james_elkins1's travels on Nomad List

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18 Apr '16

25 Apr '16

25 Apr '16
18 Apr '16

New York City, NY

15°C

United States

15 Apr '16

18 Apr '16

18 Apr '16
15 Apr '16

Tokyo

18°C

Japan

18 Mar '16

28d

15 Apr '16

15 Apr '16
18 Mar '16

Ho Chi Minh City

33°C

Vietnam

3 Mar '16

7 Mar '16

7 Mar '16
3 Mar '16

Mexico City

24°C

Mexico

5 Feb '16

27d

3 Mar '16

3 Mar '16
5 Feb '16

San Francisco, CA

11°C

United States

🗯 Forum replies

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24k

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How to get SMS verifications for banks while traveling?

by @jackgopack | 6mo 6 months ago | 39 comments

Any suggestions for seamlessly receiving SMS Verifications from US financial institutions and other sites while traveling internationally continuously? Won’t keep my US Verizon account due to cost and currently plan to use local sims at each destination (T-Mobile and Project Fi are NOT an option as they terminate for continuous roaming). In summation, I won’t have a US mobile account.

Unless I’m missing something, which is very possible, this appears to be the single most complex issue I’ve encountered in my preparations, and one that no one addresses. I would greatly appreciate any possible solution that works 100% of the time. Can’t afford surprises in this regard. Many Thanks! Jack.

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24k

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✨ Recommended destinations

This is an algorithmic recommendation based on @james_elkins1's trips history to find places they haven't been to yet that other people with similar travels as them also went and liked.

Lisbon

Portugal

Lisbon is the next remote work hub of Europe. There's many reasons why I think that: 1) it already has somewhat of a startup/tech scene because of the annual Web Summit conference 2) which means internet is fast, and there's lots of meetups and it's easy to make friends 3) it's relatively affordable for foreigners compared to Spain and the rest of Europe 4) Portuguese people are super friendly, a lot more friendly than in the rest of the Mediterranean and Europe 5) Lisbon is ideal to go on day/w

⭐️ Overall Score

💵 Cost 😙 Affordable

📡 Internet 🏎 Fast

😀 Fun great

👮 Safety good

Tap to open

🌥 Feels 13° 55° 14° 57°AQI 29

$2,071 / mo

19Mbps

Berlin

Germany

Berlin is overall a great city to be. Food is cheap and everywhere, easy to go out and have fun/meet for business. Rent has crept up but still far better value than where I came from. Internet: 36 EUR/month get me 450/40 mbps (cable -> DOCSIS 3.0) Public transport is 2.70 EUR/ticket. No woman I know has said they felt unsafe. Some really odd, xenophobic sounding comments on here. Biggest downsides IMO: service quality at restaurants - not that people are rude, but they don't seem to particular

⭐️ Overall Score

💵 Cost 🧐 Pricey

📡 Internet 🏎 Fast

😀 Fun great

👮 Safety okay

Tap to open

🌦 Feels 6° 43° 8° 46°AQI 54

$3,061 / mo

33Mbps

Singapore

They say you get what you pay for. After having traveled the previous 4 months in India, Cambodia, VietNam, Myanmar and Thailand, Singapore was so easy! The subway system is a marvel, streets signs were easy to read, everyone speaks English (that just makes it easy for me as an English speaker) it is safe, clean, and parks are gorgeous. I was there as COVID 19 was breaking out fairly fast and that put a damper on my time but I was so happy to be there anyway and plan to go back. For digital

⭐️ Overall Score

💵 Cost 🙂 Okay

📡 Internet 🚀 Super fast

😀 Fun good

👮 Safety okay

Tap to open

🌥 Feels 36° 97° 29° 85°🥵AQI 43

$2,875 / mo

89Mbps

Barcelona

Spain

During winter is quite safe plus much cheaper. Some nightclubs are free and yet there is still a lot of people. Great por lgbtq+ community.

⭐️ Overall Score

💵 Cost 🙂 Okay

📡 Internet 🏎 Fast

😀 Fun great

👮 Safety okay

Tap to open

🌧 Feels 12° 54° 14° 57°AQI 38

$2,933 / mo

30Mbps

Chiang Mai

Thailand

Chiang Mai used to be N.1 for the digital nomad life. It is still great and you can find really cheap apartments (300-400$) and restaurants (2-3$ for a main). Wouldn't recommend staying there during the burning season. The best area is Nimman, but it's also the most expensive. You can stay in the old city that's very nice but that gets noisy during the weekend for the night markets. Last but not least, very safe city. All in all would go back in a heartbeat.

⭐️ Overall Score

💵 Cost 😙 Affordable

📡 Internet 🏎 Fast

😀 Fun good

👮 Safety good

Tap to open

☀️ Feels 29° 84° 28° 82°AQI 133😷

$1,111 / mo

19Mbps

Prague

Czechia

I visited Prague on more than one occasion and tried something new each time. I really wanted to enjoy it, but unfortunately it turned out to be one of my least favourite cities. Perhaps it was just me, but there was an overwhelming sense of distrust and dislike towards foreigners, you have to try pretty hard to blend in if you want to experience the life of a local & avoid the tourism. I met some wonderful people and and there’s some cool communities to be part of, but another extended stay

⭐️ Overall Score

💵 Cost 😙 Affordable

📡 Internet 🏎 Fast

😀 Fun great

👮 Safety okay

Tap to open

🌥 Feels 6° 43° 7° 44°AQI 14

$2,139 / mo

34Mbps

London

United Kingdom

London is a SO beautiful city. The historical center is cute, but also majestic and luxurious. You feel the culture at every step. British people are really kind and welcoming! Plus, more than just one, you can enjoy TWO skylines 😍 so many skyscrapers, nothing beats its collection in Europe.

⭐️ Overall Score

💵 Cost 🧐 Too expensive

📡 Internet 🏎 Fast

😀 Fun great

👮 Safety okay

Tap to open

☀️ Feels 5° 41° 6° 43°AQI 30

$4,126 / mo

19Mbps

Budapest

Hungary

I stayed here for a month in July last year. There's lots of cool aspects to the city but I hated it when I was there. The city has a problem with British stag parties, so if you look like you're a British male and speak English expect to be treated with disdain (it's fair enough) The Hungarians can just generally be unfriendly, especially bartenders. It's a weird experience waiting to be served while 3 people ignore you. Or buying the same drink and getting charged whatever they want (700-1500

⭐️ Overall Score

💵 Cost 😙 Affordable

📡 Internet 🏎 Fast

😀 Fun good

👮 Safety okay

Tap to open

🌧 Feels 10° 50° 11° 51°AQI 56

$1,547 / mo

38Mbps

🚩 Flags collected (4 of 276)

🌍 Top countries

United States

⭐️ Overall Score

💵 Cost 🧐 Pricey

📡 Internet 🏎 Fast

😀 Fun okay

👮 Safety very bad

Tap to open

🌥 Feels 7° 45° 8° 47°AQI 29

1mo

$3,216 / mo

42Mbps

Vietnam

⭐️ Overall Score

💵 Cost 😝 Cheap

📡 Internet 🏎 Fast

😀 Fun okay

👮 Safety okay

Tap to open

🌥 Feels 24° 74° 24° 74°AQI 129😷

28d

$992 / mo

11Mbps

Mexico

⭐️ Overall Score

💵 Cost 😙 Affordable

📡 Internet 🏎 Fast

😀 Fun okay

👮 Safety bad

Tap to open

☀️ Feels 24° 75° 24° 75°AQI 66

$1,440 / mo

11Mbps

Japan

⭐️ Overall Score

💵 Cost 🙂 Okay

📡 Internet 🏎 Fast

😀 Fun good

👮 Safety good

Tap to open

🌧 Feels 12° 54° 12° 54°AQI 29

$2,960 / mo

26Mbps

🛬 Most visits

San Francisco, CA

United States

I've been living in SF since 2014 and I have to say Cost of Living is misrepresented. It's a lot more expensive now (2020) than posted. 1-bdr in center is $3,500-$4,000 + $200-$300 for parking + $100-$200 for utilities. Almost impossible to find month-to-month rent, so this is for 1-year lease. Coffee for two + a pastry is easily $20. Dinner for two never less than $50, unless it's fast food (+20% tips are expected) and if you want actually something good it's at least $100 for two. Airbnb is $1

⭐️ Overall Score

💵 Cost 😳 Way too expensive

📡 Internet 🚀 Super fast

😀 Fun bad

👮 Safety very bad

Tap to open

🌧 Feels 10° 50° 11° 51°AQI 26

$5,580 / mo

72Mbps

Mexico City

Mexico

We stayed here for two months. This was an amazing experience. I plan to move back for a longer time. We came here from Los Angeles, we lived in Polanco and Roma, both great but I would recommend Roma as it has a younger crowd, a bit more active, and cheaper. Even with going out to dinner several times a week still found a hard to spend beyond $25 USD for a meal, even in more expensive neighborhoods like Polanco with amazing food around every corner!! It felt very safe and there were police

⭐️ Overall Score

💵 Cost 😙 Affordable

📡 Internet 🏎 Fast

😀 Fun good

👮 Safety bad

Tap to open

☀️ Feels 23° 73° 23° 73°AQI 76😷

$1,486 / mo

18Mbps

Ho Chi Minh City

Vietnam

It used to have a lot of character and charm but all the construction is making the city lose its culture. Apartments and accommodation are ridiculously expensive. 300 to 500 a month for tiny rooms in a shared house. For single guys go elsewhere. Women here are rude, ultra conservative and have flat personalities with nothing going for them. Food is okay but plenty of MSG and food safety is atrocious. In addition motorists are aggressive and plenty of accidents take place. Don't live here i

⭐️ Overall Score

💵 Cost 😝 Cheap

📡 Internet 🏎 Fast

😀 Fun good

👮 Safety okay

Tap to open

🌥 Feels 34° 93° 29° 83°🥵AQI 164😷

$985 / mo

19Mbps

Tokyo

Japan

Tokyo has so much to offer and so much to do. It is easily overwhelming. Whereas I usually take my first week to explore a place Tokyo’s sights just kept on going. I remember ending up in a hidden cocktail bar, a mexican rooftop party with 1 meter margaritas, spending a whole day going only to French places(?), visiting a store that only imported 2nd hand hiphop apparel, and throughout it all the best michelin star ramen. It just seemed endless, completely unrelated and incredibly fun. Six wee

⭐️ Overall Score

💵 Cost 🧐 Pricey

📡 Internet 🏎 Fast

😀 Fun great

👮 Safety good

Tap to open

☀️ Feels 14° 57° 14° 57°AQI 20

$3,397 / mo

29Mbps

New York City, NY

United States

Having spent a total of two weeks in London on two separate occasions and having lived in NYC for two years, both are among my favorite cities in the world. Londoners are quite internationally and ethnically diverse, and seemingly better educated and more intellectual than New Yorkers in aggregate. The city very clean with a stunning mix of modern and historic architecture, and arguably has Europe's best public transit in terms of signage, availability, cleanliness and general efficiency. Meanw

⭐️ Overall Score

💵 Cost 🧐 Too expensive

📡 Internet 🏎 Fast

😀 Fun great

👮 Safety very bad

Tap to open

☀️ Feels 1° 34° 4° 39°AQI 53

$4,636 / mo

32Mbps