Note: This factoid was written as part of the V.I.P project. Ask if you’d like to contribute or learn more.
We’d all like to travel to exotic destinations with someone else paying the bill . . . or better yet, someone else paying us AND the bill. With the right mindset and a little bit of planning, this can be done. Here are some ways to get your vacation to pay for itself, and possibly even create a business from your recreational activities.
Medical Vacations – This does require some research, but many countries now offer similar or improved medical care to our own for significantly less cost. More and more people are choosing to have cosmetic dentistry or plastic surgery or even more routine medical care done elsewhere, saving potentially the entire cost of their trip or more! Some travel agents or even the medical practitioners themselves offer medical/dental travel packages, but this is a niche that you can carve out yourself as well . . . providing people with the information they need to make such a trip, and potentially even accompanying them to act as a translator if necessary. The amounts saved can make it worthwhile for someone to pay for your trip and possibly even provide a stipend as well. For this type of trip, plan to extend your travel before and after the medical care so the patient doesn’t have to travel in a weakened state, or in case of any complications.
Importing/Exporting – Turn your shopping skills into profit by finding locally-made crafts wherever you go and selling them when you return. Doing this on a large scale may require licensing and taxes to be paid, but on the lower level, with a little effort, this can still result in a large discount on your stay. A great example can be souvenirs; buy two instead of one, and resell the second for a profit when you get back so that your first one is free! Likewise, you may find that a place you are traveling to, has a market or need for products from your home country . . . if you plan to make repeated trips somewhere, this is a great opportunity to identify a niche item that you can bring to sell or trade for local items. Friends and/or relatives who live in the country you visit can be a great help with this sort of enterprise.
Licensing & Distribution - This is the trickiest of these options, but definitely the one with the most income potential. There are many products all over the world that are licensed or patented in only one country. When you travel, you may see a product that would be useful where you’re from, only no one sells it there. There are different ways to approach the creator of that product; you can buy licensing rights from them and agree to be their distributor in your home country, or in some cases you can patent the product in your home country without the need to pay a licensing fee. Once you’ve found a suitable product, get the appropriate legal and financial advice before trying this so you can generate the maximum profit with a minimum of risk. If you become skilled at this sort of work, companies may even hire you to scout out new products in other locales that they can patent or license, then manufacture and distribute internally.
These are some outside-the-box ways of getting paid while you travel . . . remember to know and respect the local laws wherever you go as well as any international laws that apply once you start to transport merchandise. Writing about these methods or teaching them to others can also provide income, once you have some real experience with them. Bon voyage!
