Nomad Shubham interview - Shepherd Traveller

Nomad Shubham: Interview with the king of hitchhiking

In this post, Nomad Shubham reveals his stories, experiences and travel hacks after hitchhiking for more than 50,000 km and travelling for 2 years on a tight budget.

As much as I would like it, I cannot be an expert on every subject. My travel style is not luxury, yet it is not as extreme as our guest of the day. Most of you already know him through his youtube channel, but let’s do a quick introduction first.

Who is Nomad Shubham?

Nomad Shubham aka. Shubham Kumar comes from a small village in Bihar, India. At the time of writing this post, he has already travelled to around 20 Asian countries. And crossed the continents of Asia, Europe and Africa all under the age of 18 years. His most iconic journeys include travelling from India to South Africa by land, most of which was by hitchhiking. On the way, he had to change some of his plans due to Covid 19. But more on that later. Apart from travelling internationally, he has also travelled to 19 states within India.

When Shubham was 16 years old, right after high school (junior college), he took the decision of travelling and seeing the world instead of pursuing engineering like most of the youth in India. Now, he is pursuing his further education through distance learning, while simultaneously travelling fulltime.

If you are young and want to travel, but education and lack of financial stability are stopping you, then this post is for you. Shubham shares his travel hacks, tips for Couchsurfing and hitchhiking and his experiences from his time on the road. After reading this post, I’m sure you will get a lot of travel inspiration or even have goosebumps like me. So without any further delay lets dive in.

Can you sum up your travels so far?

Nomad Shubham interview - Shubham kumar hitchiking
Nomad Shubham aka. Shubham Kumar

I have been to around 20 countries in the last 2 years. Basically, I have done only 4 trips.

In the first trip, I went to Nepal and Bhutan for 2 weeks. Then during the second trip, I went to Russia and Kazakhstan for four weeks. At this time I was travelling on flights and coming back to India.

My third trip was to South East Asia for around 7 months. I spent a month in Malaysia, Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar each. I stayed in Thailand for 2 months. And I went to Vietnam for just one day unofficially. I was actually staying at the Laos border with some military guys. And they told me I could go with them to Vietnam for a day. It was kind of illegal but safe.

India to South Africa by hitchhiking

Right now I am doing my fourth trip, which I had planned to hitchhike from India to South Africa. But because of Covid 19, I had to change my plans. I had started in May 2019 and went from India – Bangladesh – India – Myanmar – Thailand – Laos – China. By this route, I reached from India to China via land border crossing in just 8 days.

Next, I travelled in China, Mongolia and Russia for a month each. Then I travelled to Kazakhstan – Kyrgyzstan – Tajikstan – Uzbekistan – Kazakhstan (again) – Russia – Azerbaijan. In Azerbaijan, I got stuck for 6 months due to Covid 19. They closed all the land borders in March. So I took the one and only flight I could get to go out of Azerbaijan. I flew to Serbia (in Europe) and stayed there for a month. From Serbia, I flew here in Tanzania and I’m staying here for more than 6 weeks now. Next, I would fly to Tunisia, and then visit my home in India for Diwali.

Nomad Shubham - Indian hitchhiker
Nomad Shubham while hitchhiking in South east Asia

Why and how are you travelling at such a young age?

I have myself waited until I could finish my education before I started travelling. And many people wait until they get a secure job. Some wait until their retirement before they start to travel. What motivated you to begin this journey so early? And how did you find the courage to go ahead?

I was interested in travelling since my childhood, I think since I was 13-14 years old. But my journey started when I visited Leh and Ladakh in India. After this trip, I got more serious about travel, started seeing travel videos and finding out more information. I came across the Ted Talk by Tomislav Perko – How to travel the world with almost no money. I watched this video several times with goosebumps. And I thought to myself I can do this too.

At that time I was just 17 years old. And I was pursuing engineering halfheartedly. All I was thinking about was travel. I went for some more trips in the Himalayas, in Rajasthan and other places within India. During these trips, I learnt more about travelling.

It was quite a hard decision for me to choose to travel. I was thinking of quitting engineering and just travelling the world. But I was constantly in two minds, should I do it or not? Then I decided okay let’s do it. And I just followed my gut feeling, my heart and here I am around 3 years later. Still, I do not recommend anyone to quit university or education. I am myself completing my graduation through distance learning.

How do you fund your travels? And what is your budget per day?

Travelling the world full time is the dream of countless youngsters. But one thing that stops everyone from travelling is money. Tell us your secrets about how you manage to travel so much and what’s your average budget for a day.

In the beginning, I was saving from the money that my parents used to send me. Instead of watching movies or partying with my friends, I just saved everything. Then I also started teaching in Kota, India and I was earning some money from it. Now I teach math online through Skype classes and that’s how I support my travels. Moreover, I also earn from my Youtube channel and crowdfunding.

Funds through: Teaching Math, Skype classes, Youtube channel by name Nomad Shubham.

Travelling Budget per day: ₹400 or $6 (includes everything, even visas)

For my initial trips, I took flights to Russia, Malaysia, etc. Later when I checked my travel expenses I found that I am spending a lot of my money on flights. So I just decided to travel by land, and take as fewer flights as possible. For my fourth trip, I went from India to Azerbaijan by land and didn’t spend a single penny on flights. If I had taken flights on this trip, I would have to spend lacs of rupees (₹) only on the flights.

For me travelling is very different. I don’t even think I need any comfort now. If I don’t want to spend any money I will not spend anything. I can totally rough it out and be happy. So my average budget per day is ₹ 400 ($6) including visa, food, accommodation and everything.

Travelling taught me that you don’t need a lot of money to be happy. You should just do what you like to do. 

– Nomad Shubham

Do you research about a country before starting your trip?

Before going to a country I don’t research much. I just try to find how to get the visa and which borders I can cross. Everything else I just go and do. I love to meet the locals. So I just go and see what the country offers. Every country has a lot of things to offer. Before visiting Tanzania I didn’t even know that I can see a lot of wildlife here. And I tasted the best wine in Serbia. So yeah, I never research a lot of things. I just go and see what happens, what I can find.

Well this reminds me of the quote, ‘Don’t listen to what they say, just go and see!’

Do you learn the language before visiting the country?

I always try to learn some basic words and phrases. Things like ‘hello’, ‘thank you’, or ‘nice to meet you’ make a big difference. When you thank them in their language, the people give you a really nice smile. And they appreciate your efforts to learn some words in their language.

I learnt Russian while listening to people. I’m not fluent in Russian now but I can have a basic conversation. Whenever they spoke to me, I just listened carefully and I started learning it. I never used any mobile application or read any books to learn Russian. I heard them talking and tried to speak it like them. So, I simply learnt Russian from the Russians.

Which international forex card do you like to use while travelling?

Well, if you had asked me this question before 1st Oct 2020, I would have said Niyo Global Card. Its an amazing card and the forex markup is very low. But from 1st Oct 2020, Government of India is charging 5% on every foreign transaction. It’s not Niyo’s fault, but now whatever you spend, you have to spend 5% more. So I just hate using Indian forex cards now.

Yes, starting from 1st Oct 2020, the Government of India is charging 5% TCS on every foreign transaction. But you get a refund of this TCS.

Now I have bank accounts in Serbia and Russia. When I was travelling, I opened these accounts, and the process was very simple. In Russia, I had an amusing experience, let me tell you. My train stopped at some station in Russia. I got down to get some food but instead found a bank. I went inside and asked them whether I can open a bank account. And they said yes, so I just opened a bank account in Russia. But they have a higher forex rate and a lot of fees on withdrawal, etc. So I didn’t use it much.

In Serbia, I opened a European bank account in Raiffeisen bank. And I really like this one because it has free withdrawal all over the world. Moreover, Euros are the best currency, because they don’t fluctuate much. So I’m using this card nowadays. For opening these bank accounts I didn’t need a residence permit. I just opened both these accounts with my tourist visas.

Currently using: Raiffiesen bank debit and credit cards, which have free withdrawal worldwide.

Best forex card for Indians: Niyo Global Forex Card.

How did Covid 19 change or mess with your travel plans?

You had planned to go from India to South Africa by hitchhiking and crossing land borders. Tell us how Covid 19 affected your plans, and how you changed them to suit the current situation.

When I reached Azerbaijan, I was waiting for my Iran and Georgia visas. And just after I received my visas, all the borders were closed because of Covid 19. As a result, I was stuck in Azerbaijan for 6 months. And I lost a 100$ on my Iran visa and 20$ on my Georgia visa. Every country was closed from March to July. In August I found a flight, which was the only flight out of Azerbaijan. I flew to Turkey and from Turkey to Serbia. That’s how I resumed my trip.

This journey was actually all about land border crossing and hitchhiking from India to South Africa. I have crossed 12 countries and covered 50,000+ km all by land from India to Azerbaijan. My next plan was to go from Azerbaijan to Iran, Georgia, cross the middle east and enter Africa via Egypt. And then I would cover the entire East coast of Africa. But because of Covid 19, I have to fly now. Maybe next time when there’s no pandemic I will travel by land.

Nomad Shubham’s travel hacks

For me travelling is very different. The first thing is if I don’t want to spend money, I’ll not spend it. It doesn’t matter where I am travelling. I can just camp out anywhere or even stay on the road for the night. Moreover, I have stopped visiting museums and I don’t do any touristy things. I just travel for meeting the locals. So for me, it’s totally different. But there some common travel hacks that I’ll share.

How to save on accommodation?

Travelling at night is a good way to save money on accomodation. And keep a tent with you always. It gives you a second option for accommodation. You can camp anywhere you want. I have camped in many places in my tent.

Have more time and flexibility

The most important thing is – I don’t have any time limits. My vacation is not going to finish in just 2 weeks or 3 weeks. I have a lot of time. And it gives me the flexibility of doing more things in a small budget. If you have a very fixed schedule it’s hard to travel on a budget. You just have to go to someplace tomorrow and do this, then this, and then this. You end up doing only the things you have planned earlier. There is no flexibility in this type of travel. So I would say you should have a lot of time to travel.

Be a Volunteer

I have done volunteering while I was in Thailand, Malaysia, Laos and in Russia too. Volunteering is working in a hostel or a hotel in exchange for food and accommodation. Generally, I just go to any hostel and say, “Hey my name is Shubham, I am travelling for a long time, and blah blah blah.” And then I ask them whether it is possible to work in their hostel in exchange for food and accommodation. They may say yes or sometimes they say, “No we don’t have any place.” Then I go and find another hostel. This is how I stay in a place for free for a month, whenever I wish to relax.

There are some websites like Workway or Worldpackers which are specially designed for volunteering. But I don’t use any website, I just go and ask directly in the hostels or hotels. Moreover, some people have themselves offered me to work at their place in exchange for food and accommodation. When I was in Russia I taught English to an 8-year-old kid. And I stayed with the family for 5 days. They just met me on the street and asked me, “Where are you from?” When I said India, they asked me if I could teach English to their little girl. I said why not, let’s do it! And they hosted me for 5 days.

Keep a tent with you always, have more time and flexibility, be a volunteer.

Nomad Shubham ‘s Couchsurfing hacks

Couchsurfing is a service that connects members to a global community of travellers. By using Couchsurfing you can find a place to stay with the locals for free. Or you can share your own home and hometown with other travellers. In exchange for accommodation, travellers may cook a meal, bring a gift or do some other favour for their host.

Profile and References

For Couchsurfing, I have a very nice profile now. So it’s very rare that my message request gets ignored. Most of the times I just get accepted. You must first fill your profile it’s important. Then you have to get some references. In the beginning, nobody wanted to host me. But now I have more than 78 references and all are positive. So it’s quite easy to get a host.

For getting references initially, you can offer any foreigner to show around your city. Then ask them to leave a reference. Or you can open your home and accept travellers. People will come and stay with you, and then give you good references. Even when you have 5-6 references its easier to find a host. You can also ask your friends to give you references.

Request the host

While messaging the host, first read their full profile. And then you may pick something interesting from their profile and mention it in your message request. The host feels you are good, that you at least found time to read their profile. Also mention why you want to stay with them. Try to make it a personal and detailed message. This is your first impression of what the host thinks about you.

Nomad Shubham ‘s Hitchhiking hacks

Nomad Shubham - Shubham Kumar - booking hotel hacks
Nomad Shubham in Yakutia, Russia

Just standing in the middle of nowhere and hoping that someone would give me a ride, is in itself an adventure. Actually, I feel it is the best way to travel. I do it because I get to interact with more and more locals while hitchhiking. And yes, I have hitchhiked for more than 50,000 km now. Tomorrow I’m going to hitchhike again for another 1000 km.

Hitchhiking is mainly about patience. Sometimes the waiting period for the next ride is very long. I have stayed in the same place for 2 days in Thailand and 3 days in Yakutia, Russia. If your goal is just to save some money, then it’s not even worth it. Because sometimes you may have to spend more than public transport while hitchhiking. This has happened to me many times.

Sometimes you have to walk a lot while hitchhiking. For eg, I was walking for 2 days in the Pamir mountains in Tajikistan. I was warned by the police, had frostbites and was scared of the wolves. But I never gave up on hitchhiking. I could travel with all the comforts, or stay at my home, but I wouldn’t meet any interesting people like the Mafia, a drunk Russian girl, Mayor of the city or the famous Mongolian singer.

I have hitchhiked for more than 50,000 km till now. And tomorrow I’m going to hitchhike again for a 1000 km.

– Nomad Shubham

When the car comes down the road, don’t expect that the people will stop for you. They will just go ahead. There are very few chances that they will stop. Try to be clean and good looking, cause they may not stop for some untidy hitchhiker. Be in a good mood, keep smiling and make eye contact with the driver. They will stop..umm sometimes.

You should check this website called Hitchwiki.org. It doesn’t work for some countries but it has great information on hitchhiking in Russia and European countries. For hitchhiking you have to go outside the city. This site tells you from where you should start hitchhiking and which is the best place to get a ride. There are some tips like you should stand in a place where cars can pull over at the side of the road. And you should get out of the city limits and stand on the appropriate road or highway. Moreover, you should stand on the side of the road, not on the road itself for safety.

How did you explain fulltime travelling to your parents?

Indian parents or generally any parents around the world expect their kids to graduate, get a job, get married and stay in one place. How did you explain fulltime travelling to your parents? Please tell us so that we all can use the same excuse!

Well its a long story but making the long story short – I just told them that until I complete my graduation I will travel. I will think about settling down in one place later. I explained to them that there was no point for me to go and study. And I told them I just want to travel, then they kind of understood. Now they have given me 3 years until my graduation to travel as much as I want. So after these 3 years are finished I don’t really know what will happen next.

And they are still thinking that after I finish my graduation I will be back to normal life. But I don’t think that I will ever happen. My parents are still not convinced about long term travel. They are still thinking that I will be back, since my last trip. Basically, I convinced my parents part by part. First I told them about going to Russia for 1 month. Then I convinced them about South East Asia for 6 months. And now I said I was going to travel for more than a year.

Well I think, you will definitely travel again and for a really long time. And for youngsters who are reading this, you just have to convince them part by part.

What are the most important things that travel has taught you?

Travelling taught me a lot of things. Especially for me because I was travelling on a tight budget. Now I can stay anywhere in the world. Whether its the cold weather or hot, a good place or a bad place, it doesn’t matter much. I stayed many times on the road at night. And I don’t think that I need any comfort now. I can manage anywhere in any situation.

I also learnt that there are many good people in the world. There is a friend waiting for you out there. But you have to leave your home so you can meet. People are generally very helpful it doesn’t matter where you are in the world. I met good people almost 99.9% of the times. I had amazing experiences and made many good friends.

The most important thing travelling taught me is that you must live in the present. You don’t need a lot of money to be happy. You should just do what you like to do. I love travelling, hitchhiking, meeting the locals and staying in different places all around the world. That is what makes me happy.

Where did you meet the best locals?

Nomad Shubham - Inspiring Indian Travel Vlogger - vpn travel hack
Nomad Shubham while hitchhiking in Yakutia region in Russia

The locals are the best everywhere. It doesn’t matter where you go they are always helpful. But I really love the Russian locals, especially in the Yakutia region. Yakutia is the coldest habitable place on earth. And in this coldest part of the earth, I met really warm-hearted people. It was easier for me because I was able to communicate with them in Russian. And they were really helpful and amazing. They love our Indian Bollywood songs, like Jimmy jimmy aa ja aa ja… When I came here I found that everyone knows this song. You just have to tell them this song, and they will know you are from India. Yakutia region in Russia was one of my favourite places and I would like to visit it again this year.

Which is the most favourite place in your bucket list?

Iran. I have tried for Iranian visa twice already. When I was in Uzbekistan I first I got my Iranian visa. But at that time I had planned to go to Russia. So I skipped it and told myself that I can go later. The second time when I got my Iran visa I was in Azerbaijan. But this time all the borders were closed due to Covid 19. Now I really want to visit Iran.

There are somethings that I want to do. I would like to take a train ride all the way to Mauritiana in Western Africa. And I want to hitchhike from Murmansk (North-Eastern Russia) to Vladivostok (South-Western Russia) in winter when it is the coldest region in the world.

Follow Nomad Shubham ‘s journey

This Post Has One Comment

  1. Shriram Singh raghuwanshi

    भाई साहब आपका जज्बे को सलाम करता हूं की बिना पैसे के सिर्फ अपने कॉन्फिडेंस के दम पर पूरी दुनिया घूम ना कोई बच्चों का खेल नहीं रोज अनजाने लोगों से मिलना
    अपनी तरफ से कन्वेंस कराना ना सोने का ठिकाना ना खाने का ठिकाना है न ही कोई पूर्व प्लानिंग के बस वर्तमान में जी कर यह सब करना अभूतपूर्व साहस का काम है आपने लॉक डाउन का समय कैसे काटा वहां पर रहकर जरूर बताइए

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