Kate, 23, has no fixed address but travels and works remotely.
In the process, she spotted some common holiday mistakes.
Dahab, Egypt - When Kate gets up in the morning, she first goes to the beach on the beautiful Red Sea.
Or she finds the Egyptian girl with whom she has been conducting an arm wrestling competition for weeks.
In the evenings she cooks for her travel acquaintances she just met and maybe goes for a drink in a bar.
Kate currently lives in the diving town of Dahab in Egypt, but probably not for long.
Where it will take her after that, she can't say yet.
She only knows one thing: she's not going home.
Kate is a digital nomad and works on the go from her laptop.
She spoke to Ippen.Media about common travel mistakes that she has recognized in almost three years of continuous travel experience.
Kate is a solo traveler and completely independent.
Here are 7 reasons why everyone should travel alone at some point in their lives.
Travel mistakes according to permanent travelers: Not taking enough luggage with you
As a digital nomad, you'd think it would be convenient for Kate to pack lightly so she doesn't have to lug around as much.
But she thinks this is a fallacy: “Bring what you need with you.
You have to make a lot of compromises on the road and it's not always comfortable.
A few comforts of home make traveling that much easier.”
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Constant travelers Kate reveals five mistakes that many people make when travelling.
© Kate Woodley
Kate thinks the trend towards minimal luggage doesn't always make sense.
“There's a misconception that you're a better tourist if you can get by with four T-shirts and two pairs of pants.
As long as I can pull the suitcase or carry the backpack, it doesn't matter how much or how little is in it.”
Book tours online in advance and pay unnecessarily
On vacation, you want to relax and have as little stress as possible.
It is therefore only logical that many want to do as much as possible in advance and book possible activities online.
Kate is sure that's a bad idea.
“Most of the time, tours are much more expensive online than booking them locally.
With a local tour operator you can still bargain a bit and in the end usually only pay half of the online price.”
But what if the activities on site are already fully booked and in the end you can no longer do what interests you?
Here, too, Kate gives the all-clear: "I've never been anywhere and couldn't find a tour that offered what I wanted." So: relax and let the travel tours come to you, including cheaper prices!
Planning too much and losing the spontaneity when traveling
Booking tours online isn't the only way to plan a trip in advance, says Kate.
She knows this from experience: “In the beginning I had an Excel spreadsheet, I had already planned all the accommodation and knew how to get from place to place.
That was helpful, but I wasn't spontaneous at all and missed out on great opportunities and experiences that could have happened to me without my plans.”
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Now Kate does things differently and plans a lot less.
Especially because she travels alone, she can always remain flexible and do what she feels like doing.
"My best memories are of days of just drifting and following amazing people I've met." For more solo travel tips, click here.
Traveling too much and missing out on the essentials
On holiday you can get the feeling that you should see as much as possible in as little time as possible so that you don't miss anything.
Kate says it's actually the best way to miss out.
“If you just tick off as many things as possible, you miss a lot, you don’t really get to know a place.
Besides, it's so exhausting.”
Appropriately, Kate tells about her current whereabouts.
At the beginning of the year she already spent two weeks in Dahab.
She liked it, but wanted to explore the rest of the country.
So she visited the Pyramids and the Valley of the Kings.
But Dahab stuck in her mind and she came back.
She has now spent more than six weeks in the small town on the Red Sea.
In her freedom, it is important to her to do what she feels like doing and not to let herself be put under pressure.
What she experiences, she experiences and what she misses, she misses.
Don't use a travel credit card and pay unnecessary fees
Kate's last tip is more of a practical one: use a travel credit card with no hidden fees.
Particularly practical, because every fourth German wants to save money when travelling.
"You can withdraw money with a travel credit card without paying anything extra." It's not just the provider that's important, but also the number.
"I take at least two credit cards with me in case I lose one or one doesn't work."
So while one shouldn't plan too much in advance, there are things that can be done to make the most of a vacation.
This way you can save money and nerves and still be open to new and spontaneous experiences.
With these tips, Kate has managed not to lose her desire to travel even after almost three years and is convinced of her lifestyle.
There's only one thing left to say: Bon voyage, Kate!
(loud)
Rubric list image: © Kate Woodley