We ‘retired’ in our 30s and travel the world on £60 a day with our kids

‘The school system is very outdated.’

Those are the words of Ryan Blackley, 35, who, with his wife Jess, 34 and their sons Noah, six, and Bodhi, four, moved to Chang Mai, Thailand on February 24, 2026.

The family, who are originally from Cambridge, now travel the world and spend just £60 a day, after becoming disillusioned with the system in Britain.

Ryan and Jess had travelled together back in 2016 before having children and say they knew their future would ‘lie outside the UK’.

By renting out the two flats and the family home they still own, the pair class themselves as ‘retired’ and can fund their new lifestyle with the profits.

Disillusioned with the UK

The Blackleys don’t plan to return to live in the UK, and plan to continue world-schooling their sons, claiming they are ‘thriving’ in their new life.

World-schooling is an alternative educational approach, where children learn through travel, cultural immersion and real-world experiences, rather than a traditional classroom.

‘We obviously had a good life in the UK, but it got to a point where I guess we felt that the UK wasn’t the right place for us to live and bring up kids,’ says Ryan.

‘The cost of living is insane,’ the dad-of-two adds.

Safety in Britain was also a key motivator to move abroad

‘We’ve got two boys, and at some point, they are going to want to go out on their own, and we don’t feel the UK is a safe country anymore because knife crime is massive.’

In the year ending March 2025, there were around 53,000 offences involving a sharp instrument in England and Wales.

The couple were also disenchanted with the 9-5 schedule, and wanted to live unconventionally.

‘For us, the whole concept of life is backwards because you’ve got to go to school, work, and then enjoy life when you’re 68-years-old,’ Ryan explains. ‘Who knows, one, if you’ll be alive then and then two, health-wise, what that will be?

‘This way we’re teaching the kids everything,’ the property owner claims.

‘They know how to read, write, maths and English and then learn the skills they don’t get taught at school.’

For Mum, Jess, she says they got caught up in the ‘monotony’ of school runs back in the UK.

‘Every time I’d pick Noah up from school, I’d ask, “How was your day blah blah blah,” she explains.

‘He’d say, “These kids were naughty today” or “These kids got their names on the board.” I never heard positive things.

‘I thought, “What’s the point?” I feel like a lot of the school day is spent controlling the class and troublesome kids.

‘How much is actually spent learning?’

Ryan adds: ‘Obviously we still have the house in the UK, and if this all fails, we’ll simply go back.’

Affording their travels

‘We had a plan of how to get out of the UK, and that was through property,’ Ryan says.

Jess had bought her first flat at 20-years-old, for £120,000, and rented it out. Then the couple bought their second flat for £145,000 after they saved up some money whilst they were travelling and working abroad for two and a half years – visiting 27 countries.

They then sold it for £183,000, before buying another two-bed flat for £190,000 – and finally buying their four-bed family home in 2021.

Renting them all out either through Airbnb or with private tenants, they have been able to retire early after bringing in £2,500 per month.

‘We both class ourselves as retired because the property work requires minimal upkeep and effort,’ Ryan continues.

Moving abroad

Though the family originally planned to move to Portugal and travel around Europe, they changed their plans when they realised the climate would be warmer in the winter months in Asia, making the jump to move 5,800 miles away.

Flying out in February to Chang Mai, they crossed the border to Laos after their 60-day tourist visa expired, and applied for their five-year Destination Thailand Visa (DTV), which allows them to both live and work remotely there.

Since then, they have travelled around Thailand, including visits to Chang Rai, Bangkok, Udon Thani and Kanchanaburi.

Currently in Koh Samui, they plan to visit Malaysia and Singapore next.

‘The plan still is to travel the world, but having a base in Asia makes it easier,’ Ryan explains.

‘All we travel with is two large suitcases and a backpack each. It makes you realise you don’t need much in life.

‘We’ve basically got freedom and don’t have to be anywhere by a certain date or time. It’s just the four of us, and we pretty much go with the flow.

‘We’ve done nearly six months already, and I don’t see us ever returning, not in a living capacity but literally just to visit the family.’

It’s just nice being free

The couple have stayed in a mixture of Airbnbs, apartments and hotels, and only usually book their next spot a few days in advance.

They don’t budget, but Ryan says he makes a note of everything they spend – and they have been eating out for lunch and dinner since their travels began.

‘We’re quite fine with the simple life, like eating Thai food,’ he says.

‘We don’t drink alcohol or go to bars or fancy restaurants.

‘The rolling average from the last five months is £1,800 per month for four of us.

‘We were everyday people, just a normal family who had a dream to get out and travel the world and give our kids a different life.

‘I can understand it can be scary because it’s going into the unknown and going away from your family and friends, home comforts and everything.

‘But if you don’t try it out, how do you know you’re not going to like it?’

You can follow Ryan and Jess’s journey on Instagram @blackleysabroad and TikTok @travelwiththeblackleys.

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