Village boy from India quit studies at 16 for self-discovery. In 8 years, he has managed to visit 180 countries.

Born in a quaint village in Bihar, Shubham Kumar once imagined a life that was the most ordinary. Like many students, he prepared himself to visit Kota after finishing school to study for the competitive exams. Never once did he think that travelling could be a career option that would take him to new heights and achieve social media fame. Now at 24, Shubham has already travelled to more than 187 countries, earning recognition as one of the youngest Indians to achieve the feat. Better known as ‘Nomad Shubham,’ his adventure diaries began when he was just 16, back in 2018.

Travelling the world with just Rs 500

In his teenage years, Shubham Kumar made the bold decision to quit his studies and instead, embarked on a journey to explore himself. On his website, Coachsurfing, the youngster revealed that he was always excited to meet new people from around the world and immerse himself in different languages and cultures. He not only strikes up conversations frequently but chooses to be incredibly social during his sojourns, including chatting with fellow bus travellers, interacting with local vendors, or bantering with train passengers.

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A post shared by Shubham Kumar || Extreme Traveller (@nomadshubham)

Shubham Kumar began documenting his experiences through videos in 2019, holding up a different perspective of the world, typically shown in the media. What truly sets his travels apart is the way he manages to visit different parts of the world without spending much. Many of his journeys have a shoestring budget of roughly Rs 500 a day, as per a report by NDTV. Instead of hotels and expensive transport, he relies on hitchhiking, modest stays, and the kindness of people he meets along the way. The idea of hitchhiking first sparked when he watched a YouTube video about the same. It left him wondering how far an individual could travel with little money but ample determination.

A simple hitchhike to visiting international destinations

Shubham Kumar, coming from a modest family, never had the backing of big sponsors. His adventures were driven by personal savings, embracing what globetrotters now call ‘slow travel’. He boarded local buses, shared rides, couchsurfing and took random lifts from strangers. His monthly budget in the early days was somewhere between Rs 10,000 and Rs 12,000. Hitchhiking became his main source of travelling, with Shubham waiting on highways for vehicles heading in the right direction, spending nights at petrol pumps, fire stations, and even police stations.

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A post shared by Shubham Kumar || Extreme Traveller (@nomadshubham)

Eventually, Shubham Kumar, who at present enjoys over 3.21 million subscribers on YouTube channel, received monetary benefits from the platform. His first international trip was to Nepal, followed by Russia, Thailand, and Laos, reported the Better India. Over the years, he has visited places like Kazakhstan, China, Mongolia, South Africa, and the Arctic Circle, with his latest pitstop being in Brazil.