Living abroad as a family is an exciting adventure – new places, new cultures, and exciting new memories. Yet even in the most beautiful destinations, it’s natural for both parents and children to feel the tug of homesickness now and then.
Missing home or the people we love shouldn’t be perceived as a negative thing. Naturally it means we have a deep connection and sense of belonging to everything that feels familiar. And of course homesickness is always manageable.
By approaching these “blue days” with empathy, creativity, and a few practical strategies, you can help your family turn those “missing home” moments into opportunities for growth.
Read on for our tips and tricks to combatting homesickness for both you and your children as you live a globetrotting and nomadic lifestyle.
1. Acknowledge Feelings
The first step in easing homesickness is to recognize that what you’re feeling is normal. Let your children (and yourself!) know that it’s okay to feel sad or nostalgic sometimes. Children need to hear that missing home isn’t something to be ashamed of – everyone feels this way at some point.
Encourage your kids to talk openly about their feelings, or even keep a journal or draw a picture about their feelings. Whether it’s missing their old friends, their bedroom, or even the smell of nana's cooking. Listen without judgment and validate their emotions.
When you normalize homesickness, it becomes less scary. We also recommend sharing your own moments of missing home and how you cope, so your kids see that it’s not just them. Ultimately, these steps build a safe space for big emotions. In short, face the feelings together: a big hug, a good cry, or a chat about what you all miss can release the tension.
Once the feelings are out in the open, you can work on comforting each other and finding the beauty in your new environment.
2. Stay Connected to Loved Ones
One of the most effective cures for homesickness is staying in touch with the people who matter. Thanks to modern technology, your loved ones back home are just a video call away. Make use of those free calling apps – set up regular video chats with grandparents, cousins, and friends so everyone can share stories and laughter face-to-face. Something as simple as a weekly Skype/FaceTime call can anchor your kids to a sense of family no matter where in the world you may be.
For example, you might declare Sunday “family call day,” a routine time when you dial up relatives or friends and catch up on the week’s events. Seeing familiar faces and hearing familiar voices provides comfort.
At the same time, it’s important to find a healthy balance with these connections. If you’re video-calling home too often, you might start feeling detached from the new surroundings. So encourage the kids to send quick messages or funny photos to friends back home, but also be present and engage with their current location.
Get creative with how you connect:
- For younger children, consider old-fashioned pen pals or postcards. Kids often love sending and receiving real mail – it’s like a little hug from home in the mailbox.
- Some families use a shared online photo album or family group chat to swap daily photos, jokes, or daily updates.
- Also apps such as the Caribu app lets grandparents and grandkids read bedtime stories together over a video call.
Whether it’s a nightly goodnight message or a virtual storytime, using technology to shorten the distance can greatly comfort a homesickness.
3. Familiar Routines and Home Comforts
When everything around you is new, familiar routines and objects can be incredibly grounding. Think about the little rituals that make your family feel like “you” – and carry those with you on the road.
If Friday pizza night or Sunday pancake breakfast is a beloved tradition, continue it in your new destination. You might be eating pancakes in Portugal, but the comfort is the same! Keeping certain daily or weekly routines gives children a reassuring sense of continuity, even across time zones.
The key is to decide which routines are most meaningful to your family and make a conscious effort to maintain them on the road. It might be as simple as a certain lullaby at night, a Saturday game night, or morning yoga together – whatever says home to you, weave it into your life abroad.
In addition to routines, surround yourselves with a few comforts from home. Before you leave, let each child choose some special items that make them happy and secure. It could be a beloved stuffed animal, or a cozy blanket with the familiar smell of home. Music can also be a powerful soother, pack a small speaker and put on a happy playlist when feelings are low. Not forgetting food has a powerful emotional link to home – sometimes indulging in a familiar treat is enough to lift everyone’s spirits when they’re down.
4. Find Community Wherever You Go
One of the best ways to help both parents and children combat homesickness is to connect with others – especially other families or people who share your lifestyle. If you’re living a nomadic or expat life, seek out like-minded families who are on similar adventures.
Knowing just one or two other families going through the same ups and downs can reassure you that you’re not alone. For instance, many cities have Facebook or WhatsApp groups for expat parents, homeschooling/worldschooling families, or kids’ playgroups.
Showing up to a park meetup or community event might feel a little daunting at first, but it can lead to fast friendships. Children especially, bond quickly over play. Head to a nearby playground or park as one of your first outings – children have a way of befriending other children even if they don’t speak the same language!
Beyond informal meetups, consider joining family-friendly classes or groups. Enroll your child in a local sports team, art class, or dance studio – it gives them a chance to make friends and gives you a chance to meet other parents.
If you’re part of an organized travel community or program such as Boundless Life, take advantage of the built-in social network. In these communities, you’re instantly connected with other families who have a similar travel mindset. The result is often “instant friendships”.
5. Embrace New Adventures & Create New Traditions
While it’s important to keep ties to your old home, a big part of overcoming homesickness is also to fully engage with your new environment. In other words, make the new place exciting and meaningful for your family!
When you and your kids are actively exploring and having fun, there’s less time to dwell on what you miss. So go ahead and play tourist in your new city or country. Make a family bucket list of adventures to embark on: maybe it’s trying the local ice cream shop, visiting a famous sight or hiking a nearby trail.
Encourage your children to try new activities that they couldn’t do back home. Maybe it’s surfing if you’re by the beach, or learning a bit of the local language. Celebrate local holidays and festivals together. Homesickness often fades as a place goes from “strange” to “homey” through these fun explorations.
You can also create brand-new rituals unique to your travel life: start a travel journal as a family where each person sketches or writes a favorite memory of the week, or collect small souvenirs like postcards or patches from each place and have a night where you add them to a scrapbook. These practices give everyone something fun to focus on and take pride in.
6. Plan Visits and Little Reminders of Home
No matter how much you integrate into your new setting, there will still be people back home whom you and your kids dearly miss. One way to keep everyone’s spirits up is to plan something concrete to look forward to. If possible, schedule a visit with loved ones at some point – maybe a trip back home for the holidays or having grandparents come out to visit you abroad.
Simply having a date on the calendar when you know you’ll reunite with friends or family can be hugely comforting. It turns the longing into anticipation. Start a fun countdown to when you’ll fly back to your hometown next summer. Even if the visit is months away, it serves as a mental and emotional anchor – a promise that the connections with home will be renewed in person.
If an in-person visit isn’t feasible in the near term, you can still create “mini” connections. Plan a special video call for an upcoming event – for instance, arrange a virtual birthday party with friends back home, or have your family back home join a video call to sing holiday songs together.
Little gestures like sending care packages or exchanging local goodies can also help: maybe you send a box of treats or souvenirs from your host country to a friend at home, and they send you a package of your favorite snacks or a new book by your favorite author in your native language.
In essence, maintaining a bridge to home through planned meetups or exchanges keeps the sense of belonging intact. It reassures your children that, while you may be far away now, home is still there and the people they love are still in their life journey. It also teaches children that goodbyes don’t have to be forever – they can be “see you soon.”
Turning Homesickness into Growth
In the end, combating homesickness isn’t about not missing anything – it’s about filling your life with enough love, routine, and adventure that the missing becomes manageable.
By following these strategies – acknowledging feelings, keeping in touch, nurturing routines, finding community, embracing new experiences, and keeping home close in meaningful ways – you’ll help both you and your kids weather the bouts of homesickness that come and go.
Soon enough, you’ll have moments when you realize that, despite the occasional heartache, you’re all thriving abroad.
After all, home is ultimately where the heart is, and your hearts are on this journey together. Safe travels and happy globetrotting abroad! 🌎💙
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