Best Spots to Work while Traveling on the Road

Finding wifi as a digital nomad

Being a digital nomad is amazing, don't get me wrong. But finding a quiet place to work where you can still take video calls and have reliable wifi can be difficult. I've had meetings where no one could hear me because my microphone wasn't working, loud indie music in the background at coffee shops, and having to whisper in libraries while taking calls. It will never be perfect, but I have gradually learned these tips and tricks to find good places to work and avoid awkward calls on the road. 

Working locations

Libraries and community centers are your friend!

Although you can sometimes end up in a remote community, more often than not, there will at least be a county library within driving distance. Libraries are great because you can reserve study rooms to work in, have strong wifi, and almost an office-like feel of people getting their work done. Just be cautious when selecting your workspace. I tend to aim for more common areas where people are talking so I'm not blabbing in a quiet section. Also, there are tons of books and information to check out when you need a mental break or want to learn more about the community you are visiting.

Some towns also have community centers or a hybrid library/gym/community center, which can have great common areas to get work done.

Coffee Shops

Coffee shops are a no-brainer, but some ups and downs come with working from coffee shops.

• Pros:

  • Access to lots of coffee to help you get through a long workday.

  • There may be baked goods, sandwiches, and snacks to get you through the day.

  • Reliable wifi. Coffee shops almost always have reliable wifi and outlets to charge your devices so you can dig in for a long day of work.

• Cons:

  • Drinking too much coffee.

  • Background music: I am all for the quiet, chill coffee house music to add some mood, but when the radio or Top 100 Hits blares in the background, it can become pretty distracting on calls.

  • Distance of tables to coffee makers: This sounds weird, but there's nothing like the whirring of coffee machines going off when you're trying to make a point at work.

  • Getting bored by working and eating all the baked goods.

I will say Starbucks is a great reliable when looking for coffee shops to work out of, but personally, I look for local spots whenever I can. I find going to the local places allows you to experience more real life wherever you are, meet locals, and get recommendations of where to go next. Not to say it doesn't exist at Starbucks, but I prefer local.

Car

Bare with me… I know this is not ideal. But think of it this way. If you have a great wifi connection at a cafe or coffee shop but say they have loud 80's rock music playing in the background or they're constantly calling out names for coffee orders that won't fly when you have to take calls. So if the coffee shop wifi will reach your car, take the calls there! Think of it as your private conference room. Depending on what kind of car it is, you may or may not have lots of space. However, if you live out of your vehicle, you could even take calls from the comfort of your bed! There's also the option to be a real hobo and whip out your camp chair and table and work from the parking lot. Just beware of your laptop battery life. I don't have a Jackery or anything along that line (although I'd love one), so time your battery life right and go to your conference room (car) for calls and recharge in the coffee shop or wherever you are working.

Visitor Centers

I unintentionally ended up working at a Visitor's Center because I had to be in line to get a backpacking permit for the weekend. Honestly, it ended up working out well. I got strong wifi to do all my work and took calls from my cell phones, all right in the middle of a National Park! They also had plugs outside so I could keep my laptop charged. I question how it would've been later in the day as more visitors came in with background noise, but it worked out well for 5 am-8 am.

More to this story: You gotta do what you gotta do to get a permit. I woke up at 4 am, made coffee outside the visitor center doors with a jet boil, and you bet we got those permits. Sometimes it's awkward, but fake it until you make it to get the job done.

Places you need to run errands.

It's not ideal by any means, but sometimes you have to do laundry and don't want to spend a beautiful sunny afternoon sitting in the laundromat. So why not work and be productive? We do laundry while working from home, so why not work from somewhere else and get your chores done? This all depends on your ability to tune out background noise and focus on completing your work. 

Wifi

Phone Hotspot

Depending on your phone plan, phone hotspots can come in clutch! For example, if you need to quickly log onto your laptop to send some emails from a parking lot, the power goes out at your rental property, and a variety of other use cases, phone hotspots are great! Just check your phone data plan before entirely relying on this, and be prepared for your phone battery to drain more rapidly and the hotspot to potentially slow. I can attest to the power of the hotspot as I used it while working from the Big Texan parking lot when I had to pull over for a call on a long drive. Very glamorous, I know!

Dial in for calls

If you can have video off during work calls, dial in on your phone. If a presentation is shared or you need to screen share join the call for sharing purposes via your laptop while keeping audio dialed in on your cell. This way, you can ensure your audio will be strong, and you can still see the presentation and screen share if needed.

Starlink

While I have not personally tried Starlink, I have heard it is becoming a game changer for the digital nomad community. The speed is fast and reaches more remote areas than you may otherwise be able to link a hotspot or find wifi. If anyone has tried it, please share your thoughts!

Airbnb

If you're going the month-long Airbnb rental route, ask your host to run a report of their wifi speed ahead of time and share it with you. Airbnb is increasing the visibility into these details, but I haven't seen this on every page yet. Running this report will allow you to better understand whether you can get your work done where you're renting. There's nothing like renting a place and still having to go to a coffee shop to do work.

Schedule your meetings when you know you'll have good service. 

If I know I will stay in a hotel for the night, I'll try to schedule all my meetings for the following day. I know I will have a quiet location and strong wifi in my room, and upon checkout, I can continue working in the lobby or a coffee shop with fun music once I finish my calls.

In Conclusion

There is a lot of trial and error in figuring out what will work best for you, and that's okay! Try setting up Zoom or Teams calls with friends ahead of work calls. Set up your calendar so you can settle into your working location first without having to jump on meetings immediately. This will allow you time to test everything before your calls begin and switch places if needed. 

The biggest goal with working on the road is to ensure that people don't know you're working from a new location. As long as you are getting your job done at the end of the day, it shouldn't matter where you work from in the long run.