piovella's travels on Nomad List

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1 Jun '18

4mo

30 Sep '18

30 Sep '18
1 Jun '18

Valencia

25°C

Spain

5 Apr '18

2mo

25 May '18

25 May '18
5 Apr '18

Puerto Vallarta

28°C

Mexico

15 Mar '18

21d

5 Apr '18

5 Apr '18
15 Mar '18

Mexico City

24°C

Mexico

3 Mar '18

5mo

31 Jul '18

31 Jul '18
3 Mar '18

Ko Pha Ngan

27°C

Thailand

3 Feb '18

28d

3 Mar '18

3 Mar '18
3 Feb '18

Canggu, Bali

30°C

Indonesia

14 Jan '18

2mo

15 Mar '18

15 Mar '18
14 Jan '18

Playa del Carmen

26°C

Mexico

2017

16 Dec '17

2mo

3 Feb '18

3 Feb '18
16 Dec '17

Ko Pha Ngan

25°C

Thailand

14 Nov '17

Hamilton

24°C

Bermuda

1 Jun '17

6mo

13 Nov '17

13 Nov '17
1 Jun '17

London

19°C

United Kingdom

20 Apr '17

1mo

31 May '17

31 May '17
20 Apr '17

Tel Aviv

21°C

Israel

5 Jan '17

1mo

6 Feb '17

6 Feb '17
5 Jan '17

Playa del Carmen

26°C

Mexico

2016

29 Dec '16

4 Jan '17

4 Jan '17
29 Dec '16

Miami Beach

United States

22 Dec '16

28 Dec '16

28 Dec '16
22 Dec '16

Key West, FL

25°C

United States

29 Nov '16

11d

10 Dec '16

10 Dec '16
29 Nov '16

Santiago

26°C

Chile

15 Nov '16

14d

29 Nov '16

29 Nov '16
15 Nov '16

La Paz Department

Bolivia

🗯 Forum topics

👍

726

👎

USD bank account

by @piovella | 3yr 3 years ago | 9 comments

Hey guys,

I’m in the beginning of my nomadic life. I currently have a UK account in GBP currency but most my clients pay me in USD either via Upwork or Transferwise. I was wondering if you know if there is a better way to deal with the fees?
I was looking at opening a USD account but the fees are ridiculous (I looked at HSBC).
Not sure if this is useful information but at the moment I’m still working as an independent freelancer. I haven’t set up a company yet as am looking for the best option for that.

Thanks

👍

726

👎

✨ Recommended destinations

This is an algorithmic recommendation based on @piovella'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

It's great if you're woke, young & artsy. If you're just a regular guy in your 30's with no connections, you'll have a miserable time. Especially during the pandemic. It's not inexpensive and you get offered cocaine every 200 meters in the city center.

⭐️ Overall Score

💵 Cost 😙 Affordable

📡 Internet 🏎 Fast

😀 Fun great

👮 Safety good

Tap to open

🌧 Feels 19° 66° 18° 65°AQI 45

$2,119 / mo

30Mbps

Bangkok

Thailand

Don't believe the prices on here for an apartment. 686 usd/month refers to an apartment in a high class condo, right in the city centre and seconds away from the BTS(train station). Just remember this, people working at supermarkets make 2 usd/per hour. If you want to live like a local, then you can save a lot of money. If you don't mind a 5-10 minute walk from the BTS, then you can easily get a one bedroom apartment for 300 USD per month, in a high class condo, plus with free golf cart ser

⭐️ Overall Score

💵 Cost 😙 Affordable

📡 Internet 🏎 Fast

😀 Fun good

👮 Safety good

Tap to open

🌧 Feels 45° 113° 32° 90°🥵AQI 58

$1,419 / mo

27Mbps

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 mediocre

Tap to open

🌥 Feels 7° 45° 8° 47°AQI 25

$3,005 / mo

34Mbps

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 40° 104° 31° 89°🥵AQI 81😷

$1,099 / mo

19Mbps

Barcelona

Spain

Lived in Barcelona for a year and a half. I would agree that the weather is perfect and Barcelona does have a great tech scene as well as food and has everything landscape and lifestyle wise that you could think of. Bureaucracy isn't too bad if you nip it in the bu** early and have patience. Also, some clubs are free. (Jamboree!). The metro is also, very efficient with red and purple being the busiest lines. Very walkable city too. Plenty of opportunity to meet people as well. The beaches are ok

⭐️ Overall Score

💵 Cost 🧐 Pricey

📡 Internet 🏎 Fast

😀 Fun great

👮 Safety mediocre

Tap to open

🌥 Feels 15° 59° 15° 60°AQI 26

$3,148 / mo

31Mbps

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 mediocre

Tap to open

🌥 Feels 40° 104° 31° 87°🥵AQI 60

$2,888 / mo

89Mbps

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 mediocre

Tap to open

🌤 Feels 6° 43° 7° 44°AQI 24

$2,222 / mo

36Mbps

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 mediocre

Tap to open

🌦 Feels 6° 43° 7° 45°AQI 36

$1,520 / mo

36Mbps

🚩 Flags collected (10 of 276)

🌍 Top countries

Thailand

⭐️ Overall Score

💵 Cost 😙 Affordable

📡 Internet 🏎 Fast

😀 Fun mediocre

👮 Safety good

Tap to open

🌧 Feels 41° 105° 30° 86°🥵AQI 64

7mo

$1,176 / mo

21Mbps

United Kingdom

⭐️ Overall Score

💵 Cost 🧐 Pricey

📡 Internet 🏎 Fast

😀 Fun mediocre

👮 Safety mediocre

Tap to open

🌥 Feels 9° 48° 9° 49°AQI 43

6mo

$3,895 / mo

27Mbps

Mexico

⭐️ Overall Score

💵 Cost 😙 Affordable

📡 Internet 🏎 Fast

😀 Fun mediocre

👮 Safety bad

Tap to open

🌥 Feels 28° 82° 28° 82°AQI 51

5mo

$1,508 / mo

14Mbps

Spain

⭐️ Overall Score

💵 Cost 🙂 Okay

📡 Internet 🏎 Fast

😀 Fun good

👮 Safety mediocre

Tap to open

🌧 Feels 18° 64° 17° 62°AQI 32

4mo

$2,822 / mo

31Mbps

Israel

⭐️ Overall Score

💵 Cost 🧐 Too expensive

📡 Internet 🏎 Fast

😀 Fun mediocre

👮 Safety very bad

Tap to open

☀️ Feels 21° 70° 20° 68°AQI 69

1mo

$4,545 / mo

15Mbps

Indonesia

⭐️ Overall Score

💵 Cost 😝 Cheap

📡 Internet 🙂 Good

😀 Fun mediocre

👮 Safety good

Tap to open

🌧 Feels 37° 99° 30° 85°🥵AQI 44

28d

$809 / mo

10Mbps

Bolivia

⭐️ Overall Score

💵 Cost 😙 Affordable

📡 Internet 😡 Slow

😀 Fun mediocre

👮 Safety bad

Tap to open

🌥 Feels 19° 66° 19° 66°AQI 51

14d

$1,960 / mo

5Mbps

United States

⭐️ Overall Score

💵 Cost 🧐 Pricey

📡 Internet 🏎 Fast

😀 Fun mediocre

👮 Safety very bad

Tap to open

🌥 Feels 17° 63° 16° 61°AQI 34

12d

$3,192 / mo

45Mbps

🛬 Most visits

Playa del Carmen

Mexico

Love living here! This was my 3rd foreign country and the first that both myself and my husband got to figure out together. I highly recommend getting a bike while you're here and immediately signing up for a coworking space (I use bunker coworking). Not all places have great wifi and you have to be specific on the upload/download speed that you require when contacting hosts with questions. Avoid tourist traps. Do not rent a place off of 5th Ave or 10th Ave unless you are in Playacar or way off

⭐️ Overall Score

💵 Cost 😙 Affordable

📡 Internet 🏎 Fast

😀 Fun great

👮 Safety bad

Tap to open

🌤 Feels 40° 104° 30° 85°🥵AQI 18

$1,459 / mo

13Mbps

Ko Pha Ngan

Thailand

I have been staying on this island for about 2 years, and would like to remind everybody something : working remotely is illegal in Thailand, and can get you in serious troubles if you do any kind of work without a work permit. There has been in the past reported cases of arrests in so called "co-working spaces". I think it is only a fair warning to people who plan to come here and hang in co-working spaces. 2 years ago koh phangan did not have a good rating on nomad list, not much as changed si

⭐️ Overall Score

💵 Cost 😙 Affordable

📡 Internet 🏎 Fast

😀 Fun good

👮 Safety good

Tap to open

🌧 Feels 31° 88° 27° 81°🥵AQI 66

$1,170 / mo

21Mbps

Santiago

Chile

Maybe I’m a bit unfair here, but Santiago is so... boring. People don’t look so happy and aren’t welcoming, city has nothing special, currency with so many zeros is hard to get used... didn’t have a bad time, but it wasn’t great either. Just dull. Maybe I’m wrong and in a long term it worth it, but it lacks authenticity and don’t even compare to other cities in Latin America such as Mexico City or even Buenos Aires, both cheaper and funnier.

⭐️ Overall Score

💵 Cost 😙 Affordable

📡 Internet 🏎 Fast

😀 Fun bad

👮 Safety mediocre

Tap to open

☀️ Feels 25° 77° 25° 77°AQI 79😷

$1,529 / mo

12Mbps

Key West, FL

United States

⭐️ Overall Score

💵 Cost 😳 Way too expensive

📡 Internet 🏎 Fast

😀 Fun great

👮 Safety very bad

Tap to open

☀️ Feels 29° 84° 27° 81°AQI 34

$8,098 / mo

38Mbps

Tel Aviv

Israel

One of my favourite places to visit. Best vegetarian food in the world.

⭐️ Overall Score

💵 Cost 😳 Way too expensive

📡 Internet 🏎 Fast

😀 Fun good

👮 Safety very bad

Tap to open

☀️ Feels 21° 70° 20° 69°AQI 119😷

$5,398 / mo

15Mbps

London

United Kingdom

How did you guys classified Penge as rich? It is one of the worst neighbourhood I have ever been in London, the ammount of people I know that have been robbed there is appalling.

⭐️ Overall Score

💵 Cost 🧐 Too expensive

📡 Internet 🏎 Fast

😀 Fun great

👮 Safety mediocre

Tap to open

🌥 Feels 9° 48° 9° 49°AQI 16

$4,222 / mo

23Mbps

Canggu, Bali

Indonesia

Bali is amazing, but Canggu isn't really that great -- actually there are SO MANY better places, like Uluwatu, Gili Islands or even Ubud that I can't understand the hype. As almost everyone said below, beaches are crappy, roads are terrible, sidewalks are non-existent and having a motorbike is a must. On the other side, food is great and cafes are pretty reasonable with all those incredible bowls. Anyway I wouldn't recommend it for more than a week.

⭐️ Overall Score

💵 Cost 😙 Affordable

📡 Internet 🏎 Fast

😀 Fun good

👮 Safety good

Tap to open

🌥 Feels 37° 99° 30° 86°🥵AQI 44

$1,336 / mo

23Mbps

Mexico City

Mexico

If you stay in Roma or Polanco you'll be fine. Mexico City was a little too chaotic for my taste, but also had some really beautiful and cool neighborhoods and a must visit if you find yourself in the middle of Mexico. Uber runs here so that makes it easy to get around. It can be as cheap or expensive as you want it to be, a decent hostel will run you $15 - $20/night. I cook many of my meals and prefer to splurge at nice restaurants a few nights a week vs eating at cheap places for every meal

⭐️ Overall Score

💵 Cost 😙 Affordable

📡 Internet 🏎 Fast

😀 Fun good

👮 Safety bad

Tap to open

🌥 Feels 24° 75° 24° 76°AQI 59

$1,486 / mo

20Mbps

🛌 Most time spent

Ko Pha Ngan

Thailand

⭐️ Overall Score

💵 Cost 😙 Affordable

📡 Internet 🏎 Fast

😀 Fun good

👮 Safety good

Tap to open

🌧 Feels 31° 88° 27° 81°🥵AQI 66

7mo

$1,170 / mo

21Mbps

London

United Kingdom

How did you guys classified Penge as rich? It is one of the worst neighbourhood I have ever been in London, the ammount of people I know that have been robbed there is appalling.

⭐️ Overall Score

💵 Cost 🧐 Too expensive

📡 Internet 🏎 Fast

😀 Fun great

👮 Safety mediocre

Tap to open

🌥 Feels 9° 48° 9° 49°AQI 16

6mo

$4,222 / mo

23Mbps

Valencia

Spain

I spent 8 days in Valencia with my boyfriend for new years. We really enjoyed it honestly. We found the city quite walkable, even though it's relatively big, very bike-friendly, felt super safe riding around. Didn't find the public transport to be bad at all, but then again we come from a capital with much shittier public transport. Food is affordable, there's tons of cafes and restaurants everywhere (they were constantly full though). My biggest issue was that barely anyone speaks any English,

⭐️ Overall Score

💵 Cost 😙 Affordable

📡 Internet 🏎 Fast

😀 Fun good

👮 Safety mediocre

Tap to open

🌤 Feels 17° 63° 16° 62°AQI 29

4mo

$2,455 / mo

33Mbps

Playa del Carmen

Mexico

⭐️ Overall Score

💵 Cost 😙 Affordable

📡 Internet 🏎 Fast

😀 Fun great

👮 Safety bad

Tap to open

🌤 Feels 40° 104° 30° 85°🥵AQI 18

3mo

$1,459 / mo

13Mbps

Puerto Vallarta

Mexico

For the most part, pretty amazing. The beaches are usually not overcrowded, and the natural scenery is pristine. It's very walkable, and there are tons of great restaurants on nearly every block with reasonable prices. I came in mid-November, and it was still uncomfortably warm and humid then, even at night, so beware if you struggle with heat. The evenings started to get cool and pleasant in late November/early December. This is Mexico, so I was expecting it to be gritty, but it was worse tha

⭐️ Overall Score

💵 Cost 😙 Affordable

📡 Internet 🏎 Fast

😀 Fun mediocre

👮 Safety mediocre

Tap to open

🌥 Feels 29° 84° 27° 81°AQI 60

2mo

$1,782 / mo

23Mbps