Planning for retirement! Where? How? Why there? Current home: Réunion Island > it's great. Though a bit too crowded on this island... And the future looks way too expensive to live reasonably without spending too much. So, exploring the Indian Ocean. Your ideas are welcome! ;-) A bit of Bali, a touch of Rodrigues, a few weeks in Mauritius, summers in Nosy Be, and winters in Réunion. In a camper van... maybe.
My brain’s short-circuiting—I’m overthinking, overanalyzing, drowning in questions... So I’m turning to you, you with your sharp, no-nonsense advice. You’ll help me, I just know it!
Here’s the thing: I don’t know what to do with my life. I want to travel the world, but I think you need money for that. Should I work to save up a nest egg first, then leave? And if I’m unemployed, can I still just go anyway?
Okay, but *where*? If I go to Cuba, I’ll fall in love with some guy who’ll want to marry me. If I go to Arab countries, I won’t be able to walk around in shorts. If I go to India, I’ll see rats everywhere and beggars dying in the streets. If I go to Argentina, I’ll probably meet aliens. If I go to Africa, I’ll see lots of Black people living in huts, and in Canada, I’ll run into bears (though, honestly, that’s not so bad—I like bears). I could keep going with examples, but I don’t want to wear you out!
And then there’s the language thing—I only speak French. How am I supposed to get by in countries where they don’t speak it?
And what am I even going to eat in all these places? Fries won’t be everywhere, that’s for sure!
But I *still* want to go, to meet people and to *really* meet *myself*. Isn’t that the point? You all say it’s important to go somewhere else to find yourself, so...
Except I’m terrified of flying. I’ve done it a few times, and every time we land, I clap because I’m so relieved to have made it in one piece! And then—bam—I just read that clapping is *super* lame, which explains why I’m always the only one doing it. Everyone else knows it’s dumb. Maybe I just travel with really smart people?
Anyway, while I wait for your brilliant advice, I’ll start packing. Wait—rolling suitcase or backpack? Ugh, why is traveling so complicated! Maybe I should just stay on my couch and watch travel documentaries, like *Peking-whatever* or *Ko-thingy*. My brain would stay intact, and I wouldn’t have to ask so many questions.
But if I stop asking questions, why am I even here? Isn’t the whole point of a forum to ask questions and get answers? Or is it not *just* for that? Sometimes people argue, sometimes they insult each other, sometimes they laugh, sometimes they get bored... Is it just like real life, then? Not even funny...
... or when a well-intentioned initiative can turn out to be harmful.
Hi there,
Why does highlighting a post in the "Suggestions" section result in it being removed from the subforum where it was originally posted?
If it's to draw attention to this worthy topic, wouldn't it be better to leave it in its original forum too, like "Destination + country" when it's a travel journal...
... and maybe add a special symbol next to the title (the opposite of the padlock, so 🤪) to show it's been featured?
I saw this photo online and it doesn’t say exactly where this unnamed structure is...
I’d really appreciate an answer to my question.
Thanks so much in advance!
Simon
I have CyberGhost VPN on my tablet, which I only use for watching TV shows/series abroad.
I’d like to install this VPN on my smartphone (to avoid bringing my tablet along), but my phone has several apps I use often.
My question: Are VPNs (including CyberGhost) actually secure on smartphones? I’m worried someone might sneak off with some of my data here and there...
After 20 years of operation and a 4-year hiatus, we were happy to rediscover this forum following its acquisition by Myatlas.
At the very beginning of the adventure, there was a section allowing members to share their ideas—good or bad, feasible or not—with the team in charge to help perfect the forum.
So, to help VoyageForum regain its momentum and adapt to new audiences and a new environment, why not put our heads together and suggest some improvement ideas in this thread?
I’ll get the ball rolling!
Travel journals are limited to 300 photos because photo storage is expensive.
This limitation is completely understandable, and Myatlas found a solution by offering a paid subscription for those who wanted to exceed the free photo limit.
Maybe this approach could be adapted here?
Limiting without offering an alternative is a reason members leave.
Hi everyone, the Groupe Militaire de Haute Montagne recently carried out a rescue operation for two extremely skilled mountaineers in the Himalayas. You might think it sounds like a Christmas tale, but no—just listen:
Hi there,
A friend who lives in Nouméa just had a baby. I’d like to send her a gift card or a present, but I don’t know which websites deliver to Nouméa. Could someone point me in the right direction, please?
Thanks so much!
Hello, with the sad news from the Caillou and the Loyalty Islands following the events from a few months ago, who still wants to travel to Grande Terre? Best regards,
Thanks for letting me know about the launch of the new VoyageForum.
I just want to say that I hope this fresh start has helped get rid of those rude people who thought they knew everything about every topic and would attack (and sometimes insult) participants who didn’t agree with them.
It was starting to feel like social media, where everyone thinks their own posts are the most accurate and truthful, and it was getting really tiresome—especially when all we really want to do is talk about travel.
So, my hope is that there’ll now be stricter moderation of exchanges between travelers.
Hi there, I stumbled upon this image online while reading an article about the Château de Fontainebleau.
I’m having a hard time believing this is actually that château, so I’m turning to VF members to help me figure out the name of this building (hoping it’s not just a CGI image!)
Hello
I’m leaving for just under a month in Sri Lanka. Departing from Toulouse on December 9, 2024.
No set itinerary, but roughly: the south (Galle) for snorkeling, Ella, Kandy, Dambulla, Sigiriya, Tricomalee+Nivalelli, Isurumuniya, and finishing near Negombo.
Flight to Chennai on January 6, 2025.
4/5 days in Chennai, then the Andaman Islands for 2/3 weeks. After that, Pondicherry, Madurai, Cochin, Kerala, and Goa. I’ll improvise.
Since I’m traveling for three months total, I’ll prioritize guest houses and/or mid-range hotels. I’ll also use local transport (with a few exceptions).
Hello,
Happy to see VoyageForum "back in action" again, and even though I know my post is a bit off-topic, I’ll give it a shot anyway:
We’re a group of four looking to take an organized trip to Canada at the end of September/beginning of October 2025, starting from Quebec. These kinds of tours exist, but our main issue is that local agencies don’t handle pre-routing from France, which is a deal-breaker for us.
Of course, we’re not at all opposed to traveling in a (small) group.
Thanks for your replies and any leads you might have.
Hello!
I’m a former VF lover (and, incidentally, an explorer of my Atlas 😊) and I’m genuinely thrilled the forum is reopening, but I have two little questions.
Over the past four years, I’ve put together a few travel journals that I’d love to share, but there are two things that bother me:
- How can I edit my post after a few hours? (Because sometimes I need to correct mistakes even two days later.)
- At the end of VF’s previous run, there were a few members who were really unpleasant and enjoyed derailing certain discussions. As a result, I know several people who stopped coming to VF because of that.
So, for MY travel journals, I’d really like to keep the vibe positive and kind. Is there any way to set something up so the person who starts a discussion can block them?
With a name like that, I should’ve been suspicious of this online ticket-buying site!
I booked a ticket on their site. I received an invoice and an online booking confirmation.
"Thank you for your online reservation. This confirmation also serves as your invoice. You will receive a second email within 24 hours containing your e-ticket."
12 hours later, I got this message:
"You booked a flight under reservation number 5TJ5HF on our website CheapTickets.be.
Unfortunately, we must inform you that we cannot issue your ticket at the original price.
After consulting the participating airlines, we were unable to find a solution to issue your ticket at the initial price.
We can offer you an alternative that matches your request, which we have already reserved for you. The recalculated price is 161.33 €. (...)
If we do not receive your confirmation by tomorrow at 9 AM, we will no longer be able to issue your ticket at the newly recalculated price and will have to cancel your reservation."
That’s nearly a 20% increase!
Is this even legal? What can I do about it?
I checked their site again—the ticket was still listed at the same price!
On top of that, calling their customer service costs 0.34 cents per minute. They keep you waiting for 20 minutes (that’s 6 €) before you get to speak to an advisor.
Hi,
Currently in London (so not the end of the world!), access to the site via my hotel's Wi-Fi is blocked for "security" reasons. Even after disabling the VPN as advised, nothing changes.
Not a big deal from the UK since I can use my mobile plan's GSM network, but it's still really annoying.
Any policy change or upcoming improvements on VF's side?
Hi everyone.
I just joined this site and I’m trying to enter the contest, but no luck!
For those who managed to do it, could you tell me how you did it? I followed all the instructions 😏
Thanks
My daughter and three of her friends went to Île Sainte-Marie, Madagascar. I haven’t heard from them in two days. Could you please tell me if you know this bar and hotel? This is the last photo she sent me, and I’d like to get in touch with them... thanks so much
I’ve been using a Revolut card for my travels so far, and it’s been working great for me.
But now it has two issues:
1) There are spending limits before fees kick in (1000 euros—easy to hit on a trip abroad)
2) You can’t top it up with a Visa or Mastercard anymore since those networks block those transfers. Now you have to do a bank transfer, which is less convenient.
And, debatable, but Revolut now uses its own exchange rate instead of the official one like before. I say "debatable" because when I checked, it’s pretty close to the official rate and the difference is minimal.
So I’m looking for an alternative. Some of you here mention the N26 card. Is it worth it?
We’ve been using Airbnb’s services for years during our trips across Europe, mainly in France. We were pretty happy with it, but we’d never needed to contact them (we only booked with Superhosts) before the Covid-19 pandemic hit.
Airbnb introduced a "Force Majeure and Coronavirus (COVID-19) Policy." This policy states (the BOLD is mine) "Bookings for Airbnb stays and experiences made on or before March 14, 2020, with a check-in date between March 14, 2020, and June 15, 2020, may be canceled before the check-in date. As a result, travelers who cancel in accordance with our Policy will receive, at their discretion, a travel credit or a full refund. Hosts can cancel in accordance with our Policy without fees or impact on their Superhost status, and Airbnb will issue a refund or travel credit for an amount including all service fees."
Since we complied with their policy, we were able to get refunds for 4 out of 5 bookings—MINUS the service fees, which they credited back to us with a useless expiration date of December 30, 2020, knowing full well we won’t be able to travel this year. :-(
However... NOWHERE in this policy do they mention that these cancellation terms are tied to the listing’s cancellation policy at the time of booking. They only refer to the "Force Majeure and Coronavirus (COVID-19) Policy." So for the 5th booking, since we only had 48 hours to cancel without fees, they’re "offering" us... $11.23 back on a $349.19 deposit! Of course, we also have the "option" to accept a credit for the full amount... to be used by December 30, 2021 (oh, that’s *so* much better, right?). Except, how is it fair that WE are penalized because not only are we under travel restrictions, but the HOSTS of this booking CAN’T HOST US?
We’ll have to go along with their bad faith (those 2020 expiration dates), and hosts who work with Airbnb should expect to lose customers they might’ve seen again once travel resumes... but they can forget about us—that’s for sure.
"Hi Mamido, it's Clémence."
Clémence, 5 years old, is a giggly, cheerful little girl and the queen of mischief.
"Mom says we're coming to your place until the holidays because we're on vacation tonight."
"Yes, I know. She asked me—do you know why?"
"Because of the croronavirus."
"And do you know what that is?"
"Oh yeah, at school Théo told me it's like a louse that doesn't itch, that doesn't get in your head but in your lungs, that it's all round with red bumps like raspberries, and that it makes old people die."
"Your friend knows a lot of things."
"His dad showed him a microscope picture, and you—are you old?"
"What do you think?"
"Well, yeah, but only a little because you always leave on your motorcycle to travel. Are you going traveling?"
"No, because you're coming with your brother and sister."
"Can we go to the little bridge to look for frog eggs? You remember, there were some last year, and we'll make them grow and put the baby frogs in the washhouse, and we'll also make boats to put in the stream so they can go to the sea."
"That's a great idea."
"And you'll make me the model in print letters so I can write which country my boat is going to."
"Where do you want your boat to go?"
"To the land of pandas—is it far?"
"Oh yes, very far."
"Then we have to make the boat strong so it doesn't sink."
"Promise, we'll have so much fun."
"Mom says in some countries they wear masks. Do you still have the chicken, rabbit, and pig masks in the attic? Can we wear them like that?"
"You know, here there are only trees, birds, and fields—we'll do whatever we want."
