“I lived abroad for free and visited 20 countries by the age of 20"

A woman lived in Greece and Egypt for free and saved £6k to fund more travels - visiting 20 countries before turning 20.

Lauren Kirby, 20, fell in love with travelling after taking a sabbatical from her work in a nursery.

After seeing an advert for a child care rep on TikTok she decided to go for it and flew out to Corfu, Greece, for three months.

The travel company, TUI, paid for Lauren’s accommodation, flights, food and bills and paid her a minimum wage - €950-a-month.

It meant Lauren was able to save £2.5k and used this to fund her travels to Portugal, Finland and Mexico.

In February 2023, Lauren went to Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, to work and saved £3.5k – as she was able to put away most of her salary.

Now she uses her savings to travel and visited 20 countries before she turned 20.

Lauren, who works part-time at nursery, and lives in Maidstone, Kent, said: “I loved it.

“I’d recommend it.

“People think travelling is expensive but it doesn’t have to be.”

Lauren flew out to Greece in August 2022 and spent her days on the beach and exploring the island – while being paid.

She said: “I didn’t have to pay my bills or anything.

“I saved all my wage.

“I had a beach side apartment and one-and-half days off.”

She was often able to finish earlier in the afternoon so she could enjoy full evenings.

Lauren came home to the UK in October 2022 before heading to Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, in February 2023.

She had her accommodation covered again – and even her medical insurance – meaning she could save £3.5k to go travelling afterwards.

Lauren said: “We went to the pyramids at the end.”

She also set herself a goal of visiting 20 countries before she turned 20 – and managed it.

She said: "I loved Portugal and Lake Bled in Finland.

"Everywhere is on my to do list. I'm always on Skyscanner."

Lauren already has trips to Bali, LA and Australia lined up and is keeping her eyes peeled for other seasonal jobs to fund her love of travelling.

Countries Lauren has visited –

1.    Portugal - Lisbon/ Ericeira
2.    Greece - Corfu, Rhodes, Kos
3.    Spain - Tenerife, Reus
4.    Italy - Amalfi Coast, Naples, Capri, Venice, Milan, Pompeii, Ischia
5.    France - Paris, Marseille
6.    Hungary - Budapest
7.    Iceland - Reykjavik
8.    Netherlands - Amsterdam
9.    Mexico - Playa del Carmen
10.   Finland - Helsinki, Rovaniemi (Lapland)
11.   Estonia - Tallinn
12.   Austria - Vienna, Hallstatt
13.   Slovenia - Lake Bled
14.   Switzerland - Zermatt
15.   Egypt - Sharm el Shiekh, Cairo
16.   Ireland - Dublin
17.   Scotland - Loch Lomond
18.   United States - Florida, New York
19.   Norway - Oslo
20.   Wales