Are we being financially irresponsible traveling for a year?
My wife and I are both 26 years old living in the US. We are planning to quit our jobs at the end of April 2027 and backpack across Europe and South East Asia. We are roughly thinking of doing 5 months across Europe and 7 months across South East Asia or until the money runs out. We have budgeted $50,000 for our travel fund as well as $7500 for our fixed expenses in the US (Student loan payments, storage unit, phone plans, health insurance while abroad). We also plan to keep $10,000 separate for when we return. My wife has a job in a very stable industry and should be able to find a job relatively quickly upon return. We will also be leaving our retirement untouched which should be roughly $65,000 (90% ROTH) when we depart. Our only debt when we return will be approximately $20,000 of low interest student loan debt. Are we making a mistake taking this trip? We have both always dreamed of seeing the world. We feel we won’t get another chance to travel this way if we decide we want to have kids in the future. We also wonder if we are being financially irresponsible or not thinking of the effect on our careers. I am interested in different perspectives especially from older folks who either did a similar trip or decided to stay put and continue on a more traditional path.