2020 halted your travel plans? Same here. After my Mexico trip, I was working really hard to get back out there. I even booked a plane ticket to my next destination in June when the first lockdown occurred. For folks who are aching to travel but are staying put until everything gets better, here are 4 tips to appease your wanderlust during the pandemic.

1. Learn a new language

   While you are staying put, practice a foreign language. Learning a foreign language is a great skill to acquire. You can even focus on a language that you will need to know for your next destination. During the first lockdown, I picked up Spanish again in preparation to travel to South America. If you don't know where to start, I wrote a blog post on How to Learn A Language in 30 Days. It's filled with a language learning plan, apps, and resources that helped me along the way.

2. Create your travel plan

   This is a great time to research places you would like to travel to and what it takes to get there. You may know want to travel to Australia but what's the best time to travel there? What's the weather going to be like? Do you want to explore a city or is a small coastal town your type? Going on sites like Nomad List, Trip Advisor, and Pinterest can help you create a travel plan so you can be ahead of the game when it's safe to travel.

3. Develop your financial strategy

   Especially for my folks who want to be a digital nomad or an expat, this is a great time to focus on your financial strategy. Use sites like The Earth Awaits and Numbeo to figure out your expenses and start a savings plan. Maybe start looking for remote side gigs like teaching or freelance so you can easily transition into full-time when you make the leap. Another stream of income that you can develop is your own location-independent business. Start it up and set goals that benefit your travel.

4. Connect with the online travel community

   Connecting with the travel community online can help you keep updated with certain countries, gain travel advice, as well as build friendships. The best place to connect for fellow travelers, nomads, and expats is on Facebook. There are tons of Facebook groups that cater to many kinds of travelers and places. For example, I am in Facebook groups for black travelers, queer travelers, fat nomads, travel content creators, as well as expats in specific countries/cities. A month before heading to Playa Del Carmen last year, I joined the Black Expats of Playa Del Carmen and Cancun Facebook Group. That group helped me adjust to my new environment and I was able to co-host a beach yoga meetup with a few members.

Those are the 4 things you can do when can’t travel right now. If you have any other ideas, please share them in the comments below.

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