Budget
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[Reflection] #25: Career Change, FIRE… When Money Becomes a Means of Liberation
JB and I often receive messages from people who want to switch careers into our fields (JB talked about his career change here , and me here), often with the goal of becoming nomads later. The pattern is always the same: the person has a good salary, but they’re bored or don’t find meaning in their bullshit job. Problem: they earn 60k, but if they switch careers, they become a junior again and can only expect 35k. As soon as salary comes up, the conversation stops dead, it’s always the same. At that point, they explain they have a mortgage to pay, a child, and they don’t know where to…
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Round-the-world travel insurance: how much it costs in 2026
When planning a round-the-world trip, you shouldn’t overlook the insurance budget. Let’s see why insurance is a must-have, with a comparison of the different options available. Why get insured on a round-the-world trip? There are countless insurance policies that offer to cover your expenses in case of flight delays, lost luggage, theft, or a broken phone, … While these events are unfortunate, they’re manageable. I tend not to pay for insurance for that. What you need to plan for is the worst-case scenario: you crash a scooter in Bali and need emergency surgery or a medical evacuation. In many cases, that’ll run you tens of thousands of euros. And in…
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How can I tell if I have a credit card or a debit card?
If you need a credit card, I recommend the American Express Air France Gold card. It’s 100% free for the first year, and you’ll get rental car insurance and cashback on every purchase you make with the card. To learn more and get a referral link, read my dedicated article.. In France, the credit card is the most widely used payment method. However, this is a misuse of language, as you need to distinguish between credit card and debit card. Without going into too much detail, debit cards are those that directly deduct money from your account, while credit cards are those that charge you later (e.g., at the beginning…
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My review of the American Express Blue card (+ referral for lifetime free access)
Get my referral when you sign up for the American Express Blue card by clicking this link. You’ll then enjoy free access to the card for life. American Express: What Is It? American Express (Amex) is a (American, as you might have guessed) company offering payment cards, much like Visa or Mastercard. Amex stands out by offering credit cards, a type that’s rare in France (where debit cards are the norm. “Credit card” is often a misnomer). How does American Express work? When you sign up with American Express, you provide them with your bank details and a direct debit authorization (so you don’t need to switch banks; Amex isn’t…
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Review of the Fortuneo Fosfo card (+ referral offer)
Looking for a referral code for Fortuneo? You can use this one: 13021400 It’s valid for the Fosfo card (€50 offered), the Gold CB card (€130 offered), the Bourse (€130 offered), and the Assurance Vie (€130 offered) When you travel for a long time, the question of which payment methods to bring along comes up. For me, ideally you should leave with 3 different bank cards: A Visa bank card A Mastercard bank card A ‘real’ credit card (required to rent a car in some countries) And for each of these cards, if possible choose one that is free and doesn’t charge foreign transaction fees. Fortuneo is rarely mentioned in…
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My review of the American Express Gold card (+ referral)
If you’re interested in the American Express Gold card, I can refer you! On top of all the perks, you’ll get 25,000 bonus reward points. That’s a minimum value of €125 To get my referral, click this link. Always on the lookout for interesting cards to maximize benefits, here’s my review of the American Express Gold card. I encourage you to give it a try—you’ve got nothing to lose since it’s 100% free (at least for the first year!). For those interested, I’ve already written reviews on the cards American Express Air France Gold (which let you earn Flying Blue miles) and American Express Business Platinum (which gives you access…
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Nomad vs Settled: How Much Does Housing Cost?
Whether you’re nomadic or settled, the main expense categories are the same: housing, transportation, food, health, and leisure. Only the amounts and proportions will change. One advantage of being a nomad is that you can easily adapt if your income drops. In a pinch, you can move to a low-cost country to reduce housing costs. Stay longer in one place to cut transportation costs. Cook more and eat out less to lower food expenses. And of course, cut back on leisure. Out of curiosity, I wanted to compare the cost of our Parisian apartment before we left on our world tour with what we spent during our first 10 months…
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Card Swallowed by an ATM Abroad: What to Do?
In Kotor, Montenegro, I had the misfortune of having my bank card swallowed by an ATM during a cash withdrawal attempt. It was clearly an issue with the machine since my card was swallowed before I could even enter my PIN. The bank branch was closed at the time, but I was able to go back a few days later. The advisor spoke good English, went to the ATM, and came back with two bank cards, including mine! Unfortunately, there is a procedure to follow: she gave me an email address and explained that I needed to ask my bank (Fortuneo) to email them authorizing me to retrieve my card.…
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Total transportation budget Round the World Tour 2020 – 202?
We continue the tradition. For the 1st world tour, I have listed all the transportation costs between the cities/countries of the 21 countries here.For the 2nd world tour, I have listed all the transportation costs between the cities/countries of the 29 countries here below, the transportation costs for the 3rd world tour (March 2020 – ???)The car rental costs have been divided in two so that we have an idea of the cost per person. Here is the list of the countries crossed (update October 2020) France – Belgium (short stay) – Germany (short stay) – France (road trip by car) – Italy The nomenclature City of departure (Country) ->…
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Transferwise: how does it work? Reviews + promo code
Get a Transferwise promo code by clicking on this link: https: //transferwise.com/invite/u/jean-benoitm1. Your first transfer will be 100% free. Transferwise is a service that allows you to have a multi-currency account for free, get a withdrawal card and send or receive money in (almost) any country at a low cost. Let’s see how it works. I already have an N26, Revolut or Boursorama Ultim card, what is Transferwise for? N26, Revolut or Boursorama Ultim are neo-banks that have revolutionized money management when traveling. Thanks to the cards they offer, there is no need to worry about exchange rates. Wherever you are, you will benefit from the real exchange rate without…
