Even though my family didn’t have much money when I was a child, we traveled constantly as we crisscrossed our way across the country on long car trips visiting Grandparents in Southern California and Florida. Along the way, we would stay in friends’ homes and it was a special treat to stay in a motel where my parents would let my brother and I jump between the two beds*. My dad literally saved his pennies, collecting his change at the end of the day for years, using that money to buy plane tickets to Europe when I was 12. Once again we stayed with family and in youth hostels, but that experience opened my eyes to different cultures and ways to see the world.

It’s no surprise that I still love to travel and try to do it on a budget. There were years when I had three kids ages three and under where most travel wasn’t realistic. In those years, I craved that annual beach trip with my kids’ grandparents. When my kids hit elementary age, I discovered that there were some really inexpensive cruises within an 8 hour drive - a fun way to see parts of the world I hadn’t explored before and a true vacation. Most recently during the pandemic, I discovered more of the great communities and things to do nearby. A 30 minute drive on country roads to Monroe or Greensboro with some takeout from a local place eaten in a park, a wander through the historic residential section, all gave me that sense of adventure as I experienced a new place.

So, what kind of traveler are you? Do you and your family go to the same spot each year for a week of fun? Would you love to travel internationally or explore more of our country but don’t know quite how to go about it? Does your life and schedule only allow short breaks that need to be close to home? In between market updates, renovation suggestions, and helping you better understand the home buying and selling process, I plan on sharing some travel tips no matter what kind of traveler you are. Latetia and I are also working on guides to local cities and areas like the one for Watkinsville. Not only can they be a help for people moving to the area, I hope they can help you discover some of the amazing places and people that are our neighbors.