How to take a break from work and travel Europe on a budget

In 2023, Rowena Hennigan came to a difficult but necessary conclusion – she needed an extended break from work.

Hennigan experienced disturbed sleep, anxiety, brain fog—all normal symptoms of menopause—but they wreaked havoc on her work and her mental health.

She said she tried exercise, a new diet, hormone supplements, therapy and occasional rest days, but several nights of broken sleep would cause anxiety — and make her feel like she was running on a hamster wheel.

But as a self-employed remote work consultant, making the time is easier said than done.

“Fearing that what I had built from nothing over six years — my business, my clients, my audience, my work life — from anywhere freedom — would make me hesitate. If I stopped, would I lose everything?” Hennigan said.

“Then I realized… how could I be a whole, fruitful and well person without my health? I accepted the reality that I would only recover from proper rest.”

Hennigan’s four-month hiatus from her business, RoRemote, began in December 2023. Although her husband continued to work, she set a strict budget for her time away since she had no income of her own, she said.

Originally from Dublin, Hennigan and her family – now based in Zaragoza, Spain – spent the year-end holiday in Gran Canaria, the largest of Spain’s Canary Islands. They stayed with friends, eliminating lodging costs, and kept to a budget of 20 euros (about $21.50) per person per day for food and drink.

The trip was 15 days.

Total cost for Hennigan’s portion: $731, including flights

Back in Zaragoza, Hennigan factored into her budget the portion of her family’s fixed expenses for rent, bills and food.

That totaled about $860 a month, or $3,440 for her four months of sabbatical.

That didn’t leave much for her travel budget, but Hennigan had a plan, she said.

Total fixed costs: approximately $3,440

In mid-January, Hennigan set out on a nearly four-week sojourn in the Spanish Pyrenees on a budget of about $54 a day.

Her biggest expense was a one-bedroom Airbnb: $915, or about $32 per night. But she could eat and drink on just $16 a day, on average, by shopping at local supermarkets.

Eating out is also affordable in Spain, he said. A coffee and sandwich at a cafe averages $11-$13, he said, while a restaurant’s three-course “menu del dia” (lunch of the day) would start at about $21.50 per person, he said.

Her main activity, hiking, was free. Hennigan said she had planned to ski since she had the ski pass credit from last year, but there was little snow this year due to the warmer weather.

One of the best parts: Hennigan’s husband and 10-year-old daughter would join her on weekends.

“I’m so grateful for that support from my family. It makes all the difference, knowing there was a compromise to be found,” she said.

Total cost: $1,502

Hennigan has been back home for about a month, spending weekends at a friend’s house in Valencia, about three hours away, and skiing in Formigal, about two hours away. At Formigal, she split her time between staying with friends and a hotel, the latter a Christmas present from her husband, while using ski credit she bought in 2023. Her biggest expense during that time: about $170 in gasoline, he said.

Then, at the end of March, he left for a month-long trip to Villembits, France. Through Reliable Housesittershe found a four-bedroom farmhouse, which was free in exchange for taking care of the owner’s chickens, cats and gardens.

He arrived two days before the owners left to learn about the house and the chores he needed to do. Completing all these tasks took about five hours a day, she said, split into morning and evening, leaving her free to hike and explore the area during the day.

Hennigan spent the first few days alone before her husband and daughter joined her.

“It was such a different atmosphere and atmosphere to the usual rental accommodation,” he said. “It was a house, with several bedrooms, garden, cottages, library, summer room, fully equipped kitchen, attic, art room and two offices. There was so much space to explore and enjoy all the different nooks and crannies.”

Here, Hennigan spent about $11 a day on food, eating mostly eggs from the property’s chickens and vegetables from the garden, she said. Her daughter used eggs and ingredients from the kitchen to bake cakes, and they both used mint from the herb garden to make tea.

The family plans to do another house sit in France during their summer vacation this year, he said.

Total cost: about $300 (excl Trusted Housesitters Annual Membership Fee $240)

Hennigan spent just under $6,000 during her four-month sabbatical, spending most of her time on free activities like hiking and local sightseeing.

She was able to take time away from work, though she said she set aside an hour every Monday to check her email inbox and an instant messaging channel, where her virtual assistant would share any important messages.

Now she’s back at work and has taken on a part-time role as head of remote operations for a cryptocurrency and cloud computing startup, alongside her wider consulting.

“My energy and focus is back,” she said. “The biggest learning is that I can take a lot of the lessons from supported rest with me now in my day job and my schedule.”

What’s more, she said, she realized her fears about secession were unfounded and that her clients understood and supported her decision.

“To be open about needing to rest as a priority, while asking for help and getting a lot of support in return, was a real lesson in human understanding and kindness,” she said. “Once I knew I had support, I found that I became better at planning and organizing, realizing that I could actually close the laptop and rest as I had planned.”