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Two Tickets Anywhere

Digital Nomad Couple

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Living In Mexico: 9x Things I Wish I Knew As A Digital Nomad

Category Digital Nomad, Mexico Updated on March 2, 2022

living in mexico
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Thinking about living in Mexico as a digital nomad?

We totally get why! There are so many reasons to choose Mexico (and also many reasons to not choose it).

Let’s just get this out of the way:

This is not your grandma’s Mexico.

It seems like whenever Mexico is brought up in conversation, whether it’s about the tantalizing food or the safety issues – everyone has an opinion about this country. But here’s the thing:

Living in Mexico as a digital nomad is a completely different experience than just going to Mexico for vacation. There’s a lot more to think about in terms of lifestyle, culture, coworking, community and so much more.

We spent collectively around 7 months living in Mexico in 3 different cities as digital nomads and here are 9 things we wish we knew before arriving that very first day in Cancun airport.

In This Article: show
9x Things To Know Before Living In Mexico As A Digital Nomad
1. Mexico Is Safer Than Your Family Makes It Seem
2. The Food Is As Good As You Imagine
3. Rent Isn’t As Cheap As You Think
4. Mexico Has A Little Bit Of Everything
5. The Visa Situation Is Kind Of Tricky
6. Mexicans Are Friendly And Helpful
7. Wifi Isn’t As Fast As You Wish
8. Mexico Will Quickly Feel Like Home
9. Mexico Will Exceed Your Expectations At Every Turn
Last Thing About Living in Mexico: You Won’t Want To Leave

9x Things To Know Before Living In Mexico As A Digital Nomad

The beautiful country is full of deep history, rich culture, and drool-worthy food – it’s hard not to fall in love. Living in Mexico is unlike any other experience as digital nomads.

Our first visit to Mexico was in 2020 and we had no idea what to expect. Plenty of people gave their opinions about Mexico but we wanted to see it and experience it for ourselves.

matthew ashley lido beach club playa del carmen
matthew and ashley at real de guadalupe street

When we were living in Mexico, we chose to stay in 3 different cities: Playa del Carmen, San Cristobal de las Casas and Merida. All of these Mexican cities were very different experiences and we love the way we traveled because we got the best of both worlds.

While we are used to living this digital nomad lifestyle, there were still some culture shocks – it helps to research Mexico blog posts and be prepared for your new journey.

Without further ado, here are 9 things we wish we knew about living in Mexico as digital nomads.

1. Mexico Is Safer Than Your Family Makes It Seem

Living in Mexico isn’t as scary as your friends and family might make it seem. The news is definitely another source of fear preventing people from visiting Mexico.

Here’s the thing:

Mexico is as dangerous and as safe as anywhere else in the world. It’s not like Mexico’s the only country with crime. Certain cities are full of tourists and expats where the safety has definitely increased over the years.

safest places to live in mexico

Don’t get me wrong:

There are some seriously dangerous parts of Mexico – to the point you shouldn’t go to certain areas ever. When you’re living in Mexico, you need to be careful, vigilant and watch your surroundings. But that’s just common sense no matter where you are in the world.

In our personal experience, we felt safe during the entire time we were living in Mexico. We did stay at some of the safest places in Mexico which helps give you peace of mind.

2. The Food Is As Good As You Imagine

The tacos.

The burritos.

The tortas.

The ceviche.

You name it – the food in Mexico is just drool-worthy!

This was honestly one of the main reasons we wanted to visit Mexico. We were always told that Mexican food outside of Mexico is actually pretty different from ‘real Mexican food’. They were right!

eggs benedict sarajevo cafe
steak at mercado de carne parrilla
birria taco dorados birria y consome mexican restaurant playa del carmen
al pastor tacos el fogon mexican restaurant playa del carmen

 

The flavors are rich, the guacamole is creamy and there’s always pico de gallo! Some of the best tacos in Playa del Carmen blew our taste buds away. You will enjoy eating at the smallest street taco stands and you can also bougie it up at some of the fanciest Mexican restaurants.

The waist might not thank you but your taste buds certainly will! One of the best parts about living in Mexico is definitely the food and the fact that you have so many options!

3. Rent Isn’t As Cheap As You Think

We paid less than $700 USD for our Airbnb in Playa del Carmen a month before we arrived and snagged an insane deal. We got a 1-bedroom apartment with a huge TV, rooftop pool, gym, workspace and more. Little did we know…

Rental prices in Mexico can get SUPER expensive (like NYC-level prices).

In Playa del Carmen (which is a rising digital nomad hotspot), the prices have increased dramatically since we were there in 2020. Now, you can expect to pay around at least $1,500+ USD for a decent 1-bedroom apartment close to the city center. In fact, I think our old apartment has gone from $700 USD to $2,100 USD. Isn’t that crazy?!

rooftop pool one bedroom apartment playa del carmen
living room one bedroom apartment playa del carmen
master bedroom playa del carmen apartment
kitchen one bedroom apartment playa del carmen front angle

You can still get cheap rentals but it depends on where you decide to live in Mexico. For popular tourist destinations like Tulum, Playa del Carmen or Puerto Vallarta – you can expect to pay much higher. The best way to get low prices for rent is to do it locally which means you might have to deal with some bureaucracy. You might also have to be an expat and stay longer to get the best prices.

For digital nomads who will only be living in Mexico for a couple of months at a time – the easiest way to get an apartment is to just book via Airbnb. It’s more expensive than doing it on the ground and finding a place locally but you pay for the convenience and peace of mind that Airbnb offers.

4. Mexico Has A Little Bit Of Everything

Want a beach day? Go ahead!

Want to hike through some jungles? Yes you can!

Want to swim in waterfalls? Why not?!

Want to go scuba diving? Let’s go!

Want to discover old Mayan ruins? They’re open!

Mexico is one of the most diverse countries with so much natural beauty than we have ever been visited before. You have cold weather and you have warm weather. You can go and live in San Cristobal de las Casas which is a mountainous area with deep Spanish roots. You can go whale-spotting from a viewpoint in Puerto Vallarta. You can visit Mayan ruins that are hundreds of years old and swim in cenotes.

matthew and ashley chichen itza mexico
matthew and ashley at cascada el chiflon waterfall

 

There’s no boundary to the kind of experiences you can have while living in Mexico. That’s what makes it so great! Whether you want to live by the beach or be surrounded by mountains – there are plenty of Mexican cities to choose from!

5. The Visa Situation Is Kind Of Tricky

The visa situation is a little complicated in Mexico. It used to be pretty simple but in recent years, it’s become a bit of a mixed bag. Why?

If you have a passport that makes you eligible to get their 180-day visa, it should be pretty straight forward right? Well no…

mexican fmm visa

Some people arrive in Mexico thinking they automatically give each tourist 180 days. That’s not the case! The number of days you get in Mexico is entirely up to the immigration officer. That’s why you MUST check the FMM card before you leave the airport.

In recent times, people have gotten as little as 10 days as opposed to 180 days and only check when they are about to leave the country – which can get you in a lot of trouble.

A temporary residency visa is a pretty popular choice for expats. The best, most comprehensive guide I’ve seen on how to apply for it is by Hippie in Heels here.

6. Mexicans Are Friendly And Helpful

Here’s the thing: Not every Mexican is trying to haggle you and take advantage of you.

When you’re living in Mexico, try to set aside those assumptions people have about Mexicans. Start your time there with a fresh perspective and an open mind.

ashley and dom with spanish teacher mexico
matthew ashley christian choux choux cafe playa del carmen

You see…Mexican people are some of the nicest, most caring and most welcoming people. When you’re living in Mexico, try to make an effort to make friends with some locals. Some of them are English speakers which is great when you’re just trying to learn Spanish still.

Our personal experience has been great. Our Spanish teacher was really nice and helpful. A lot of the locals we met were very patient with our little level of Spanish which is great when you’re trying hard to connect with others.

7. Wifi Isn’t As Fast As You Wish

Some of the best places to live in Mexico cater to digital nomads very well. There are coworking spaces, digital nomad communities that offer a great standard of living. However…

…unless you’re working remotely from a coworking space, the wifi isn’t going to be the fastest. The Playa del Carmen coworking spaces offered around 30-80+ Mbps whereas it’s a bit less for coworking in San Cristobal de las Casas (around 20-40 Mbps). In our new and modern apartment in the middle of Playa del Carmen, we only got speeds of 15-20 Mbps. In our San Cristobal de las Casas apartment, we only got speeds of 3 Mbps which was pretty annoying.

wifi speed basic foodie cafe playa del carmen
conexion60 coworking merida wifi speeds

When we were Thailand digital nomads, we got used to getting speeds of 100-300+ Mbps! In terms of wifi, I feel Mexico can definitely improve on its wifi speeds. This is something to keep in mind if you’re thinking of living in Mexico for a while.

8. Mexico Will Quickly Feel Like Home

It’s easy to feel homesick whether you’re a digital nomad traveling full-time or an expat that has relocated abroad. For US citizens, living in Mexico can be pretty similar in certain ways.

I was absolutely shocked when we were walking around Playa del Carmen and stumbled on a Walmart! The store was just as big as they are in the States and then the next thing I saw was Sam’s Club! I couldn’t believe it.

 

 

Archivo Histórico De Mérida

You can even use your US SIM card in Playa del Carmen and there were more similarities than I expected (like being able to buy Kraft Mac & Cheese). Not to mention, it’s such a short flight from certain States which makes the time zone differences easy. If you’re scared of moving abroad and you don’t want to feel like you are moving halfway across the world – living in Mexico is a great option!

That’s probably why 1 million expats have decided they are going to be living in Mexico for the foreseeable future.

9. Mexico Will Exceed Your Expectations At Every Turn

Living in Mexico will surprise you in the best possible ways.

friends while living in merida
matt and ashley san cristobal de las casas

 

You will fall in love with the culture.

You will fall in love with the natural beauty.

You will fall in love with the beaches.

You will fall in love with the food.

You will fall in love with the people.

We arrived in Mexico with an open mind and did our best to put our ‘fears’ behind us to be able to soak up what this country had to offer. If you’re wanting to move somewhere in Latin America, Mexico is honestly a top option for a lot of people. It has also been named as a top destination for remote workers.

Last Thing About Living in Mexico: You Won’t Want To Leave

To this day, we still talk about our time living in Mexico. Sometimes I feel like we are always planning our return just to get some delicious tacos, hang out on the beach or practice our Spanish.

When you’re living in Mexico, there are pros and cons. We feel that the pros definitely outweigh the cons of moving to Mexico. We would visit again in a heartbeat and even considered the temporary residency at one point. That’s how much we loved living in Mexico!

We know you will love living in Mexico, too!

In: Digital Nomad, Mexico

Sunday Suitcase Newsletter

A newsletter for digital nomads! Each Sunday you'll receive an email with the latest nomad news, digital nomad lifestyle tips, new destination guides and work online tips to ease you into your week.

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Welcome!

We’re Matt and Ashley, the American-Aussie couple behind this blog. In 2018, we realized we could take our work with us…anywhere in the world. We packed our bags, sold our stuff and bought two tickets to Bali. Today, we slow travel full-time, run our business from our laptops and embrace life one adventure at a time. We’ve completely fallen in love with the freedom that comes with this lifestyle and we hope to inspire you to join us on the digital nomad journey!

Sunday Suitcase Newsletter

A newsletter for digital nomads! Each Sunday you'll receive an email with the latest nomad news, digital nomad lifestyle tips, new destination guides and work online tips to ease you into your week.

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Follow The Journey In Real-Time @TwoTicketsAnywhere_

better than the movies…💭🌴⁣ ⁣ ⁣ #trav better than the movies…💭🌴⁣
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#travelreels #funnytravel #travelgram #exploretheworld #travel #chasingsunsets #sunsetlover #travelblog⁣
#digitalnomad #laptoplifestyle
3x UNDERRATED digital nomad destinations in europe 3x UNDERRATED digital nomad destinations in europe ✈️ (to visit this summer) - add these to your travel plans in 2023 (or 2024🤓)⁣
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🇭🇷Croatia - stunning coastline, good wifi, growing DN community, beautiful nature and lots of cafes! ⁣
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🇷🇸Serbia - friendly locals, low cost of living, fast wifi, plenty of activities, great cafes to work from & great dining scene. ⁣
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🇨🇾Cyprus - great weather year-round, mountains + beaches, delicious food, growing community, good coworking spaces, endless outdoor activities.⁣
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Have you already been to these countries? Which was your favorite? Share below! 👇⁣
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#digitalnomaddiaries #workfromwifi #fulltimetravel #workandtravel #digitalnomad #laptoplifestyle #workanywhere #digitalnomadlifestyle #travelblog #digitalnomadlife #blogger #twoticketsanywhere #digitalnomadblogger #livethedream #maketheleap #passportcollective #digitalnomadgirl #exploretheworld #worldnomad
living, not surviving 🤝 ⁣ ⁣ why stay in an living, not surviving 🤝 ⁣
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why stay in an office when you can travel + work remotely from anywhere ✈️⁣
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#workfromwifi #fulltimetravel #workandtravel #digitalnomad #laptoplifestyle #workanywhere #travelreels #funnytravel #travelgram
plus you get free access to paddle boards and kaya plus you get free access to paddle boards and kayaks 👀❤️‍🔥⁣
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📍Free Cerveza, Lake Atitlan ⁣🇬🇹
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#visitguatemala #lakeatitlan #travelreels #uniquestays #traveldestination #digitalnomadlife #exploreguatemala #digitalnomad
Flying out to Cyprus just made sense! 🇨🇾⁣ Flying out to Cyprus just made sense! 🇨🇾⁣
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The weather in Europe started to get colder in October and if you know us, you’ll know we chase the sunshine ☀️⁣
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The best part is that we were joining a coliving space with some friends we made back in Zagreb! We spent an awesome month together - exploring the country, getting work done together and getting to know each other better!⁣
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We love coliving because you get to have an instant community as soon as you land. A nomadic life gets lonely (yes, even as a couple) and coliving spaces usually create great communities with like-minded people!⁣
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@tohani_coliving was especially great at creating events for everyone. During our first week, we had a community design meeting to discuss and plan the kind of things we wanted to do together. I'll share more about our experience on coliving soon ✌️⁣
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Here are some of the highlights:⁣
🌊 Swimming in the ocean with friends⁣
🚗 Weekend getaway to northern cyprus⁣
🎳 Bowling night with the coliving fam⁣
🍼 Meeting good friends (+ their cute baby)
🚤 Jet skiing with my girl @jbabbage 
🥟 Monday dinners at home with the coliving fam⁣
🏖️ Exploring the many beaches Cyprus has to offer⁣
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Would you ever try staying in a coliving space?⁣
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#digitalnomadcyprus #colivingspace #tohanicoliving #digitalnomadlife #funnytravel #traveltheworld #coliving #workandtravel #workfromwifi #digitalnomad #travellifestyle #traveladdict #twoticketsanywhere #travelblogger #travelawesome #digitalnomadlifestyle #fulltimetravel #passportcollective #travelcouple #cyprusdigitalnomad #cyprus
Is Skopje, North Macedonia on your destination lis Is Skopje, North Macedonia on your destination list? 🇲🇰⁣
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On our Europe tour, we decided to make Skopje home for a few weeks! One of the main reason is because I needed to renew my passport which is much faster outside the country.⁣
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Other than that, we didn’t really know what to expect. There weren't many blogs or videos about being digital nomads here. We could only find 1 coworking space in the area but there were plenty of cafes to visit! There’s a huge cafe culture which is always nice.⁣
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We had a really nice, modern, comfortable apartment in Skopje for $580 USD which was 5 minutes walking from the city center. The cost of living is pretty affordable and it’s very safe! ⁣
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If you’re looking for a city to get some work done, explore the surrounding destinations and establish some routine or even simply go to the BEST gym I've ever been to (@fit_in_performance) - Skopje could be that place for you!⁣
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Would you visit Skopje, North Macedonia as a digital nomad?⁣
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#workfromeurope #workfromwifi #laptoplifestyle #digitalnomad #digitalnomadlife #remoteworking #digitalnomadcouple #digitalnomadskopje #skopje #skopjedigitalnomad #skopjenorthmacedonia #visitskopje #visitnorthmacedonia #europedigitalnomad
Lisbon, Portugal is the top digital nomad destinat Lisbon, Portugal is the top digital nomad destination in Europe! 🇵🇹Why?⁣
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One word: community!⁣
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According to some digital nomad statistics, loneliness is the #1 reason people leave this lifestyle. When you’re traveling alone (or even as a couple), you easily feel all alone. Thankfully, the digital nomad community is very strong, open and welcoming!⁣
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Lisbon is also a popular spot because of the fast wifi (we had speeds of 500+ Mbps), endless coworking options and a relatively affordable cost of living (except the rising rental prices, of course let's be real). ⁣
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Our month in this wonderful city wasn’t long enough! It’s got all the simple things we love:⁣
 ☕ specialty coffee⁣
🍷 delicious food & wine⁣
🥑 bustling brunch scene and ⁣
👯 friendly people & community⁣
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We can easily see why digital nomads keep coming back to this city and we hope we can explore more of Portugal (Porto, Algrave, etc).⁣
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Have you been a digital nomad in Lisbon before? What were your thoughts?⁣
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#workfromeurope #workfromwifi #laptoplifestyle #digitalnomad #digitalnomadlife #remoteworking #digitalnomadcouple #digitalnomadportugal #lisbon #lisbondigitalnomad #lisbonportugal #visitlisbon #visitportugal #europedigitalnomad
We embarked on another 6-hour bus journey to our n We embarked on another 6-hour bus journey to our next digital nomad destination on this Europe tour.⁣
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Zagreb, Croatia has been on our minds for a while. While most people think of Split or Dubrovnik, we wanted to visit the capital and see what it’s really like for digital nomads.⁣
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These are some things that we think of before choosing a destination:⁣
- Is there an active digital nomad community?⁣
- What’s the wifi speeds like?⁣
- Are there good coworking spaces?⁣
- Is the cafe culture buzzing?⁣
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And so much more! Our biggest concern was the community part. After traveling Serbia alone - we were starting to feel quite lonely! We joined an FB group and found someone had set up a weekly coworking day.⁣
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It’s always nerve-wracking going to events where you don’t know anyone but as digital nomads, you get acquainted pretty quick! TLDR, we had a pretty close group of 8 working from cafes together, exploring Zagreb and getting to know each other.⁣
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Zagreb is a great destination in Europe for a digital nomad wanting a more affordable cost of living while still exploring Croatia! 🇭🇷⁣
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#workfromeurope #workfromwifi #laptoplifestyle #digitalnomad #digitalnomadlife #remoteworking #digitalnomadcouple #digitalnomadcroatia #zagreb #zagrebdigitalnomad #zagrebcroatia #visitcroatia🇭🇷
Never did we think we would visit Serbia…⁣ ⁣ Never did we think we would visit Serbia…⁣
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…but we are SO glad we did!⁣
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Serbia surprised us in so many ways, we honestly didn’t know what to expect! ⁣
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That’s one of the ways we like to approach some of our travels - not judging the country by its cover. You can hear some positive (or negative) things about countries but you never truly know until you experience it for yourself. ⁣
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We spent a month living in Belgrade, Serbia and it wasn’t long enough! With such limited time, as digital nomads you have to hit the ground running to get settled into your new home. We used our first 3 days to find (good) cafes to work from, sign up for a gym membership and plan our travel across Serbia.⁣
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Here are some reasons we can recommend Belgrade to fellow digital nomads:⁣
- friendly, welcoming people⁣
- they have delicious food⁣
- high standard of living⁣
- relatively low cost of living⁣
- fast wifi with tons of cafes to work from ⁣
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We ate countless bureks, drank copious amounts of coffee and worked from some of the coolest cafes. We can’t wait to get back to Belgrade!⁣
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Serbia, you stole our hearts!⁣
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#workfromeurope #workfromwifi #laptoplifestyle #digitalnomad #digitalnomadlife #remoteworking #digitalnomadcouple #digitalnomadserbia #belgrade #belgradedigitalnomad #belgradeserbia #visitserbia
European Digital Nomad Summer 2022, incoming ✨⁣
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After 4 months in Medellin, Colombia - we decided to head to Europe for the rest of the year!⁣
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Travel planning just becomes part of your lifestyle as digital nomads - it almost becomes a side hustle. When we're not working or exploring, we are researching/booking our next destinations!⁣
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What countries did we decide on?⁣
🇬🇧 England⁣
🇦🇹 Austria⁣
🇭🇷 Croatia⁣
🇷🇸 Serbia⁣
🇫🇷 France⁣
🇳🇱 Netherlands⁣
🇵🇹 Portugal⁣
🇲🇰 North Macedonia⁣
and finally, a last-minute decision to visit...⁣
🇨🇾 Cyprus⁣
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We found flights for only $400 to London from Colombia! My lovely friend and her husband were the best hosts and showed us around their new home. We spent a week in London exploring, acclimating to this continent and working from Pret! ⁣
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TTA TIP: If you're in London, Pret has a subscription service for only about £30 and you get 5 drinks per day plus a cafe space to do a little work!⁣
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*I'm going to be recapping the rest of our 2022 as digital nomads for the next few posts, we are currently in Asia🤪 ⁣
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#workfromeurope #workfromwifi #laptoplifestyle #digitalnomad #digitalnomadlife #remoteworking #digitalnomadcouple #locationindependent #freedomlifestyle #fulltimetravel #digitalnomadeurope #remotework #workonline #workfromanywhere #workandtravel #digitalnomadlifestyle

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  • DIGITAL NOMAD
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  • WORK ONLINE
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A newsletter for digital nomads! Each Sunday you'll receive an email with the latest nomad news, digital nomad lifestyle updates, new destination guides and work online tips to ease you into your week.

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