About Me

Hey there! 

 I’m Layla and I’m the travel-addicted, globetrotting writer who is behind this travel blog.

I LOVE to travel this world of ours, I’m a freethinking, global explorer and I’ve been travelling long-term for 10 years now.
I have lived in 4 countries and had adventures travelling in 12.

I prefer slow, immersive travel so I can really get to know a country and see what it’s like to travel it or spend time living there – not just see it as a tourist.

I have spent 3 years living in Australia, 4 years living in New Zealand and 6 months living in Thailand. I know what it’s like to travel long-term in these countries and I know what it’s like to live there too.
During my travel life I have travelled to Australia, New Zealand, Thailand, Bali, Myanmar, Laos, Malaysia, Turkey, Greece, Spain, Germany, Cyprus, Egypt plus a few more.

From this immense background of travelling and from the countries I’ve lived in, I have created this travel blog so I can share my advice and wisdom on how I do it – and how you can do it too!
(You totally can, by the way).

My life is about freedom and living life on my own terms. Freedom is one of my most important values.
You don’t have to do what everyone else does, I don’t and I’ve been able to make travel my whole life – so travel is my lifestyle now.

WHO IS ALIAL TRAVEL GAL

I’m a freethinking, introverted, slightly quirky, sassy, nomadic travel-addict.
I love travel obviously, but I also love lots of other things. I love dogs, writing, discovering beautiful beaches, yoga, nature & wildlife, hiking, coffee, quirky cafes, street food, anything matcha green tea flavoured, discovering unique cities or towns, geek tech & sci-fi, collecting unique jewelry, gluten-free food, natural health & herbalism. 
I focus on staying healthy physically and mentally whilst travelling and keeping it natural as much as I can.

Additionally I am hugely interested in Conservation & Sustainability and I’m making an effort to learn more about environmentally conscious travel and Eco-tourism.

I’m also a freelancing Writer and I love Writing, Blogging and Content Creation.
I’ve trained myself in the areas of Content Writing, SEO, Social Media Management, Virtual Assistance and WordPress, and I use these skills to earn money whilst I’m on the road. 

I do and always have earned my own money to travel. I have never had anything handed to me, I’ve never owned a house that I could sell to fund my travels, not even a car, no job payout, no apartment to rent out as a side income. 
In the past, it was always work, save, travel, (spend really frugally), then repeat.
I’ve never lived in a city and had a corporate job in the UK, so all my savings came from very modest, small-town wages in semi-skilled roles and it was often a huge struggle to get to where I wanted.

Now after many years of trial and error, I have found sustainable ways of earning money whilst I travel and affordable living costs. So that I can stay on the road and travel forever. Yay.

MY STORY

Before travelling and starting this blog, I lived what most would call a ‘conventional life’ back in the UK.

Originally I’m from a tiny market town in Shropshire and I lived a pretty conventional life there. I worked full-time in many unfulfilling office jobs, I lived with an partner who didn’t want to travel, I had a group of awesome friends – but I was restless.
I’d always dreamed of travelling lands like Australia one day, I was so keen to experience all the amazing wildlife and beautiful beaches they had there.
And I felt like there must be more out there in the world, than my daily existence of work, sleep, repeat, save, go on holiday once a year and repeat.

So I quit my job, gave up my flat and bought a flight to Australia – alone. And it was one of the bravest things I’ve ever done. 

My first backpacking trip was to Australia, back in 2007 and one day whilst I was on a 4X4 mini-bus, somewhere in the coastal outback of Western Australia – I realised although I missed people back home, I didn’t want to go back to my conventional life.

As soon as I returned and caught up with my family and friends, I felt that wanderlust pull once again. So I started planning and preparing to leave again. Eight months later I left for Australia – again – this time on a student visa.
I spent one glorious year living and studying in sunny Perth, the state capital of Western Australia and I developed a great network of friends, most of whom I still see.

Then I was back in the UK again for some time catching up, with my beloved Nan and my friends.
But I felt I had now adapted to my new travel life and that I just didn’t fit in to my old life anymore. This just made the desire to keep on travelling, grow even more.

After the obligatory few months working in temp jobs and saving up some more cash, I was off to Australia again.
Then after that, on to live in New Zealand for a couple of years. I even lived in Thailand for a while too, plus I travel to anywhere else I can explore.

And it’s been that way ever since – travel is my lifestyle now.

The UK will always be my homeland and I’ll always visit but I don’t think I could ever live in just one place now – the world is too big and too fascinating.

I have travelled the stunning coastal outback of Western Australia and the buzzing East Coast of Australia, lived and worked in Perth and Sydney and lived as a student – spending a total of 3 years in Australia.

In New Zealand during the last 4 years; I’ve travelled both the North and South islands extensively on foot and by camper-van.
I’ve lived and worked in both the cities of Wellington and Auckland, volunteered through HelpX & Workaway, completed many house-sitting assignments in amazing beach locations and now my partner and I are embracing the ‘digital nomad’ life in Mount Maunganui, Bay of Plenty.

Mount Maunganui is an awesome little beach town in the North Island of New Zealand and is a uniquely special place for us both.
It’s where we’ve spent the most time living together in NZ and made many happy memories, plus there’s a regular, really great house-sit here, that we often get asked to do, for the most awesome dog.

SO…if you’re here because you’re thinking about travelling, you’re in the right place! You’ll find all the resources you need here, whether your a first-time or an experienced traveller.

Travel can be many things. It can be amazing, exciting, exhilarating, adventurous, uplifting, awesome, insightful, inspiring and life-changing. However it can also be overwhelming, nerve-wracking, stressful, confusing, difficult, expensive, and lonely.

I see travel as my life journey and I have experienced or felt all of these emotions and many more during my time travelling.
Travel is as much awe-inspiring as it is challenging and I want to show everyone the real world of travel, both the good and bad sides – and how to use the experience as growth in your travel journey.

Here I share articles that follow my personal adventures around the world and through my honest, firsthand experiences and hilarious travel stories on this blog – I want to share my stories, advice, wisdom and travel tips with you. 

I share with you the best ways to; book cheap flights, save thousands on accommodation,  volunteer or do help-exchange, how to save & budget for travel, what to pack for travel, how to start your own travel blog, find work online as a freelancer and ways to make money on the road.

Come with me on this journey we call life, as I travel around our beautiful and amazing Planet Earth and show you how to do it too.