Bio

Hi there. My name is Engin. I am technically an engineer, practically a traveler.

Yeah, you got it right! That’s where the name EnginEER Travel comes from.

Who am I?

I am a digital entrepreneur, engineer, travel writer and blogger.

I’ve been around the world quite a bit.

My articles, photos and interviews are published in various newspapers, magazines and online.

I work with world famous brands in travel and tourism industry for promotion projects.

I am frequently invited to Press trips for destination marketing.

In TV and radio shows, I talk about the topic I know the best; that is travel and entrepreneurship.

I do public speaking. I am the author of a travel book.

By training, I am a mechanical engineer with a master degree in innovation studies. I did my profession several years before changing my career completely to become a digital nomad.

Some keywords about my interests are local food, cooking, languages, world music, technology, innovation, entrepreneurship, tech startups, futurism, virtual reality, photography, videography, writing and last but not least dreaming. These will all be discussed in detail below.

I am into sustainability, alternative lifestyles and anything related with ecology. I love hiking, camping; simply being in nature. Among the sports I practice are biking, running, scuba diving and swimming.

I have lived in Turkey, Sweden, Chile and Spain. I am currently based in Barcelona (ES) and Izmir (TR), when I’m not traveling.

With my travel experience of 60+ countries for the past 17 years, I can easily say that;

Easy travel is possible for everyone,

Elegant travel is a desire for most,

Responsible travel is a necessity for the future.

So, that would be EER 😉

This was the brief version of my biography. Keep reading for much more fun facts about my life.

Education

It all started in 1982. I (Engin Kaban) made my very first journey to İzmir – Turkey. After Bornova Anatolian High School, I graduated from İstanbul Technical University as a B.Sc. in Mechanical Engineering. I got the travel bug in my first time abroad during university times. Afterwards I participated in several conferences, student activities and camps in various countries as a speaker or organizer. I volunteered for non-governmental organizations. I went to Sweden and got my M.A. degree in Innovation Studies from Linköping University. (2005)

Tipping Point

After working in İzmir for 2,5 years in a multinational company as a product engineer, I quitted my job to live my dream.

I started a vagabonding trip in South America with a one-way-ticket which eventually lasted for 1 year. This was a lifetime-experience to taste the nomadic lifestyle. (2010)

That brought me to a milestone in my life. Now it was the time to make a decision. Continuing to work as an engineer and live a well-paid, standard and decent life within office hours and fixed holidays; or do something else which gives more freedom, possibilities to travel and live a life that is more spontaneous. That wouldn’t be easy, but definitely sounded more fun.

Eventually, challenge accepted! I headed for the second option and started working freelance and location independent.

Being a graduate of top-ranked schools and having a well-paying profession, not everyone can easily understand why and how I can leave everything behind so easily. Well, first of all, it isn’t so easy. You should evaluate the pros and cons very well. And second, I believe that:

MY life simply should only take shape according to MY dreams, expectations, belief system and decisions; not that of others.

Travel Writing and Blogging

My long-time-dream to become a travel writer eventually came true. (2011)

My travel articles, travel photos and interviews appeared in most well-known national newspapers, travel, in-flight and ecology magazines. I prepared content for different tourism projects, travel agencies, websites depending on their topic including luxury travel, eco-travel, sustainable tourism, holiday destinations, travel hacks etc.

I won awards in travel-writing-contests. My travel book ‘The Practical Travel Guide of a Traveler‘ was published. (2012)

I have worked for destination marketing projects and social media promotion with PR agencies, hotels, restaurants. You can find a detailed list of my professional collaborations on references page.

I am often invited by tourism boards, travel agencies and airline companies for FAM trips and press trips.

I took it as a mission to improve the independent travel culture in Turkey. I’m one of the three founders of award winning Turkish Travelers Society (since 2008). I devoted my time to motivate wanna-be-travelers to hit the road.

I give motivational speeches in conferences, universities, corporate companies, social clubs. I’m occasionally invited as a guest speaker to talk about my experiences live on TV channels and radio programs. My interviews appeared in printed and digital media.

In short, you can call me a storyteller.

Areas of Interest

Starting from university days, I did mountain climbing. I hitchhiked 15.000+ km. I have been one of the first Turkish backpackers that traveled with interrail ticket. Being the nomadic ambassador for Couchsurfing and country volunteer for Hospitality Club, I took an important role in the development of hospitality networks in the world. In my flats, I hosted 100+ travelers from different continents and been guest to 150+ local people everywhere I traveled.

Trying traditional cuisine, checking out local restaurants as well as going to trendy and famous ones is a must and sometimes even the main purpose of my travels. I also buy ingredients from far-away destinations and back home I try to cook what I’ve learned and invite family and friends for dinner.

I have special interest in music from different cultures. I try to learn the languages of the countries I visit at least at a basic level. I am native in Turkish, fluent in English, good at Spanish, functional in German, beginner in Swedish.

Social Media

Related to my travel blog, I have social media accounts with username engineertravel on:

Instagram  ///  Facebook  ///  Twitter

I have an active profile on travel-related sites and applications with my name Engin Kaban on:

Tripadvisor (Level 6)  ///  AirBnb (Superhost)  ///  Couchsurfing (Ambassador)  ///  Hospitality Club (Country Volunteer)

Linkedin  ///  Internations (Albatross Member)  ///  Travel Massive  ///  Meet Up  ///  About Me

Final Words

The more I discover the world, the more excited I get for new far away destinations. Lately my focus is on South and Central America and East Africa.

Before, during and after all my trips, I’m using my engineering point of view and analytical thinking in every stage; from route planning, cost optimisation and risk management, to documentation, content creation and marketing.

For my many plans and dreams; I always look for new project partners. So, let’s EnginEER it together!

If you dream strong enough, you can fly!