We are the Russell-Smiths’
We are John (Dad and a Geography teacher), Martina (Mum a training teacher) and our two boys ben (big brother and sport mad) and Will (the cheeky singing one whose also sport mad).
We travel the world on a REAL budget in the British school holidays showing you that backpacking and cheap travel does not stop when you have kids. We have been inspired to vlog/blog by the fact that many blogs/websites/books claim to show you how to travel with kids but will often take you to 5 star resorts out of the peak holiday season which for most of us is not realistic.
We are currently embarking on the journey of a lifetime (with holidays inbetween) to the bottom of the highest mountains in the world. Inspired by the mountains and those that climb them our family of four are on a mission to conquer the 14 basecamps of each 8000m mountain.
The challenge, taking over five years to complete, will see us trek an estimated 1100 km in the mountains with our children.
Where did it all start…
The love of travel runs deep in this family, but John (English) and Martina (Slovakian) were late addicts to the travel drug. For a few years in their early 20’s they travelled lost with “others” until they both arrived in Queenstown and met for the first time whilst working on the Remarkable mountains. Their shared wanderlust led them to travel together to South America where they fell in love and knew they had found their match. They married on a beach in Sri-Lanka in a traditional Sri-Lankan wedding and honeymooned for 7 weeks around Southern Africa. After returning to the UK they chose a life that gave them the maximum chance to travel as well as a moral calling, education, and now spend every holiday possible (and some weekends) on the road with a backpack and their passports. Along the way Ben and Will came along to complete their dream and rather than letting it stop them they embraced their inner wanderlust strapping the boys on their backs and taking them along for the journey.
We live and work in the UK just outside London.
The year our completed family realised it was possible to family travel. Photo is us back in Aug 2015 in Bali
Family Russell-Smith Travel 