Island Life Backpackers Hostel opened its doors 27th July 2017. Early 2009, a 26 year old guy had the same idea that many of us do: quit the job, pack the bags, travel the world, fall in love and never come back.
It all sounds so easy, right?
For most of us the thought is fleeting and daydreams remain exactly that. Others do embark on exciting adventures, but ultimately return home, albeit with a tad more life experience and no end of funny stories.
And then there are the few – the very few – who not only go off on adventures, but who actually stick with the plan to never return and begin a new life on some paradisiacal island.
Chris Lineham is one of these non-returners.
Chris quit his job at the University of Bath, sold his house and got on a plane to the USA for a summer as a camp division head, which marked the beginning of a worldwide adventure. He travelled across the Americas, backpacked through Asia and toured Australia before settling in the Dominican Republic. Yep, he is that guy whose Facebook account is littered with pictures of gleaming beaches and stunning sunsets and who can actually use #home as an accurate hashtag.
Not long after he hit the road, Chris started to think about opening his own hostel somewhere exotic and, after a lengthy process, he managed to make his dream a reality and open Island Life Backpackers Hostel in the city of Santo Domingo.
It all began when, somewhere parked between insanity and genius (or New York and Indonesia) Chris started to dream about putting all his travel experience into action and opening a hostel tailored for every traveller’s needs.
After meeting his wife Katherine on his travels (yep he ticked that one off the list too), and finally opting for the Caribbean as his new home, Chris began the grueling process of opening Island Life. It was two years of permits and plastering, tiling and painting but, finally, the hostel opened – you can read of his amazing journey in this blog.
