The first two days in a new city decide how the whole month goes. You're tired, you overpay for things, and every decision feels urgent. After more than ten years of arrivals I've stopped trying to be efficient and just follow the same list.
Before you fly
- Install a data eSIM and check it's ready to activate. You want a signal at immigration, not at the taxi rank.
- Save your accommodation address offline, in the local script if the alphabet is different.
- Download offline maps and the local ride hailing app while you still have good wifi.
- Book the first night or two so you aren't making decisions at midnight with a dead phone.
Day one: survive and set up
- Activate the eSIM before you leave the terminal.
- Take out a small amount of cash from a bank ATM, and decline the machine's currency conversion.
- Get to your place, shower, and walk the block before it gets dark.
- Find the nearest pharmacy, supermarket and laundry.
- Run a wifi test at home. If it fails, you want to know while you can still complain.
- Go to bed at a normal local time, even if it hurts.
Day two: buy information cheaply
- Work one morning from a cafe near where you're staying.
- Buy a single coworking day pass rather than a membership, and do the commute at your real start time.
- Walk the streets you're considering for a longer stay, once in the morning and once at night.
- Ask one person who lives there what they wish they'd known. Coworking staff are usually the best people to ask.
What to leave until later
Don't buy a month of anything in the first 48 hours. That covers coworking, gyms, phone contracts and especially leases. You're still paying to learn, and the cheapest way to learn is by the day. Once the first week is over, follow how to find a monthly rental, and if this is your first long trip, keep the first 90 days open too.
