Unfortunately a LOT of us view traveling as a luxury. It’s something that isn’t necessary, and so because of that we choose to delay our vacations, which means that we’re actually not all that good at traveling when the time finally comes. It’s like any activity we perform infrequently – we probably suck at it! And to make matters worse, if we see travel as a luxury good, that also means we think it’s necessary to spend a ton of money on it as well, which our guests today have completely disproven. We’re joined by the couple behind Trip of a Lifestyle, Lauren and Steven, who are going to share how they travel on the cheap. Here’s a quick and dirty summation of some of their notable milestones: they embarked on a 45 day road trip after college, then rather than honeymooning in Hawaii for a week they stuck around for six months. Shortly after that they purchased their first home, in cash, all while making less than $100,000 combined! They’ve traveled abroad, visited every national park in the US, and they both retired from their full time jobs at age 29. Listen as we discuss everything from menu hacks while on the road, to bigger discussions around giving yourself “permission” to pursue the kind of life that excites you!
Additional Links:
- Trip of a Lifestyle Links:
- Website and blog
- Follow Steven and Lauren on Instagram
- Full rundown on their NV200 Camper Van
- 6-Month Hawaii Honeymoon story and budget
- CramBetter – This is the new college science and math tutoring platform we mentioned, CramBetter.
- Cheap Travel – Just a few posts you’ll also like:
- Credit Card Tool – Looking for the right credit card for you? Then check out our new credit card tool that’ll help you to easily filter through all the cards based on your preferred airline, whether or not they have an annual fee, or simply by the cashback offer! Just toggle the sliders and you’ll know which card to consider.
- Cheap cell plans – Massively reduce your cell phone bill each month by switching to a discount provider like US Mobile.

During this episode we enjoyed a Brew Daddies by Steady Hand and Mutation Brewing! And please help us to spread the word by letting friends and family know about How to Money! Hit the share button, subscribe if you’re not already a regular listener, and give us a quick review in Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Help us to change the conversation around personal finance and get more people doing smart things with their money!
Best friends out!




Loved the episode but the eternal question remains: what are they doing for health insurance in the midst of all this??
I believe they just buy it out of pocket via the healthcare marketplace. It’s actually pretty cheap if your income is low — https://www.tripofalifestyle.com/money/health-insurance-without-a-job/