Americans Say They’d Need At Least $287,731 To Quit Their Job And Travel The World

How much money would it take for you to drop everything and travel the world? According to a recent survey, Americans on average say they would need at least $287,731 in the bank.

A new survey of 2,000 Americans conducted by Talker Research for Travelbinger asked how much money they believe they would need in order to quit their job and hit the road, and they won’t do it cheaply.

Nearly a third of respondents (32%) said they’d need more than $500,000 in the bank in order to hand in their notice and pack their bags. About one in six, (18%) said they’d do it for as little as $50,000, but a similar number, (17%) said there is no amount of money they could be paid in order to prioritize traveling the world.

Older respondents on average said they’d need more money than younger respondents, with Baby Boomers saying they’d need at least $335,000 to quit their job for travel, and Gen Z pegging their quitting point at $211,000.

Respondents were also asked how they would use a travel budget of $1 million if it landed in their laps today. More than a third (37%0 said they’d spring for taking their friends and family on a dream vacation — the most popular answer by far.

Nearly a quarter of respondents (24%) said they would start road-tripping, either across the U.S. or in another country. Others said they would build a bucket list of travel goals like an African safari, seeing the Northern Lights, or diving the Great Barrier Reef, then start working through the list.

Visiting famous landmarks topped the list for 21% of respondents, while 19% said they’d prioritize seeing historical sights and world wonders such as the Great Pyramids in Egypt, the Colosseum in Rome, and the Taj Mahal in India. Another 18% said they’d build a bucket list of travel goals like an African safari, seeing the Northern Lights or diving the Great Barrier Reef, and work through the list.

Others prioritized frequent weekend getaways (18%), “slow traveling,” staying months in each location (18%), staying in luxury accommodations (17%), or an extended stay at a dream destination (15%).

Only a handful of people, 4%, said they’d return the million dollars because they aren’t interested in traveling.