What is Travelin’ Stiles all about?
Travelin’ Stiles is made up of Rob and Kari Stiles. They are a couple who has been traveling the world together full-time since 2012. They’re hoping to share their stories, give some advice, and inspire others. They dare you to DREAM BIGGER, EXPLORE FURTHER, and DISCOVER MORE of what this wonderful world has to offer.
Who are Rob and Kari Stiles?
The honest truth? Rob and Kari Stiles aren’t special. The only thing that sets them apart is that they chose to put themselves in extraordinary circumstances – traveling the world full-time.
Rob and Kari began dating in 2003. Soon after meeting, Kari took off to drive across the US in an old van with her best friend. Later that year she took a month-long Australian road trip with 4 girlfriends. Kari had the travel bug, while Rob was quickly growing sick of getting repeatedly abandoned.
While on a road trip together in 2005, Rob and Kari came up with a crazy idea. They both “worked too much”, so they wanted to take control of their lives. “What if we start saving now, then in a couple years we go around the world in 80 weeks?” Rob loved the idea. The travel bug was starting to grab hold of him. And so it began.
Rob and Kari saved, and saved, and kept not quitting their jobs. They saved some more, but kept not leaving. In 2007, they briefly traveled through South America and Costa Rica, then got married in Mexico in 2009. After years of putting it off, they finally got rid of their Santa Monica apartment and quit their jobs in television. It was time to turn their dreams into reality, so in 2012 they began their journey around the world. It’s been far longer than 80 weeks, but now that they’ve discovered the freedom of the open road, they can’t seem to find a way to stop. They’ve pared down from a fully stocked 2 bedroom apartment to two backpacks on their backs – and they’re still going strong. I guess it’s true, you can have all the riches in the world, but it’s experiences that truly make you happy.
About Rob
The son of 2 police officers, Rob grew up in beautifully green (and unfortunately grey) Washington state. The Pacific Northwest is an outdoorsman’s playground, but Rob spent most of his childhood on the baseball diamond and hanging out with his massive (and awesome) extended family.
“My mom was born and raised in Hawaii. Until I met Kari, that was the most foreign land I’d ever visited. I had no idea what this big wide world had in store for me.” – Rob Stiles
Rob is the grounded one, but, like a true Virgo, still loves the independence of the open road. He likes having the freedom of no plans, but sees the logic behind knowing what he’s getting himself into. Rob offers a happy balance to Kari’s carefree “it will all be OK” attitude, but don’t worry, Kari still drags Rob to do things that absolutely terrify him.
About Kari
The daughter of a small business owner and a youth sports coordinator, Kari grew up in sunny California. A competitive swimmer, soccer, softball, and basketball player growing up, Kari’s quite used to constantly being on the go. The only travel she knew as a kid though, was camping, road trips and weekends away for sports tournaments.
“My dad has only been on a plane twice – once before I was born to visit a friend who’d moved out of state, then nearly 30 years later to go to my wedding in Mexico. I have no idea where I got my insatiable hunger for travel. ” – Kari Stiles
Kari is a typical Sagittarius, so she loves being on the road and has a complete lack of fear (to a fault). She believes that everything always works out for the best and prefers the freedom of having no set plans. Rob’s cautiousness probably gets her out of more trouble than she realizes.