I’m Leaving Germany Again 🌍.

Hey, Johannes from GearUpYourLife here…

and today I’m finally keeping a promise.

I’ve been hinting at it for weeks, and now it’s time to share exactly where I’ll be traveling this year and more importantly, why those places.

Because yes, it’s a lot of countries.

And I know some of you probably have questions.

As I’m writing this, I’m sitting at the beach in the Netherlands on one of those unexpectedly warm, sunny days that almost feel like spring. For the first time in months, I was even walking around in just a T-shirt.

And moments like this always make me reflect.

New season. New chapter. New direction.

So this feels like the perfect time to finally lay it all out.

Without overcomplicating it, let’s dive straight in.

🌍 Where I’m Traveling This Year

Before we get into the biggest chapter of this year, there are two trips coming up very soon.

In just two days, I’ll finally be flying from Germany to London.
And as crazy as it sounds I’ve been to a lot of places, but I’ve actually never been to London before. So that’s long overdue.

After that, my last short trip from Germany this spring will be Budapest.
I was there two months ago, but I only had one proper day — and honestly, that wasn’t enough. The city completely surprised me, and I knew I had to go back and give it the time it deserves.

🇧🇬 The Biggest Shift: Moving to Bulgaria

Now to the biggest chapter of this year.

Starting mid-March, I’ll be moving into a new apartment in Bulgaria.

The reason is simple.

I want a stable base.

A place where I can keep my gear, focus on YouTube, build products properly, and not constantly live out of a suitcase. And realistically having an apartment in Cologne for the whole year just doesn’t make sense financially.

So I looked for a country that combines:

• Lower living costs

• New opportunities

• A different culture

• And access to places I’ve barely explored

And Bulgaria just made sense.

I’ll be living in Varna for around 3–4 months, but I’ll also travel through the country — Sofia, Bansko, and other regions and take you with me to Romania and even Moldova, one of the least visited countries in Europe and honestly one of the most underrated for me personally.

From there, we’ll also spend a week in Istanbul and that trip will get its own full video on the main channel.

🚐 The Dream: Scandinavian Vanlife

Then in June, something I’ve wanted to do for years finally becomes reality.

Together with my girlfriend, we’ll spend a full month traveling through Scandinavia in a van.

Starting in Odense, Denmark, driving through Sweden, Norway, and Finland, all the way up to Tromsø ,where we’ll catch a flight to Iceland.

This is probably the part I’m most excited about.

It’s been a dream for a long time.
And now it finally fits, financially and time-wise.

🌴 Back to Southeast Asia

After summer, I’ll spend some time back in Germany with family and friends — something I realized last year is more important than I sometimes admit.

Then in September, I’ll head back to Southeast Asia.

But this time, less focus on Thailand and more on the surrounding countries:

• Hong Kong

• Laos

• Cambodia

• Malaysia

• Singapore

• Over a month in Vietnam

And yes, I’ll still spend some time in Bangkok and Koh Samui, because despite having lived three months in Thailand before, I’ve actually never been to Koh Samui.

🎄 Ending the Year at Home

December will be spent in Germany this year.

Last year I noticed how much I missed being with family at Christmas and on my birthday. So this time, I’m intentionally planning it differently.

And after New Year’s Eve, the journey continues on another continent.

But that story belongs to next year.

Why I’m Sharing This

From now on, I want to take you even more into the countries themselves— like I already started doing in Croatia and Greece.

Not just the gear.

But the places.

The experiences.

The honest opinions… good and bad. Just like I shared about Egypt.

Because as much as I love gear… travel itself is still the core of everything.

🎥 And speaking of gear…

Episode 3 of the Real Travel Essentials series and the second fully self-filmed video — is now live.

There are several completely new products in there, and a few new favorites that surprised me.

You can watch it here:
👉 12 REAL Travel Essentials Worth Buying in 2026 (Part 2)

If there’s a country you think I absolutely shouldn’t miss — or if you’ve been somewhere on this route and have advice — just reply to this email and tell me.

I read everything.

Safe travels,
Johannes

PS: Many of you asked where you can see all the products I’ve ever recommended in one place.
So I finally organized everything inside my Amazon Storefront one complete folder with all products.

👉 Amazon Storefront with All Products