Are you longing to see the world and travel, but also earn money as you go? If so, you’re not alone—more and more workers are turning to the digital nomad lifestyle to break free of the corporate career path.
Traveling while working allows you to have both financial freedom and the freedom to travel wherever you like, as long as you have an internet connection. However, it’s not as simple as picking up a laptop and booking a flight.
To succeed with remote work, there are a few things you need to know. Before renewing your passport, keep reading to find ten top tips to work and travel effectively.
Table of Contents
- 1. When Traveling While Working, Invest in a Good Laptop
- 2. Create a Schedule
- 3. Budget, Budget, Budget
- 4. Join a Co-Working Space
- 5. Look for Countries Offering Digital Nomad Visas
- 6. Travel with Portable Wi-Fi
- 7. Be Aware of Time Zones
- 8. Keep in Touch with Everyone Back Home
- 9. Build Your Own Website
- 10. Travel Light
- Travel While Working with These Top Tips
1. When Traveling While Working, Invest in a Good Laptop
If you want to work while traveling, you need to have the right tools. This starts with a quality laptop, which you’ll use to log on for work.
Ideally, look for one that’s robust and also invest in a solid carrying case, as travel can be tough on electronics.
Depending on the type of work you’ll be doing, it may also help to have a DSLR or mirrorless camera, noise-canceling headphones, and plenty of adapter cables for the countries you’ll be visiting.
2. Create a Schedule
When starting remote work, it helps to create a daily schedule. Just because you’re working remotely, you still need to have accountability and structure to ensure you get everything done within the day.
When you’re in meetings remotely, there can sometimes be distractions or background noise, so try to screen record with audio so you can refer to important information later on.
When creating your work schedule, remember that it’s not all about work! You’re traveling to experience a new place, so strive for a work-life balance.
For example, you may want to start work early in the morning and finish by early afternoon, so that you have the rest of the day to explore.
3. Budget, Budget, Budget
When traveling, it’s easy to burn through money fast. This is especially true if you’ve just started working remotely and are earning less than you did in your office job.
The best way to ensure you can keep traveling for the long term is by budgeting. Look for affordable housing, such as hostels or Airbnbs, cook at home, and seek out inexpensive or free activities to do.
If you stick to your budget, it’ll be easier to adjust to the digital nomad lifestyle.
4. Join a Co-Working Space
When learning how to work and travel, you’ll want to always look for accommodation and cafes offering wi-fi. However, one of the best ways to find fast wi-fi is by joining a co-working space.
These are shared office facilities, often found in major cities and digital nomad hubs like Bali. You can join for a low affordable fee, gaining access to meeting rooms, fast internet, printing facilities, and desk space.
Plus, they can be fantastic for networking purposes and can help you meet other remote workers.
5. Look for Countries Offering Digital Nomad Visas
If you want to travel internationally, you’ll need to think about visas—which aren’t always easy to come by.
However, some countries, like Estonia and Barbados, are welcoming remote workers with open arms by offering remote worker visas. This is to provide an incentive for remote workers to spend up to 12 months within the country.
It’s a win-win, as it allows workers the chance to live in a new country and the workers boost the economy, a huge benefit to the host country.
6. Travel with Portable Wi-Fi
One of our top tips to work remotely is to travel with your own wi-fi. You can’t always depend on public wi-fi, especially overseas.
Plus, free wi-fi is not always as secure as a private network, so you shouldn’t access sensitive sites like online banks via public wi-fi. Instead, log on with your own network.
It would also come in handy if your wi-fi ever goes out right before a big meeting.
7. Be Aware of Time Zones
If you’re working remotely, always keep an eye on the time zones in the countries where your clients are. The last thing you want to do is start a Zoom call or send an important email, right as the other person is signing offline for the weekend.
Showing awareness of the other person’s time zone always demonstrates that you’re professional and considerate, which your clients are sure to appreciate.
8. Keep in Touch with Everyone Back Home
Just because you’re overseas, you don’t want to lose touch with your connections back home. There’s plenty of options to connect with friends and family, but you also want to stay in touch with business contacts.
You never know when a new work opportunity could come along, so you want your professional contact to think of you for them, even though you’re traveling. Linkedin can be a useful tool for this.
9. Build Your Own Website
If you’re starting your own business as you work remotely, such as being a writer or a virtual assistant, you need to make it as easy as possible for people to find you.
The best way to do this is via your own website, optimized for SEO. Use it as an online portfolio to showcase your best work, and also include your rates and contact details.
If done well, your website can attract new clients and provide you with reliable income as you travel.
10. Travel Light
When becoming a digital nomad, one of our top tips is to travel light! Only bring what you really need, as traveling nonstop means constantly lugging your bag onto planes, trains, buses, and up staircases.
You can find laundry facilities anywhere, so you can wash your clothes as needed. Consider the climate of your next location and remember that you can always buy what you need on arrival.
Travel While Working with These Top Tips
Traveling while working can be an incredible way to see the world and free yourself from the 9-5 office lifestyle. If remote work is calling your name, use the tips above to develop a routine that works for you.
See the world, earn money, meet new people, and build your own business—what could be better? Get started today and start enjoying the benefits of working remotely.
Did you find this article helpful? If so, please check out some of our other content to learn more.