So I’ve been nomadic for about 3 years now, and have developed a couple hacks/things that I like to do when I’m bouncing around from place to place. I wrote down this list for myself as a reminder and am sharing it in case anyone else finds the list useful.
Technology
- Future Flight Ticket for Forward Travel: used to get into countries, and to ship bags overseas. If you travel like me, you often don’t know where you are going to be tomorrow, let alone when you are leaving a particular country. To avoid planning, there are sites online to get you a flight ticket to show to travel authorities. Some of the sites just use photoshop to generate a fake flight ticket, while other sites pay for a flight ticket and cancel it on your behalf after a time period (different rates apply for 24-hour versus several-week periods)
- Incognito mode for booking flights (cheaper)
- VPN: allows access to geo-restricted content and keeps your personal information secure while using public Wi-Fi. I used it to access my sister’s HBO account in France (when they don’t have access to HBO Max) so I can watch “True Detective”
- Google Translate: communicate with locals, read menus, scan health ingredients on products. I once had a full 45-minute conversation with my Turkish taxi driver in Istanbul through the app
- Currency converter app: always good to stay up to date on local prices
- Ride-sharing apps: These can be a more affordable and convenient alternative to traditional taxi services. Every place has their own version. For example: the cheapest in Asia is usually Grab or Gojek
- Travel itinerary app: This will help you keep track of your flights, hotels, and other reservations in one place
- Flight tracking app: helps to stay informed about flight delays and gate changes
- Google Maps App: While in the US, Apple Maps may be more reliable, I find Google Maps to be much better abroad. A lot of my friends like MAPS.ME but I never really got into it.
- E-sim: Extra props to you if it’s a regional pass. (ex: for all of Europe, all of Asia) I use Airalo, and have been a big fan. Really nice to get off a flight/bus/train and immediately have access to the world on my phone without having to stop by a store. While my friends are frantically looking for a 7-Eleven and trying to figure out how to activate their phones, I’m already routing myself to the nearest bakery, listening to music, and swiping through the DAPPS to meet up with a local
- Travelers Insurance: important to have peace of mind when doing activities like surfing and skiing abroad. I have World Nomads, but other big players are SafetyWing and Allianz
Accommodation
- Booking Hostels with Free Cancelation: used during ski season and around other events like Octoberfest, when I wanted to have flexibility with schedules but not miss out on opportunities to stay in specific areas
- Analyze Hostelworld for looking at “how busy” hostels might be (I typically prefer hostels with more people)
- Before booking a stay, cross-check other accommodation sites like booking.com. There are often arbitrage opportunities across the sites with prices
- Note: You can always book the cheapest hostel, but party/hangout at the best one
- Helps to have or make a friend who is staying at the hostel, or if the hostel has a bar that you can buy a drink at
- When booking accommodation/hostels:
- Look at blogs online of the best places to stay
- Use the hostelworld app to see how many people have booked a specific place
- Create your own ranking system for the things you care about and how to weigh the decision
- Questions for the ranking system can include:
- Does it have laundry machines?
- AC?
- How many people are in the dorm room? Note: I personally like 4-8 people. I stayed in a dorm room once with 32 beds and decided that it will never be worth the 98 cents a night saved, instead of “splurging” for a smaller room
- How far from the city center? For most cities, I like being as close to city center as possible, but there are a couple of exceptions. E.g. in Rome I prefer the historic district, in Glasgow I prefer West Side, etc.
- Insert other things that you care about
General Tips / Tricks
- Bring a blender: used to make healthy smoothies and green drinks on the road. My friends and I would always travel with this when road-tripping, and whoever woke up first would make a smoothie for everyone
- Reimbursement for Delayed Baggage
- This can come through your credit card, Travel Insurance, or directly through the Airline itself
- I once received 450 euros for my bag being delayed a couple of days
- Use Starbucks / Mcdonalds for consistent wifi
- Centralize and Decentralize valuables
- Decentralize: Multiple credit/debit cards, but store them in different locations
- Centralize: On travel day, have everything important (for me, that’s my drone, credit cards, passport) in the same-day bag. Never check this bag and always keep it next to you
- When in expensive cities and looking for cheap meals, use:
- Bakeries. They are not just desert spots and often have paninis and sandwiches
- 7 Eleven / Spar / Tesco / Convenient store meals to go
- When going grocery shopping, look to see if there is an “International section/shelf.” I often look for this so I can buy peanut butter
- When in a city and craving to play music, walk into a music shop and “demo” guitars /pianos for free
- Use walking tours as an overview of the city, opportunity to meet new people, and ability to memorize obscure facts and be an intellectual. More on that here
- When entering a new city/place, immediately take a picture and tag your location on social media. You never know what friends / fellow travelers are in your area, and it’s always great to reconnect
Mitch's Blog 