The McGuinness family did the five-day Salkantay trek to Machu Picchu. (All photographs courtesy of the McGuinness family.)
In Sucre, Bolivia, I bumped into the McGuinness family at breakfast at our hostel. I was instantly inspired by their story – a family of four traveling together for a year! Cath shares all the details of their trip including finances, their teenage daughters’ school schedule and great advice for all travelers!
Name: The McGuinness Family: Rob (age 52), Cath (age 50), Beth (age 16), and Megs (age 14)
(Cath is a General Practitioner, and Rob is an Urban Designer.)
Hometown: Truro, Cornwall SW England
Blog: http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog/mcgrtwtrip/1/tpod.html
1. How far in advance did you start planning your year abroad?
Four years ago, Rob and I had a conversation in the truck on the way home [to England] from a great camping holiday in France saying, “Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could travel for a year?” We realized there was one specific year when it worked with the girls’ school – September 2014.
We just needed money. Over the next few months, I kept my eyes open for a house. We found a tiny, basic two-bedroom cottage, which we liked a lot and had potential. Big decision to buy it and sell our main house, but we eventually took the plunge and bought. It took two years to sell our main house, which was a disaster. It was a huge financial struggle, renting out the cottage, both having to work 60-70 hours per week, but eventually, we bought our rucksacks and boots, booked our tickets in early September 2014 and were going!
The McGuinness Family at the Great Barrier Reef in Australia (All photographs courtesy of the McGuinness family.)
2. What was your route on the trip?
Our flights took us through Greece (island hopping to get into the backpacking routine), then to India (mainly Rajasthan), on to Nepal and the Annapurna circuit, Hong Kong for a few days, and then, Australia in a camper van down the East Coast to Melbourne. We went onward to New Zealand, then flew across to Chile, Bolivia and Peru, before flying up to the California coast, and the final five days in the Big Apple – New York – before arriving home in June 2015. Our trip was cut short due to issues with my work, but in the end, that turned out to be a good thing. We were traveled out after ten months, I think. It felt right to be going home.
Left: Starting out on the Annapurna trek in Nepal; Right: A wild river crossing on the trek.
3. Share one of your travel highlights.
There were highlights and low lights – highlights were to me, the camel trek overnight in the desert in Rajasthan – wonderful. I’ll never forget the laughs we had on those camels, the wonderful guides and herders – so helpful and kind; watching them cook from nothing, producing the most amazing meal as the night fell over the sand and sleeping under the stars. Some of the treks in New Zealand were really beautiful, and as a family, we worked really well together when there was something active going on. Learning to dive on the Great Barrier Reef. The Salkantay trek in Peru to Machu Picchu was also a real highlight. Favorite cities were New York, Sydney and San Francisco. Don’t miss staying in Undarra near Cairns and visiting the lava tubes if you’re close!
Lows were hitting the blizzard on the Annapurna circuit, which killed some 200 people – we were half way up when it hit and had to turn around from our trek. It really was an education to see and hear the stories of fellow trekkers that had been caught right in the storm and sad to see the terrible losses of foreigners and Nepalese.
With the help of friends back home, Cath and Rob made sure their daughters Beth, age 16, and Megs, age 14, did not fall behind in their education while traveling. They planned the trip according to their daughters’ school schedules.
4. How did you manage your daughters’ education/school schedule during the trip?
Education was easy in some ways – I did the sciences, math and French. Rob did geography and history, and a friend of ours, who teaches English, helped us with that online. We had little help from [Megs’] old school regarding the curriculum. She certainly wasn’t behind when we got back.
For Beth, we worked through some of her math, she did geography with Rob and French by herself (unsuccessfully). The difficult bit about home education whilst travelling was that you’re moving around all the time so there is no routine, and Wi-Fi is very, and, I mean, very variable.
The main part of our work was done in Australia and New Zealand when we had a car or camper. The moving around was easier, and we could organize lesson times more easily and still see what we wanted. We had to be really strict about it at times, and there were arguments, but overall, it went well considering the circumstances.
It was hard sometimes for them to see the relevance of some subjects but on the other hand – why just read about glaciers, volcanoes and lava tubes if you can walk up them? See the effects of earthquakes in Christchurch? Learn about our part in the history of Sydney, the silver mines in Bolivia and its’ relationship to the American dollar, and checking out buildings built by the Incas in Peru? And, also learning about people around the world, different cultures and different languages. Our girls saw poverty, struggle and disease. People coping with those lives and living good lives. At the same time, they were on Snapchat when there was Wi-Fi and seeing their friends at parties back home and seeing all the squabbles, good and bad times there, and comparing the two. Interesting stuff.
The McGuinness family took an overnight camel trek in Rajasthan, India, which one of the main highlights of their trip.
5. What was your greatest struggle?
The biggest negatives travelling as a family were also at times the biggest positives. I suppose that’s the big myth – that it’s all a big happy family all the way, and no one argues.
We had a really tight budget – always in family rooms or camping apart from a few places in Bolivia because it was so much cheaper. We had real problems with teenage moods – hellish at times. There was nowhere for anyone to go. You can’t just say to go upstairs and have some time out, go see a friend, or go for a walk because it was often too dangerous to let them walk alone. We were absolutely stuck together and that really did create problems at times.
Activities like the walking treks and climbing were the best because we all had some space. We all needed it at times. Conversely, it was also great at times to be altogether – music in the car, hiking in the most amazing places, travelling in big cities, meals together all the time, campfires and camp cooking. We have learned to live with disagreements better, I think, and we all know each other really well! Not sure if that’s good or bad!
Rob and Cath McGuinness at Salar de Uyuni. They spent almost five weeks in Bolivia traveling with their two daughters.
6. What was your budget for the trip?
It’s really hard doing it on a budget as well, but we got better at it and in the main stayed within our budget of around £200 for everything per day. Easy in India, difficult in Australia (camper van hire was £80 per day before petrol, campsite fees and then food) or the U.S.
7. Can you share some advice for families wanting to do the same?
Be prepared for things not to be perfect, for things to go wrong and arguments. It is really stressful travelling as a group. You can’t just turn up somewhere without having a room booked or change plans at the last minute, and we struggled with our budget to find suitable places sometimes for the girls that felt safe. The things you think are going to be the best aren’t always, and other bits will surprise and delight when you least expect it. It wasn’t a holiday – a lot of it was really hard work. Rob and I were often tired holding things together, but the good bits outweigh the bad overall, and it was a real experience. I look back at the blog and photos and can’t believe all the things we did. I’m glad we went.
Since returning home, I’ve been really ill – out of the blue. I am recovering now, but I wouldn’t be able to plan the trip we’ve done now and so that makes it all the better that we went when we did. You never know what’s round the corner, and my advice to anyone thinking about a trip like this is that if you can do it, then get on and do it.
There’ll never be a perfect time.
It is hard, but the memories are worth it, and you may not have the chance again.
8. Name three things you always pack for a trip.
A good rucksack, unlocked iPhone (great camera, video and iPod) and a really good pair of boots that work as walking boots but also for walking round town in your jeans. (We splashed out on family Timberlands – they were great!)
9. What’s your next adventure?
Our next family adventure is building the extension on our cottage and finishing the girls’ education – we can’t live forever in a two-bedroom house. Although, after some of the places we stayed when travelling, it still feels big! I need fewer “things” after travelling, and we are all aware how lucky we are to live and work in the UK.
For more details about the McGuinness family trip around the world, check out their Travel Pod page: http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog/mcgrtwtrip/1/tpod.html
