I have been living the so called nomad life since last 2 years which basically means i haven’t spent more than 2 months in a single country except India which is my home. And even when i was in India, i didn’t stay in one city for over a month.
Now, let’s get this straight, travelling full-time is fun, extreeeeemly fun actually, but it does comes at a cost. Now that cost could be monetory, emotional, physical or mental and since I didn’t want to travel like a hungry-hippie-wannabe-chic-traveller, i had to get my finances straight.
As you all know, i work out of my laptop full time. I haven’t gone to an office or reported to a boss in last 3 years. You could call me a freelancer, digital nomad or any other term that suits your fantasy. To read more about why i left my job go here
Although, its hard to summarise all of my experience in this article, but i will try to summarise some of the lessons i have learned over the years while travelling :
- Airbnb over Hotels : After staying in hundreads of hotels, i decided to try airbnb and never looked back. If you are staying long term. Getting an airbnb is way better as you feel at home and can get a studio apartment for almost as much as you pay for a decent hotel.
- Always eat light and carry indigestion meds : What is the most common disease travellers suffer from? Upset stomach/ diarrhea/ indigestion! Always carry some meds for these frequently occuring diseases. You don’t want to waste your trip, sitting inside a toilet, do you?
- Keep hydrated : Travelling full time is not easy and your body can get dehydrated really fast. Always arm yourself with a bottle of water wherever you go.
- Carry currency beforehand or take out all the currency once you land : ATM charges are really high when you take out currency from foreign ATMs (approximately $10 around the world) so its better to take out the cash all at once the first chance you get.
- Travel with light luggage : You might think you will need that golden party dress that makes you look like a king but trust me, you don’t. Try to travel as light as you can, carrying a huge luggage is a pain in the ass specially when you are moving a lot. I carry a backpack with laptop compartment and try to keep everything under 7 kgs.
- Try and make friends with locals : Visiting famous tourist spots is fun but you know what is more fun, going to that shady underground pub that’s nowhere on google maps and can’t be found in any city directory. You can only experience the full local living when you make friends with locals.
- Be friendly and always greet people with a smile : You might be having an emotional attack or serious relationship troubles but try to be friendly with other travellers and locals when you travel. Nobody likes a sad ass specially when they are travelling. Greet people with a smile, it’s simple but makes all the difference.
- Buy sim card when you land : Buying a sim card when you land is the best way to go if you plan to stay for over a week inside a country. The data and call charges are extremely cheap when you buy a local sim. Having an international sim card is cool but not cool when you paying an arm and leg for that.
- Always carry a diary or journal when you travel: Clicking pictures is good, but writing your thoughts is the best way to let your inner creative take control and relive the experiences.
- Carry a dual sim phone : Many times you would need to make financial transactions when you are in a foreign country. Having a dual sim phone comes handy when you need to verify a transaction by OTP received on your home sim card.
- Don’t be a cheap ass : Multiple times i have gone way overboard my travel budget just so that i can enjoy the experience fully. If you get a chance to visit an iconic place or a really luxurious restaurant or lounge, do it! It’s way cheaper than booking the flights again and coming to see only that one iconic place you missed last time.
I’ll keep adding and updating things to this list over time so as you to give you best advice while travelling.
Until next time!
