The past 10 years I lived in a one bedroom apartment with close proximity to restaurants, cafés, grocery stores, shops, and public transportation, so standards were high in finding like accommodations on my travels. Add to it that I would be working remotely, so I would also require a dedicated workspace, and I had given myself a tall order.
I decided to prioritize “experience” over comfort, so I chose locations that were safe, but may not have access to some of the creature comforts I’ve come to enjoy. I wanted to stretch myself, giving some structure and planned stays, but leaving myself open to spontaneous trips as well. To do that, I did a combination of staying with friends, Airbnbs, hotels, and a new addition: house sitting.
Picking a location
- Identify what’s most important – For me, walkability, access to restaurants/coffee shops/stores, and a dedicated workspace were of utmost importance. If not all of these are available, determine where you’re willing to concede and which are vital to your physical and mental wellbeing.
- Accommodating Remote Work – Whether or not your chosen “home” has a dedicated workspace, sometimes it’s helpful to have a change of venue. My role is largely customer-facing, so I’m on the phone a lot and prefer not to have coffee shop brown noise in the background. Fortunately my company has a membership with co-working service, Spaces, allowing me to change up my perspective any day. Memberships aren’t required to enjoy a co-working facility, so consider purchasing a day pass and hop around the city’s various offerings.
- Walk Score – If walking, public transportation, and bikeability are priorities for you, like me, this handy site can help you gauge which city neighborhoods lean more towards your access priority.
- Yelp and Google Maps – When you’ve found a potential city/town/neighborhood, tap into public reviews to discover what’s close by. This helped me understand how accessible the area was, which restaurants, museums, stores, etc. I wanted to earmark, and which areas to avoid.
- YouTube – Realtors have been crafty in recent years creating videos of neighborhood walk throughs. Between those video searches and plain old Google Maps street view, you can get a sense of
- Ask friends – Lean into your network to understand different neighborhood vibes and locations they think could match your personality.
- Ask strangers – Yes, this can be a scary ask for introverts, but striking up conversations with people can be a wonderful way to learn about a place you’re visiting. This is often more relevant once you’ve arrived in your destination, but you never know who you’re going to meet and the advice/life experience they have. You may even make a new friend!
- Remember: This is temporary – The greatest gift I gave myself in this venture was the reminder that I chose this experience AND that I can choose to change it. There was one living situation that did not serve me well: I didn’t feel safe, the amenities were uncomfortable, and could tell I would spend more energy worrying about my living situation than if I cut my stay short. Like relationships, sometimes a break up is the best thing for your own wellbeing, and that’s ok. I stayed one night and found better accommodations the next day, and fortunately didn’t suffer a cancellation fee. Keep your mental and physical health at the top of the priority list and move onto something else if the current plans won’t work.
Housing Options
Whether you’re visiting for a week or a year, know what housing options appeal most to you and go for it! Some of my housing priorities in addition to location included the ability to cook for myself, a non-basement room, and preferably sharing the space with others (either as a co-housing or proximity to other guests). The following is not an exhaustive list of housing options, but they can help you get a sense of what resonates most for you.
- Friends and Family – The obvious go-to: you have a network at your upcoming destination, spend time with them! I ended up staying with family and friends for short stints during my trip, which gave me time to mentally and physically recover from more draining housing options, and for the price of a few nice meals and many thank you’s, it’s a very affordable R&R option.
- Hotels – I chose to stay in a few hotels when 1. I was staying somewhere for a short period of time, 2. I planned to mostly eat out, and 3. I wanted to be close to the action. Generally speaking they are the more expensive option, but sometimes you just have to treat yourself.
- Short-term housing rentals – Airbnb, Vacasa, and VRBO are the most popular short-term housing platforms, though I’m sure there are many more I haven’t used. I’ve found Airbnb has the fewest hidden fees in their pricing, so I opted for them over the others, also because they offer both whole spaces to rent as well as room shares. Don’t balk at the room share possibility. This has turned out to be a great way for me to meet locals with great must see/do recommendations, and also make new friends.
- Trusted Housesitters – Yes, I love to meet new people, and that love extends to dogs and cats as well. Trusted Housesitters has been a great housing alternative which offers me complementary lodging in exchange for taking care of the home owner’s pets. It offers me a chance to explore residential neighborhoods, an opportunity to meet new people, and – in some cases – make lasting friendships. Disclaimer: The referral link provided includes a 25% registration discount.
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