How long (#months) can I travel before it hinders my ability to return to the job market?

I agree with Arnoud. Bút. There are more parameters in this question. We recently travelled for 366 days. I expected to be completely phased out from my netwrok after half a year. But somehow, I wasn't. My experience is that once you are gone, people are looking for new options. There is one illusion you shouldn't have: and that's that you're irreplaceable. Everyone is replaceable. You have your quirky things, I have. I am good at this, you are better at that. No one is equal and therefore everyone has its pro's and con's. You say you quit, your boss says, ok I'll look for someone else... This is the way life goes. And this is why I expected to be out of the market after one year. But somehow, it wasn't that bad. Yes, my biggest clients looked for replacements. But my colleagues moved forward. They changed places. And with new jobs, new opportunities were created as well. It appeared I am dealing with people, not with large companies. So there you go. Your clients may be gone. your contact maybe only moved on. My workload is not as heavy as it was, but it is more than sufficient now. So go. If you did a good job before you left, you'll find work and you'll find enough to built up a new network of clients. And if you have a good relationship with your current clients, they'll understand. In the end, great clients are like good friends, they have a relationship with you... Nothing to stop you from going. Make sure they support you!

I guess it totally depends on what industry you are working in, the country you live in, your degree and so on. I traveled for a whole year across Asia and the united states. I got a new job in a little more than two months after I returned home. (I live in the Netherlands) Assuming I was lucky, I guess it usually would take a little longer to find a new job. Nevertheless, I think it is worth the risk. That year traveling was lifechanging.