How to Stay in Touch Overseas

Staying in touch overseas is easier than ever before: the Internet has made it possible to stay in touch no matter where you are in the world. There are heaps of different ways to stay in touch, but some of them are fairly expensive and somewhat out of date. Here are my personal favourite ways to stay in touch when I’m on the other side of the world to my friends and family:

Using my Smartphone:
When I went traveling the first time, I didn’t bother to take a phone. When my camera was stolen overseas, I replaced it with an iPhone. Although it was an expensive purchase, it was so valuable for keeping in touch. I could iMessage and Viber with friends who had a smartphone, for free. 

Email:
Although emails are a bit less personal than calling someone, they’re a great way of keeping in touch when you’re on opposite sides of the world. Because of time differences, communicating by phone can be kind of a hassle, especially trying to find times that work for both people. 

Using VoIP:
If you want to make cheap international calls from your phones to other phones, phone cards are no longer the best option. The Internet has changed the way many things work in the world, including international calling. You can even use VoIP to make cheap texts to any number around the world. This makes it super easy to stay in touch overseas. 

Buying a local sim:
If you make the mistake of accidentally using your phone overseas with your home sim card in it, you might end up racking up a substantial phone bill that will be a nasty welcome home present. Buying a local sim can be a great way to save money and can be really useful if you’re planning to stay in a foreign country for a few weeks or longer. It means that you can easily contact hotels, tuktuks and taxis, restaurants, and local friends. 

Snail Mail: 
Okay, by the time your mail arrives home, you’ll probably be in a new country already. Traditional mail isn’t the best option for keeping people up-to-date but they’re a really nice way to keep in touch with home and let your friends and family know that you’re really thinking of them. You can send photos of your trip, postcards, and small presents – anything you like. Although there’s a lot of convenience in communicating online, nothing can beat a personal letter in the mail.

Those are my favourite ways to stay in touch overseas. What’s yours? Do you have any tips for me?