Sell your original artwork and creations online and make money no matter where you are.
• Remote Telecommuting - Don’t quit your job just yet! Do you work mostly on the computer? Does your communication between co-workers largely email based? if so, speak with your boss about telecommuting to work, and all you will need is the write software. Test it out by working from home first, and if things don’t work out very well you know its not an option, but if all goes well, and you get your work done just the same, why not travel and work at the same time? because of the time difference depending on your destination, you could explore all morning, then work while your coworkers are in the evening or vise versa. 

Of course there are hundreds of other jobs that would work while you are off traveling, but these seem to be not only the most popular, but the easiest. The hardest part is putting yourself out there, but if your passion is to travel, dont let money get in your way!

Do you have any other ideas? Has something else worked for you? Let me know!