10 Travel Essentials for Remote Workers on the Road: Easy Printable Packing List
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Having the ability to do your job from anywhere is GREAT – especially when it comes to travel. Your travel dates get more flexible, and you can opt to fly on the cheapest days or most efficient routes without having to worry about cutting into your PTO. You can sip margaritas on the beach while you half-listen during the zoom meeting. It all sounds good in theory…until you actually find yourself in the wet sand with no ergonomic table, no wifi, and no clue how to submit your timecard so you can get paid and cover the rest of your hotel bill….don’t worry. With these travel essentials for remote workers packing list – you’ll never find yourself unprepared again!
Well…
Don’t hold me to that. BUT it’ll get you on the right track for sure! During my blog post about traveling while working remotely, I asked the four expert panelists about their top recommendations for travel essentials for remote workers on the road. They had a lot of incredible suggestions, which I’m going to share with you below! Along with a few other useful items that I find helpful!
Let’s get into it, yuh?
Electronics
The breaddd and butter of travel essentials for remote workers. Literally, your entire job is made possible by electronics, so you just know this is going to be important! In general, lighter and faster is always better on the road, especially when you may be dealing with less than stellar internet connections and carrying things on your back through hectic airports. But that doesn’t mean you have to go out and buy all of the latest models of everything. Just…make sure you don’t forget any of these, or you may have to meet with your boss once you get back from your trip….
- Laptop: Obviously, you’re going to need to bring a laptop. Unlike traveling for fun when you don’t need to work, I would not recommend using a tablet. You’ll need the processing power and typing effeciency of a laptop. If you solely work from a desktop at home, I would HIGHLY recommend investing in a lightweight laptop that is easy to take on the road with you. Again, it doesn’t have to be the highest of high end models, but I would recommend one that has a relatively recent microprocessor (personally, I’d recommend Intel’s i7 chip or above).
- Chargers: Laptop chargers, phone chargers, smart watch chargers, the whole shabang. Even though you may be in a new destination, you ARE still working, so you’ll want to stay connected. Make sure you also grab an outlet adapter as well!
- Storage: Opt for either bringing an external hard drive or using cloud storage to back up your files. ANYTHING can happen while you’re traveling, including being caught in a downpour, an airline losing your luggage, your bags getting stolen, tech issues….it’s not fun. Never hurts to have a “just in case.”
- Noise-cancelling headphones: Emphasis on the NOISE CANCELLING. One of the fun parts of working while traveling is using co-working spaces! The not fun part of that is the distractions. Keep your head in the game with a good set of headphones, preferably wireless.
- Mouse: Yes. You’ll need a mouse. It doesn’t have to be specifically ergnomically designed, but you will want to make sure it is ergo-friendly for you! Your wrists will thank you later
Gear
In terms of gear, the following are all travel essentials for remote workers, but you definitely don’t have to worry about upgrading or buying anything high end. As long as it gets the job done, you can get creative with everything else. A lot of these items you will already have, so just make sure you remember to pack them with you on your next trip when you will be working.
- Backpack: Dora the Explorer had it right. It will be the backpack loaded up with things and knickknacks that you’ll need for your trip. You’ll just want to ensure that it has a padded laptop sleeve and preferably some separate pockets and spaces for better organization of your cords, headphones, hard drives…yeah basically everything in the electronics section. Alexandra recommends the Eastpak Tranzpack Backpack.
- Collapsable Laptop Riser: While most hotels and hostels will have desks you can work at, they don’t always perfectly adjust to accommodate your specific ergonomic needs. Especially if you have a job that is typing heavy, you’ll want to add a riser to your list of travel essentials for remote workers.
- Pocket WiFi: Y’all, this is especially crucial if you want to work out and about, or not have to worry about potentially slow internet connection at your lodging. Basically, I use my pocket WiFi like a router, and I pick up a local SIM card with unlimited data for cheap-cheap. That way, I have zero worries about my connectivity. I recommend using KeepGo!
- VPN: Depending on what you do for work, this could be a NECESSITYYY, but it’s also just good practice to use a VPN when sharing files and data for privacy and security.
Accessories
Where’s the fun in travel essentials for remote workers if there isn’t any razzle dazzle??? These accessories aren’t absolutely necessary for life – but they will make working from the road a lot more comfortable. You’ll be surprised what a big impact small luxuries have on your overall mood, productivity, and burnout control.
- Blue light glasses: If you’re prone to headaches, or even if you aren’t, protect your eyes and your mind in the long run by grabbing a pair of blue light glasses. They really do make a difference, plus there’s just something about adding them to your get-ready-for-work routine that is such a cherry on top.
- Portable ring light: For folks who have to do video calls, this will actually make you not hate showing your face on camera. Even without having to get dolled up, having a ring light attachment to either your phone or laptop will make you look and feel more confident.
Management
And finally, how to you keep your SANITY while traveling and working remotely?? Thankfully, we have resources that can help out in this department. There are a lot of apps and habits you can do that are travel essentials for remote workers.
- Wellness apps: This is so important for your mental well-being. Since you aren’t at home and not have your usual tools, having a portable form of them with you really helps. Personally, I like using a workout app (Blogilates & my local yoga studio has virtual classes), and Audible (I usually prefer reading physical books, but they’re impractical to travel with). Meditation apps like Calm and Headspace are also great!
- Organization app: For your own sake, pleaseee stay organized. Especially while you’re traveling, there will be a mix of work and sightseeing and you don’t want to miss your expensive tour because you forgot about a meeting…or vice versa. Just a few suggestions: Notion, Microsoft To Do, Jour, Calendly, Asana. I’d recommend trying them out BEFORE you travel to make sure they suite your workflow.
- Shared calendars: As much as we love to be offline for vacation…when you’re working remotely while traveling, that’s the literal opposite case. You want your colleagues to be extra informed of your availability to develop that trust and understanding in your schedule. I highly recommend using a shared calendar with your coworkers (and potentially boss) so they can see blocks of time during the day when you may be unreachable.
- Second point of contact arrangement: And on that note – if you are going to be unreachable for a period of time, make sure you secure a second point of contact so that questions doesn’t build up while you are gone.
Travel Essentials for Remote Workers: Conclusion
And yup! That’s it! And you can fit all of that in your carry-on! Hopefully this short list of travel essentials for remote workers has helped ease some hesitation about traveling while working remotely. I really want to give a special shoutout to the traveling while working remotely EXPERTS for their insight, and you should definitely check out the interview I did with them after. You can keep up with them on their websites below:
Sojourner from Sojournies
Erin from Pina Travels
Nora from Go Frame The World
Alexandra Kidd from Alexandra Kidd Travels
And that wraps up another post! Did I leave off any of your favorite travel essentials for remote workers? Drop your suggesties in the comments below!
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