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Not Luxe ☼ Travel
  • ABOUT NICK & RAYCHEL
  • WHY “NOT LUXE”
  • Cambodia
  • Australia
  • Travel
  • Teaching ESL
  • Move Abroad
  • Travel Insurance

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    'Not Luxe' Nick and Raychel lay on a blue beanbag in sunny Phnom Penh, Cambodia

    Honeymoon Destinations: Our Top 5 Ideas

    by Nick & Raychel May 2, 2020

    Picking honeymoon destinations can be tricky – especially if your bucket list is as long as ours. That said, we don’t have much time to waste. We are getting married (!!!) next summer and it’s time to start planning. The first step is deciding: what are the best honeymoon destinations? Where should we go on our honeymoon? 

    & for us … as two curious young people, we think: what are some unusual honeymoon destinations?

    At least, these are the questions we asked ourselves when we both picked our top 5 honeymoon destination ideas. We didn’t share them with each other until we made this video (also below) and we exposed our choices to each other in real time.

    We both picked our favourite honeymoon choices, ordered them 1-5 (one being best), but exposed them to each other in reverse order. So, without further ado, here are our picks:

    Nick’s Choices

    #5. Peru

    Nick was attracted to Peru because of the landscapes and the weather. Also, we could make a big South America tour out of this single destination.

    Honeymoon Destinations - Peru

    #4. Indonesia

    We’ve been here before, so I was quite surprised that he chose it! He says it’s because he feels like we didn’t spend enough time there. We’ve also spoken a lot about moving to Indonesia, so in his mind, it would be a fun honeymoon to explore the country & find a place to live.

    #3. Malta

    In his words, “well, I was first looking at Italy because it’s a place of love”. Then, he thought about Malta! It’s the perfect honeymoon destination because it is a good mix of warmth, romance, culture, adventure, history, and more.

    Honeymoon Destinations - Malta

    Oof, after he mentioned Malta, I was starting to change my mind on my thoughts.

    #2. India

    See my choices below for my reaction on this!!

    #1. South Africa

    Uhhhh.. again, see my choices below for my reaction on this!!


    Raychel’s Choices

    #5. Iceland

    Of course! Iceland, with its’ beautiful landscapes and endless adventure opportunities, would in my mind, be a fantastic honeymoon destination. 

    Honeymoon Destinations - Iceland

    Gahh, just think of all the places we could adventure, breathe in the fresh air, and then look back and say, “that was the trip of a lifetime”.

    $4. Colombia

    I never chose Colombia with the intention of only going there. I picked Colombia because it’s a country I’m very interested in visiting – ugh, it looks absolutely stunning. 

    On top of it’s beauty, culture, and food I’m so interested in exploring – I thought it’d be a great honeymoon destination because it neighbours with other countries we are dying to go to. 

    Honeymoon Destinations - Colombia

    … and with the inexpensive cost of travelling, we could visit a few countries in one go! Hey, maybe we could stretch the honeymoon out a little longer.

    #3. Kazakhstan

    You heard it first – we will live in Kazakhstan one day. We talk about it all of the time. We are so attracted to this huge, beautiful country and it, without a doubt, made my list.

    Honestly, we both just feel called there.

    Honeymoon Destinations - Kasakhstan

    When I asked Nick why it didn’t make his list, he said “because I can see us living there, but I don’t see it as our honeymoon adventure”. Fair enough.

    #2. India

    Look!! We both picked the same #2!!! I had NO IDEA that Nick was also going to pick India as his second choice, but I’m so happy he did.

    I’ve been meaning to go to India for the last couple of years but things keep getting in the way. I’ll be seconds away from booking my flight, and something will come up. 

    Honeymoon Destinations - india

    What attracts me to India? Um, everything. The food, the culture, the dancing, the music, the people, the beliefs, everything. So much of our planet’s population is in India. How could I ever feel like I got to know this earth without going there?

    Whether or not we go there on this honeymoon, we will visit eventually. 

    #1. South Africa

    WE CHOSE THE SAME #1 HONEYMOON DESTINATION! 

    Ok, so we’ve talked about this before. We basically have spoken about honeymooning in South Africa before Nick even proposed. 

    Honeymoon Destinations - South Africa

    When we moved to Cambodia, we met so many people from South Africa, and one became one of our lifelong friends. She’s originally from South Africa, but lives in Swaziland, so we’re planning on visiting there too.

    The animals. The landscapes. The culture. EVERYTHING!!


    We are super stoked that we picked the same ‘top 2’ honeymoon destination ideas.

    We kind of already had a feel (for number 1, we had no idea that we’d both choose India for number 2) but it’s still reassuring to know that, despite planning and exploring, we still come to the same conclusion.

    Yep. Guess we can still get married!

    (Kidding)

    (Maybe)

     

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Nick & Raychel
Nick & Raychel

In 2018, we sold everything we owned and moved to Cambodia to teach English.

Let’s make this clear: this journey didn’t start with money. This journey started with a desire to see the world and to do something different for a change.

We’re not going to fool you with photos of floating breakfasts and private jets. We know what it’s like to be on a budget. Although we like to take pretty pictures, we aren’t going to wake up at an ungodly hour to give you unachievable travel jealousy. We aren’t going to censor ourselves or lie to you.

What we are going to do is stay in cheap hostels, find ways to make money, give the advice that we would want to hear, and share our experiences with you honestly.

Are you in?

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ABOUT NICK & RAYCHEL

About Us Hi! We’re Nick & Raychel, the Canadian travel couple behind the brand ‘Not Luxe’. Far before we were married (and on a mission to see the world), we were working…

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  • This summer has been filled with a lot of hard work so we can continue the adventure.

Working odd jobs and picking up work that we aren’t necessarily *passionate* about (sorry to break it to you, Santa, I didn’t love being a Christmas elf at the mall during the holidays) isn’t always easy.

Working hours at the office, doing data entry, reception, and cleaning out the fridge every Friday isn’t exactly my idea of fun. Nick doesn’t love driving a truck for 11 hours a day, or getting home at 1am. 

But we are committed to the cycle, we are passionate about alternative living, and we want to see the world.

We don’t work hard so that we can have a margarita at the beach (although that’s fun too), we work hard so that we can experience different cultures, try different cuisines, learn about different climates, connect, and grow as people.

Travel to us is more than bright blue waters and aesthetic IG photos, it’s about the experience, and we can’t wait to see more.

__

➟ follow @nickandraychel // full-time van life & budget travel 

Tags: #notluxe  #camperlife #camperlifestyle #vanlifeproject #vanlifeculture #tinyhome #tinyliving #vanlifediaries #travelgram #livetoexplore #vanlifeculture #budgettravel #worktotravel #traveljobs #travelblogger #vanlifestyle #vanliving #livingoutdoors #campinglife  #vanlifevirals #vanlifeideas #vandwelling

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  • Yeah, the first ever “odd job” I took in order to afford travel was as a Christmas Elf at the mall.

I worked this job on top of my regular 9-5 so that I could afford to pay off my existing credit card debt and move to Cambodia. It was my first step away from the ‘big girl jobs’ I was used to working, but I had a dream to live abroad and a bank account that didn’t match, so I had to do something about it.

The next few jobs I’ve done either part or full time over the years.

💻 REV: I’ve worked as a transcriber on Rev for a few years now. The pay isn’t great, but I’m a super fast typist (80 wpm who!?) so I figured it could be a way to pass the time & earn extra income.

🐶 Rover: This summer, we’ve ventured into caring for dogs on Rover. While we can’t do this in our van, we are currently staying with my brother and between all of us, there’s always a dog here. If I had learned about Rover prior to moving out of our apartment, I would have definitely offered my services years ago.

👩‍🏫 Teaching English online: Many people know that we taught English overseas - but only long-time followers of the YouTube channel would know that teaching ESL was my job beyond that. Unfortunately there were major pay cuts within the company that I worked for (PalFish) so I quit, but I still teach on Cambly and Outschool (more on that in part 2).

We don’t have a lot of money but we have expensive dreams, so we’ll do anything to make it work. What odd jobs have you done to earn some extra cash?

➟ follow @nickandraychel // full-time van life & budget travel 

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  • Anyone who knows our story knows that we have been working throughout our entire travels. Seasonal / temporary work has afforded us a lifestyle filled with travel and adventure. ✈️

We have explored temp agencies, Craigslist ads, used websites like Airtasker (Australia) and Kijiji to find our temporary/seasonal jobs. But in the US specifically, there are some websites designed specifically for this type of work. 🌲

Here are 3 websites designed for seasonal work (mostly U.S. based):
1. Vagajobs: a resource for seasonal & year-round work with a heavy focus on travel/adventure jobs. Some jobs posted on Vagajobs include staff housing.
2. CoolWorks: job opportunities in great places - from national parks to ski resorts, summer camps, to national parks. Some jobs posted on CoolWorks include staff housing.
3. Occupation Wild: job board for the outdoor / adventure and travel industry. Hiring all sorts of positions at ranches, camps, resorts, conservation areas and national parks. 

Outside of the U.S.? Same (kinda). Our main go-to in Canada is Indeed (search by job type & select contract / seasonal)

Do you have any seasonal job boards to add to the list?
Drop ‘em here. ⬇️

➟ follow @nickandraychel // full-time van life & budget travel 

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  • If you’re in Ontario, you don’t want to miss this next year ✨ 

This was our first time visit the Hamilton night market and it was so worth the visit. Come along with us! @hhnightmarket 

Have you tried stinky tofu? ⬇️ 

—

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  • Shoutout to anyone who does these tiny (or big) builds on your own 🤦🏼‍♀️

We all have different strengths, right?… 

What’s your most dreaded part of DIY? ⬇️ 
_

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  • Saying goodbye is the hardest part about travelling.

We have said dozens and dozens of goodbyes throughout our 20s. We have met countless new faces, made a ton of connections, and have shed a lot of goodbye tears.

Even a visit ‘home’ comes with the looming feeling of saying goodbye again.

We wish we could take everyone we love and put them in our pocket.
But we know that everybody has a different dream, a different life. 

When we take our next flight or fill up the gas tank to our next stop on the road, they go off on to see the world for themselves, to raise their families, to chase their career goals, love lives, or whatever else.

And we are so stoked to be able to stay in touch online.
But it’s definitely the hardest part of living nomadically.

➟ follow @nickandraychel // full-time van life & budget travel 
__

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