Intro:
Hello again, after a long time of not posting I thought I would do another post. This post is coming to you 1 year 4 months of travelling while working solely as an online teacher.
My husband and I have been an online teachers for almost 2 years now. With a company called Dada. For more information on how to get started check out my 2nd post called Getting Started. While no online company especially teaching English is perfect, we have now been 14 countries while just teaching online.
This post, however, is about choosing the best spot for online teaching. If you are planning on doing month stays, which you should to save money. Airbnb is your best option. However, as you know not all Airbnb’s are created equally. So after almost 1 and a half years of travelling here are your tips for picking the best Airbnb for online teachers.
Questions To Ask:
You found a cute apartment in a city you been dreaming of, why not book it? Well if only it were that easy. Being a long term traveller on a very tight budget,solely teaching online there are more than a few questions you need to ask before jumping into booking that cute new apartment.
- What are your upload and download speeds? One of the most important questions for an online teacher. The lowest I would take is download 10 upload 4.
- Is the main router located in the apartment and is it shared with anyone? Nothing is worse than getting to an apartment and finding out the main router is not in your apartment. We always travel with our own ethernet cables to connect right to the router for the most stable internet.
- Is the internet private and for our apartment only?
- Name of the internet provider? You always need proof when teaching online if you have to cancel classes last minute. Having the internet provider’s name to follow up with in case there are problems with your internet is always helpful.
- Is there any planned construction in the building or around the complex? You would not know how many times we have had to deal with random drilling of apartments. That means you have to cancel classes which can get you in a lot of trouble. Don’t risk it.
What’s Next?
You have sent the request and the host responded and you are ready to book. However, if online teaching is your only source of income, you will need to ask the host if she can block out the dates requested for you. Then you can pay a month before arrival. If you book a 28 day stay or longer you will get a monthly rate saving you sometimes around 3-500 US dollars!! That is a huge saving. Most hosts will kindly block out the dates if you explain your reasoning. Just remember to contact them back! As they can lose money for blocking the dates and not having them for other guests who can pay on the spot.
What To Look For In A Place:
I do not know your budget if you have savings you can go higher. However, for my husband and I both online teachers working 17 hours a week .We try to not pick an Airbnb for a month stay that is over 1,000$ USD. Even 1,000$ USD is cutting it quite close, but in Europe that is the highest, we will go. An average is about 5-900$ USD. This can be for anything from a studio to a 2 bedroom depending on the city or country.
One thing to remember is that in more expensive cities you will not be staying in the city centre. Even sometimes in places you wouldn’t think are expensive sometimes are. For us, this isn’t a problem we do not mind public transit.
We have been in a lot of teaching situations over our 1 year 4 months of travel. We have been through it all teaching in hotels, hostels, co-working, and Airbnb’s. We know that we have to be extremely picky in places we choose. So here is what we look for in addition to our mandatory work requirements.
- Location: Mega grocery store(We love Tesco Extra,Lidl and Morrison’s.Food is well priced and much cheaper than eating out), close to public transit and local neighborhood pubs.
- The Space: For two online teachers it is hard to find quiet spaces. Often one of us goes into the bathroom and the other teaches in the studio area. However, sometimes the doors are not thick enough or the place is too small and that makes it quite difficult to not hear the other teacher. In desperate situations one of us has taught outside or in the apartment hallways we have done it all! So for two teachers, I would recommend at least a 1 bedroom apartment if not two bedrooms.
- Inside Your Space: When you are staying in a place for 28 days or longer there are some must-haves to cut the costs. A good size fridge with freezer is necessary. This way you can feel like you are living at home do meal preps and of course, keep your costs low. A stove( or hob), and if your lucky an oven. For long term travel with no end date it is necessary to have these things to save money. Finally a washer huge perk if a dryer is included. Cooking your meals and washing your clothes gives you a nice routine while again saving you a load of money.
Closing:
If you are looking to take any digital nomad job on the road especially online teaching, I hope this post has helped you to find your perfect Airbnb. I start my search for my next country or city 2 months before I plan to stay then pay 1 month before. I hope this will inspire you all to travel the world and never look back. Live the only life you have to the fullest. Even if you don’t have a dollar in your pocket right now, you can still do it! With a tight budget and an online job, it is possible.
Thank you for reading.
-Vanessa
Never tried Airbnb before? You can receive 55.00$ USD off your first purchase. More reason to jump right into the travel teaching life. https://www.airbnb.co.uk/c/vsmall2?currency=USD
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