How to Work Remotely From Anywhere: The Internet Setup That Travels With You

"Work from anywhere" is a wonderful phrase that leaves out a detail. Anywhere has to have internet. The beach house with "high speed wifi" in the listing turns out to have a router from another decade in a cupboard under the stairs, and your 9 a.m. call freezes on your least flattering expression.

Remote workers who travel learn quickly that they cannot depend on other people's connections. This guide covers how to build an internet setup that travels with you, how to vet a location before you commit, and the habits that keep you online when it counts.

The rule: own your connection

Every connection you do not control is a gamble. Rental wifi, hotel wifi, cafe wifi, your cousin's wifi. Some are great. You find out which after you arrive.

The fix is to carry a primary connection that is yours, and a backup that is different from it. Two layers, both in your bag.

Layer 1: A portable modem as your main connection

A portable cellular modem is a small box with a SIM card inside and its own unlimited plan. Wherever you turn it on, it creates the same private wifi network. Your laptop, phone, and tablet already know it, so they connect on their own.

With Beakom:

• $74.99 per month, unlimited, the same price in every state. No promotional period.
• Month to month. No contract.
• No credit check and no address eligibility check. A $100 refundable deposit is the only qualification. Useful when your income is freelance and your address is "it depends."
• No install. It ships free with the SIM already inside.
• Works wherever there is signal, anywhere in the USA. You never need to tell us where you are.

It is also your home internet. The same modem runs your apartment when you are not travelling, so this is not an extra bill for a travel gadget. It is one connection that goes where you go. See portable internet vs home internet.

Layer 2: A backup that fails differently

• Your phone's hotspot. Ideally on a different carrier's network from your main connection, so one bad tower does not take out both. Phone plans commonly put their own rules on hotspot data, which is fine for a backup.
• The location's wifi. Whatever the rental, hotel, or host provides. Use it carefully for anything sensitive.
• A known fallback spot. A library, coworking space, or cafe you have identified in advance, for the day everything else fails.

Vet the location before you book

Your modem needs cellular signal, so check for it the same way you check for a desk.

• Look at where it is. In or near a town, along a highway, in a popular area: usually good. At the end of a canyon road: be suspicious.
• Read reviews for mentions of cell service. Guests complain about this reliably.
• Ask the host directly: do phones work inside the house, and which carriers? Hosts know.
• Ask about their wifi too, as your backup. "We have wifi" is not an answer. "Guests take video calls on it" is.
• For long stays, keep the first night flexible or have a plan B nearby until you have tested the place.

More on testing in how to check coverage before you buy.

The arrival routine

Do this when you walk in, not five minutes before your first meeting.

1. Find the best window. Try two or three. Near glass, up high, away from metal and appliances. Method in our modem placement guide.
2. Plug the modem into its own charger.
3. Make a test video call from the spot where you will actually sit.
4. Check the backup. Confirm your hotspot has signal, and get the house wifi password.
5. Find the fallback spot on a map, with its opening hours.

Ten minutes. Then you can look at the view.

Video calls: habits that help

• Sit reasonably close to the modem for important calls.
• Close cloud backup, large downloads, and streaming on other devices during calls.
• Keep the modem on its charger during work hours.
• If video struggles, turn your camera off before the call drops. Audio needs far less.
• Have the dial in number for important meetings. A phone call is the oldest backup there is.
• Test at the time of day you will be working. Evenings and holiday weekends are busier on any network.

Security on the road

A private network you control is a real advantage over public and shared wifi, and some employers require it.

• Use your own network, not the rental's, for work logins and client data.
• Use your employer's VPN if they provide one.
• Give your network a strong password and do not share it with other guests.
• Follow your company's remote work policy. Some restrict which states or countries you can work from.

See our wifi security guide and hotel wifi vs bringing your own.

Power

The modem runs on its charger from a standard outlet and has a battery for shorter stretches.

• Rentals and hotels: pack a short extension cord. The best window is never beside the outlet.
• Vehicles: it runs from an inverter or vehicle outlet the way a laptop charger does.
• Off grid: a portable power station with a standard outlet covers the modem and your laptop.
• Always use the original charger. Substitutes can cause flaky behavior that looks like bad signal.

By travel style

• RV: RV internet without a satellite dish.
• Van: van life internet.
• Campgrounds: campground wifi alternatives.
• Cabins and lake houses: cabin and lake house internet.
• Seasonal moves: snowbird internet.
• Work assignments: internet for temporary housing.

The honest limits

• No signal means no internet. Deep canyons, remote desert, and some mountain valleys are beyond every cellular network. If that is where you want to work, satellite is the tool, or plan those places for your days off.
• Busy places get busy. A beach town on a holiday weekend has far more people on its towers than in the off season.
• USA only. Beakom service is for use in the USA.
• One modem covers one place at a time. If someone at home needs internet while you travel, that is two modems, each with its own plan and deposit.
• Service is not guaranteed at any specific location. Our Coverage page says so plainly.

A good rule: work near signal, play past it. Base yourself in range during the week and go remote on the weekend.

If your employer needs more

Some companies only allow remote access from approved IP addresses. If your IT department asks for a fixed address, the Business plan at $149.99 per month includes a static IP that stays the same wherever the modem goes, along with priority support, business invoicing, and expedited replacement. Freelancers who want invoices in a business name use it for that too. Our static IP explainer covers whether you need one.

The remote work go bag

• Modem and original charger, in a padded pouch.
• Short extension cord.
• Phone with hotspot as backup.
• Headset with a microphone. It forgives a lot.
• Portable power station if you go off grid.
• Wifi password and Beakom login in your password manager.
• A habit of checking the windowsill before checkout. The modem is Beakom property, and an unreturned one is a $150 charge.

Frequently asked questions

Do I have to tell you when I travel?
No.

Can two of us work on it at once?
Yes. One network, no per device fees.

Is it good enough for video calls?
That depends on signal where you put the modem, which is why the arrival routine matters. Test from your actual seat.

What if it fails while I am away from home?
Contact Support. Defective modems are replaced at no charge and shipped to wherever you are.

What if I stop travelling?
Keep using it at home, or cancel from your account, return it, and get your deposit back.

The bottom line

Working from anywhere works when you stop relying on anywhere's wifi. Carry your own main connection, keep a backup that fails differently, check for signal before you book, and test when you arrive, not when the meeting starts.

See How it Works to get set up before your next trip.