Do you ever miss having a home or base?
Having lived as a digital nomad for 14 years, whenever I step into a hostel or meet other nomads, this simple question always floors me.
I have a complicated relationship with the idea of what home means. I guess having been born in England, moving to India at the age of 9, heading to Scotland for university at the age of 19 and then deciding to go fully nomadic in 2012, home is no longer a fixed place for me. It’s a feeling of connection.
I like to think I have not just one but several homes around the world where I feel happy and at ease. Lisbon. Athens. Vienna. Bangkok. Chiang Mai. Koh Lanta. Kolkata. Edinburgh. Madeira. Berlin.
Over the years I have developed a happy habit of returning to certain places. While the itch to explore new places is strong, with the constant travelling and intense lifestyle that nomads have, I have found great comfort in going back to the same spots.
It is like slipping into a pair of well worn shoes. You already know your way around the city, you have favourite haunts you are looking forward to revisiting, you know the language and the customs, you have a coworking space you like to work from, and you have a network of friends and contacts from previous trips that makes everything much easier than starting from scratch. Running a business from the road can be exhausting, and the fewer unknowns, the better you can focus your energy on the things that matter to you.
I’ve created a few rituals and ideas to give me a sense of home and connection wherever I travel. Here are my top 3 tips for you.
1. Stay at hostels
Rooted in the local community, hostels plug me into the DNA of a place. Great for meeting fellow solo travellers, and they usually have brilliant spaces to work from too.
Hostels I’d recommend for nomads: The Yard Hostel Bangkok and The Yard Hostel Chiang Mai, Circus Hostel Berlin, Next House Copenhagen, Sandeman Hostel and Suites Porto, Bogentrakt in Chur, Ostello Bello, YellowSquare, Zeus is Loose Thessaloniki, Hyve Basel, and Superbude Hamburg and Vienna. (Check out my guide to the best hostels for nomads.)
2. Invest in working from a good coworking space
The best coworking spaces feel like hostels: community, great places to work from and brilliant for connecting with creatives.
My favourites: Cowork Funchal, juggleHUB, St Oberholz, betahaus, Impact Hub Athens, Beet Community Palermo, KoHub Koh Lanta and Alt Coliving Chiang Mai.
3. Get into a routine
A few rituals and a routine give you structure on the road. Always start with a good cup of coffee. Aeropress is magic. The gym has become really important for us, and if there isn’t one nearby, a run or a walk along the beach works just as well. Cooking also brings a sense of home, so I carry a bag of Indian spices wherever I go.
And last but not least, a good travel adapter keeps you connected wherever you land. Our TESSAN Universal Travel Adapter, who kindly supported this video and our work, has been indispensable. If you are looking to reduce the number of adapters and lighten your backpack, then you should enter below our fantastic giveaway of 5 of the TESSAN Ultra Thin Universal Travel Adapter PD 20W. Equipped with 2 USB-C ports and 1 USB-A port, this adapter you can charge your smartphone, tablets, and accessories efficiently at airports, hotels, or cafes.
Note: Giveaway is only open to residents from UK, USA and Germany.
In the video below, I have tried to explain what home means to me and how the concept of “home” has evolved over the years.
What does home mean to you? Would love to hear your thoughts in the comments section below and good luck with entering our TESSAN giveaway!
