Viktor and Svetlana Zhukov, 54 and 56, Who Don’t Need to Pay for Their Travels
They were already over fifty when Viktor and Svetlana Zhukov found a way to go on a trip without parting with their money. Since then they have been traveling where they want, when they want, greatly enjoying their new life of freedom, all without spending a dollar on hotels or plane tickets.
In addition, this new life of freedom provides them with all they need so that they don’t need to work.
Svetlana and Viktor have always loved driving around the world in their car and wished they could do more of it. They couldn’t. To travel, you need money. To have enough money, you need to work. And if you work, then the only time left for traveling is your holidays.
Viktor and Svetlana’s dreams of a new life would have remained just that — dreams — if one day, during yet another car trip, they wouldn’t have chanced upon a flea market in a small French village.
Svetlana remembers that day very clearly: ‘Back then we didn’t know much about flea markets and had no idea what was on offer. We came in just to have a look around. And then I saw this beautiful Orthodox icon. I asked for the price, out of sheer curiosity. It was only 50 cents!’
They bought it, of course. They also got a good bargain for an exquisite old brooch. They can’t really remember which of them was struck by the simple and brilliant idea: How about they buy beautiful antiques in European markets, and bring them to Moscow to sell? All you need to do this is a small van — a house on wheels — where you can store the catch from the markets and sleep as you go around them.
In the end, their plan was very simple. First, devise a route that includes all the places they want to see this time. Then throw in a few flea markets along the way. When in the markets, find the interesting things, and put them in the van — plenty of space there. When back in Moscow, sell the trinkets to friends and collectors and recover the cost of the whole trip. It was that simple — and it turned out to work extremely well.
‘Our first van was really small,’ says Viktor. ‘It didn’t even have a toilet. So when we had to spend a few nights in a city we had to park near a public toilet. In Paris, for example, we always parked near the Eiffel tower. The view is great, and the toilets are open at 8 am!’
The notsoluxurious lifestyle apart, their first trip was a resounding success: it paid for itself and brought them immense pleasure. They haven’t looked back.
In a few years they’ve turned into genuine treasure hunters. They have learned how to spot a great buy and mapped out Europe’s best and least known flea markets.They really like going around the markets, fishing for the most interesting antiques on offer. But there’s something even more important. The treasure hunts let them be free and enjoy the life of almost nonstop travel they’ve always dreamed about.
‘We can’t tell you how great it feels to be able to stop and stay where you want to stay, spend as much time there as you want, and leave for the next destination the moment you get bored. We
really liked lake Garda in Italy an camped there for a whole week. And then we were off! In spring, if we drive close to the Alps, we always ski down the slopes. We like it so much!’
Svetlana and Viktor have devised a whole system of rules which allow them to travel both comfortably and within means. They don’t waste money on plane tickets and hotels — they have their house on wheels to solve both these problems. They buy supermarket food and cook it their van which has a comfortable kitchen corner. They park outside camping areas and paid parking lots. And they never use the toll roads.
‘It is so much better without the toll roads,’ says Svetlana. ‘We have to go through small towns and villages which are out of tourist reach. What could be more interesting?’
They use the van for long intercity rides. Once there, they park it and take out their bikes — the ones they bought for a song in a German market.
Each of their trips lasts about two months and costs only around 2,500 euro including gasoline, which is more than compensated through their flea market business. Recently Svetlana and Viktor upgraded their van to a new one — bigger and more comfortable.
During spring and autumn they tour Europe — France is a firm favorite — while the rest of the year is spent in Moscow, talking to collectors, taking part in antiques enthusiasts’ fairs, selling their finds. They have both quit their previous regular jobs.
‘Each of us was encouraged to stay but we consciously embraced freedom,’ says Svetlana. ‘When you are employed, you can only travel when you are on leave. The word itself suggests that they allow you to leave. So next time they might not allow it! Today everything is up to us: where to go, when to do it, and for how long. We like it better this way.’
