About TravelBud

Saskia, TravelBud’s mother hen is responsible for the post-signup support and guidance for all our participants. Whether it’s your nerves that need calming or an invoice you need re-sent, when you sign up for a TravelBud program, it will be Saskia who’s there to help you on your way to your life-changing adventure!

Hailing from South Africa’s picturesque winelands, Saskia has herself taught English abroad before in Lop Buri and Phang Nga in Thailand and knows just how much this experience can change your life for the better:

“It taught me empathy, patience, respect and rocking social skills (especially because I tend to be quite quiet!) l went over at a very young age, which made everything a bit harder, but I’m glad I went when I did, as it shaped me into a person I wanted to become.”

Saskia has a big passion for beach life and couldn’t imagine living far from water: “I LOVE THE OCEAN, the sea, the sand, the salt, the sun, the seagulls (even though I am quite terrified of them) the thrill of surfing or even just floating in the water is everything to me.” And in her endeavours to find the best beaches, she’s been lucky enough to explore not only South East Asia and her native South Africa, but also countries farther afield like the US, Japan, Australia, India and Italy.

Where to next? South America is next on Saskia’s list, she wants to go anywhere and everywhere from the beaches of Santa Catarina in Brazil to the eerie desert hand sculpture Mano del Desierto in Chile!

Kim isn't just joining the TravelBud Support team, she's bringing a backpack overflowing with experience and a heart full of wanderlust.

From bustling Korean markets to the Thai sun, Kim traded comfort for exploration, teaching English in Joenju, South Korea, and later guiding and training aspiring TESOL teachers like you in Unseo, Incheon, and Hua Hin, Thailand, before embarking on her own adventures.

But her journey didn't stop there. Kim's a chameleon, adapting to new environments with grace, a skill honed through extensive travel across the South East Asia, UK, the US and yes, even Italy (the culinary paradise, remains her personal favorite!).

Traveling solo hasn't just been a necessity, it's been a revelation. Kim has learned to embrace solitude, finding joy in exploring hidden alleys, savoring unfamiliar flavors, and forging connections that transcend language barriers. Packing light, both physically and metaphorically, has shown her the true value of experiences and the richness of human connection.

Kim is ready to share her knowledge and passion with aspiring adventurers like you. India, Turkey, or Argentina – where will her next adventure unfold?

When you connect with Kim on the phone, maybe you can help her decide!

Charlotte grew up in Zambia and has been lucky to call several countries home, including Kenya, Mozambique, Italy, the UK, and South Africa. It’s safe to say travel is embedded in her DNA.

Charlotte’s love for education and teaching began early. Before starting her undergraduate degree, she volunteered to teach community education programs along the coast and in rural communities across Kenya.

After completing her degree, the travel itch began again. She spontaneously moved to Italy and began working as an au pair and English teacher at a private language school in Milan. Filling up on pizza, pasta, and LOTS of gelato while exploring the cobbled streets of Rome, enjoying idyllic boat rides in Lago di Como, and taking in the spectacular art in Florence, Charlotte decided to take a break from living la dolce vita... Temporarily...

Making a move back to Cape Town, Charlotte worked as a Community Education Coordinator and later as an APM, where her passion for education flourished. Over time, she developed a keen interest in Special Education, motivating her to pursue an MSc in Psychology and Learning Disabilities.

When COVID-19 hit, Charlotte embraced the life of a digital nomad and has worn many hats since! After completing her TEFL certification, Charlotte moved to Central America to work as an Online English Teacher, enjoying tropical rainforests, black sandy beaches, a thriving coffee culture, and the occasional earthquake… She has travelled across Central America, Europe and Southern Africa as an online English teacher.

Besides travelling, Charlotte enjoys experimenting with cooking, yoga, painting, music festivals, spending time with her family and friends, and indulging in lots of coffee.

After an adventurous few years, Charlotte has decided to finally make Cape Town home and share the beautiful experiences of being a nomadic educator with aspiring teachers from across the globe.

In 2019, Ben travelled to Thailand and started teaching English in the former capital city of Ayutthaya. Ben was lucky to teach students of a wide range of ages from Kindergarten to High School. Ben quickly developed a love for travelling in South East Asia and wanted to see as much as possible of the region. Ben was fortunate to travel through all the major areas of Thailand and a bit of Laos.

Since returning to South Africa, Ben has become passionate about helping other people to get the opportunity he had to experience a new part of the world and broaden his horizons.

Ben is definitely not done travelling and is looking forward to returning to Asia. Ben plans to travel to Vietnam, China and South Korea before a trip to the Iberian Peninsula in Europe.

Besides his love of travelling, Ben enjoys video games, reading, going on safaris, and taking care of his cat, Bear. Ben is excited to be a part of the TravelBud team and is ready to help you get the most out of time abroad.

Grace is an enrollment coordinator at TravelBud signing people up to our many programs and helping them get all the answers to the questions they may have about taking the plunge and going overseas for amazing teach abroad adventures. Hailing from a beautiful little, coastal town in South Africa called Hermanus, she recently returned from adventures abroad and will be based in Cape Town.

Besides travelling, Grace loves cooking, reading Oscar Wilde books, scouring vintage shops for things of another time and going wine tasting at every available opportunity. She taught in South Korea for a year, in a city just outside of Seoul, called Anseong. Living and teaching abroad taught her so many things about herself, the world and life in general making her the wise old soul she is today:

“The most poignant thing I learnt was that you can connect with people, no matter how different your culture, and that the world really is filled with genuinely good people.”

Before Korea Grace had never travelled out of Africa, but since arriving there, she’s gotten the chance to travel to Thailand, Cambodia, Israel and Ireland. She was lucky enough to tick being in Ireland during St Paddy’s day off her bucket list, but finds it a toss up between the Emerald Isle and Israel as her favourite places on Earth.

That might change soon as the list of places she still wants to go is growing daily, with Turkey next on the list!

Growing up in a small midwest town in Indiana, Alyssa dreamed like everyone else about traveling abroad and living in a new country. Alyssa set her goals high and set out to teach abroad in Thailand. This came with the world experiencing covid-19. During this time all the borders were closed and Alyssa had to re-plan her sights. After a few years and the world slowly coming back together, Alyssa decided to travel the world but to a new destination and landed in the jungles of Costa Rica.

Alyssa was an English, math and science teacher at a private school in a beautiful beach town, while living in Costa Rica. While teaching in Costa Rica, Alyssa was able to experience different cultures and travel to other Latin American countries. Alyssa plans on traveling to Thailand and Vietnam.

Besides teaching, Alyssa enjoys being with her friends, going on hikes, being active and trying local food. A little fun fact, Alyssa has a twin sister.

Destiny grew up skateboarding and snowboarding the coasts and mountains of California, USA and continues to explore her curiosities; though one thing she’s not trying again: clay sculpting. After studying biology, trying marketing and healthcare, she decided it was time to taste something new because “I’ll never have more time than I do now.”

After her first trip to Korea, she knew she had to be there. What better time than the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic! After a few years teaching abroad in Seoul, South Korea, Destiny gained Korean fluency, has been nearly everywhere, and, according to her friends, is the official ambassador of the country. A favorite she recommends is Gamjatang, pork bone soup, and Sokcho for a beach getaway.

“I’ve been incredibly humbled by the challenges of playing 'immigrant.'' That said, I’ve walked away with funny stories that sound like lies and compassionate relationships with friends and students. The good comes with the less good, and that’s what makes South Korea beautiful.”

After teaching, Destiny set off to an adventurous month in Cambodia, but her Cambodian is a work in progress. Needing a break from the heat, she found her heart in Vietnam before returning home to the U.S. Ironically, she says the best pizza she ever had was in Ho Chi Minh City. Destiny is always staying up to date with Asia for her future travels and can probably answer your random questions!

Liam is TravelBud’s co-founder and is the visionary driving force behind our team. He’s from Cape Town, South Africa but finds himself exploring the world and living in a variety of places, most recently Hua Hin, Thailand.

Having taught in Thailand himself, he returned with a newfound appreciation for educators and a vision for supplying better prepared and more passionate teachers to Asia to have the same amazing experiences he did.

Liam says living in Asia taught him not to sweat the small things in life and to have more compassion and patience – this is something he’s instilled in every aspect of life at TravelBud.

A keen videographer, Liam is most often found behind the lense of his camera or nose down behind his laptop editing the next epic video he’s shot. Well, that’s when he’s not discovering the next big underground hip hop scene in Myanmar, Korea or back home in SA – this is one guy who’s passionate about his music!

Travel is also something which runs in Liam’s blood, by the age of 19 he’d been to 25 countries and he’s not showing any signs of slowing down! Currently sitting at the 35 country mark, he dreams of buying a character-filled 4×4 and exploring every last corner of Africa.

A natural born leader, Stu is TravelBud’s Business Development Director and one with a difference! He describes his most important focus as “keeping the unique enthusiastic and caring company culture alive as we grow together”. Something which is close to the hearts of every team member.

Stu has been with TravelBud from day one, the moment he finished university two of his closest friends, the Kelly brothers invited him to join them on a new venture: TravelBud! From humble beginnings where he was responsible for everything from accounting to marketing and blogging he’s grown a dream team which is taking the business to new heights.

Travel has touched Stu’s life deeply as he explored Europe independently while living and working in the UK as a sports coach after he finished high school. It’s taught him that truly exciting and life-changing adventures only happen when you step outside your comfort zone; and not a day goes by when he doesn’t challenge the team to do the same!

So where is his favourite destination? None other than our best-seller, Thailand! And, if he can ever find the time to take a sabbatical from steering the TravelBud ship he’d like to spend his time off volunteering and living in Malawi or Kenya for a bit.

Luke is a director at TravelBud and practices as an advocate at the Cape Bar Society of Advocates in Cape Town, South Africa.

Luke brings strategic business advice and guidance to TravelBud, as well as a dose of enthusiasm for the love of travel.