Dana Brown and Vanessa Tokatly have thrown in a fixed abode to become digital nomads, living out the trips they curate for their clients, a move they say has elevated every aspect of their lives.
It was burnout that drove TravelManagers Personal Travel Manager Dana Brown to pack up her belongings for life on the road.
“I was completely burnt out and when I realised there was an option to work remotely, I wanted that financial and locational freedom.”
She says within the first six months she was thinking, ‘Why didn’t I do this five years ago?’.
“I have been able to free up time to travel and focus on my passions and clients.”
Eight months ago, once Vanessa Tokatly’s youngest child finished school, she joined Dana.
“I met Dana on a famil in New Zealand a decade ago and she mentioned she wanted to go independent, and I thought wow that’s a big move. Then a year ago, when we saw each other again in Fiji, I was convinced I wanted to do it too.
“It is a huge cliff to jump off, and you need to trust yourself and break out of your comfort zone, but it’s the best thing I ever did.”
It certainly looks that way.
I am chatting with the pair on Zoom from a very chilly Melbourne while they sit in singlets, all tanned with hair pulled back in an effortlessly chic look at the Andronis Arcadia Santorini. They swivel the laptop around to a quintessential Greek view of whitewashed buildings and a cerulean sea.
They’ve come here from Six Senses Rome and are shortly off to Gundari Resort, on the secluded island of Folegandros in the Aegean Sea – it’s enough to make you want to pack your bags immediately.
Pairing up
While most of Dana’s travels have been solo, the pair plan to stick together for now.
Vanessa, who owns The Runway Traveller, an affiliate of Smartflyer Australia, says it’s been an easy transition to digital nomad when you are with someone doing the same thing.
“We understand each other’s work, and we haven’t had a fight yet!”
She says it’s good for clients too because they have two agents from strong brands, and they effectively get two for one.
“It was a big step mentally going away from an office of experienced agents who you’re learning from every day to being independent, but being here, it’s like I have my own mini office and we can discuss issues together.
“An example is I was reissuing flights and the price difference was low, and I mentioned it to Dana, and she said, ‘Is luggage included?’, and if you were with your husband or partner, they wouldn’t do that.”
While they both look the epitome of their Instagram feed, remote work has, of course, had its challenges.
The speed bumps
“You need to have clear boundaries,” says Dana.
“I’m a yes person, and so that can mean compromising on sleep and you’re reliant on good Wi-Fi, and that can be frustrating.
“You do also sacrifice your personal life and relationships, so it’s about evaluating your values and what’s most important to you.”
She says it’s also about having good communication with your clients about your time zone.
“I always say to clients, this is the country I’m in and the hours I’m behind. If it’s urgent, call me, but you have to set the expectation up front.”
Vanessa adds that there can be a misconception about what life is like permanently living abroad.
“People often only see the Instagram posts and you get a lot of messages saying, ‘Do you ever work?’ but they’re not realising you spent 17 hours on your laptop that day, and most days we have the laptop with us at dinner.”
Top tips to a nomadic life
“Start slow,” says Dana.
“I took the business slowly initially while I regulated my nervous system, and you can build from there.”
She says it’s also best to stay longer in each destination.
“If you have a month, you can have a normal routine and meet friends and use the washing machine and hang up your clothes.
Vanessa says she also sets her phone to remind her when it’s 5pm Friday in Australia.
“That’s when I know I can relax!”
She says you also don’t need as much as you think.
“We sit in a beach club with laptops on our knees. People think they need a lot to set up, but if you embrace technology, it makes you more connected.”
When choosing where to stay, Dana uses a mixture of hotels, exclusive private villas, and platforms geared towards digital nomads like Outsite – which has homes with co-working spaces.
And she says it is important to consider where you go carefully.
“There are places geared towards the digital community, so in Barcelona, there are a lot of coworking and coliving spaces. Greece is one of the easiest places to get long-term visas, also Bali and the Gili Islands are great.”
She says Sherpa is her go-to for working out what the visa requirements are.
“You just have to keep track of the days you are there, so you know when you need to leave!”
A life with no regrets
Dana says she worked out that even in a month, with her property in Bondi, she was saving more than $10,000 a year on the road.
And besides financial benefits, it’s the experiences that she values most – and the people you meet.
“My travels are always led by the universe, and in my first year, I was in the Kimberley, Borneo and Indonesia, and then Europe, and now I’ve been to 86 countries.
“Being in a new destination and connecting with new people and inspiring clients means your business naturally grows because clients want to do the same thing.
“It’s elevated every aspect of my life.”
“And we meet the most incredible people in the industry,” adds Vanessa.
“From hotel managers to DMCs, we all speak the same language, and I feel like people who work in travel have the best personalities, and so I love the people you meet.”
Vanessa says while it’s fun, it’s also about building your business.
“You have to believe there’s a solution to everything… and take the emotion out of it. But if you’re already good at what you do, you are going to say after six months, I wish I had done this years ago.
“So many people look for reasons to say no rather than yes, and there are actually less barriers than what you think.
“Take the leap and back yourself and it’ll all work out – you couldn’t pay me to go back to an office now.”
Follow Vanessa on Instagram at @tokatly and Dana on wildheartedworld.
