Thinking of leaving the UK to remote work? Here are 5 hidden gems close enough to still join your 9am meeting
Working remotely is great. Doing it from so far that you’re joining meetings in the middle of the night is not so great.
I’ve been fortunate enough to have traveled throughout 30+ countries in the past 8 years. Most of which were backpacking trips but most recently I’ve taken work along with me.
As such, I’ve curated a list of my top five hidden gems to work remotely and still be in-sync with your team (for EU/UK/MENA). Of these five, I personally worked from three of them. The other two were suggestions I picked up on the grapevine during my travels.
Now there are a number of things to consider when choosing your digital nomad haven. For the sake of simplicity, I based my decisions off six key variables:
- Cost
- Internet speed
- Sufficient co-working locations
- Community
- Rec/nightlife
- Safety
Enough ado, here’s the list in reverse order:
5. Corralejo, Fuerteventura (Canary Islands, Spain)
Cost of living: £1,200–1,800pcm | Internet speed: ~40mps | Co-working facilities: 3/5 | Community resources: 3/5 | Rec/Nightlife: 3/5 | Safety: 4/5
Corralejo is not your typical remote-work/digital nomad haven. It’s a town in the North of Fuerteventura with a vibrant boarding scene: surfing, kite-boarding, wind-surfing, skateboarding, and alike. You won’t find a strong tech/business ecosystem but what you will find is a strong water-sports community that is welcoming and friendly (although I heard the kite-boarding bunch can be a bit too aggressive).
It’s different yet has all the amenities a digital nomad needs to get on with work. There are plenty of co-living accommodations, good internet, great food, and enough cafes to work out of. Besides, who doesn’t want to have zoom calls at the beach.
4. Cape Town (South Africa)
Cost of living: £1,300–1,800pcm | Internet speed: ~15mps | Co-working facilities: 3/5 | Community resources: 3/5 | Rec/Nightlife: 5/5 | Safety: 3/5
Despite being a 10+ hr flight from London, it’s well worth the trip. Especially if you’re planning to stay there for more than a month. I’ve been to 35+ cities across the world and I can honestly say that this is one of the few that has it all: city vibes, mountains, beaches, good weather, and a deep-rooted culture.
South Africa as a whole is a meat-eating country, but Cape Town does have its fair share of vegetarian/vegan selections. Although Internet speed is average, there are plenty of co-working spaces & cafes within walking distance from the city centre.
Because the city is quite vibrant, it can be a bit distracting so working/staying on the outskirts is suggested. Places like Sea Point and Green Point offer great amenities and are a bit quieter than the centre.
3. Belgrade (Serbia)
Cost of living: £800–1,400pcm | Internet speed: ~25mps | Co-working facilities: 3/5 | Community resources: 4/5 | Rec/Nightlife: 4/5 | Safety: 4/5
Now hands up — this is one that I haven’t been to (as I’m sure you guessed from the picture). However, I received this suggestion countless times throughout my travels and figured that I should research and share it with you.
Belgrade is easily one of the most overlooked cities in Europe. It has the 5th fastest growing tech sector in Eastern Europe and a budding startup community. Microsoft even based their development centre there. Cost of living is quite attractive and the city offers all the bells and whistles that one can expect in a big city. It scores high in the safety index and hosts a strong community of digital nomads/expats.
2. Tbilisi (Georgia)
Cost of living: £500–1,000pcm | Internet speed: ~25mps | Co-working facilities: 4/5 | Community resources: 4/5 | Rec/Nightlife: 4/5 | Safety: 5/5
Again this one I haven’t been to, but similarly to Belgrade it can’t be overlooked. The government of Georgia has made tremendous efforts to accommodate the digital workforce. They offer a digital nomad visa designed for self-employed and freelance individuals that allow them to stay for up to a year.
There are no shortages of cafes down on the cobble street roads where you’ll find nomads sipping lattes and dialling into Github and Zoom calls.
With a welcoming government, low cost of living, great wifi, vibrant city life, and a growing community of digital nomads, Tbilisi is quickly becoming a top favourite amongst the remote workforce.
1. Plovdiv (Bulgaria)
Cost of living: £500–1,000pcm | Internet speed: ~40mps | Co-working facilities: 4/5 | Community resources: 5/5 | Rec/Nightlife: 4/5 | Safety: 5/5
This small, quaint little town takes the top spot. I spent a month here and absolutely loved it. It’s a great place to buckle down to get some work done with very little distractions. Monday through Friday, you can take a seat at one of the local co-working spots or plentiful cafes. Over the weekend you can make your way to Kapana for some dinner and drinks or take a hike at one of the mountains overlooking the town.
It boasts a small, yet very active, expat/digital nomad group that are extremely welcoming. There are plenty of events to go to — from wine tasting to tech meetups. The Internet is rated as one of the best across Europe, cost of living is the lowest out of the five places, and the city is incredibly safe. Infrastructure is great and transport to the capital, Sofia, is quick and easy.
As far as finding a place to cut down on costs, enjoy good company and food, all the while getting s**t done. This place is hard to beat.
Do reach out and tell us what you think! Would be great to discover some more destinations for the Strabo team in 2021 and beyond.
I’ve included some sources and resources below in case you want to learn more:
Correlejo
https://nomadlist.com/corralejo
Cape Town
https://nomadlist.com/coworking/cape-town
https://www.coworker.com/south-africa/cape-town/office-co-seapoint
https://www.facebook.com/greencoworking/
Belgrade
https://nomadlist.com/belgrade
https://www.christhefreelancer.com/belgrade-for-digital-nomads/
https://belgrade.impacthub.net/community-of-entrepreneurs/?lang=en
https://www.ft.com/content/03f995f0-9c12-11ea-871b-edeb99a20c6e
Tbilisi
https://www.expatistan.com/cost-of-living/tbilisi
https://mycaucasus.com/en/company/blog/article/The-best-hang-out-spots-for-nightlife-in-Tbilisi
Plovdiv
