About Melissa

Life before blogging

I’m originally from Quebec, Canada. Back in the days, I used to be a social worker. I used to travel once a year for about a month and I was always spending my summers in Europe since I was 20 years old.

In June 2014, I started my journey around the world at the age of 25.

Life on the road

I first started my journey in the Canadian Rockies, where I hitch-hiked my way around. Then, I moved to Australia for two years. I started A Broken Backpack in July 2015. Back then, I was working on a farm in Australia and needed something to stay entertained. Quickly, A Broken Backpack became popular.

After Australia, I decided to go on a backpacking trip to Southeast Asia. Later, I moved to the UK for less than a year.

In October 2017, I decided to move to Southeast Asia. Bali became my home for about one and a half years.

In 2019, I was based mostly in Thailand.

In 2020, I moved to Bulgaria.

In 2022, I moved to Thailand, and it became my main base.

Of course, I do plan occasional trips in and out, but since I’m running an online business and a few successful blogs, I prefer slow travel.

This brings me to you

A Broken Backpack offers excellent travel tips to help you stay on the road longer. I left Canada with less than CAD 2,000 in my name (and many student debts).

I’m living proof that you don’t need tons of savings to make your travel dreams come true.

I learned how to travel on the very cheap, volunteered when I needed to, and created an online business to support myself abroad. I share all these tips here on A Broken Backpack.

I’m now in my thirties, and my travel style has evolved. I’m not all about budget travel anymore, and I now travel with my husband (we met in Thailand).

So, A Broken Backpack is not just a budget travel blog anymore. You’ll find all the travel tips needed to plan your dream trip no matter your travel style, budget, or interest.