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This is a paid partnership article with Three, a mobile phone supplier in the UK as part of their Phones Are Good Campaign. Find more information at the end of the article.

I’m now entering my 5th year as a travel blogger, and in that time (and before that) I’ve spent a lot of time on the road. Whether that’s visiting family and friends back in the UK and Italy, press trips, or our own independent travels, Enrico and I have become experts at living a nomadic lifestyle!

So I thought I would share our tips for life on the road, and the ways we manage to keep connected during these extended travels.

Tips For a Nomadic Lifestyle

Staying Connected

One of the hardest things about living in Australia, and about travel, in general, is being away from family. It was a huge decision for me to move to Australia, and even though I’m lucky enough to have my sister here, I really miss my parents and friends at home. Enrico feels the same, especially now he has a young niece in London who is changing and developing every day.

So our most important travel device is undoubtedly our phone. Despite having been in Australia for over three years now, I still have a UK phone and sim card as well as an Australian one. The simple reason for this is because it helps me stay connected.

Whenever we are outside of Australia I switch back to my Three sim. I love that with Go Roam I can use my phone and data in over 70 countries, without any additional charges.  This was especially helpful last year, when Enrico and I travelled for 9 months across the globe, our longest stint living a nomadic life!

My sister thinks it’s funny that I won’t give up my UK sim, but I’ve yet to find a better travel alternative! It means we can continue to WhatsApp and call our families daily, keep on top of our friend’s news, and of course share our own, without having to spend a fortune on data.

Minimalist Packing

My second tip is one that I find extremely difficult to stick to – packing light! It’s been a good learning experience for me to realise that I really don’t need that many clothes or things while travelling. We put all our stuff in storage while we travelled last year, and I didn’t miss any of it. In fact, I couldn’t believe how much stuff we had when I got back, and I’m still missing the minimalist life now that we moved into a new house.

A smaller bag means its easier to carry, fewer things to lose (which I do a lot), and less stress on buses, trains and planes. Enrico is a dedicated list maker, and now I do the same. Working out exactly what I need before a trip and making sure I don’t pack extra.

Mental and Physical Health

It’s really easy to treat long term travel as a holiday, and I tend to get into bad habits pretty quickly; not exercising, drinking too much alcohol and not enough water, and not taking care of my mental and physical health. It’s important to create your own routine in a life where there isn’t one. Now when I’m travelling I try to do yoga in my room, or go for a run, limit my alcohol intake and ensure I drink my 2 litres of water a day. If we are staying somewhere with a beach or a pool, then I try and take advantage of that and go for a swim, and if I’m feeling a bit stressed or anxious, then I have a meditation app on my phone which helps me relax.

Finance and Money

As with health, it’s easy to get into that holiday mentality when it comes to finances on the road. Enrico has far greater self-control than me when it comes to shopping and buying food, but it’s something I’ve definitely improved on. I make my own coffee at home, which I can’t usually do when travelling, so it is very tempting to buy a coffee, which soon adds up. To combat this, we have a spreadsheet, with a daily budget based on our location (a day spent in Mexico will not cost the same as a day spent in Finland – so it’s best to be realistic!). Once we have spent our daily allowance, we don’t go over it, and it means we know we won’t run out of money before our trip ends.

Travelling Slowly

One of our biggest learnings from taking a long trip was that we needed to allow ourselves time. It’s easy to cram in destinations and rush through places, but we soon realised that we were burning out and not really enjoying or experiencing the places. Then I’d be rushing madly to write articles on the plane to the next place. Once we slowed down and allowed ourselves time to enjoy a place fully and to do work before moving on, we had a much better experience.

So there you have it! My tips for a nomadic lifestyle and life on the road. Hopefully, they help with your own travel planning, and please feel free to leave your travel lifestyle tips in the comments below.

This is a paid partnership article with Three, a mobile phone supplier in the UK as part of their Phones Are Good Campaign. Three believe that phones have been getting too hard a time recently. Far from bringing the end to humanity, they think they bring people together. Think about it. These pocket rockets help us plan our social life, find love, build relations, run businesses and make memories. They also keep us connected on the go, including 71 destinations worldwide with Three’s Go Roam proposition. As part of the paid article, Three asked me to share my personal experiences on why phones are good. These opinions, stories and images are my own.