Thousands of sailboats travel the world's oceans every year. Some of them need help.
Things You'll Need
- Boat Shoes
- Duffel Bags
- Foul Weather Gear
Tips For You
- Acquire sailing experience if at all possible. Sailing small dinghies may not give you any advantage, but experience on larger boats, however limited, may set you apart from other candidates.
- Prepare a resume. Sailing larger boats isn't all about sailing. Skills such as cooking, mechanical ability and medical training are often in great demand.
- Search classified ads. Some national magazines and many local and regional publications list opportunities to travel by sailboat.
- Travel to popular sailing centers. They are the best places to make contact with people who are setting out on a passage.
- Search waterfront bulletin boards.
- Speak with clerks at marine stores. They'll know who's planning to sail away in coming days.
- Stake out sailing bars and restaurants. Sailors tend to congregate in certain eating and drinking establishments. These are great places to make contact.
- Sell yourself. Once you identify a boat and owner who might want to take you along, you'll have to convince him or her your presence will make the trip substantially better. Your first trip will give you references and experience, which will make it easier to get yourself future berths.
Traveling around the world is everybody’s dream, but most people seem to push that dream away because they believe they can’t afford it. The truth is that there are many opportunities to help you travel around for free if you know where to look and who to talk to
Tips For You
- Find a job as an ESL (English as a Second Language) teacher. Language schools all around the world hire native speakers on a regular basis to teach both school children and adults. You will be required to stay at your chosen destination for at least six months, although this has the added benefit of allowing you to explore surrounding areas.
- Join press trips. You don’t need to have a degree in journalism in order to write stories for local papers and magazines. Many freelance writers habitually join press trips and receive free tickets and accommodations in exchange for attending presentations and writing a particular story.
- Become a courier. Most courier companies hire people on a freelance basis, so you don’t need to give up your day job or attach yourself to this type of job permanently in order to benefit from it. As a courier, your responsibilities including flying to a specific destination to deliver something (often paperwork or valuable items), in exchange for which you get a free airline ticket.
- Join a Hospitality Club. These organizations, run by private citizens around the world, focus on offering travelers a way to save money by helping each other without the expectancy of a monetary reward. Most hospitality clubs are set up online, where members (membership is free) can create a profile saying what they’re willing to offer to visitors: a free room, a tour of the area, or a free home-cooked meal.
- Use a credit card that offers mileage rewards. Make sure the credit card has a low percentage and try to pay it in full every month. Since each dollar you spend will result in miles, use the credit card to pay for everyday purchases rather than taking out cash from the ATM.
