Finding a good work-life balance is always challenging and it becomes even trickier once travel is involved. This is especially true if it's an international trip or if you're a full-time traveler.

I've been working remotely since the beginning of my writing career and have worked abroad in over a dozen countries across three continents.

Based on my own experience and what I’ve learned from others, below are five tips on how to balance work and travel.

Tip #1: Stay at Locations Longer

If you’re jumping from city to city every few days, you’ll never have enough time to both do what you want as a tourist and get work done. You can't take just a day trip and expect both to see everything you want and get a full day's work in.

Plus, you’re spending a lot of time in transit. Even during non-work vacation time travel, I don’t move around that fast! Slow travel is always preferable.

When I traveled around Europe while doing remote work, I spent six to seven days in each city. That much time is around my minimum. In other places, I’ve stayed much longer. The amount of time varies, but the point is that day trips (or a few days) won't cut it.

Take longer trips to give yourself enough time in a location so you can breathe and not feel guilty whether you’re working, sightseeing, or relaxing. As a bonus, short-term rentals often give you a discount for staying a bit longer.

For example, many Airbnb hosts have discounts set up that trigger if you’re staying at least a week or a month. Weekly discounts frequently range between 5% to 20%. Play with dates to see if staying somewhere an extra day or two makes your daily price more affordable.

Obviously, there's a price difference between staying in a location in Central America, compared to somewhere like Copenhagen (which I've been to and consider pricy).

If you want to visit a costly location, consider taking vacation time for a shorter trip. Just because you can work remotely doesn't mean every journey has to be a work trip.

Tip #2: Blur the Lines Between Work & Fun

While this isn’t necessarily the best tip for every single day, try working in some fun spots that remind you you’re traveling.

For example, in Krakow, Poland, I wrote in a cat cafe on one of my workdays. There aren’t any of those near where I live my normal life, so while I was getting work done, it was still a treat to have a special coffee drink and glance up at the cats roaming around.

Japan is on my travel list and dominates having fun animal cafes. They have ones with owls, hedgehogs, penguins, bunnies, micro pigs, goats, and more.

If I do a business trip to Japan, I’ll hit up some of these fun cafes to do remote work. If animals aren’t your thing, you can try other fun, themed cafes that are different from the ones near you.

Coworking spaces can also be an excellent place to mix work with socialization when you're working remotely.

Each coworking space has its own vibe, but it’s not uncommon for people to work hard and then go out to eat or drink with other people from the space.

You get to converse with both other people on business trips and locals who work at the space and can give you recommendations about their own city.

One of the coolest coworking spaces I’ve worked at when traveling abroad is The Dojo in Bali, Indonesia. With its open floor plan showing lush, tropical plants, I’d never forget I was in Bali. If I return to Bali, I'll definitely work there again on my next trip.

My view working at The Dojo in Bali, Indonesia

Tip #3: Work During Transport

I absolutely love working in airport lounges. They’re usually quiet (definitely quieter than outside the lounge), have easy access to charging outlets, and free food.

I’m much more productive working in a lounge than in any other part of a noisy airport. Were it not possible to get work done at the airport, that time spent in them would feel wasted.

Whenever possible, work remotely while transporting yourself. If you have a lot to get done, opt to do some on a plane, rather than watch that in-flight movie.

Provided you have reception and it’s a safe area, respond to some emails on your phone during your Uber ride instead of staring at the window.

While I can’t personally vouch for the experience (yet!), many people enjoy taking trains between cities when it’s a route with stunning views and reliable Wifi. That way, you’re both working and taking in unseen landscapes.

Tip #4: Plan Ahead Work & Sightseeing Days

You don’t need to have everything 100% scheduled out ahead of time, but make sure to do some planning so you don’t miss anything important.

For example, in many cities, everything shuts down a lot earlier than you might expect. Museums are frequently closed on Mondays. If you're doing long weekends to different cities, find out if it's better to take off Fridays or Mondays.

Check the open hours ahead of time for any activity you absolutely want to do. For outdoor activities, check the weather.

You don’t want to work all day on a Sunday to get ahead just to realize on Monday the museum you wanted to see is closed or that you can’t go on a hike because it's raining.

The same goes for work as well. If you see an important deadline looming, try to finish it ahead of time.

You don’t want to be stuck working to complete a project last minute and have to turn down a fun event you didn’t know was happening. It’ll help if you have some extra time built in, as mentioned in Tip #1.

Tip #5: Make Your Job Flexible

This tip is much easier for some people than others. I’m freelance, so I choose how much I want to work and when to get that work done. If you’re a freelancer who travels frequently (or wants to!), consider this when choosing clients.

Is it worth working with a client who pays slightly above your average rate, but doesn’t respect your boundaries of not always being available for calls and video chats? Only you can answer that question.

If you have a full-time job, consider asking your boss if you can adjust your hours.

In a city that closes early, it could benefit you to shift your workday a few hours later or take an extended lunch and then work later into the night. Since you're a full-time employee, your boss might say your hours are fixed, but it’s worth asking.

Work Hard, Travel Far

In your search for balance, know that it’s okay for the scale to occasionally tip more in one direction than the other. Unfortunately, there is no perfect balance formula to follow all the time.

If working vacations are infrequent for you, tip the scale towards the sightseeing side and consider having at least some time where you unplug entirely.

If you’re a digital nomad who is always on the move, consider having a home base and "normal life" or revisiting a place you’ve already gone. That will take the pressure off of constantly doing activities and allow you to focus more deeply on your work.

“Balance is not something you find; it’s something you create.” - Author & Business Coach Jana Kingsford

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How to Balance Remote Work and Travel