This content was created by Girlboss in partnership with Airalo.
We all know at least one jet-setting woman on our Instagram feed who seems to be in a new city every week: hotspotting from a café in Lisbon, answering emails from a rooftop pool in Buenos Aires, and rubbing elbows with Sweden’s coolest tech entrepreneurs at Soho House Stockholm. You know her, you love her, you wanna be her!
The digital nomad lifestyle looks effortlessly glamorous when you’re scrolling at 1 a.m., but the reality is a lot messier: spotty WiFi right before a super important meeting, living out of a suitcase, and figuring out laundry instructions in a language you don't speak.
In our Digital Nomad Diaries series, we interviewed seven globe-trotting women who have actually lived this lifestyle (and have unforgettable stories to boot). We compiled their best tips, tools, and lessons into one work-from-anywhere survival guide.
Here's everything you need to know before you book your flight.
📶 Connectivity: Your Non-Negotiable
Nothing kills the remote work dream faster than unreliable WiFi.
Francesca Morfini, a marketing and PR consultant who's worked from Italy, Greece, Jordan, and beyond, learned this the hard way in Mexico, where “topping up phone plans to tether my computer to my phone when WiFi isn't working" was one of her highest unexpected costs, she says.
Ellie Malone, a PR consultant who's worked from three continents, has an even more dramatic story: "Wandering around Puerto Escondido for hours trying to find any sort of working WiFi for a very important new biz call," she recalls.
This is exactly the kind of logistical headache Airalo is designed to solve. Instead of hunting for WiFi or racking up $15/day roaming fees, an Airalo eSIM connects you to local, high-speed data the second you land—in over 200 countries and regions. Save 15% with code GIRLBOSS.
Pro Tip: Download offline maps and screenshot your accommodation address before you land, and set up your eSIM the night before you fly so it's ready to go the second you touch down.
💻 Your Work Setup
When your desk is constantly changing (a wobbly café table one day to an airport gate seat the next), you need a few reliable basics that will help you get as close to a home office as possible.
Pack a lightweight, foldable laptop stand and a compact wireless mouse—small additions that make a huge difference for your neck and wrists during long work sessions. A universal travel adapter with both USB-C and USB-A ports is also non-negotiable.
And of course, a great setup doesn't mean much if your connection drops mid-meeting. With an Airalo eSIM already installed and ready to go, you've got one less variable to troubleshoot when your "office" changes every few weeks—just steady, local-speed data, wherever your desk happens to be that day.
Pro Tip: Anais Cisneros, co-founder of Amela, the largest private network for entrepreneurial women in Latam and Europe, prioritizes booking housing with a home office built in. And Dayana Aleksandrova, a copywriter and mindset coach, travels with her own Nespresso machine, because good coffee (a.k.a. her go-to productivity ritual) isn't always guaranteed on the road.
👗 What to Wear
Packing light is a skill, and most seasoned nomads will tell you it takes practice (and lots of trial and error).
Malone learned to pack the essentials, then budget for a few new pieces along the way: "Not having my closet is really tough on me, and I get really sick of my clothes," she admits. So leave a little room in your suitcase for a spontaneous shopping trip abroad (because we all know it sounds way cooler saying, “Oh this? I got it from a little thrift store in Japan.”)
Shilpa Iyengar, CEO of sustainable shoe brand Alterre, has felt the flip side of overpacking firsthand—oversized suitcases mean bigger car rentals, pricier rideshares, and extra baggage fees at check-in.
Pro Tip: Stick to a capsule wardrobe in two or three coordinating colors, prioritize wrinkle-resistant fabrics (look for merino wool, ponte knit, and jersey knit, and avoid linen, 100% cotton, and rayon/viscose), and always pack one polished outfit—like your favorite blazer and statement earrings—for last-minute video calls.
🕐 Time Zone & Calendar Tools
Don't choose a destination solely based on how perfectly it fits your team's hours back home—instead, focus on building a schedule you can stick to, wherever you land.
Managing time zones is less about picking the "perfect" destination (Bali is the dream in theory, but it means midnight meetings with your EST colleagues, so know thyself!) and more about building a system that works.
Morfini batches all her calls on Tuesdays and Thursdays to keep other evenings free, and calls Google Calendar's multiple time zone view "a godsend."
Aleksandrova takes it a step further, working in increments around the clock—three hours for her Asia-based team in the early morning, a long break, then an afternoon block for the U.S.
Malone has learned to protect her personal time just as fiercely: she reserves two nights a week for U.S.-hours meetings and turns off Slack and email notifications in the evening on the rest.
Pro Tip: Set a world clock widget on your phone's home screen, and always include the time zone abbreviation (not just the time) when scheduling with people across regions via email or Slack. World Time Buddy is also a great free tool for visually comparing multiple time zones at once when you're trying to find a meeting slot that works for everyone.
💳 Money & Logistics
The costs of remote work are rarely what you’d expect them to be.
Now, entrepreneur Rhowena Adolfo Patel never travels without travel health insurance after her back gave out in Sicily, leading to $1,200 in appointments. She was fully reimbursed but only because she was covered. Aleksandrova wasn't as lucky: she was hit with a $500 ER bill in Tenerife after skipping a global health plan.
And Malone warns about the pricey "check-in at the gate" fees on South American budget airlines, which can tack on an unexpected $30 charge if you forget to check in online.
Morfini advises on pulling cash before every trip specifically to avoid overlooked credit card fees, and books flights as far in advance as possible to lean on points and credit card perks (still, flights remain her single highest expense).
For longer stays, Braelinn Frank, founder of press-on nail brand Rave Nailz, swears by home-swapping platforms like Kindred to keep accommodation costs down—her subscription runs about $50 a month, plus a cleaning fee per stay, which is often far cheaper than a hotel or short-term rental.
One cost that is a no-brainer to budget in advance, rather than paying for on the fly: connectivity. An Airalo eSIM can be purchased ahead of time and stays valid for 365 days, so you can lock in your data plan today (with 15% off using code GIRLBOSS) and activate it whenever your next trip is booked. So long, $15/day roaming charges!
Pro Tip: Get a no-foreign-transaction-fee card before you leave, keep a small stash of local cash on hand, and photograph your passport and important documents as a backup in the cloud.
🕯️ Comforts From Home
You could be in the chicest apartment with a postcard-perfect view out your balcony window, but it’s still not your home.
Morfini has learned to bring her comforts with her instead of leaving them behind: "I've created habits that I take with me anywhere," she says, pointing to meditating, journaling, and movement (running, climbing, hiking, yoga) as her must-haves.
Cisneros takes a similar approach, relying on ClassPass for finding workouts and BetterHelp for therapy to recreate a sense of routine no matter where she lands.
Pro Tip: A comforting candle, a familiar scent, your childhood stuffed animal, or even a physical travel journal to brain-dump when the homesickness kicks in can make an unfamiliar Airbnb feel like home in a few minutes.
Ready to work from anywhere? Skip the $15/day roaming fees and get your Airalo eSIM today (it’s available in 200+ countries and regions and connects the second you land). Plus, save 15% with code GIRLBOSS—it stays valid for 365 days, so you can grab it now and activate whenever your next trip is officially booked.
