Courtesy: Dilip Merala | News Source: india.com

An Indian passport does not enjoy as many perks as some of our western counterparts when it comes to traveling the world. It becomes difficult to get a visa to visit several places which are easily accessible to those with an American or Australian passport. Add to that the Indian culture which prioritizes milestones like graduation, marriage, buying a car and a house, having kids and retiring happily over traveling the world, living a free life, chasing your dreams. As such, it is a challenge for Indians to travel as frequently as some of our western friends. However, there are some blessed souls who have broken these shackles and given us hope. They travel for a living and write about it inspiring us to believe that we can do it too.

Here are five such inspiring travelers who have shown us that we can do it too!

1. Shivya Nath

Having featured on BBC Travel and The Huffington Post among other major publications, Shivya Nath has come a long way since she quit her job to travel. The Shooting Star blogger has by her own account ‘hitchhiked along Romania’s northern countryside, lived with the chocolate farmers of Costa Rica, journeyed along Canada’s great wilderness by train and swum with black tip sharks on Malaysia’s east coast.” She won the Best travel blogger award at the Indian blogging awards in 2013 and hasn’t looked back since. In 2015, she was voted India’s best travel blogger by Vogue India. How cool is that?

2. Sankara

After quitting his eight-year long career in corporate sales and marketing, Sankara hit the road and has not gone off it since. He is a professional travel blogger who pens down his experiences and advice on his blog Be on the road. Sankara is also known as one of the best Indian biking bloggers. He has traveled to various parts of India and the world and offers some terrific travel info on his blog. Vroom!

3. Lakshmi Sharath

After spending 15 years working with several media organizations, Lakshmi  traveled the world covering over 25 countries across five continents. She has been a columnist with several popular publications like including National Geographic Traveler and Time Out explorer. She is also a content and communications professional, a business head and start up specialist. Her blog The travel blog of an Indian backpacker is one of India’s oldest and has won Indibloggies: India?s best travel blog of the year in 2008. Lakshmi isn’t just an inspiration but also an endless source of information for aspiring travelers.

DO READ: 5 safest places for women travelers in India

4. Ajay Jain

After beginning as a travel blogger and photographer in 2007, Ajay Jain created his portal Kunzum and packed it with excellent, reliable information related to travel. The website, named after the high altitude pass in the Lahaul Spiti region of Himachal Pradesh, serves as a guide as well as an inspiration for travel enthusiasts. Ajay is also the founder of the cool and unique Kunzum cafe at Hauz Khas In Delhi where travelers can meet, chat, have coffee, read travel books and use the free Wi-Fi and pay whatever they like. Ajay himself has driven over 80,000 kms across India, Nepal and Bhutan and flown several miles globally.

Check out: The Kunzum travel cafe: Meet travelers and make new friends over coffee

5. Neelima Valangi

After a trip to Ladakh in 2008, Neelima’s life transformed into that of a traveler. On her blog The Wandering Soul’s Wander Tales, Neelima writes of her travels to 20 Indian states and Union territories in India so far including the challenging terrains of Sikkim and Kashmir.

Neelima has also hiked in Turkey, spent a few weeks in Mongolia and attended a photojournalism workshop in Indonesia. Having quit her job recently, she makes 4-5 major trips a year and gives practical travel advice on her blog.