'We're in the top 1% of earners but are leaving Wales as we aren't happy living here'
'We're in the top 1% of earners but are leaving Wales as we aren't happy living here'
The Fisher family have built an Instagram following of more than 100k through sharing their travels
Clare and Ian are leaving Barry in search of a better quality of life
(Image: @traveltheworldfamily )
A couple from Barry had been chasing happiness in the UK, climbing the corporate ladder and hoping money would lead to happiness. Now Clare and Ian, along with three kids, have decided to leave it all behind and move across the world for good.
"We are choosing to up sticks and move to some of the poorest communities in the world and we're happy to earn the bare minimum because we see how happy they are and we want that," Clare explained.
Clare, 39, and Ian, 36, have been sharing their travels online since 2018 when a death close to them prompted them to cut costs wherever they could and save up for a trip of a lifetime.
They moved in with Clare's parents and then Ian took a six-month sabbatical from work. The trip changed everything for them.
"I had lost my grandmother who was really really close to us. We also lost a family friend who was similar age to me and had two children like us at the time.
"He was a paratrooper and they read out his eulogy and as we drove away from his funeral I looked at Clare and was like well if I die tomorrow there's nothing going to be said about me. I had that really insecure moment of "What have we done with our lives?"
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"At that point, Clare asked me, "what do you want to do then?", and I said I wanted to go traveling. That was it, our minds were set."
The Fisher family have been able to travel to some incredible destinations thanks to their Instagram following
(Image: @traveltheworldfamily )
In the seven years since their big trip which saw them travel South East Asia, Australia and New Zealand, they've continued to travel the world with their children and share it online, amassing a following of over 100k. Now their children, aged 13, 11 and 5, have visited close to 50 countries.
Ian said: "Whilst Clare's been a full time mum I've focused on climbing the corporate ladder in the hope that the further up that ladder you get and the more money you get, the happier you'll get and I think what we've realized, and we've known for a while, is that extra income doesn't come with happiness, it comes with more pressure, it come with more stress."
"It doesn't matter where on the ladder you get or what income you have, it's no different. The stresses and the pressures that we have as a family now are no different to those 13 years ago when we had a snippet of that income."
The couple explained that they're looking forward to giving up all the things they've got to "make life in the UK good" and were looking forward to a more simple way of life. For money-saving tips, sign up to our Money newsletter here .
"We just want to wake up in a shack somewhere, stroll onto the beach, eat a corn for lunch that somebody's cooked on the beach," Clare explained.
Clare and Ian admitted they'd had to learn a lot along the way
(Image: @traveltheworldfamily )
In August they'll leave Barry and set off. They plan on spending around four months travelling South East Asia, visiting Vietnam, Cambodia, Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia.
They admitted they don't know where they'll end up after, they are considering staying in Thailand for a bit or continuing to travel and make the most of the freedom and resources available through their social media platform.
They've enrolled their two older children in an online Cambridge-accredited school and will be home schooling their youngest - the couple were keen to stress how important it was for them to protect their education.
When I asked them if they think they'll ever move back, they both said they don't see that happening but admitted it would come down to the children.
Ian said: "I think if the children come to us and say they really want to go back and that was a conversation we were having over a prolonged period of time, we would probably have to look at each other and go, right, we need to do what's right for everybody. But I genuinely don't believe that will happen."
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While their Instagram feed looks glamorous, full of exotic and picturesque destinations most of us only dream of visiting, Ian has often been working on his laptop off camera.
He admitted that juggling tight annual leave restrictions and building their travel content business has meant he would always have to bring his work laptop away with him.
The couple explained they would go on a three week trip but Ian would only use one week of annual leave and spend the other two weeks working remotely.
Ian said: "I'd have to be working and we've been in places like Mexico where the time difference is silly and I'd have to get up at 3am and work 3am till 2pm in the afternoon to be on UK time and then go and do what we need to do on the other side."
The couple hope what they do will inspire people to do the things they've always wanted to do.
Ian said: "I think our motto is that life is way too short, a lot of people save and work extremely hard to put money in the bank, they save it for something in the future when that future is not guaranteed.
"I would just urge people to maybe re-evaluate that, and if it's something they really want to do just do it. We might not even make it to 50, 60, 70, so what are we doing planning for it?"
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