It is not always easy to stay in touch with friends and family while traveling. You could be gone for a long time and you don’t want to miss out on the important milestones in your family’s life. If you’re backpacking, you might find it challenging to find somewhere with reliable Wi-Fi. Which begs the question, how do you stay in touch with friends and family when you’re traveling abroad? We live in a digital age where there are countless ways to stay in touch even if you’re thousands of miles away. You could be backpacking and you can’t afford to stay in expensive hotels where there is internet connectivity throughout. Here are some tips that could come in handy if you want to keep in touch with your family while traveling abroad.
Send Postcards
Postcards might be old school, but they still get the job done when you want to send a personal message. You can use them together with fun gifts which provide a personal touch to the communication process. Technology has revolutionized the way postcards are being sent. There are apps where you can customize the postcards and have them sent to your desired address once you’re done.
Get a Local SIM
It will be much cheaper if you can get a local SIM card instead of roaming with your home country’s line. When you’re far away from home, you need to get your hands on the best tools to communicate. You will have to make calls on a regular basis to check in on how they’re doing. You might have come across some people promoting international SIM cards. In most instances, such cards are slow and might not be effective for the communication process. There are apps that perform better than SIM cards. There are also apps that give your SIM card additional features. You can stock up and make calls cheaply. You don’t have to change your SIM card when there is a solution for mobile recharge.
If you will be gone for a long while, the best solution would be to get a local SIM. You can also buy a cheap phone which you will use to make the calls.
Just Call Home
If you want to stay in touch with your loved ones, all you have to do is to make a call whenever possible. There are hundreds of applications that will help you with the calling process. Even if you can’t find somewhere with stable internet, you can call using your local plan. Your family is more important than roaming traffic and there is joy and satisfaction that comes from hearing the voice of a loved one. International communities are making laws which will prohibit phone carriers from charging exorbitant prices for roaming services.
Start a Blog
This could be a good idea if you will be staying abroad for a while and you only get to see your loved ones a few times in a year. It can be a little tiring exchanging emails on a regular basis with friends. There is a common notion that emails are meant to be used for official purposes and not communicating with friends and family when you’re in another continent. Starting a blog is not as hard as people think. There are hundreds of tutorials on how to start a blog. You can update the blog on your experiences in the new country. Your family and friends will be your first readers. Don’t be surprised if you start gaining readership because of the consistency and personal stories that you post on the blog.
Make Use of Apps
Smartphones have made communication a lot easier. The world has become a global village and there is no excuse why you shouldn’t be able to communicate with your loved ones. It should be noted that not all apps are created equal. It is imperative to check all the features so that you can highlight the ones that you’ll need. An app might not have all the features that you need. There are so many apps in the market and you may need more than one to meets all your needs.
To sum it up, technology will be your friend if you want to stay in touch with friends and family when you’re abroad. Most cafes will have internet access and you can use the chance to reach out to your loved ones when you’re traveling. There is always a solution if you look hard enough.
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