It’s a pleasure to interview Johnny Ward from One Step 4Ward, a remarkable travel blogger who left Ireland in 2006 with barely a dime to his name and ultimately built a travel blogging empire, making several million dollars along the way with just his laptop. Oh, and I’m pretty sure it took a whole lot of Wi-Fi, plenty of wanderlust, and maybe even a few negotiations with llamas to get there!
In this laid-back interview with travel adventurer Johnny Ward, we’ll explore stunning paradise destinations, pose an intriguing Greek mythology question, and discover a valuable pro blogging tip that you won’t want to miss. This is your opportunity to glean insights from Johnny’s extensive experience in the travel realm!
Interview with Johnny Ward from One Step 4Ward
Johnny, let’s start this interview by getting you thinking about “Paradise” straight away. What destinations in the world come to mind when you think about paradise and why? – to be honest mate, paradise to me is only paradise if I can maintain it. So paradise represents a lifestyle that I can continue to live. The thought of spending a week somewhere that others may call ‘paradise’ only to have to go back to a life I don’t love, that wouldn’t feel like paradise at all to me! So, when I think about destinations that represent paradise, it’s the life I live in Chiang Mai, Thailand. I love it here. I work for myself online, built my dream house here, and get to do the things I want to do on a daily/monthly basis. That’s paradise for me.
I’ve read that you are based in Thailand. I spent a month backpacking around Thailand when I was younger and loved the place apart from the crazy traffic. Can you give us some ultimate Thailand paradise tips like which Thai islands and beaches to visit?
I live in the north, amidst the jungles and the rice paddies. My mrs loves the beach, but personally I hate it! Surprising to people when they hear I live in Thailand. Honestly, if I never stepped foot on another beach in my life, I’d be happy. I don’t know why I feel that way. For sure I hate sand being in all my stuff, and also I’m Irish, so the sun beats me down too! Give me mountains, and hiking, and wine and I’m happy. Everyone else can keep the beaches and islands.
I discovered a blog post on your website: Delphi, Greece – Visiting the Greek Centre of the World. What do you recall about your Delphi trip now more than a decade after your visit, and did you have a good time?
Woaaah, that’s an ooooold sh*tty blog post when I was still working out how to make money travel blogging! Good find. I loved traveling around Greece, I was broke back then so dorm rooms, new people every day, figuring out transport and how to keep costs low. That’s the best form of travel I reckon.
Johnny, this leads me to wanting to ask you a Greek mythology question. Are you a fan of Greek mythology in any way?
I don’t follow it to be honest mate. Apart from playing God of War on the PS5!
What do you think of Greece as a country and can you tell us about some of your most memorable experiences there?
I LOVE IT. I’ve been back multiple times. My wife’s top 3 spot in the world was Santorini, so I took her there for her 35th birthday. Brilliant. I was also blown away by Meteora, I had no expectations whatsoever, so when stumbling across it, it was unreal.
On your YouTube channel, I see a video of you Kissing a llama at Machu Picchu. How was your Machu Picchu experience and was the llama a good kisser?
haha, not the best I’ve had, but I’ve probably had worse. Machu Picchu was cool of course. And I brought my mum there with me, so to get the chance to show her one of the wonders of the world, that was better than the wonder itself.
Bali: Paradise or Not? What do you think?
eurrrrgh. Bali, The island? Sure. The phone obsessed, course-selling, online people living there? not so much. A month a year though, train everyday, work on your laptop, that’s cool. Could never live there though. Just too many dickheads.
Have you ever gone on some kind of paradise walk or hike in the world and what made it so special for you?
For sure mate. My summit day on Mount Everest, I’ll never forget it. 8848m. Destroyed by 2 months on the mountain, to sit atop the highest peak in the world, dreaming of it as a broke kid 10 years earlier, it’s unlikely to get much better for me. The training, the risk of death, the expenses. All worth it in that moment at the summit.
Do you have any names of paradise hotels/resorts stuck in your mind due to their awesomeness and do they have an amazing pool?
I’ve stayed in some wild places. The Chedi in Muscat, St Regis in Bora Bora, Keemala, and Sri Panwa in Phuket, Four Seasons in Beijing. That uber luxury, to allow me to recharge after expeditions etc, feels so good. The Keemala, as I mentioned above, I was there last month and was blown away. Probably the best hotel in Thailand.
Can you give us one hidden gem paradise in the world that not many people know about?
Faroe Islands. It’s about to blow up. Gorgeous. Svalbard is something similar too.
I somehow stumbled on this when clicking on East Africa on your ONESTEP4WARD world map. Overlanding paradise. Start in Mozambique and head all the way to Ethiopia (amazing country by the way!), or vice-versa, but this is a trip that you just HAVE to do in your life time. Adventurious, rewarding, but still manageable. Whatcha waiting for?… What do you mean by this? I’m scared to go to Africa. By the way, I spotted a spelling mistake, you say “Adventurious.” Lol – don’t worry I’m sure I have plenty myself.
Spelling mistakes? I honestly dont care haha. I don’t proofread my stuff. I just pump it out, and people can follow along or not. All good. I spent 2 years visiting every country in Africa. It’s is HARD travel. Places like Bali, Thailand, Mexico, Spain. All gorgeous. Good food. But as someone who loves the essence of travel, they’re not ‘travel’ destinations. They holiday destinations. With thousands, or millions, of tourists. Easy daytrips, western food. You’re just sharing the same experiences that have been tailored for holidaymakers. And that’s all good too. But it’s not ‘travel’. Overlanding for months across Africa, that’s is travel. It’s hard to put into words, which is why I encourage others to give it a craic. I did Cape Town to Cairo via african public transport, and then again Cape Town to Casablanca. Epic times.
Johnny, you are an Irish travel blogger, so I have to ask you something about Ireland. Can paradise be found in Ireland?
For sure, I was born in the Aran Islands. The REAL Ireland. If you’ve haven’t been to Ireland, I couldn’t recommend it highly enough. It’s like the Ireland you see in the movies.
As a successful travel blogger, could you share your insights on monetizing a travel blog, particularly with ads? What lessons have you learned, which ad networks have you used for One Step 4Ward, and at what traffic milestones did you partner with them?
This is a HUGE question mate. A better piece of advice to anyone who wants to make money blogging is to learn SEO. Once you do that, you can do anything. And also, the millions of dollars don’t come in a heartbeat. It took me 10 years to make my first million I think.
Johnny, for your final question, I see that you organize trips where you serve as the tour guide. Can you tell us about them and where you have taken tour groups?
I spent 16 years visiting every country in the world. So i have great contacts in the weirdest of places! Mauritania, Syria, Turkmenistan, Yemen, Iraq, Central African Republic, South Sudan, Mongolia. Countries that are tricky to travel in. So I only run trips in places that I can help others discover. For trips to Portugal or South Africa, people can do that themselves. And my trips have attracted such an epic group of people. People who want a real adventure, many of them are my closest friends in the world these days. I love running these trips. I have 8 next year, and can’t wait to get them going!
Johnny Ward Interview: Unlocking Paradise
Johnny, a huge thank you for taking the time to do this interview with me for Greek Gods Paradise! You’ve set the bar so high that I might need to start interviewing actual gods to keep up! Keep roaming the globe and having epic adventures — it’s clear you’re living life to the fullest. Wishing you all the best with One Step 4Ward and your many other exciting ventures. Thanks again Johnny!
You can follow Johnny Ward’s incredible adventures by checking out the One Step 4Ward website, connecting with him on Instagram (@onestep4ward), or tuning into Johnny Ward’s YouTube videos (@onestep4ward). Join the adventure and let your wanderlust soar!
If you enjoyed reading this interview with Johnny Ward, you’ll also likely appreciate some of the other interviews on Greek Gods Paradise. Check them out! If you’d like to read about a female adventurer, I highly recommend reading the interview with The Smooth Escape about Greece.
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