9 Benefits of Travel Nursing

What It’s Like to Be a Travel Nurse  

A travel nurse is a registered nurse (RN) who takes on temporary assignments at healthcare facilities in different states, each lasting 8-26 weeks. These contracts include day, night, and/or night shifts, depending on the assignment and facility needs.  

A typical day for a travel nurse includes assessing and caring for patients, collaborating with their care team, and charting and documenting. Every day looks different and varies by unit. For example, a MedSurg nurse’s daily routine will look different from an ICU nurse. 

Travel nurses benefit from being flexible, adaptable, organized, and strong communicators. These qualities help them step into new environments confidently and support patients and staff from the start.  

Additionally, since adapting to new units every few months can be challenging, travel nursing often comes with competitive pay, flexible schedules, additional benefits and bonuses, and tax-free stipends! 

9 Benefits of Travel Nursing  

There are many benefits to travel nursing! Here are nine, curated by our team based on real nurse experiences and insights from the industry: 

1. GenerousPay Packages 

One of the primary perks of travel nursing is the generous pay packages. Travel nurses typically earn higher total compensation than many permanent staff nurses, which includes tax-free stipends for housing, meals, and daily living expenses. These stipends help cover short-term living arrangements, food, transportation, and other incidentals. 

Many travel nurse packages also include additional benefits such as travel and licensure reimbursements, support with relocation costs, and health insurance. Some agencies, like Gifted Healthcare, even provide day-one coverage for medical, dental, and vision insurance. 

Other incentives can include sign-on or completion bonuses, referral bonuses, continuing education stipends, and access to employee assistance programs for mental health and stress support. Altogether, these benefits make travel nursing a highly flexible and rewarding career path! 

Ready to take your nursing career on the road? 

Join Gifted Healthcare and enjoy competitive pay, flexible schedules, day-one benefits, housing and meal stipends, premier facility placements, referral bonuses, and 24/7 support from your recruiter and clinical team. Explore open travel nursing jobs and start your next adventure today! 

2. Flexibility and Freedom

Travel nursing gives you the freedom to build your career around your life, with short-term assignments that let you explore, learn, and grow. 

• You pick assignments that fit your preferred shifts (days, nights, or weekends) with varying hours depending on the assignment. 
• Contracts usually last 8-26 weeks, allowing you to experience what it’s like working in different medical facilities and hospitals. 
• Because assignments are short-term and temporary, you can structure your life around work, travel, personal goals, and continuing education.  

3. Adventure and Travel Opportunities

In addition to the professional and financial benefits of travel nursing, this path also comes with unique adventure and travel opportunities. You have the opportunity to explore new areas, potentially areas you’ve always dreamed of visiting, while making great pay and new connections. From coastal towns to bustling cities, you can experience it all. 

4. Exposure to New Specialties

Travel nursing assignments are available across a variety of units and specialties. At Gifted Healthcare, we have travel nursing assignments available in 38+ states around the country in specialties like ER, ICU, Med-Surg, L&D, and many more! 

Here are some specialties we typically have openings in: 

• Medical-Surgical (MedSurg): These nurses care for adult patients with a variety of medical conditions and those recovering from surgery. 
• Intensive Care Unit (ICU): These nurses care for critically ill patients who need constant monitoring, advanced life support, and complex medical treatments. 
• Emergency Room (ER): These nurses assess and treat patients experiencing serious and life-threatening conditions. 
• Progressive Care Unit (PCU): These nurses care for patients who need close monitoring but don't need to be in the ICU. 
• Operating Room (OR): These nurses prepare equipment and support the surgical team during procedures. 
• Pediatrics: These nurses care for infants, children, and adolescents. 
• Labor and Delivery (L&D): These nurses support pregnant patients and their babies through labor, delivery, and postpartum. 
• Telemetry: These nurses monitor patients with conditions that require continuous cardiac monitoring. 

Ready to find your next travel assignment? Explore openings today and see where your skills can take you! Explore jobs here.

5. Career Growth and Skill Expansion

Travel nursing exposes you to a wide range of experiences and challenges. You’ll learn how to use new equipment, follow new protocols, and may float to units outside your usual specialty, depending on the facility and assignment. 

Each assignment helps you build expertise and become a more adaptable nurse. This not only strengthens your nursing skillset but also your confidence and appeal to future employers. 

6. Experience Working in Diverse Healthcare Settings

As a travel nurse, you’re not limited to a single facility. You have the opportunity to work in a variety of healthcare settings, from hospitals and clinics to physician offices, long-term care centers, and rural healthcare facilities. This variety helps you learn different approaches to patient care and gain experience that broadens your skills and perspective. 

7. Personalized Support from Agencies

Another perk of travel nursing is the personalized support you receive from your agency, and Gifted Healthcare makes this a priority. From the moment you accept a contract, a dedicated recruiter and Career Specialist are there to guide you, ensuring your experience is smooth and rewarding. You’ll have access to around-the-clock clinical support, comprehensive benefits, and resources. 

With Gifted, you can expect: 

• Competitive pay and referral bonuses to reward your expertise and connections. 
• Flexible schedules and premier facility placements that match your career goals. 
• Day-one benefits, housing, and meal support to make your travel experience easier. 
• Ongoing guidance from dedicated recruiters and career specialists whenever you need it. 

Our team is committed to helping you succeed, providing support and advocacy every step of the way! Apply now to speak with a recruiter and find your next travel nursing assignment. 

8. Professional and Personal Connections 

Working in different healthcare facilities across the country means working with new colleagues, mentors, and leaders in healthcare. This helps you build relationships that can support your personal and professional growth and open doors to future opportunities. 

9. Steady Employment Opportunities

Travel nursing is a high-demand industry because hospitals and healthcare facilities across the country are often looking to fill staffing shortages and hire short-term nursing staff with specialized skills.  

This demand means there are steady opportunities for travel nurses, often with competitive pay. It also allows you to choose assignments that match your desired schedule, location preferences, and career goals, providing both stability and flexibility. 

What are the Tax Benefits of Travel Nursing? 

Some tax benefits of travel nursing include: 

• Agencies often provide stipends that aren’t subject to federal income tax, which means you get to keep more of your earnings. 
• Expenses from moving and traveling to a new assignment may be deductible, depending on IRS rules. 
• Strategic planning with help from a tax professional can help you structure your pay and stipends to reduce taxable income. 
• Some work-related purchases, like uniforms, certifications, and licensing fees, may be deductible. 
• Working in multiple states could mean taking advantage of varying state tax laws, especially if you maintain a permanent residence in a state with lower income tax. 

What are the Potential Downsides of Travel Nursing? 

Travel nursing is typically a highly rewarding career path for many nurses; however, it does come with some challenges to consider. 

For example, moving frequently means you have to adjust to new work environments and routines, and there may be occasional gaps between assignments. Additionally, you have to navigate licensing and credentialing requirements for different states, which often requires extra time and attention. 

What It Takes to Become a Travel Nurse 

If you’re considering becoming a travel nurse, keep these factors in mind:  

• Experience: Gifted requires at least 1 year of experience in your nursing specialty; however, most contracts require 2 years depending on the role and facility. 
• Tax considerations: Housing and meal stipends can be tax-free if they are temporary expenses. You must maintain a permanent home while covering travel housing costs in addition to your primary residence. 
• Pay structure: Pay packages are typically quoted as gross weekly amounts (before taxes). Your net pay is the amount deposited after taxes. 
• Licensing: Travel nurses must be licensed in the state where they work. The Nurse Licensure Compact (NLC) allows nurses with a multistate license to practice in other compact states without needing additional licenses. 

Learn more about what it takes to become a travel nurse. 

Find Your Next Travel Nursing Assignment with Gifted Healthcare! 

Gifted Healthcare has earned recognition as a Best Travel Nurse Agency by The Gypsy Nurse, the world’s largest online community for travel nurses, and as a Top 20 Travel Nursing Company by BluePipes, the leading professional networking platform in healthcare, so you’re in good hands! 

Connect with a recruiter to join the Gifted Family today! Apply here.