By Steven Barasch:
Keep in Touch with Your Loved Ones
Calling your family and friends back home may be one of the most difficult things you do when you’re traveling abroad. When you’re on the road, it’s easy to forget about what is happening in your hometown. But staying in touch with people at home is important for mental health. Calling them can also help you stay connected to your roots and culture. Here are a few ways that travelers can keep in touch with their loved ones back home.
Communication challenges when you’re abroad
When you’re traveling, there are many challenges to staying in touch. For instance, your phone service may not be available abroad. You may also find that the internet is expensive or slower than what you are used to at home. The language barrier can also make it harder to communicate with people back home.
You’ll need to consider a few things when you’re planning your trip abroad and want to stay connected. Consider how long you’ll be away and whether or not you’ll have access to the internet or social media (like Facebook). Remember that it’s important for your mental health to stay connected with your loved ones back home. And remember that some of these methods for communicating aren’t free!
Calling home in a foreign country
When you’re traveling, it can be difficult to keep up with everyone back home. But a phone call is still one of the easiest ways to stay connected and feel more comfortable when you’re visiting or living abroad.
If you want to talk on the phone but have a tight budget, there are a few options that you might want to consider. For example, an international calling plan with your mobile provider. Other options are using Skype or another service like Viber, Facebook Messenger, or What’s App where you can make free video calls (although these services may not be available in some countries). Also consider these apps require end to end users meaning the person you are calling has to be using the same app.
Ways to stay connected to loved ones back home:
Google Voice: If you’re in the US, before you begin your international travels, sign up for Google Voice. You’ll choose a US or Canadian area code and number based on availability. Setup is quite simple as it will integrate your mobile number with your new Google Voice number. Best of all it’s free. Call or text anywhere in the US or Canada for free regardless of your location in the world. Receive calls and texts from the US and Canada regardless of your location in the world. Also comes with voice mail. A Wi-Fi connection is recommended when abroad as Google Voice is a US system and may conflict with a foreign carrier. That is if you have changed your sim card in that country. Otherwise, data rates will apply if you are roaming with your US mobile provider. So best to connect with a Wi-Fi connection.
Rebtel: No Internet Required
No Internet Required. Rebtel is rated 19 out of 19 of the best companies in the category Mobile Network Operator on Trustpilot. From Rebtel’s website: “We connect your call through local phone lines, you don’t have to rely on an internet connection or worry about your call dropping. Instead, you’re avoiding crazy international rates while getting the quality of a local call”
Here’s how it works
You register for free with Rebtel and use your phone number to connect with your new Rebtel account. Login, and add your contacts from your contact list. For International contacts, a local number will be automatically assigned to that contact.
You are based somewhere in the US and your contact is in Germany. Rebtel will give you a US number specifically for your German friend. Save the phone number and label to your friend. Make the call to your friend and no matter if you’re connected to the internet, or friend is, whether it be a mobile number or landline. Now you’re having a conversation with your friend in Germany and paying local rates instead of international rates.
Rebtel does their part with all connections, so you don’t have to worry about it without Wi-Fi on your end or your contacts end. It’s cheap, not free. Calls average about 0.01₵ per minute with several plans available to fit your budget. For more information go to www.rebtel.com
Other Notables to Explore
The importance of staying in contact with family and friends while traveling abroad is huge. It can be difficult to stay in touch. There are plenty of ways to do it! Just plan ahead.
