Traveling on a long-term basis is an amazing privilege in life. You get to go wherever you want, living and working along the way, making so many new friends and memories. However, you always have a home to go back to no matter how far away you are – what a great way to live!
But staying in touch with home while you’re away can get a bit tough here and there. Signal can get spotty, messages can have trouble getting through, and you can go for days without hearing the voices of your loved ones. And that’s what this post is here to help you with; staying in touch doesn’t have to be as hard as it might sometimes seem. Here are some of the best ways to maintain contact while you’re away.
Pack the Right Items
The first thing to do is pack the right communication equipment before you go. Namely, a wifi hotspot and/or dongle you can use to access the internet at all times. Most of the messages we send are via a wifi signal these days, and when you’re deep in the wilderness and there’s no bars on your phone, plugging this in will save you.
You can also get such equipment quite cheap; check out this list of the best portable wifi devices. The next time you head off, you can travel easy knowing you’ll always be able to get in touch with the people who love and care the most.
Write a Blog
Writing a travel blog is a great way to maintain consistent contact; you’ve got a publishing schedule you’re following and your friends, family, and even fans can subscribe to stay up to date.
Plus, travel blogging is simply a lot of fun! You can write all about your experiences, tell stories like the adventurers of old, and make sure those funny photos go a long way to illustrate what’s going on.
Get yourself a domain name, set up with a website builder that’ll also host for you, and get writing as often as you like. Everytime you head out you can come back again and tell the world what went on. Include some inside jokes for maximum effect!
Keep On with Family Gaming Night
If you’re traveling with a laptop in your bag, and your family has a game night tradition, you can still join in! Even though you’re thousands of miles away and can’t move a monopoly piece yourself, you can use video apps to continue taking part.
And if you think the logistics are a little complicated, this is a good way to have a weekly check in without constantly needing to be on your phone and updating your parents on where you are now. You can even still game while you’re on a trip!
If you love playing a round or two with your friends, you can have a quick session every now and then in the hotel when you’re winding down. If it’s been a long, hot day with plenty of walking, a half hour on an MMORPG you all love will go down a treat! Check out how to change steam region before you go to make sure you can access your account no matter where you are in the world.
Try Out Snail Mail
Snail mail, or as we should call it, ‘the post’, is a true tried and tested method of communicating. We don’t tend to send much in the way of letters these days, but they go down a treat when you’ve been on an adventure!
Even if you’ve got no signal or your phone battery is low, you can buy a postcard or a notepad and pen from a nearby shop and send your loved ones a letter in the mail. And receiving such a letter is a very exciting time!
You can pretend you’re an intrepid explorer venturing into parts unknown, and your loved ones will really appreciate you taking the time to put so much effort in. Send a letter, scribble on the back of a postcard, and your family and friends will get weekly updates on how much fun you’re having.
If you want friends and relatives to always know what you’re doing on vacation, use many different methods to stay in touch with them. A phone signal can prevent a message going through without you even noticing, so make sure you pack wifi enabled equipment and consider sending a postcard or two!
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