Must-Haves for Every Digital Nomad: Essentials for Working Remotely
/The digital nomad lifestyle strongly emphasizes and embraces a great sense of flexibility, but with that flexibility comes the personal responsibility of maintaining a productive working environment, regardless of where you are in the world. As someone who’s worked remotely for over four years and taken full advantage of the lifestyle by traveling and living in over 45 countries during that time, I’ve found that the below list of products, programs, and services are some of the most important things that have made my experience smooth.
1. Travel Rewards Credit Card with No Foreign Transaction Fees
For any frequent traveler, it’s essential to use a credit card that rewards your purchases with more travel, and doesn’t charge a foreign transaction fee. With most of my purchases either taking place abroad or with the goal of taking me abroad, I’ve been able to avoid annoying foreign transaction fees and have redeemed rewards for more travel with the Chase Sapphire Reserve credit card. There are a number of travel-specific credit cards that differ slightly in regard to their benefits and perks, and while I’ve had a great experience using the Chase Sapphire Reserve, I suggest you conduct your own research to determine which card program is best for your lifestyle, financial goals, and spending habits.
The Chase Sapphire Reserve provides a host of travel and entertainment-related benefits, four of which I mention in the next points.
2. Airport Lounge Membership
Having a quiet, comfortable place to rest, recharge, or be productive while transiting is essential for a frequent traveler. Airport lounges are exclusive areas that can be accessed by one of a few ways: by having airline status, by having a first or business class ticket, by purchasing a day-use pass, by having a program membership, or by having a specific credit card. The Points Guy published a detailed guide on which credit cards offer airport lounge perks, and since I personally use the Chase Sapphire Reserve card, I was awarded a Priority Pass Select Membership. You can also sign up for Priority Pass directly without needing a specific credit card, to have access to 1300+ airport lounges around the world.
I recommend: The Priority Pass Lounge Access Programme
3. Trusted Traveler Clearance Program
Anything to make airport travel smoother qualifies as a digital nomad must-have, and a Trusted Traveler Clearance Program is just that. Being eligible and accepted into a Trusted Traveler Clearance Program means shorter lines in security and faster processing in customs. Additional benefits for a program like TSA PreCheck include the convenience of not having to remove shoes or jackets or unpack your carry-on when going through airport security. You can visit the US Customs and Border Protection and US Transportation Security Administration websites to determine your eligibility and apply directly. Many travel rewards credit cards, including the Chase Sapphire Reserve, offer a benefit to reimburse for fees associated with Global Entry or TSA PreCheck programs.
I recommend: The Global Entry Program, which includes TSA PreCheck
4. Annual Travel Insurance Plan
Traveling continuously while maintaining a flexible schedule means that plans can change or be interrupted in a moment’s notice. Additionally, constantly booking travel reservations on various platforms or agencies or directly through specific vendors can make it complicated when adjustments to your schedule need to be made. One way to simplify the process or at least to minimize the risk of losing money is to have an annual travel insurance plan that covers all of your travels. Many travel rewards credit cards will offer a travel insurance benefit to some extent, but you can also purchase your own coverage directly through an insurance provider like Travel Guard.
I recommend: Travel Guard Annual Travel Insurance Plan
My remote work set-up at Sonder Atala Champs-Élysées in Paris, France
5. Travel Medical Insurance
Though it may not satisfy your home state’s requirements for maintaining a health care plan that would exempt you from a tax penalty, purchasing a travel medical insurance policy allows digital nomads to seek medical care and treatment while abroad, and is especially helpful during emergencies, while continually providing peace of mind. Some travel rewards credit cards also offer emergency medical coverage as a benefit, but a specific policy like the SafetyWing Nomad Insurance Policy also satisfies many countries’ requirements for documented health coverage in situations where a traveler is applying for a visa or traveling during a global health crisis.
I recommend: SafetyWing Nomad Insurance
6. VPN Service
Though my base is in the US, I spend most of my time traveling and working remotely from Europe and the Middle East. The most practical reason I subscribe to a VPN service is so I can access any banking accounts or financial or healthcare websites that only allow visitors and sign-ins from the US. For example, websites like my local California bank, my tele-health provider, and credit-score monitors require users to be in the US, or at least have a US IP address. Other more well-known reasons to subscribe to a VPN service include accessing streaming services or for privacy reasons.
I recommend: Atlas VPN Premium
7. Cloud Backup of Your Data
Subscribing to a service that automatically backs up your data to the cloud is an expense that is well worth it. Regularly and automatically backing up your work is an easy and convenient way to minimize an interruption if you had to replace your device and recover your data, regardless of where you are in the world. If you are an Apple user like me, the biggest benefit to subscribing to an iCloud plan is that it will store your data from all of your devices (computers, laptops, tablets, phones), including your photos, contacts, apps, settings, and documents.
I recommend: Apple iCloud
8. Physical Backup of Your Data
It’s also a good habit to regularly back up your data on an external hard drive to save important work in case something were to happen to your laptop while traveling and you become locked out and unable to access your cloud backup. Most external hard drives are compact and portable, and can easy be carried with you anywhere you travel.
I recommend: Seagate Portable 2TB External Hard Drive from Amazon
Working remotely On A train in Germany
9. Physical Backup of Your Device - or at least have a plan in place
You may find that it’s also helpful or beneficial to travel with a backup device to avoid a major interruption to your work in the even that something happens to your primary device. This is especially important if traveling to particularly remote destinations. It’s also good practice to know where the closest service center or electronics store is located in case you needed to take your device in for a repair or purchase a replacement. Having a plan in place (and savings set aside) will better prepare you if something were to happen to your laptop while abroad.
10. Global Wifi Device
If you travel extensively to various regions of the world, it may be worth it to invest in a global wifi device. Once you make the initial investment in the device, you can then purchase data packages specific to wherever you are traveling. The data packages can be considerably cheaper than roaming charges on a US-based mobile plan, and more reliable than the wifi connection provided at your destination.
I recommend: Sapphire Portable Hotspot
11. Noise-cancelling Wireless Earbuds
Digital nomads are constantly exposed to changing working environments, and even if you’re not particularly distracted by background noise, your focus may improve if you use noise-cancelling wireless earbuds like the Apple Airpods Pro. The design is compact and ultra-portable, and they are a useful tool to have on hand when creating your mobile office in a new destination or accommodation.
I recommend: Apple Airpods Pro from Amazon
12. External Power Banks
Keeping all of your electronics charged all the time is no easy feat, especially if you have a lot of them. For charging on the go or in remote destinations, it’s always helpful to travel with external power banks for both smaller (phone) and larger (laptop) devices. Though it’s not uncommon to be able to access a wall outlet wherever you may go, and despite the slight inconvenience of having to charge your charging devices, having an external power bank can be very useful if you find yourself in an emergency or a situation like an airplane power outlet being unexpectedly broken.
I recommend: The Anker Slim Power Bank (for phones) from Amazon and the Omni Laptop Power Bank from Amazon
13. Extension Cord and Travel Adapter
In my many years of traveling and working remotely, I’ve found that the single, most-important determining factor of a comfortable workstation is the ability to easily plug in your devices. Because a digital nomad’s workstation is constantly changing or continually has to be dismantled and reconfigured again, traveling with an extension cord is the easiest way to set up a comfortable workplace that will allow you to be productive. It’s also helpful to travel with extension cords to make up for a poorly-placed power outlet in a bedroom or somewhere you need access to your phone or alarm.
I recommend: A 2-Pack of 10 ft. 3-Outlet Extension Cords from Amazon and the TravelSmart All-in-One Outlet Adapter from Amazon
14. Cases to Organize and Protect Your Devices
Considering the sheer number of devices I’ve mentioned in this article alone, in addition to the other devices you may already be traveling with, it may become a little overwhelming to manage all of the cables, plugs, and cords needed to connect and charge them. A case that not only organizes your tech accessories but also protects them is essential to keep track and take care of your belongings while traveling.
I recommend: The Tech Organizer Travel Case from Amazon and the Laptop Sleeve Case from Amazon
Are you considering adopting a digital nomad lifestyle, or have been living it for some time? Leave a comment below to let me know if you found these tips to be helpful, and scroll through the below related articles for more!
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