About Me
The traveller behind Brit Adventures
Hey! I’m Michelle.
I’m a British (and dual Irish) travel writer who has spent over a decade travelling, living abroad and navigating the realities of long-term international travel.
Born & raised in the UK, I was tired of only seeing the sun about 4 times a year, so in 2015, I saved up, packed my bags, and took off on a one-way flight, and, over a decade later, haven’t stopped.
I created Brit Adventures to help people go beyond short holidays and plan experiences that allow them to go further and stay longer.
years travelling & living abroad
working holiday visas
flights taken
countries I’ve backpacked through
continents visited
What’s The Purpose of Brit Adventures?
Brit Adventures is for people planning a gap year, a working holiday, a long-term backpacking trip, or an extended trip abroad.
Main Areas of Focus
- Gap year planning and booking;
- Working holiday visas;
- Long-term backpacking;
- Moving abroad;
- Budgeting for extended travel;
- Getting established in a new country;
- and the practical realities of living overseas
My aim is to help readers understand not only where to go, but how to make the experience financially, practically and emotionally manageable.
Alongside destination guides and planning advice, I also share mistakes, unexpected costs and difficult moments I have experienced, so readers can prepare for more than just the Instagram-worthy version of travelling abroad.
My Experience With Long-Term Travel
Most of my travel since 2015 has followed the gap-year and backpacking model.
I have travelled through more than 30 countries while staying in affordable accommodations, using public transport, cooking rather than always eating out, and managing my budget across extended trips. Did it always run smoothly? No. But since my first year overseas I learned a lot and every gap year trip that followed became much smoother than the last.
Rather than taking frequent short holidays, I usually spend weeks, months or years in a destination or region. Slow travel gives me the chance to understand how a place truly works beyond its main attractions, including local transport, food accommodation, daily costs and everyday routines.
My backpacking experience includes:
- Solo, long-term travel across Asia, Oceania, North America and Central America;
- Planning multi-country routes
- Budgetting for trips lasting several months or longer;
- Travelling overland where practical;
- Staying in hostels, guesthouses and other affordable accommodation;
- Volunteering abroad;
- Researching and planning my own itineraries;
- Adapting plans when costs or circumstances changed;
- and balancing work, travel and everyday life overseas.
My Working Holiday Experience
Working Holidays are just one type of gap year that I have fortunately been able to experience more than once.
I have lived in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, South Korea and Japan on working holiday visas.
In each country, I had to navigate the practical (and sometimes frustrating) process of building a temporary life abroad, including:
- Visa applications;
- Banking & handling foreign money exchanges;
- Phone and sim plans to stay connected;
- Finding accommodation;
- Finding employment & paying taxes;
- Dealing with healthcare, health and insurances;
- Budgetting for everyday life;
- and closing accounts where necessary at the end of each visa period.
Completing these processes in 5 different countries has shown me that being approved a visa is just the first step. There are so many more complicated stages to having a successful working holiday experience.
My working holiday content therefore goes beyond eligibility and application requirements. I also help my readers to prepare for upcoming trips, how to budget, what to do after arriving in destination, how to get jobs, where to find accommodation and many other practical tips to help you have a realistic experience.
Below is my timeline of successful working holiday visas.
Want to Follow the Adventures?
Get more inspiration
Join our mailing list to follow the adventures.
