We’re Germaine and Saidah—Black American empty nesters who traded a conventional life in the United States for slow travel, hotel living, and life abroad.
Travel Check Ins goes beyond beautiful destinations. We share honest conversations about what it costs, how it feels, what surprised us, and whether living abroad actually delivers the freedom people imagine.
Expect real-life experiences from Africa, Asia, South America, and beyond—along with cost-of-living breakdowns, cultural commentary, points-and-miles strategies, retirement considerations, and the financial decisions behind our lifestyle.
We have lived in Kenya, spent hundreds of nights in hotels, and learned that creating a life abroad requires more than inspiration. It requires clarity, adaptability, and a willingness to question the traditional American dream.
Subscribe as we explore where—and how—we want to live next.
📍 Or start with our Travel Check Ins resources below
Saidah & Germaine’s Travel Check Ins
What if one of your income streams could eventually pay your rent abroad? 👀
One thing we’ve become almost obsessed with is building income streams that don’t require us to keep adding more work to our lives.
Because making more money is great.
But making more money while also creating more freedom?
That’s the goal.
A few months ago, we started experimenting with copy trading. Instead of us personally sitting in front of charts making every trade, we’re using a system that allows trades to be copied automatically.
And this week, another $520 came in.
Now, we don’t need this money to pay our rent.
But here’s what excites me:
What if one income stream covered housing?
Another covered groceries?
Another funded travel?
And your primary income and investments could continue building wealth?
That is how we think about money now.
Not just, “How much do we make?”
But:
“How many different ways can our money support the life we actually want?”
We’re never opposed to increasing our income—and y’all know we don’t like gatekeeping what we’re learning either. 😂
We made a members-only video explaining the copy-trading platform we’re using, how we got started, and what our experience has been so far.
This is investing, so there is risk, and returns are never guaranteed. We’re simply documenting what we’re doing and what we’re learning.
But if building additional income streams to help fund your life abroad sounds interesting, Join us in the “Inner Circle” for our monthly earnings reports 👇🏾
Members-only videos
www.youtube.com/playlist?list...
7 hours ago (edited) | [YT] | 3
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Saidah & Germaine’s Travel Check Ins
What Does it Really Cost to Live in Kenya as an American? We unpacked the receipts in this episode here 👉🏾 https://youtu.be/MbQHVyvomwI
Check it out and tell us what surprised you.
1 day ago (edited) | [YT] | 21
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Saidah & Germaine’s Travel Check Ins
A lot of Americans assume moving abroad automatically means cutting their expenses—but the reality is more complicated.
We’re breaking down the costs people often underestimate and sharing what we’ve learned from actually living abroad so you can decide whether relocating would truly save you money.
WATCH 👉🏾Living Abroad Isn’t As Cheap As Americans Think
https://youtu.be/EpWOJuYeD6w
1 day ago | [YT] | 18
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Saidah & Germaine’s Travel Check Ins
In a members-only video, we’re sharing a behind-the-scenes truth about something that negatively impacted our YouTube channel in a way we haven’t publicly discussed. We’re not giving the full story away here, but if you want the real conversation, watch it this weekend inside the membership.
✈️🌎Join the @TravelCheckIns channel. Passport Holders & Above get exclusive content not published publicly. 👇🏾👇🏾👇🏾👇🏾👇🏾
youtube.com/channel/UCUZdmLLfVwOY68sADKESlyg/join
1 day ago | [YT] | 25
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Saidah & Germaine’s Travel Check Ins
Is living abroad really cheaper than America—or have social media creators been comparing two completely different lifestyles?
After living across several countries, we have learned that low rent does not automatically create an affordable life.
Watch our complete breakdown, then tell us: What expense would you refuse to compromise on? 👉🏾 https://youtu.be/EpWOJuYeD6w
2 days ago | [YT] | 31
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Saidah & Germaine’s Travel Check Ins
🚨 LAST CHANCE 🚨 If you’ve been saying:
“I’m going to get it later…”
This is later.
25% OFF EVERYTHING
Code: TRAVELCHECKINS
Ends Friday — no extensions.
👉🏾 germaindah.gumroad.com/
The same people who stay stuck…
are the ones who always wait for “another time.”
Don’t be that person.
2 days ago (edited) | [YT] | 36
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Saidah & Germaine’s Travel Check Ins
We don’t run sales often… but this one is special.
Everything we’ve created to help you:
✔️ Travel smarter
✔️ Move abroad with clarity
✔️ Use points & miles the right way
✔️ Build a lifestyle that actually makes sense
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Use code: TRAVELCHECKINS
But here’s the catch…
We’re only keeping this open until Friday
If you’ve been watching… learning… waiting…
This is your moment.
🔗 germaindah.gumroad.com/
4 days ago | [YT] | 5
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Saidah & Germaine’s Travel Check Ins
We didn’t just wake up living abroad.
We figured it out:
✔️ Visas
✔️ Cost of living
✔️ Travel on points
✔️ Where to stay
✔️ How to move strategically
And we packaged ALL of it for you.
🇺🇸 1 WEEK SALE
🐣 25% OFF EVERYTHING
Use code: TRAVELCHECKINS
⏳ Ends Friday
👉🏾 germaindah.gumroad.com/
You can keep guessing…
Or you can follow a proven path.
4 days ago | [YT] | 5
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