An Honest Review – The Travel Lifestyle Course by Travel Lemming

UPDATE: While I really enjoyed this course, unfortunately it has been discontinued and is no longer available at this time.

Looking for a brutally honest Travel Lifestyle Course review?

You’re in the right place.

Let’s jump right in.

The Travel Lifestyle Course (by Nate Hake of Travel Lemming) claims to teach aspiring digital nomads step-by-step, how to start traveling the world and working online in 2019.

From what I’ve seen, it’s the only course that claims to teach the travel AND online business AND wellbeing aspects of becoming a digital nomad. It makes some big promises and has a price tag of $297…

But the burning question is—is it worth it?

Well, I just gave the course a full test run, and today I’m going to share everything I liked (and didn’t like) to help you decide if it’s right for you.

TL;DR – Is it Worth it?

It depends.

If you’re looking for the secret to quick-and-easy digital nomad riches, you won’t find it here.

However, if you want a no-hype roadmap that guides you by the hand and shows you exactly what to do (and what not to do) for a successful transition into digital nomad life, then yes, it’s definitely worth it.

While there are areas for improvement—which I discuss in the review—it’s still the most comprehensive course for aspiring digital nomads on the market (that I know of). If I would’ve had the info in this course back when I started, it would’ve saved me about 1.5 years of fruitless work and nearly $10,000 wasted chasing rabbit holes.

If, after reading the review, you decide the course is right for you, scroll to the bottom of this page to get a special sign-up bonus.

Disclaimer: I am an affiliate for this course and received access in exchange for an honest review. As you will clearly see, all opinions are my own.

Alrighty, let’s dig in!

To start things off, let’s take a behind-the-scenes look at what the course looks like in action.

The Travel Lifestyle Course Review: An Inside Look

Apologies to Nate for pronouncing his name wrong…the camera makes me nervous 🙈

What’s Included In The Course

Don’t have time to watch the video? Here’s a quick breakdown.

The course includes 6 modules, 11 chapters, and 55 video lessons. Here’s what each lesson looks like:

The length of each video ranges from 5 minutes to an hour—the average is around 20 minutes.

Here is an outline of all the lessons covered in each module. It’s pretty extensive, so buckle up:

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Module 1: What to Expect and Is Nomad Life Right for You?

• Introduction to Being a Digital Nomad
• The Reality of Nomad Life (Pros and Cons)
• Is the Travel Lifestyle Right for You?
• Mastering the Right Mindset for Success

Module 2: Planning for Digital Nomad Life

Chapter 1: Budgeting Like a Rock Star

• How Much Does Nomad Life Cost?
• Creating a Budget: Part I
• Creating a Budget Part II

Chapter 2: Getting Ready for Your Trip

• The Best Destinations for First-Time Nomads
• How to Minimize Your Life
• Pre-Trip Checklist (Admin Issues)
• Taxes (and Setting Up LLCs)
• Planning for Your Return (Even if You Think You Won’t)
• BONUS: Using Miles and Points for Free Travel

Chapter 3: Taking the Leap

• How to Overcome Jump Paralysis And Take the Big Leap
• How to Talk to Family, Friends, and Employers

Module 3: Crafting a Career that Gives You Freedom

• The Skill Set Pivot Method for Supercharging Your Remote Career
• The 3 Paths to Nomad Life (Part II)
• The Four Down Method for Time & Goal Management
• Personality Analysis and the Importance of Self Awareness
• 6 Common Mistakes, Pitfalls, & Scams

Module 4: Actionable Skills to Thrive Online

• Road Map of the Nomad Economy

Chapter 1: Digital Marketing

• Search Engine Optimization
• Search Engine Marketing
• Social Media
• Email Marketing
• Facebook Advertising

Chapter 2: Content

• Blogging
• Affiliate Marketing
• Freelance Writing

Chapter 3: Teaching and Training

• E-Learning (Courses & Coaching)
• Online English Teaching

Chapter 4: Administration and Support

• Translation
• Virtual Assistant

Chapter 5: Consulting & Management

• Management
• Consulting

Chapter 6: Software & Products

• Software Development
• E-Commerce

The Digital Nomad Toolkit

• The Digital Nomad Toolkit

Module 5: Finding Location Independent Work

• How to Find a Remote Job
• How to Find Freelance Clients
• How to Start a Business (And Find Customers)
• Mistakes to Avoid

Module 6: Living Happily on the Road

• Building Friendships and Communities (The Harbor Method)
• Accommodation & WiFi Issues
• Working Productively on the Road
• Staying Safe, Healthy, and Happy
• The Best Digital Nomad Resources
• Planning for the Long Term (And Returning Home)

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See what I mean by step-by-step hand-holding? I wasn’t kidding!

Mixed into these lessons are various worksheets, homework assignments, and helpful tools.

He did an excellent job covering ALL aspects in the complex transition to nomad life—the decision to become a digital nomad, planning out the important details of your trip, building digital nomad skills, identifying the best travel jobs for you, avoiding costly mistakes, and staying happy and healthy.

What Else is Included in The Travel Lifestyle Course?

In addition to all the course material, he also includes the following bonuses:

The Digital Nomad Toolkit ←My thoughts: There are some cool tools I haven’t heard of on this list, but this info could be found with a quick Google search. For a truly comprehensive list of the best (and cheapest) tools for location independent life, check out my offer at the bottom of this page).

Live Office Hours ←My thoughts: I love having direct access to experts who have achieved what I want to achieve. That said, he mentions that he only does an hour session every few months. It’s a cool idea, but I’m not sure how much value it adds (especially when you can just contact him via email or the private Facebook group).

Practical Downloadable Tools ←My thoughts: These are pretty nifty. I especially like the “Benefits of Slow Travel” spreadsheet. You plug in a bunch of variables like your average nightly rate, number of people in your group, type of transportation you take, etc., and it spits out 3 different budgets comparing different travel speeds (5 days in each destination vs. 2 weeks vs. 1 month). Pretty neat!

Monthly Opportunity Newsletter ←My thoughts: Could be helpful in finding a good remote gig, but there are other good free newsletters out there.

Private Facebook Group ←My thoughts: I’d imagine that at the time of writing, this Facebook group is still in its early stages. This has pros and cons. Pros: You’ll probably get more personal attention from Nate. Cons: Not as much activity and networking with others. (Note: This is just a hunch, I didn’t actually join the FB group, so I could be full of poo.)

The Travel Lifestyle Course Review: Pros and Cons

👎 What I DIDN’T like

I want to start this section off by saying that Nate literally poured his heart into this course (and it shows). And while there are things that could be improved—which I’ll get to in a second—chances are, Nate is going to read this review himself and go back and make the improvements. He genuinely wants it to provide as much value as humanly possible.

Lacks some info. Some of the specialized digital nomad skills (ex. E-Commerce) don’t go into very much detail. He is still looking for more guest instructors to teach these digital nomad jobs in more depth, so by the time you’re reading this, it may be updated 🤞.

Speaking of things I’d like to see included, he mentions that he LOVES hiring VAs from the Philippines and how it has transformed his businesses, but he doesn’t have a lesson sharing his insights on how to hire and manage a team. This would be really valuable.

Little Facebook group (I think). I’d imagine that at the time of writing, the private Facebook group is still in its early stages. This has pros and cons. That means there’s probably not a lot of activity or networking opportunities. On the other hand, it might also mean you get more direct attention from Nate. (Note: This is just a hunch, I didn’t actually join the FB group, so I could be full of poo.)

Infrequent office hours. In my opinion, the Live Office Hours looks like an attractive bonus offer, but if it’s only held for an hour “every few months”, I don’t know how helpful that is. That said, it is just a bonus offer, so I can’t really complain…plus, if you have a burning question, you can just ask him via email or the FB group.

Some bonuses can be found for free. Speaking of the bonuses, while a Monthly Opportunity Newsletter is valuable (and could help you land a great remote gig), there are loads of other remote job newsletters out there you can sign up for free.

Small bugs. I don’t know if this is an actual problem or if I’m just stupid…but for me, the login process is kind of clunky. Sometimes I have trouble figuring out how to sign in. And sometimes I accidentally sign in to the backend of his website as a guest. It’s weird. That said, it might just be because I’m using a “tester” version.

👍 What I DID like

Generous guarantee. I’ll start with the most important. His 30-day no questions asked, money-back guarantee. This kind of makes it a no-brainer. He’s taking on all the risk here by offering to refund your money after you’ve gone through the course and watch everything. You don’t have to wonder whether it’s worth the money or not. You can actually try it out risk-free and see for yourself.

No hype. Unlike 99% of everything else you see online about the “laptop lifestyle”, Nate doesn’t fluff anything up. It’s refreshingly “real”, shares the good AND the bad, and doesn’t hide anything. It’s clear he’s more concerned about helping his students make the right choice for THEM vs. simply selling the lifestyle.

Easy-to-follow steps. Going from “normal life” to living as a digital nomad has a TON of moving parts. There’s so many things to learn and remember, it’s almost impossible not to feel a bit overwhelmed. In Nate’s course he breaks every single step of the process into concrete, actionable advice. It’s like he knows every question you might have before you ask it (I’m guessing he learned a lot by studying the questions his blog readers ask him).

Helps find the right path for YOU. He doesn’t push people in any one direction. There are many different avenues to setting up a digital nomad life. He lays them all out so his students can choose which route best fits their goals (instead of pushing everyone to follow the same route he took).

Expert guest teachers. He recruited all different kinds of digital nomads to share their expertise with each path. So no matter which route you choose, you’re getting instructions directly from someone who is actually living it.

Focuses on developing a mindset for success. Covers the psychological aspect of a travel lifestyle. If you’re just starting, you might be thinking, “I don’t care about that woo-woo crap. Just tell me how to make money from anywhere!” That’s exactly how I felt when I first started. But here’s the thing. Your mindset is EVERYTHING. It’s what determines whether you succeed or fail. It’s what determines whether you’re happy or miserable. Don’t underestimate this stuff. (I say this from my own experience, as well as practically every other digital nomads out there).

Continual updates. He is constantly updating the course. If there’s something not covered that you’d like to learn, he welcomes suggestions, and will try to find guest instructors to teach it. He wants this to be the ultimate go-to resource, so expect lots of updates and new content.

Handy tools to help with planning. He made some pretty nifty downloadable tools. I especially like the “Benefits of Slow Travel” spreadsheet. You plug in a bunch of variables like your average nightly rate, number of people in your group, type of transportation you take, etc., and it spits out 3 different budgets comparing different travel speeds (5 days in each destination vs. 2 weeks vs. 1 month). Pretty neat!

Professional. It’s well-designed and professionally made. You can tell he went the extra mile and invested to make the course design attractive and easy to follow.

Flexible roadmap. His advice can be easily modified to serve both solo travelers and families.

The Verdict: Is The Travel Lifestyle Course Worth it?

It depends.

If you’re looking for the secret to quick-and-easy digital nomad riches, you won’t find it here.

However, if you…

• Want a no-hype, step-by-step roadmap that’ll shortcut the learning curve to becoming a successful digital nomad.
• Prefer learning from the mistakes of others instead of learning things the hard way.
• Are willing to put in effort and step outside your comfort zone in order to set up your travel life.

…then there is no other course in existence (at least that I know of) that will better prepare you.

While there are some areas for improvement, this course is everything you need to prepare yourself for life as a digital nomad.

If I would have had this when first starting out, it would have saved me thousands of hours and dollars and panic attacks.

That said, there’s one important thing I want to point out here.

This course gives ultra-detailed instruction on how to get started on the right path and avoid common pitfalls most new digital nomads make. However, It’s NOT meant to make you a master expert guru in any given digital nomad profession (that would be wayyyy too much to cover in one course).

In other words, after you get your travel lifestyle set up and choose your location independent job—whether that be teaching English, blogging, virtual assistant-ing, freelance writing, digital marketing, etc.—you’ll still need to continue learning and building expertise in that job.

So, to sum it up…

Who it’s For	Who it’s NOT for
– People who love the idea of a travel lifestyle, but still aren’t quite ready to travel. – Current travelers who dread going home and want to learn how to keep traveling forever – Beginner digital nomads who are struggling to earn	– Established digital nomads already making decent money – Anyone not willing to put in the work – Anyone who expects success overnight – Anyone who deep down already knows exactly what to do, but thinks “just one more course” will finally make them ready

How the Course Could Actually SAVE You Money

If you truly want to build a location independent life where you can support yourself anywhere in the world, this course will help you get there faster (and avoid expensive headaches).

Yes, it’s an investment.

But let’s be honest—shifting to a digital nomad lifestyle is kind of a big deal. Like, really big. Maybe even the most life-changing career decision you’ve ever made. Do you really want to bet your success on a haphazard plan you frankenstein together using advice from random blog posts, Youtube videos, and podcasts?

Probably not a good idea (actually, DEFINITELY not a good idea…this is what I did and failed miserably my first couple years. Spending a few hundred bucks up front to get some expert guidance literally would’ve saved me thousands of hours of work).

For this kind of dramatic life/career change, a proven roadmap can save you BIG TIME.

What Travel Lemming’s Course WON’T Do For You

That said, a roadmap is just that—a roadmap. It isn’t going to do the work for you.

Buying a course isn’t a magic pill. It won’t suddenly create a travel lifestyle for you out of thin air. Nate shows you exactly what to do, but in order for it to work, you have to actually do it. It requires hard work, but if you take a step forward every day, you’ll be amazed at where you end up.

If you don’t have time to watch the videos, do the homework, and take action…then save your money and skip the course for now. You can always come back when you’re ready to work.

The Travel Lifestyle Course Review Summary

• For aspiring digital nomads or brand new digital nomads struggling to make money
• Gives realistic, no-hype info. You’ll know exactly what to expect transitioning into your travel lifestyle (and will avoid unpleasant surprises)
• Sets you up for the highest probability of success—saving you wasted time, money, and energy
• Covers every aspect of starting a travel lifestyle and working online—including the planning, travel, business, AND psychological aspects.
• Bonuses are cool, but many can be found for free
• A couple of the career paths still need guest instructors at the time of writing (but he provides other helpful resources for now)
• 30 day guarantee means you can essentially go through the entire course, and if you don’t like it, return it for a full refund.
• If you still aren’t ready to commit, you can check out his free mini-course.

Where Can You Sign Up?

If you want more details about the course, including the specifics on his super generous 30-day money-back guarantee (which is basically a free trial), click the button below:

If you purchase using my affiliate link above, I’ll throw in my bonus Work from Anywhere Toolkit ($25 value). This mega-resource is packed with 200+ tools that’ll make every aspect of your travel lifestyle easier. Best of all, most of these tools are free (or super cheap)!

Just forward me a copy of your receipt and I’ll give you access to the toolkit.

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