So, what happens when you find someone you want to date who is miles away or someone closer to home who has to relocate for a period of time? While it does bring its own set of challenges, plenty of great relationships have begun and stayed the course despite the couples being far apart for a period of time.

With that in mind, here are my five top tips for maintaining love from a distance:

1. Technology

Skype is your friend, as is FaceTime. It’s worth both ensuring you have a good, reliable Wi-Fi connection and scouting out free spots near to home/work/university. If possible, invest in a decent smartphone package that’ll make video calling and messaging a pleasant, rather than frustrating, experience – and this needn’t break the bank, there are plenty of great budget options on the market now. Be careful with texts and emails though – it can be easy to misinterpret and be misinterpreted in brief messages. Keeping clear and open communication is really important.

2. Romance with mail

While technology is wonderful, there’s a particular charm in receiving letters and parcels. If you’re creative, consider drawing, painting, or making something, or you could buy occasional surprises to pop in the post.

3. Plan

Travelling can be expensive, especially at the last minute, but it can also be as cheap to fly to the continent as it can be for a few miles in a taxi. The trick is to catch the deals and plan ahead. Coach travel may not be glamorous, but often brings the thriftiest bargains and planes can be cheaper than trains with deals and comparison sites. Overnight stays can also be surprisingly inexpensive with basic bargain hotel chains, hostels and Airbnb. Sign up to mailing lists and loyalty schemes for great offers and ask around for potential car sharing buddies.

4. Exercise caution

Make sure you do meet the person in real life before you get involved in a relationship. Unfortunately, not everyone is who they claim to be, and while this shouldn’t be a reason to be put off by distance dating, it’s important to get to know the person face to face ahead of serious involvement and emotional investment. And in the ‘getting to know you’ period, keep meetings to public places.

5. Patience

The best way to learn patience is to be in a situation where you have to be patient. No one relishes this, but not having the easy access of a locally located significant other can actually be character building, bringing opportunity for personal growth, spiritual maturity and the development of strong foundations in the relationship. So, if you’re not already a pro at being patient, now’s the time to become one!

Travelling for dates comes with the opportunity to explore and discover new places and experiences. So if you do decide to take your search a little further afield – enjoy your adventure and you never know where it might lead…