10 Quick Bites From Nomadico, the Weekly Newsletter for Working Travelers

I haven’t talked about this much on here, but I’m the editor of the Nomadico weekly newsletter on Substack.  It has grown from nothing when we launched it in 2022 to a round-up that serves 11,500 readers (so far) and actually makes a decent profit from advertisers.

If you’re a remote worker who likes to see new places, a location-independent business owner, or a traveler who makes money from the road, you’ll probably find Nomadico to be useful. 

The format is four quick bites each week, a running combination of gear and gadget tips, hard-learned advice from the road, my travel tips, and news for nomads. I’m including some samples below so you can see if this is something you’d enjoy. 

We also have an e-book that premium subscribers received free and I’ll be doing “office hours” with this group at the end of the year after I wrap up my current trip through Europe. The e-book is a compilation of items from the newsletter over the course of the first two years, evergreen ones that should keep being relevant for a while. You can buy the e-book here if you like having a lot of useful recommendations in one place. 

What’s the story behind this newsletter? It’s a rather long one, but the condensed version is that I got approached by one of my heros, Kevin Kelly, the futurist author, co-founder of Wired, and just generally interesting guy. It’s part of the Cool Tools collective, which also publishes Recomendo on Substack, an even bigger enterprise. 

Gear and Gadget Recommendations From Nomadico

I try not to carry more than I need when I’m on the road, but there are a few items that go with me on almost every trip. The longer the trip, the more I take because I’m going to need to sit down for some real work sessions. Thus the first two items here… 

Bluetooth Keyboard and Laptop Stand

Working on a laptop can be trouble for your posture, especially if you’re just using the laptop keyboard and looking down at the screen on a desk or table. So if I’m going to have a real work space along the way, like in an apartment, I bring along a Bluetooth folding keyboard and a laptop stand that folds up for traveling. You can find a lot of very similar ones on Amazon for both, like this tri-fold one with a touchpad and others on the page that are bi-fold without. I have a sturdy folding aluminum laptop stand that goes for well under $20 and my wife carries a lighter plastic one that’s even less. 

Multi-outlet European Adapter

If you’ve spent much time in Europe, you know that the hotels there have a lot of quirks that can drive you crazy, one of them being a shortage of outlets in hotel rooms. I’m getting around this on the current trip with a multi-outlet adapter that has enough options to charge everything the two of us are carrying with us, all via one of those single European outlets that’s the norm. Yes, I also have another one of these with a U.S. plug that can be adapter for other areas of the world. 

Money Pouch to Thwart Pickpockets

An oldie but goodie that I’ve used for my entire life now is a money pouch with a belt loop that goes under your pants. Sure, I back this up with Pickpocket Proof Pants sometimes and an actual money belt for some large bills, but this inexpensive money pouch is nearly impossible for any thief to get to without literally getting into your pants. You can also buy one that goes all the way around your waist (if you don’t wear a belt) or under your shirt.

Plastic Buckle Belt for Flight Days

Co-founder Kevin and I both swear by no-metal belts for airport days and we also like the fact that these military-style webbed ones don’t have holes either, so they fit precisely no matter what’s going on with your waistline. I’ve been using the same one for five years and it looks like new. There’s a stream of very similar ones on Amazon with Chinese names, but this brand has the highest ratings and you get two (of different colors) for under $20, with Prime shipping.

Travel Tips for Nomads and Remote Workers

As someone who has been location-independent full-time since 2006, I’ve got a pretty good sense about what laptop workers need to know when bopping around the world. So I’ll regularly share tips about saving money, having better experiences, and avoiding hassles. 

ATM Withdrawals Without Big Fees

People who travel a lot need to use ATMs a lot, especially when in countries that are still primarily cash societies. (Like where I live in Mexico, for instance.) Banks are out to get a piece of that action every time, which can really add up. The first step is to set up an account with a company that reimburses local ATM fees (Schwab, Fidelity, and to a point, Novo) or at least have one that doesn’t charge from their end, like Capital One 360 or Wise. Then shop around on machines if you do have to pay locally and always decline the conversion they offer—that’s a bank scam to take more of your money. 

Travel Docs on Your Phone

Whenever I take a long trip involving multiple countries, I end up with dozens of travel tickets and confirmations to keep track of between flights, ferries, trains, buses, hotel rooms, and apartment rentals. It never feels overwhelming though because I use the TripIt app (free) for all of the
confirmations that come by email and Dropbox (free and paid plans) for everything that’s a PDF or jpg. For the latter I just send them to a folder called “Travel Docs” and they’re always available on the phone. You can do the same with Google Drive or other cloud services, but be sure you have essential items like a copy of your passport available without an internet connection.

Use Your Home to Stay Somewhere Else

I’m about to spent 17 days in Budapest in a nice apartment and the two of are paying 40 euros for the entire stay—the cleaning free. That’s because we’re member of HomeExchange.com and we’ve got people in our house paying us with points. We’ve done direct exchanges with people in Mazatlan and Puerto Vallarta, points exchanges in places from Cody, Wyoming to Atlanta to a car-free island in Greece. (That was my office view from the Greek island house.) At this point our modest annual membership fee has saved us thousands of dollars in lodging costs. 

Knowledge and News for Frequent Travelers

Are you a know-it-all when it comes to travel? Chances are there are a lot of things you don’t know and a few you just haven’t heard about yet. Here are the kinds of tidbits that show up in your inbox each week in Nomadico. 

World Geography Misconceptions

Even the savviest world traveler will probably find a few beliefs upended in this beautiful Misconceptions world map presentation. A few that might blow your mind: 1) All of South Americavis east of Jacksonville, FL. 2) The northern coast of Africa is at roughly the same latitude as Norfolk, VA. 3) Rome is at roughly the same latitude as Minneapolis and Rome is straight over from Chicago. Here’s another article on the subject, with the factoid that 60% of Canadians live south of Seattle. 

The 90/10 Rule for Deciding Where to Live

This rubric from Art of Manliness is aimed more at people deciding where to live in their own country, especially parents, but it can be applied to nomadic types as well. The difference is that we nomads can back out easier if it doesn’t work out. This “rule” says you should give most of the decision weight to the things that will impact 90% of your waking hours, not the factors that you’ll only occasionally experience. So, for working travelers, good coffee, a good workspace, reasonable rent costs, and agreeable weather should probably win out over cultural events you’ll only attend once every few months.

Thailand’s Welcome Mat for Digital Nomads

I’ve been covering the various digital nomad visas countries have been rushing to announce since the dramatic rise in remote work, but most of them are only really applicable to people with salaried jobs, like tech engineers working for Silicon Valley companies. Thailand’s is a different story though. You can get a Destination Thailand Visa (DTV) that’s multi-entry for five years. You only have to leave the country once every 180 days, a huge improvement for the non-retirees. They’re reportedly processing applications in less than a week and the annual income requirement is much lower than most countries at 500,000 baht, currently around US$14K. 

Interested in joining me over at Nomadico? There’s a free tier, a premium tier, and the e-book you can buy here. Talk to you each Thursday!