After signing up for a 3-year cruise last year (didn’t happen), these were two of the pain points. This video is great. Your explanations would have eliminated the pain. The third major issue was medical insurance. I know you have this figured out too. Your videos are treasures. -Elizabeth
I cannot remember if it was this video or another, but your tips on eSIMs as well as travel “things” has been so helpful! I got the shampoo bar, the eye mask, the TSA travel pouches (one of which I use for electronics), and I can’t believe how much easier travel is. But the best info was about eSIMs. Just went to a conference in Kenya, and having the eSIM ready to go so I could connect my phone as soon as I landed…priceless information. Thank you!
After over two years of travel and plenty of headaches, we finally got with the times and started using it. It is a game-changer!! Thank you for all the support, Ted!! Cheers!!🍻
Physical SIMs at the airport work unless you get in when the phone stores are closed. We got into Taiwan at 5AM and the stores were not open for a couple hours and we had a ride arranged that left earlier. At least in 2018, the Taiwan carriers had special traveler deals only at the airport with unlimited everything for cheaper than their stores.
Used Airalo for worldwide data recently. Stopped working 2 days in and spent a considerable amount of time and hotel WiFi to get it to work. Airalo finally replaced it, but without hotel wifi, I would have remained unconnected when out of WiFi range. I also use a VPN on my phone too.
Great vlog as usual, guys. I've had the same P.O. Box for 30-plus years and at the same main post office. A sibling has the extra key to my box. I actually got a P.O. Box due to both being a renter until I became a residence owner, and also being away overseas on long vacations. By being a renter, I never had to do a change-of-address form when I moved as my mail wasn't affected. Although I'm a residence owner, I still have the P.O. Box as some things I have sent to it. Plus, when I meet people overseas, and I meet a lot of people, I don't give them my home address. If they ask for both an e-mail address and a physical address, I give them the P.O. Box one as I can always be contacted there if all else fails. People do sometimes change their e-mail addresses and then contact is lost. And everyone doesn't do Facebook. I don't do it. A lot of folks that I know still like to occasionally send a card or handwritten note, etc. I'd rather my mail be locked in a P.O. Box than sitting in my parent's unlocked home mailbox. Plus, sometimes while I am away, my parent and sibling are also away for a while, but have the postal service hold the delivery of their mail. Since I used to be gone the longest period of time, when the parent and/or sibling was/were home again, then the sibling would pick up my mail from the P.O. Box and keep it for me at our parent's house where the sibling lives. Or if the parent and sibling were at home the whole time while I was away, then the sibling would pick up my P.O. Box mail weekly. I have a longtime friend who is from here, but can be gone for many months on end, either on long overseas vacations or to other states and uses both online bill-paying and also has a P.O. Box . He has no mail go to his residence. He's owned the same residence for a good three decades. Greetings from Los Angeles
We traveled/lived in our motorhome during semi-retirement for over a decade & leveraged that circumstance to claim residency in a more favorable state (South Dakota vs Illinois) and manage our mail (& transient shipments) with a PMB (personal mail box, deemed a PHYSICAL ADDRESS by the USPS as well as UPS, FedEx, etc.) that affords many advantages over as traditional PO Box ... we were very satisfied with the range of services offered by America's Mailbox (Box Elder, SD).
Again guys you are hitting on the areas that people are most interested in. For me, the US based solution for phones with e-sim, and the google voice I am not sure is valid for a Canadian. But still it is good for me to understand about purchasing sims at the airport and save the hassles later. Your experiences are very valuable. Cheers to both!
Great video! The info in your videos has been simply wonderful and we’re so excited about our slow travel journey starting next year. I retire in November at 60 and my wife is 53. Your videos have really helped us in planning now. We would like to be as prepared as possible for pulling-the-pin next January! Thank you!
So happy you are finding our videos helpful. You must be so excited for launch time to come. We hope our content continues too guide in your planning. Cheers!!
Got a little anxious watching this one, realizing all we need to do before we begin traveling full time. Doing a check list and making sure we follow these tips. We are not very tech savvy so we’ll take our time learning all of it. Thank you
Thank you for your time and posting. I did a lot of homework when I moved to Australia in 1989 (before the internet). That really helped, but like everyone, I made some mistakes. Like taking my huge stereo with me. Yes, different electrical power. :( But retired now, have no real family, and don't own much (I just moved to Las Vegas and put everything I own into my Honda Accord. Thank you again.
An advantage to a USPS mail hold or mail forward vs having someone pick up your mail is that a huge % of junk mail will NOT be held or forwarded... but it all goes in a mailbox.
I must say this is TOP NOTCH information thanks so much for this video! We’re leaving for Asia/Oceania in May and these topics I’ve thought about but you’ve given an action plan!!!
So happy you found it helpful. We love being to share what we've learned, through trial and error, in hopes of helping others in their planning process. Cheers!!
We sold everything in our old hometown and started traveling 7 years ago. I set up a mail service at that time and it's been great. They may now have the capability of sending it electronically but haven't used it. I am using up my last few months and will close it out as I started changing the address to our home address here in Oregon where we bought a house. Just want to make sure I've changed everything and I already paid the for the service. I used a smaller mail service which had been open for 25 years at that time. It was a lot more reasonable than than bigger, well known mail services. Kathleen
Hey, you two, I'm really diggin' all your recent videos. Great job! One question I have is that when you do online banking from whatever country you are visiting, do you select a VPN server located in the US, Washington State for example, or do you select a VPN server located in the country where you are currently traveling? I thought you would have to select a VPN server in the US, but Brian mentioned he was trying to let the bank know he was in Albania, so I'm just not clear on how this works. Again, great job! Keep 'em coming!
For trips more than 10 days. If you use your phone plan international plan, call them in advance. Instead of $10 per day you can pay $100 for the month.
We use a family members address for this as well as some other important documents. Often government agencies will require a physical address, but this is also something that can vary by the state you are in. Sorry, wish I had a for sure answer.
Excellent information. I kept thinking that I should see if our mailbox had gotten virtual mail and it did. I will get it in play tomorrow. Also, I lost a cell phone in Mexico last year and forgot about transferring the VPN to the new phone and that is taken care of also. Sometimes we get so busy planning where to next, things get lost in the shuffle. After 9 years of full time traveling, you would think we would have our act together.
USPS now offers Informed Delivery. Once registered they will send a scanned image of the outside of your mail, and email the image to you. I have a PO box, and this service saves me time as I only go to the box when I get important mail. Not as good as your mail service, but it is something that some may find helpful.
I am enjoying these podcast, you are very good commnicators. I have a question about taxes, if you are more that 1/2 of the year outside USA, and you dont have a main residence. How you file taxes?
Really enjoying your podcast and youtube channel !!!! So informative and takes the stress out of going on adventures to the unknown. Thank you !!!!! Happy travels and looking forward to future videos and podcast.
Thank you so much! I had been looking at e-sims and had been think that it would be the way to go. The pricing on the one in your link is cheaper than the one that I found last year. I hadn’t seen the virtual mailbox… but that is perfect! There is a place right by around the corner from my house. I am going to go talk to them owners and crew. If I like them, I might set the service up now. Gives me a chance to test them before I hit the road. This is great stuff! Can’t wait to see episode 2 next week. I have started downsizing… but still have a long ways to go.
eSIM tip: If a phone can do eSIM, it can probably do more than one. I use a Pixel 7 which can do 2 eSIMs and 1 SIM card. I'm with T-Mobile. I called and they moved my SIM card to the eSIM at no cost (you can do it yourself but I let them). That lets me always have my T-Mobile SIM and then I can get a SIM card for when I want a local number, which has come in handy several times. Also, while T-Mobile may not tbe the cheapest, as I'm over 55 I get a discount and their plans provide 5 GB of international high speed data per month. When I arrive in a new country I get a message of welcome and instantly have data with no eSIM or SIM card to buy in 215 countries.
Just found you recently. Nice videos. Does google voice allow forward to international numbers? Is that how it works? How does Txt messaging work? Finally, do you have a carrier in the US or just use the same eSIM service?
We are 7 months a year travelers and use a PO Box for our mail that has as a service known as “informed delivery”. The service provides a daily email with a scan of the front of the envelops, except for oversized mail. Similar to the service mentioned in the video. We can alert our friends and family to open and scan any important items. Agree the PO Box is expensive, ($250 a year) but we got it mainly for security and convenience reasons while we are home five months a year. Mail box break-in are not that uncommon. We did go through our mail after our last trip and cancelled everything we could applied to be taken off all lists. We still get loads junk mail. Constant battle.
Hi, I love your podcast! Im not from the USA, but your tips and how you do things helps guide me to search for similar things in my country, which has been great. Do you use credit cards or your bank card (own money)? Do you use frequent flyer points or something similar for air travel? Have you considered using backpacks instead of wheeled carry on? Thanks for sharing and I'm looking forward to the next video. ❤Zeljka
Hi! We use credit cards as well as bank cards for ATM. We've downsized a lot, but going to a backpack only would not be possible with all our gear for TH-cam. Plus, we learned we are getting a bit old to have heavy packs on our back all day. Cheers!!
Brian and Carrie, this was a super helpful video! I watched it during my 2 hour wait at the TMobile store.😖😩 I learned that my iPhone as NOT unlocked like I thought it was... which meant I could not use Airalo overseas. Huge bummer! After dozens of hours with TMobile customer service.... it appears my phone is unlockable! 🤬🤬🤬
Hello my dears, it is always a pleasure to watch your videos. I come from Germany myself but am a native Romanian. I've traveled a lot in Europe but what you've achieved is unbelievable. My full attention for you. Finally, how did you like Europe? Was that okay? .I hope that when my wife is here, you will like it too. It's not California but I think it's okay. I wish you all the best, good health and much success in your life and thank you so much for your fascinating video. With great love from Germany Eddie 👋👋.
Thank you so much for the kind words, Eduard. We have had a great time in Europe. We moved too fast through Czech Republic, Poland and Germany to really get the real experience so we will need to return sometime soon and stay longer. Thank you again!!
Thank you both for these great videos. They are inspiring to get out and see the world. Can you point me to a video of available on how you handle medical insurance.
You're very welcome, so happy you are finding them helpful. We will be covering medical insurance options, as well as much more in next Saturdays video. Cheers!!
I really enjoy your podcast (and videos) lots of great info! I don’t know if you talked about it, but for a first time travel to Europe what would be a good country to visit? Thanks! 💞
We would recommend Portugal. You can usually fly into Lisbon from the east coast. English is spoken in most of the world to get by, but you won't have any problems at all in Portugal. Thank you so much for watching, Anna!❤
Another great video. I love your content!! It’s like you are reading my mind half the time. Regarding the local SIMs, are you getting data only or a local number? Assuming data only, how do you make local calls? How would you call “911”? Thank you.
These videos are very helpful. Thanks. 👍 Have you thought about making a mind map chart as a guide? 📊🧠 I think that's the name for it.🤔 I would call it more like a fantasy football league and team map with lists of things to do before the draft😮😉🏈💻
Your podcasts are very helpful. Great to get all this information in one place. We are about 18 months away from starting the lifestyle you are on. We have a mail service identified. But how did you stop all the junk email? Don’t want that cluttering up our mail service!
This is a great video! Thank you! How do you deal with jury duty summons if you get one and out of the country? Is it better to just cancel our driver’s license to avoid jury duty if we travel full time? How about filing for state taxes? I know we still have to file for federal. Thank you.
We wouldn't cancel our license. If we were to get jury duty summons we will just deal with it at that time. If we can't be back home, we would just send in letting them know we are out of country.
Hi guys! we are looking at the esim solution you mentioned here. Can you use your Apple watch with the esim? are there any limitations? is it considered a standalone device? thanks for any info.
Thank you for all you do. Great information as always. Did you have to re-enroll in text alerts with your existing banks in the US when you switched your cell phone number to google voice? I heard that text alerts enrollment has to be done again when switching cell plan providers even if you keep the same phone number. Thanks
VPN is always necessary, so you do need that. You can use the phone service you already have and get overseas coverage through them. It will cost more but is convenient. Thank you for watching!! Cheers!!🍻
This is a great video…thanks! We are in Mexico long-term. Our phones are with T-Mobile. I have Nordvpn on the tv. If I put it on my laptop and phone, will T-Mobile think I am in the US and not eventually shut us down? If so, will two stage authorization work as if I was in the US?
Love your videos! I used to Airalo when traveling overseas, but keep my ATT plan. I can switch back and forth between, but do not receive text messages on my ATT number. How do you do the two-step authentication via text? Or do you solely use Google Authentication?
I have a Google Voice account… when traveling internationally, calls to and from the states with Google Voice are not international calls? What about calls within the country you’re in? Are these international calls? BTW… I tried Airelo on a trip to Paris and Marrakech… as you said, very easy Greg
Being the calls and texts through Google voice are over WiFi, they are just done through the app, not over a cell service plan. So we can be anywhere in the world and contact home. Where there would be a issue is trying to contact someone outside the States. For those calls you will need a local for that area sim card.
Do either of you wear contact lenses and, if so, have you bought them overseas? I'm wondering if I should load up while I have insurance in the US (the $150 allowance doesn't go far) or is it cheaper to just pay out of pocket in certain countries.
We just spent three months in France. While I had Google Voice set up, I’d forgotten to make sure all accounts had that number for 2FA. I like the VPN solution, but need clarity. You’re in Albania and the institution sends 2FA. Did you have the VPN connected to the US on the computer but not the phone - was that the problem? Are you suggesting keep both devices connected to the US at all times? Thanks.
Americans should this rule of thumb for keeping their US cell phone plan: Are you home less than 90 days? Keep your US provider and adopt an international plan Are you gone more than 90 days? Get your phone unlocked and use Google Fi / Voice and Airalo. American cell providers won't/can't extend your service more than 3 months.
What do you do with your u s phone plan While using e sim and google phone ? Do you take it down to the bare minimum necessary to keep it activated? Our att plan is $80 each! Def dont want to,pay for that while slow traveling! And I assume you keep yiur U S sim card safe to re install it when u get back in the states? Thanks!
We haven't used a US phone plan in almost 3 years. When we do come back to the states, we use a US sim card or an E-SIM. It is much less expensive and works really well. Thank you for watching!! Cheers!!🍻
Great video! I have a question about how you handle your taxes in the US. As a US citizen, since you are out of the country most of the year, are there any special steps you take to handle IRS rules about where your primary residence of stay is etc.?
We found the Verizon international plan was too expensive for us. It would have cost us $10 a day each (for a total of $440 just for this trip!!). We use Vodafone in Romania and that cost is 20 Euros a month for both (I got the 800 international minutes plan bc I needed it for work and my wife got the cheapest plan, both with unlimited data).
You pay state taxes if your state you are a resident of has income taxes on your type of income. There are some states without income taxes but…research this further if you are in one of these states as some of them do actually have state income tax on specific types of income like dividends or capital gains or similar. Some people say X state doesn’t have income taxes but after research you may find that is only for “earned income” like from a job but in retirement you have no job income but a nice amount of dividends and bam it may be taxed. Better to research now then learn the hard way later.
Another note: If you used to live in a State that does have income taxes and you move to a State that doesn't have income taxes, you need to send a notice to the old State that you no longer live there. Especially if it was New York or California.
We took a vacation to Portugal together for 18 days. Separately we vacationed to Mexico, Hawaii and Carrie went to Italy and Greece on a cruise. Other than that, we hadn't done much. Thank you for watching! Cheers!!🍻
Word of advice: NEVER get rid of your U.S. based cellphone service. You will need it for 2 step authorization and for banking needs. Just downgrade to a simple plan. T-mobile works in many countries overseas with no need to get an international plan. Although it’s slower. (Also, never tell your bank you have moved overseas. They may close your account. Happens all the time. Just tell them you are on vacation.) You can get an e-sim to stack on top of your regular US based cell service online (Airalo) and then switch between the sims in your phone settings. Every month you will just purchase a new e-sim. Hope this helps. And if the e-sim isn’t working then turn off your VPN.
We’ve been on the road for 8 months, and that’s what we did. Our basic TMobile plan has been a gem. Has worked throughout Europe thus far with no issues. When we need more bandwidth we connect Wi-Fi either at the airport or our temporary residence. But the basic data has been fine for day to day navigation, Ubers/maps, etc.
We moved to Portugal 3 years ago and ported our numbers to iPlum. It runs us roughly $100/year per line, but 2FA has been flawless. Porting to Google Voice was not an option for us, because we had to port after leaving the US, not before.
@@BrianandCarrie interesting that it wouldn't let you update your phone OS. It's a longer discussion that comments may facilitate but using a VPN is not a replacement or even a type of substitute for OS updates. An analogy might be "I have a fence around my house but don't have locks on the doors and windows and I have cash hanging out of my pockets". I've worked in security for a long time and only bring this up because you guys are so kind. Please do a look into these topics.
Really enjoying this podcast series. Best travel couple on TH-cam.
Thank you, John!! 😃
As a fellow traveler living in France, I agree. What a lovely lady, Carrie, and her companion.
After signing up for a 3-year cruise last year (didn’t happen), these were two of the pain points. This video is great. Your explanations would have eliminated the pain. The third major issue was medical insurance. I know you have this figured out too. Your videos are treasures. -Elizabeth
Thank you, Elizabeth. We really appreciate all your support. ❤
oh no!! were you one of the people who planned to do that three-year cruise and found out there was no boat? I felt awful for y'all.
I cannot remember if it was this video or another, but your tips on eSIMs as well as travel “things” has been so helpful! I got the shampoo bar, the eye mask, the TSA travel pouches (one of which I use for electronics), and I can’t believe how much easier travel is. But the best info was about eSIMs. Just went to a conference in Kenya, and having the eSIM ready to go so I could connect my phone as soon as I landed…priceless information. Thank you!
After over two years of travel and plenty of headaches, we finally got with the times and started using it. It is a game-changer!! Thank you for all the support, Ted!!
Cheers!!🍻
Physical SIMs at the airport work unless you get in when the phone stores are closed. We got into Taiwan at 5AM and the stores were not open for a couple hours and we had a ride arranged that left earlier. At least in 2018, the Taiwan carriers had special traveler deals only at the airport with unlimited everything for cheaper than their stores.
Yes, very true! We have experienced that, or airports so small there aren't any kiosks. Always easier when it is available though. Cheers!!
Used Airalo for worldwide data recently. Stopped working 2 days in and spent a considerable amount of time and hotel WiFi to get it to work. Airalo finally replaced it, but without hotel wifi, I would have remained unconnected when out of WiFi range. I also use a VPN on my phone too.
Great vlog as usual, guys.
I've had the same P.O. Box for 30-plus years and at the same main post office. A sibling has the extra key to my box. I actually got a P.O. Box due to both being a renter until I became a residence owner, and also being away overseas on long vacations. By being a renter, I never had to do a change-of-address form when I moved as my mail wasn't affected.
Although I'm a residence owner, I still have the P.O. Box as some things I have sent to it. Plus, when I meet people overseas, and I meet a lot of people, I don't give them my home address. If they ask for both an e-mail address and a physical address, I give them the P.O. Box one as I can always be contacted there if all else fails. People do sometimes change their e-mail addresses and then contact is lost. And everyone doesn't do Facebook. I don't do it. A lot of folks that I know still like to occasionally send a card or handwritten note, etc.
I'd rather my mail be locked in a P.O. Box than sitting in my parent's unlocked home mailbox. Plus, sometimes while I am away, my parent and sibling are also away for a while, but have the postal service hold the delivery of their mail. Since I used to be gone the longest period of time, when the parent and/or sibling was/were home again, then the sibling would pick up my mail from the P.O. Box and keep it for me at our parent's house where the sibling lives. Or if the parent and sibling were at home the whole time while I was away, then the sibling would pick up my P.O. Box mail weekly.
I have a longtime friend who is from here, but can be gone for many months on end, either on long overseas vacations or to other states and uses both online bill-paying and also has a P.O. Box . He has no mail go to his residence. He's owned the same residence for a good three decades.
Greetings from Los Angeles
We traveled/lived in our motorhome during semi-retirement for over a decade & leveraged that circumstance to claim residency in a more favorable state (South Dakota vs Illinois) and manage our mail (& transient shipments) with a PMB (personal mail box, deemed a PHYSICAL ADDRESS by the USPS as well as UPS, FedEx, etc.) that affords many advantages over as traditional PO Box ... we were very satisfied with the range of services offered by America's Mailbox (Box Elder, SD).
Just booked next January Bangkok and Phuket after watching your blog thanks Chris &Sue
That is great!!! That is the best time of year to go!!
Again guys you are hitting on the areas that people are most interested in. For me, the US based solution for phones with e-sim, and the google voice I am not sure is valid for a Canadian. But still it is good for me to understand about purchasing sims at the airport and save the hassles later. Your experiences are very valuable. Cheers to both!
Thanks so much...we appreciate hearing that. Glad you are finding the info helpful and continue to be such a loyal follower. Cheers!!
Great video! The info in your videos has been simply wonderful and we’re so excited about our slow travel journey starting next year. I retire in November at 60 and my wife is 53. Your videos have really helped us in planning now. We would like to be as prepared as possible for pulling-the-pin next January! Thank you!
So happy you are finding our videos helpful. You must be so excited for launch time to come. We hope our content continues too guide in your planning. Cheers!!
Got a little anxious watching this one, realizing all we need to do before we begin traveling full time. Doing a check list and making sure we follow these tips. We are not very tech savvy so we’ll take our time learning all of it. Thank you
It is a lot to get organized, but fortunately, once set up, your good to go 😊
Thanks for another helpful video👍
Thank you!!
Thank you for your time and posting. I did a lot of homework when I moved to Australia in 1989 (before the internet). That really helped, but like everyone, I made some mistakes. Like taking my huge stereo with me. Yes, different electrical power. :( But retired now, have no real family, and don't own much (I just moved to Las Vegas and put everything I own into my Honda Accord. Thank you again.
Im exactly three months out from moving abroad. This has helped a ton!
Awesome!! Thank you for watching!! Safe travels!!!
Cheers!!🍻
Love this video! So much great info for traveling. ❤
Glad it was helpful! Cheers!!
An advantage to a USPS mail hold or mail forward vs having someone pick up your mail is that a huge % of junk mail will NOT be held or forwarded... but it all goes in a mailbox.
I must say this is TOP NOTCH information thanks so much for this video! We’re leaving for Asia/Oceania in May and these topics I’ve thought about but you’ve given an action plan!!!
So happy you found it helpful. We love being to share what we've learned, through trial and error, in hopes of helping others in their planning process. Cheers!!
We sold everything in our old hometown and started traveling 7 years ago. I set up a mail service at that time and it's been great. They may now have the capability of sending it electronically but haven't used it. I am using up my last few months and will close it out as I started changing the address to our home address here in Oregon where we bought a house. Just want to make sure I've changed everything and I already paid the for the service. I used a smaller mail service which had been open for 25 years at that time. It was a lot more reasonable than than bigger, well known mail services. Kathleen
Good to know! We are very happy with the service we mentioned and fell $8 a month was super affordable for what we get. Cheers!!
That is very reasonable. Kathleen
Hey, you two, I'm really diggin' all your recent videos. Great job!
One question I have is that when you do online banking from whatever country you are visiting, do you select a VPN server located in the US, Washington State for example, or do you select a VPN server located in the country where you are currently traveling? I thought you would have to select a VPN server in the US, but Brian mentioned he was trying to let the bank know he was in Albania, so I'm just not clear on how this works.
Again, great job! Keep 'em coming!
The VPN needs to be set for somewhere in the US to work correctly. I didn't have mine set at all when I tried to log into my bank, so I got blocked.
Thank you for the for the great infos! But, special thanks for keeping it under 25 minutes. 👍
Thanks so much for watching 😊
One of your best ever. Thanks !!!
Thank you so much!! ❤
awesome tutorial on cell phone. My thanks on the way
For trips more than 10 days. If you use your phone plan international plan, call them in advance. Instead of $10 per day you can pay $100 for the month.
What physical address do you use on your driver’s license? Can you use the mail service physical address?
Same question, Thank you!
We use a family members address for this as well as some other important documents. Often government agencies will require a physical address, but this is also something that can vary by the state you are in. Sorry, wish I had a for sure answer.
Excellent information. I kept thinking that I should see if our mailbox had gotten virtual mail and it did. I will get it in play tomorrow. Also, I lost a cell phone in Mexico last year and forgot about transferring the VPN to the new phone and that is taken care of also. Sometimes we get so busy planning where to next, things get lost in the shuffle. After 9 years of full time traveling, you would think we would have our act together.
This stuff happens to us all the time. Full time travel is always a lot of moving pieces.... It's easy to forget stuff. Cheers!!
USPS now offers Informed Delivery. Once registered they will send a scanned image of the outside of your mail, and email the image to you. I have a PO box, and this service saves me time as I only go to the box when I get important mail. Not as good as your mail service, but it is something that some may find helpful.
That's great to know, thank you for sharing ☺️
I am enjoying these podcast, you are very good commnicators. I have a question about taxes, if you are more that 1/2 of the year outside USA, and you dont have a main residence. How you file taxes?
We file just like we normally would if we were in the US full time.
what address you use?@@BrianandCarrie
Really enjoying your podcast and youtube channel !!!! So informative and takes the stress out of going on adventures to the unknown. Thank you !!!!! Happy travels and looking forward to future videos and podcast.
So happy to hear this... Thank you so much for watching and following along 😊
Thank you so much! I had been looking at e-sims and had been think that it would be the way to go. The pricing on the one in your link is cheaper than the one that I found last year.
I hadn’t seen the virtual mailbox… but that is perfect! There is a place right by around the corner from my house. I am going to go talk to them owners and crew. If I like them, I might set the service up now. Gives me a chance to test them before I hit the road.
This is great stuff! Can’t wait to see episode 2 next week. I have started downsizing… but still have a long ways to go.
Downsizing is the hardest part but the most gratifying when finished. Thank you for watching!! ❤
We are full time rivers and use a mail forwarding service
It's so weird to see Carrie in a sweater. I'm used to your tank top. 😊 You guys are the best!
It's weird going home and having to wear a sweater 😂. Thanks so much ♥
@@BrianandCarrie I can imagine. 😁
eSIM tip: If a phone can do eSIM, it can probably do more than one. I use a Pixel 7 which can do 2 eSIMs and 1 SIM card. I'm with T-Mobile. I called and they moved my SIM card to the eSIM at no cost (you can do it yourself but I let them). That lets me always have my T-Mobile SIM and then I can get a SIM card for when I want a local number, which has come in handy several times.
Also, while T-Mobile may not tbe the cheapest, as I'm over 55 I get a discount and their plans provide 5 GB of international high speed data per month. When I arrive in a new country I get a message of welcome and instantly have data with no eSIM or SIM card to buy in 215 countries.
Thank you for the tips and adding to the channel!!
Cheers!🍻
Just found you recently. Nice videos. Does google voice allow forward to international numbers? Is that how it works? How does Txt messaging work? Finally, do you have a carrier in the US or just use the same eSIM service?
Hi! We don't need to transfer anything, Google voice works for our calling and texting wherever we are. We use a SIM card in the states as well.
So much information . Fantastic !
Glad it was helpful! Cheers!!
We are 7 months a year travelers and use a PO Box for our mail that has as a service known as “informed delivery”. The service provides a daily email with a scan of the front of the envelops, except for oversized mail. Similar to the service mentioned in the video. We can alert our friends and family to open and scan any important items. Agree the PO Box is expensive, ($250 a year) but we got it mainly for security and convenience reasons while we are home five months a year. Mail box break-in are not that uncommon. We did go through our mail after our last trip and cancelled everything we could applied to be taken off all lists. We still get loads junk mail. Constant battle.
We've heard of that! Great option as well and sounds like it's working for you perfectly. Cheers!!
Such great advice! Didn't know half the things you said but it'll prep me well in the future
So happy you found it helpful. Cheers!!
Hi, I love your podcast! Im not from the USA, but your tips and how you do things helps guide me to search for similar things in my country, which has been great. Do you use credit cards or your bank card (own money)? Do you use frequent flyer points or something similar for air travel? Have you considered using backpacks instead of wheeled carry on? Thanks for sharing and I'm looking forward to the next video.
❤Zeljka
Hi! We use credit cards as well as bank cards for ATM. We've downsized a lot, but going to a backpack only would not be possible with all our gear for TH-cam. Plus, we learned we are getting a bit old to have heavy packs on our back all day. Cheers!!
Brian and Carrie, this was a super helpful video! I watched it during my 2 hour wait at the TMobile store.😖😩
I learned that my iPhone as NOT unlocked like I thought it was... which meant I could not use Airalo overseas. Huge bummer! After dozens of hours with TMobile customer service.... it appears my phone is unlockable! 🤬🤬🤬
Ugh, that's so unfortunate 😔. Hope you figure out a solution, maybe buying a different unlocked cheaper phone just for travel.
@@BrianandCarrie or maybe it's time to upgrade to an unlocked iPhone 15! Lol 😂
Hello my dears, it is always a pleasure to watch your videos. I come from Germany myself but am a native Romanian. I've traveled a lot in Europe but what you've achieved is unbelievable. My full attention for you. Finally, how did you like Europe? Was that okay? .I hope that when my wife is here, you will like it too. It's not California but I think it's okay. I wish you all the best, good health and much success in your life and thank you so much for your fascinating video. With great love from Germany Eddie 👋👋.
Thank you so much for the kind words, Eduard. We have had a great time in Europe. We moved too fast through Czech Republic, Poland and Germany to really get the real experience so we will need to return sometime soon and stay longer. Thank you again!!
Thank you both for these great videos. They are inspiring to get out and see the world. Can you point me to a video of available on how you handle medical insurance.
You're very welcome, so happy you are finding them helpful. We will be covering medical insurance options, as well as much more in next Saturdays video. Cheers!!
Another good one. Thanks guys!
Thanks so much for watching😊
Great tips, as always..... Love & respect from Bangladesh
I really enjoy your podcast (and videos) lots of great info! I don’t know if you talked about it, but for a first time travel to Europe what would be a good country to visit? Thanks! 💞
We would recommend Portugal. You can usually fly into Lisbon from the east coast. English is spoken in most of the world to get by, but you won't have any problems at all in Portugal. Thank you so much for watching, Anna!❤
@@BrianandCarrie Thanks 💞
Another great video. I love your content!! It’s like you are reading my mind half the time. Regarding the local SIMs, are you getting data only or a local number? Assuming data only, how do you make local calls? How would you call “911”? Thank you.
Hi! We get a local sim that includes a local number so we can make any calls we need.
Where do you buy the Sim card? Traveling to Argentina for a month. Do I buy at airport in Buenos Aires upon arrival?
Weve never been to Argentina, but we usually get ours at the airport.
These videos are very helpful. Thanks. 👍
Have you thought about making a mind map chart as a guide? 📊🧠 I think that's the name for it.🤔
I would call it more like a fantasy football league and team map with lists of things to do before the draft😮😉🏈💻
We have not but fun idea!! 😃
Your podcasts are very helpful. Great to get all this information in one place. We are about 18 months away from starting the lifestyle you are on. We have a mail service identified. But how did you stop all the junk email? Don’t want that cluttering up our mail service!
When we went paperless the junk mail stopped as well. Thank you for watching!!
Fantastic video!!! I appreciate the Google voice info!
Thank you, Laura!
Thanks!
Thank you so much!!! ❤ We appreciate you watching and supporting our channel!! 😀
This is a great video! Thank you! How do you deal with jury duty summons if you get one and out of the country? Is it better to just cancel our driver’s license to avoid jury duty if we travel full time? How about filing for state taxes? I know we still have to file for federal. Thank you.
We wouldn't cancel our license. If we were to get jury duty summons we will just deal with it at that time. If we can't be back home, we would just send in letting them know we are out of country.
Hi guys! we are looking at the esim solution you mentioned here. Can you use your Apple watch with the esim? are there any limitations? is it considered a standalone device? thanks for any info.
Yes, you can use your apple or Android watch with an esim.
Thank you for all you do. Great information as always.
Did you have to re-enroll in text alerts with your existing banks in the US when you switched your cell phone number to google voice? I heard that text alerts enrollment has to be done again when switching cell plan providers even if you keep the same phone number. Thanks
There was a hiccup, but it was easy to sort out, and we haven't had any problems since. Thank you for watching!!
Cheers!!🍻
Great info! So we are normally abroad for 2 weeks at a time. Do you think a vpn or Esim is necessary?
VPN is always necessary, so you do need that. You can use the phone service you already have and get overseas coverage through them. It will cost more but is convenient. Thank you for watching!!
Cheers!!🍻
Thanks for these tips. Did I miss your video on how you get cheap flights once you’re at your destination, i.,e., flights in Vietnam?
You have not missed it. We will be doing that one soon. 😃
Thanks very much for the information. In the case of the mail service. How they will handle like a credit card?
You would need to either pick it up at the postal office address you picked or you could have them forward it to you. Cheers!!
Hi guys, which travelers insurance do you use and about how much do you pay per month? Thanks
This is the one I use, I pay about $115 a month which is very much based on age: safetywing.com/?referenceID=brianandcarrie&Ambassador
This is a great video…thanks! We are in Mexico long-term. Our phones are with T-Mobile. I have Nordvpn on the tv. If I put it on my laptop and phone, will T-Mobile think I am in the US and not eventually shut us down? If so, will two stage authorization work as if I was in the US?
Great question. I'm really not sure if TMobile would be able to tell or not. As for dual authentication, we use Google voice and it's worked for us.
Sorry Brian AND Carrie didn't understand the print part. Are you stating that the mail box provider also provides print locations ?.
No, if you need to print an emailed copy of any mail you can find a printing kiosk anywhere you may be around the world.
@@BrianandCarrie Ok, thanks.
Love your videos! I used to Airalo when traveling overseas, but keep my ATT plan. I can switch back and forth between, but do not receive text messages on my ATT number. How do you do the two-step authentication via text? Or do you solely use Google Authentication?
We use Google voice for all our texting and calls. It's worked pretty well for dual authentication.
I have a Google Voice account… when traveling internationally, calls to and from the states with Google Voice are not international calls? What about calls within the country you’re in? Are these international calls?
BTW… I tried Airelo on a trip to Paris and Marrakech… as you said, very easy
Greg
Being the calls and texts through Google voice are over WiFi, they are just done through the app, not over a cell service plan. So we can be anywhere in the world and contact home. Where there would be a issue is trying to contact someone outside the States. For those calls you will need a local for that area sim card.
You are a lovely couple. Thanks for sharing ❤
Thank you so much! ❤😃
@@BrianandCarrie ❤️
Do either of you wear contact lenses and, if so, have you bought them overseas? I'm wondering if I should load up while I have insurance in the US (the $150 allowance doesn't go far) or is it cheaper to just pay out of pocket in certain countries.
We've priced contacts elsewhere and they were similar pricing to home. The good news was, you could get all the brands we were used to seeing.
Great question that I didn't know I needed. 😊
We just spent three months in France. While I had Google Voice set up, I’d forgotten to make sure all accounts had that number for 2FA. I like the VPN solution, but need clarity.
You’re in Albania and the institution sends 2FA. Did you have the VPN connected to the US on the computer but not the phone - was that the problem? Are you suggesting keep both devices connected to the US at all times?
Thanks.
Yes, we always connect to the US, to the same state. We find keeping the location consistent helps from having issues.
Americans should this rule of thumb for keeping their US cell phone plan:
Are you home less than 90 days? Keep your US provider and adopt an international plan
Are you gone more than 90 days? Get your phone unlocked and use Google Fi / Voice and Airalo.
American cell providers won't/can't extend your service more than 3 months.
What do you do with
your u s phone plan While using e sim and google phone ? Do you take it down to the bare minimum necessary to keep it activated? Our att plan is $80 each! Def dont want to,pay for that while slow traveling! And I assume you keep yiur U S sim card safe to re install it when u get back in the states? Thanks!
We haven't used a US phone plan in almost 3 years. When we do come back to the states, we use a US sim card or an E-SIM. It is much less expensive and works really well. Thank you for watching!!
Cheers!!🍻
You guys are really does the lord work’s😭🙏🏾thank you so much
Thank you!! ❤
What is the title of part 2?
We will have one coming another one out in a couple of weeks.
What should I do with my SS Card, original birth certificate after scanning? I don' have anyone to leave anything with.
You may decide it's best to have a safe dept box for those things. But, it's also paperwork that you could easily carry with you if you had to.
I am taking a break and back in Cali..my google voice is driving me crazy but works oversea.
That's interesting, what issues are you having in California with it?
@@BrianandCarrie incoming call stop after one ringing and disconnect. Voicemail has delay like 1-2 min..
I'm surprised you don't get more junk mail! We've tried to eliminate... but it never stops!😡
We get very little too none now thankfully. A few get by like credit card offers.
Great video! I have a question about how you handle your taxes in the US. As a US citizen, since you are out of the country most of the year, are there any special steps you take to handle IRS rules about where your primary residence of stay is etc.?
We file for our State in the US same as usual 😊. Unless we were to get residency somewhere, this is how we will continue to do it.
We found the Verizon international plan was too expensive for us. It would have cost us $10 a day each (for a total of $440 just for this trip!!). We use Vodafone in Romania and that cost is 20 Euros a month for both (I got the 800 international minutes plan bc I needed it for work and my wife got the cheapest plan, both with unlimited data).
Romania was one of the cheapest cell coverage we've ever had. Plus, bonus, it was great service.
Do you have to pay state taxes doing 100% travel?
We have to pay federal taxes. Washington State is where we are from, and we don't have state taxes in WA. State.
You pay state taxes if your state you are a resident of has income taxes on your type of income. There are some states without income taxes but…research this further if you are in one of these states as some of them do actually have state income tax on specific types of income like dividends or capital gains or similar. Some people say X state doesn’t have income taxes but after research you may find that is only for “earned income” like from a job but in retirement you have no job income but a nice amount of dividends and bam it may be taxed. Better to research now then learn the hard way later.
Another note: If you used to live in a State that does have income taxes and you move to a State that doesn't have income taxes, you need to send a notice to the old State that you no longer live there. Especially if it was New York or California.
@@rickmc73If you are not spending less than 6 months in a state, do you still count as a resident of that state for tax purposes?
Do you file taxes in Washington. Can you not have to file State income taxes, since you're not really living in a State?
We do live in Washington State when we come home and have for 50 years so we file our taxes here.
@@BrianandCarrie My understanding is that Washington State has NO state income tax, so you both just file your federal taxes there, is that correct?
Yes, that is correct, Steve.
How much travel did you guys do before you started long-term travel?
We took a vacation to Portugal together for 18 days. Separately we vacationed to Mexico, Hawaii and Carrie went to Italy and Greece on a cruise. Other than that, we hadn't done much. Thank you for watching!
Cheers!!🍻
Word of advice: NEVER get rid of your U.S. based cellphone service. You will need it for 2 step authorization and for banking needs. Just downgrade to a simple plan. T-mobile works in many countries overseas with no need to get an international plan. Although it’s slower. (Also, never tell your bank you have moved overseas. They may close your account. Happens all the time. Just tell them you are on vacation.) You can get an e-sim to stack on top of your regular US based cell service online (Airalo) and then switch between the sims in your phone settings. Every month you will just purchase a new e-sim. Hope this helps. And if the e-sim isn’t working then turn off your VPN.
We don't have US based cellphone service and we 2 step authorization daily.
We’ve been on the road for 8 months, and that’s what we did. Our basic TMobile plan has been a gem. Has worked throughout Europe thus far with no issues. When we need more bandwidth we connect Wi-Fi either at the airport or our temporary residence. But the basic data has been fine for day to day navigation, Ubers/maps, etc.
We moved to Portugal 3 years ago and ported our numbers to iPlum. It runs us roughly $100/year per line, but 2FA has been flawless. Porting to Google Voice was not an option for us, because we had to port after leaving the US, not before.
@@BrianandCarriewhat!? Google Voice allows 2 step authentication?
Why don't you do phone updates while traveling? This is a security risk and shouldn't be a problem over wifi.
We tried. We use NordVPN so we are always protected.
Cheees!
@@BrianandCarrie interesting that it wouldn't let you update your phone OS. It's a longer discussion that comments may facilitate but using a VPN is not a replacement or even a type of substitute for OS updates. An analogy might be "I have a fence around my house but don't have locks on the doors and windows and I have cash hanging out of my pockets". I've worked in security for a long time and only bring this up because you guys are so kind. Please do a look into these topics.
E sim 🤔
It's a great way to not have to buy a physical SIM in each location.
Are you two married?
We just celebrated our 5th anniversary!! Committed for life and extremely lucky to have found each other. Life is good. ❤
Wedding anniversary or partnership? I love your videos so much. I’m just nosey too…
stay at home, so stingy, don’t come to singapore.
We had a wonderful time in Singapore! Thank you for watching and commenting!
Cheers...