Vagabonding: An Uncommon Guide to the Art of Long-Term World Travel

I particularly liked the section on working for travel. As a 9-to-5 worker planning a long-term trip, I needed the inspiration to keep going. I liked being told that working will actually make me appreciate travel more. After all, to afford travel, I have to be here anyway.

Throughout the book, there are great little excerpts from famous travellers, philosophers, and explorers, as well as anecdotes from ordinary travellers. Rolf has a particular liking for Walt Whitman, and I may just have to go pick up some Walt poetry now. The literary references in this book let you know that world travel and a simple life aren't new concepts.

The only problem I see with this book is that it may soon become dated with its references to specific websites.

The book is of a small and convenient size to take on the road.


Inspiring   June 23, 2003
 42 out of 42 found this review helpful

The hardest part of world travel is acquiring the mindset that nothing else matters as much as the journey. Getting to a place where you reduce your consumption of unnecessary stuff, commit your time, and leave your daily routine behind takes a fair amount of work, and it also takes a major shift in priorities. Vagabonding serves as the kick-start that gets you to that mental place --the "I can do it, and I can do it soon" reply to the siren call of world travel.

This book is inspiring, clear, and helpful. I'd recommend it to anyone who wants to roam, but thinks they don't have enough money or time. I also recommend it for those, like me, who have gone vagabonding before, know what it takes, and just need a nudge of renewal in order to get back out there again. Great book!


Disappointing   January 4, 2005
 25 out of 32 found this review helpful

I had great expectations from Potts having read his columns frequently. When I purchased the book, I was gravely disappointed by the overabundance of quotes, which, I suspect, were used to fill space, to make more pages to fill a possible page quota, and to allow Potts to write less.

On a redeeming note, Potts does slather the entire book with many websites and sources for further information. When I first heard of the book, I did not expect it to answer all my questions or help me to plan completely my upcoming trip; I expected it to be a general guide. In that vein, I was not disappointed.

After having read the book, I immediately sold it.


Insightful, But Occasionally Elitist, Book of Travel Philosophy   September 19, 2005
 25 out of 31 found this review helpful

Potential buyers should first be aware this is really a book of philosophical musings by Potts and his favorite writers, though at least he has good taste in literature with his numerous quotations from Whitman and Thoreau. But those looking for "nuts and bolts" information on how to prepare for a RTW trip or other long term international travel should buy Rough Guide's "First Time Around the World" instead.

As an avid traveller, I do agree with much of what Potts has to say, especially about getting off the tourist track and experiencing other cultures more fully and realistically. But I also believe that Potts' writing, while very passionate, is often marred by a lack of humility. His intention is to "inspire" people to travel - a worthwhile aim. But his constant insistence that every person should immediately start saving money then quit their job and hit the road often comes off as overbearing and "know it all", without any sense of understanding for other people's situations or priorities - such as work and children.

Personally, I begin "vagabonding" through the United States, Asia and Latin America at 18. Now, at the ripe old age of 37, I still manage to travel every year, also my wife is from Ecuador so we go there quite often. But my career obligations make my trips shorter than they used to be. Hopefully Potts will gain some maturity over time and begin to recognize that his way isn't the only way. Otherwise the guy is a pretty good writer with an intense passion for travel and some intelligent things to say about it. Just remember this is a book of philosophy and opinions rather than useful factual info. So those looking for a guide to travel planning should look elsewhere.


A book to inspire, not to direct you   April 16, 2003
 22 out of 23 found this review helpful

As a former "vagabonder" who's now (quite unpleasantly) ensconced in the 9 to 5 world, I needed a book to inspire and redirect my thinking.

This is the first and only travel book that's done that for me.

Rolf is clearly one who understands the vagabonder mentality. That's proven by his cautions against excessive planning, reliance upon guidebooks (even Lonely Planet), and against depending upon your cataloged preconceptions of a travel destination. For the true vagabonder relies almost entirely on serendpity, not obsession. You unplug from the media, from email, from everything. And you rely on now, today.

I thought it both delightful and completely true that one should target a destination based solely upon the flimsiest of whims (e.g., learning to play ping-pong). Because once you arrive, all will be dashed and certainly enhanced simply be being there. This is both the truth and the "zen" of long-term, vagabond travel: once you get there everything will be different, and better, than you could have imagined.

Rolf buttresses his thinking with many quotes from those who have preceeded us in the "vagabonding" mentality. Thoreau, Whitman, etc. (But where is Ralph Waldo Emerson's "Whoso would be a man must be a nonconformist. He who would gather immortal palms must not be hindered by the name of goodness, but must explore if it be goodness"). In any case Rolf addresses in full measure the social "oddity" of vagabonding, including the fulfillment it brings. People will not understand us. So what?

That this is the genuine article is exposed when Rolf catches Lonely Planet founder Tony Wheeeler asserting that some people "go to hotels that aren't listed in Lonely Planet," which is truly the vagabonder - the traveler - mentality.

There are only a few paths for the true vagabonder, and none of those include guidebooks, group tours, "vacations", or possibly even sabbaticals. Vagabonding is a way of thinking, of living, of traveling, of interacting with the world on a global basis.

And as Rolf mentions, it is very, very addictive for those who are so inclined.