What travel enthusiast doesn’t dream about using his love of the open road to create a revenue stream that will fund future adventures? Those who actually achieve that goal typically do it with things such as guided tours, freelance writing and as I’ve recently written about, photography. Married eclipse chasers Polly White and Michael Zeiler generate vacation funds with their love of travel as well, choosing instead to use their combined professional experience to produce things other eclipse enthusiasts might actually want to own.

The couple started small. During an eclipse cruise in July of 2009, Zeiler wanted a better event map than what was available. So he made his own and posted it publically on the ship. When the response from other passengers wanting something similar was strong and favorable, the two took orders for souvenir maps to send to their fellow travelers, earning $5,000 for their efforts. “This began my activities as an eclipse cartographer,” states Zeiler.

It’s a model they replicated to pay for additional trips. For example, when an annular solar eclipse visited the southwestern United States in May 2012, the entrepreneurs were able to sell $2,000 worth of maps and T-shirts that helped fund their trip to Australia later that year to see another eclipse.

It didn’t take Zeiler long to realize that his cartography and graphics skills could easily be taken to the next level in the form of printable maps and other items. Combined with wife Polly’s promotional product development and retail marketing background, the two were able to develop an entire line of eclipse-related merchandise. Greatamericaneclipse.com, one of the couple’s websites, sells everything from eclipse map posters and graphic T-shirts to luggage tags, hats and more.

Zeiler’s cartography skills are born from 30 years in the geographic information systems business, with 20 of those years developing insider resources for the technical side of the industry. White’s company has been supporting small businesses for years with the development of marketing products and giveaway items. “Not only do I understand wholesale buying,” says White, “I also have a good understanding about how to get stuff made and sold. So it was a natural fit.”

Selling merchandise is all well and good, but eclipse chasing to the far corners of the planet can get pricey to say the least. So how do you make sure you are getting the best price on your trip? Well, your options will largely be dictated by the eclipse itself. According to Zeiler, while independent travel may frequently be the more affordable way to go, that isn’t always the case when the best spot to view totality is somewhere very remote.

Especially if the location in question has little to no developed road system. In that case, the pre-packaged tour option might be the less expensive one. “Gabon was tough,” says Zeiler, “and a good example of a time when it was good to be with a tour operator because we had hotel and bus reservations already booked for us in a country where there is very little infrastructure.” The opposite is true for the eclipse that will be crossing the United States in a couple of years, since this country has such a strong infrastructure in place with highways, hotels and camping facilities with regular access to the Internet. “The 2017 eclipse is really a dream eclipse,” Zeiler states.

White adds that flexibility with budget and location are critical if you are enthusiastic about viewing your chosen eclipse from the best location. For an eclipse the couple will be traveling to see in Indonesia, for example, the best location will be a cruise ship. “It really depends on the eclipse. You just have to do a bit of analysis and get the best deal you can,” advises White.