I started my nomadic life in 2010. It has been a gift that keeps on giving and has taught me more about myself than any great teacher could. True to the constant change that characterizes nomadism, you will also learn over time that a nomadic lifestyle is hard to define. It changes constantly and is highly personalized to you and the phase of life you are in. In some ways, it might not even exist as a fixed concept.
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In any case, it is not all roses—because life is not all roses. There are some wonderful advantages and a few painful disadvantages. Is it worth it? Maybe.
Let’s be honest about one thing. Life and humanity are constantly changing at an accelerating pace. Living a nomadic life 50 years ago is very different from living it today. In some ways, it was better before. In other ways, it is much better now.
In any case, the rapid pace of technological advancement has nearly eliminated many traditional nomadic ways of life, since modern systems create more reasons to settle down. On the other hand, the internet allows people to work remotely and become digital nomads, a lifestyle that enables anyone to work online while enjoying the flexibility of constantly changing locations.
Here are some of the major characteristics of a nomadic lifestyle:
- A nomad constantly changes locations. How often? It is hard to define. More than anything, it is the deep understanding that when you arrive somewhere—even if you truly love it—you know and accept that you will be leaving soon. “Soon” usually means less than three months. In that sense, it may even be easier for nomads to understand the concept of death, since they embrace everything as temporary. They see temporality as a feature, not a bug, as part of the design.
- Most nomads have some kind of place they can call home, usually where their family or childhood friends are located, but they would not spend more than a few months a year there. For nomads, “change is home.” Not many people can sustain this lifestyle long term, since most of us need stability and clarity in our lives.
- To be a true nomad (I stopped being one in 2026 according to this definition), the nomadic lifestyle is more important than anything else, including career, relationships, or assets. A nomad avoids attachments that tie them to a specific location. If you decide that nomadic life is your first priority, you will need to make sacrifices to keep it sustainable. Many nomads find Buddhism appealing, since it emphasizes non-attachment and letting go. A nomad lets go and effectively clicks an imaginary “reset button” when moving between locations. There may come a time when you still incorporate a nomadic lifestyle even though your priorities have changed, but this increases the likelihood that the lifestyle itself will also change.
- Avoiding attachments: A nomad breaks away from attachments before taking the nomadic path and continues to avoid them while living as a nomad. What is an attachment? Anything that prevents you from living a nomadic life. It is anything you have—or think you have—that you cannot give up. This could be a perfect job that would be impossible to get back after quitting, a dog you love and cannot leave behind, or a partner who is unwilling to become a nomad. One important insight: if you have these things and they make you happy, keep them. But if they are not truly fulfilling, let go of false attachments and either find better ones or choose the nomadic path instead.
- Nomads often become smart, easygoing, and interesting people. The reason is simple: they are exposed to many lifestyles, cultures, and constantly changing situations. This ongoing process of change becomes a teacher. If you are ready for it, it can make you a better person.
- Nomads don’t take life too seriously. Think about it: if you keep losing everything you had—friends, home, and familiarity—every time you move, a basic realization eventually emerges: “Everything is temporary, and nothing is truly yours.” Once you understand that, it becomes difficult to take life too seriously. There is nothing to defend.
- Nomads travel light and adopt a minimalist mindset. This means prioritizing experiences over possessions. Life is short, and the only things we are guaranteed not to lose are the meaningful moments we experience. Those who overconsume and accumulate possessions will eventually find it frustrating to carry everything while constantly moving.
- Nomads usually travel slowly. Even for the rare few who can live without a fixed home, it is important to create emotional stability by staying longer in each location—typically one to three months—in order to establish routines and build meaningful friendships.
- Nomads are generally respectful, smiley, and above all, curious. If this were not the case, why choose a life of constant change? Positivity also helps mitigate one of the greatest disadvantages of nomadic life: loneliness. We are social animals, which means that without connection, we wither and disconnect from ourselves. Since nomads must constantly rebuild their social circles, being open and positive is essential. One of my favorite nomadic quotes is: “If you are lonely when you are alone, you are in bad company.” Nomads spend a lot of time alone and should learn to enjoy it.
- Digital nomads often deal with the lack of social life by choosing digital nomad hubs. This significantly increases the chances of meeting like-minded people.
- Nomads think and adapt quickly. When constantly changing locations, everything is new. You must actively figure out what you need, and you often cannot speak the local language. This forces you to trust your intuition and make fast decisions.
- There are many different types of nomadic lifestyles, and each person should customize their own. For example, over time I have developed a set of nomadic routines and rules that I follow and continuously adjust.
Now it is time for you to decide whether a nomadic life could be a beneficial experiment for you—and, if so, to make it happen.
I’m 18 years old and finishing off high school in May. I have been interested in the nomadic lifestyle for about 6 months now and I was extremely determined to say screw college and start being a nomad next year. With guidance, I came to the conclusion that that probably isn’t the best idea. Especially considering how I have not even began to save up. I’m definitely going to school next year and plan for my nomadic lifestyle later in life but theres just one thing I’m not sure of. Should I go away to a university (which is what I really want to do) or go to a community college so I’m not in much debt when I start out my nomadic lifestyle? I feel if I go to a university I have a much better chance of meeting someone that can potentially be a travel buddy but if I go to a community college I’m saving so much money, I feel as if I’d have no worries at all when I start out my journey. Also, I don’t want to have to start paying back my college debt while I’m traveling. Do you guys have any input or experience on this?
hi,
if it seems like the nomadic life is what you want to do, then I think i would avoid student loans, and get good quality education without the debt and attachment it creates.
Education is great, accumulate it, as it will help you face challenges and make money when no big company will be sheltering you as a nomad. I would study as much as possible, with as little debt as possible. Ivy league unis are there for ego for the career people, but the debt and status it brings is of low value to future intelligent and resourceful nomads.
I would love to try the nomadic lifestyle but my issue is finding a job, I have like no experience that could get me an online job and my education stops at highschool.. Also I would more than likely have to live in a tent so I need to figure out how to not eventually look like the cliche homeless person and keep whatever clothes I do bring looking decent enough.
I still recommend to have a skill, or build a skill and focus on abundance instead of scarcity. Life is short, win it, don’t hide from it 🙂
what if he has a learning disability
I feel very lucky to have found this article. Thank you for creating. I finally asked at work for a 3 month leave of abscence that I will use to visit India. Deep inside I don’t want to come back to my current lifestyle after that, I believe this is the beginning for a change and those three months will become a year or five years, who knows. I don’t believe my boyfriend wants to join me, he’s afraid of loosing stability, but maybe after a few months he will join me. Is there a specific way to get organized regarding the routes, etc? are you living out of a backpack? Do you use Couchsurfing? How do you spot the places to stay away from with the world now having more political conflicts? Do you stay connected with your loved ones via Facebook or does that make you sad? Any other important tips you want to share? Haha sorry about so many questions!!!!
hey Alejandra, good luck in your new path! I work full time, so things I did in the past (couchsurfing, backpack) became Airbnb and a suitcase 🙂 Find your own style and experiment with what works. There aren’t that many places with a political conflict that will influence your travels (Syria, Iraq, Venezuela style) and then ones with low scale distress (Ukraine, Israel, Cuba, Colombia) are usually the most interesting places to visit. I do skype calls with my family and facebook/whatsapp with my friends, but it doesn’t really make me sad to be away.. Read many of the articles in the blog and I think you will find many answers.
comment of the year.
I love how you avoided the question as did others. You hippies sure are busy, huh? All that drinking and partying consumes a whole lot of your time.
Well, Caroline, I don’t know if you turned off replies or something, but I can’t seem to reply directly to you so I’ll reply here. I don’t have a problem with you hippies living your nomadic lifestyles. Just don’t use my tax dollars for it.
Can I simply say what a reduction to search out somebody who actually knows what theyre speaking about on the internet. You undoubtedly know methods to bring a difficulty to gentle and make it important. Extra folks must learn this and perceive this side of the story. I cant consider youre not more well-liked since you undoubtedly have the gift.
Trying to use this piece in an essay I’m writing which is to define the concept of a nomad. Can you tell me who the author is that wrote this and what credentials they have writing about nomads? (even if their credential is that they themselves travel this lifestyle and consider themselves a nomad) Cheers!
hey,
Eli David, 7 years as a nomad 🙂
I’m heading that way in2018. I believe its my destiny after3 marriages not being stable and I tried so hard.I’m going yo follow my real destiny. Nomad but I’m on SS. And multiple myeloma how good is that. No not good but the cancer has taken a tow on my loved ones. Plus steroids are very bad for your brain. Wich is a combination of my treatment.any way no one loves me no more. I’m leaving on my HD and live as a Nomad. JR.
How does a nomadic lifestyle affect you financially? It must cost so much to do this, to travel around.. At a certain point you must be broke a’d thus completely homeless etc? That’s my only concern. Is it possible without money?
hey Wim,
nothing is possible without money 🙂
There are a few elements that actually make this lifestyle more sustainable financially than regular life, search for our “Cost Arbitrage” article for more information on that point
Nomads have a unique lifestyle that my brother wants to do someday and he needs to know that he has to avoid attachments to be successful. I think he will be more respectful and flexible if he gets travel advice from a nomad’s experience. This will be especially useful once he realizes that he needs to travel light and be minimalist as you said.
Looking hard into this. Can you do this with a car, bank account? I am a 100% disabled veteran and don’t like looking to others for help. Can this be something I can do as a 40yr old?
if he is able to move by himself without affecting others i would say go for it!! let life lead, don’t fall into the grind of having to commit to staying put. I feel i have lived both ways and wouldn’t trade either for anything, but the freedom of being alone and letting the feeling lead the way is truly being free.
Preach, Jon! There’s rarely a need to tie ourselves to a lifestyle we don’t want.
And Don – if you’re still reading this a year later, know that this lifestyle comes in many shapes and forms: https://becomenomad.com/different-nomadic-lifestyles/
^And those aren’t all-encompassing. If you want it, go for it, and make it uniquely yours!
nice work, keep up the good work.
excellent
Thank you! We appreciate these comments so much.
And hey, if you haven’t yet, check out our pod where we discuss much of the same:
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/become-nomad-digital-nomad-lifestyle-and-long-term-travel/id1051084986