Top Places We Lived and Worked Remotely in 2021
The purpose of this article is to INFORM and INSPIRE you about all the wonderful places you can travel and work remotely.
Please enjoy this summary (along with some of our commentary) of our 2021 global travels while working remotely for our US businesses.
Cabo San Lucas, Mexico
We met up with friends in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico to ring in the new year at an all-inclusive resort.
Staying at resorts is NOT typical for us because most rooms are not well-equipped for TWO remote workers so one of us has to find an alternative place to work. We also commonly find the internet in hotels and resorts can be spotty because there’s often only a few modems being shared by all the guests.
Unfortunately, this resort was no exception.
Scottsdale, Arizona
In Scottsdale, Arizona, we met up with a couple corporate executives who escaped the dreadful Minnesota winter. We lived and worked together there for a couple weeks.
We rented a nice condo on a golf course that was fully-equipped for remote working with excellent Wi-Fi!
A great example of corporate executives leveraging the power of remote working!
Playa del Carmen, Mexico
We spent 3 months living and working remotely in Playa del Carmen, Mexico.
Overall, we had a great experience. Playa has:
- A great community of other expats, remote workers, and digital nomads.
- Infrastructure that is well-equipped for remote working – lots of coworking spots and easy-to-find, reliable internet.
- A lifestyle that makes it easy to live there with beautiful beaches for a welcomed break from working.
Zagreb, Croatia
We spent a couple weeks in Croatia’s capital city of Zagreb.
There, we attended the city’s Digital Nomad Week conference where I was also a guest speaker. I shared my story of leaving my corporate career to travel full-time during a fireside chat.
Zagreb really is a great city for digital nomads and remote workers. It has really good infrastructure, Wi-Fi, and lots of coworking spaces.
Kotor, Montenegro
We spent 1 week in Kotor in a nice 1-br apartment with a dining room table just big enough for two of us to work remotely. We also had no problems with connectivity and such in Montenegro.
The special bonus of our apartment was that it had a large covered patio and dining set just outside our front door that overlooked Kotor Bay. Beautiful place to work from!
Dubrovnik, Croatia
In total, we spent close to 1 month in Dubrovnik, staying about a week in Old Town and about 3 weeks on the Lapad Peninsula.
Dubrovnik is a beautiful, historic city with good connectivity and lots to do.
However, many digital nomads find it to be too touristy and expensive as a long-term destination. I can see their point but it’s still a must-see city!
Lecce, Italy
Upon arriving in Italy, we spent the first few days in Lecce – located in the “heel of the boot” of Italy.
Our apartment was sufficient for both of us to work, but we had some big hiccups with the internet and spotty cell service.
Also, we found the process of finding and installing a SIM card in Italy to be more challenging than expected.
- It took us a while to find a SIM card retailer
- They were relatively expensive – about $25 each and we had 2 phones and a hotspot
- It took the Vodafone rep an unusually long time to set up the SIM cards and service in our phones and hotspot.
Rome, Italy
We really enjoyed Rome for about a week and thought it was a great city for digital nomads and remote workers.
We were located in an excellent area of Rome where we could easily take a break from work to see the sites, sip on a macchiato, or just take a stroll around the neighborhood.
Florence, Italy
We spent a week in Florence, Italy.
Besides seeing the beautiful local architecture and walking around downtown Florence, the highlight was our daytrip to Cinque Terre.
We thought Florence was an OK place for digital nomads and remote workers but think there are better destinations for those folks.
Sailing the Adriatic Sea
We spent a week sailing around the coast of Croatia in the Adriatic Sea.
Believe it or not, our 55’ sailing yacht was surprisingly well-equipped for 6 Executive Remote Workers (plus 2 crew) to comfortably live and work.
This was the first unofficial Executive Remote Worker Community Coworking Trip, and we had an amazing time!
Hvar Town, Croatia
We spent a month living and working remotely in Hvar Town on the island of Hvar in Croatia.
Our apartment was really nice with excellent Wi-Fi, comfortable workspaces, spacious balcony, big kitchen, and even our own espresso machine.
When we weren’t working, we also enjoyed our time exploring other towns on the island like Milna, Stari Grad, and Jelsa.
Osijek, Croatia
The city of Osijek and local tech firms are making big investments around the area of Osijek to put it on the map as an up-and-coming digital nomad destination.
It was very easy and affordable for us to live and work in Osijek, and we found the local community to be very kind and welcoming to us.
Budapest, Hungry
We spent a week living and working remotely in Budapest, Hungary. The architecture, history, and thermal spas were all incredible!
We had no issues with working remotely from our apartment here.
Budapest is well-known for being a safe and digital nomad-friendly city!
Sayulita, Mexico
We spent a couple weeks in the beach & surf town of Sayulita.
Unfortunately, our apartment was located in the heart of town. It was really loud and not well-equipped for our remote working lifestyle.
Needless to say, it was hard for us to be productive there.
While Sayulita is a VERY beautiful and fun town, it might not be the best destination for digital nomads and remote workers!
Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
We wrapped up 2021 with a 1-month stay in Puerto Vallarta for the first official Executive Remote Worker Community Coworking Trip.
We all found the city to be very livable and well-equipped for digital nomads and remote workers.
Conclusion
I hope you enjoyed this walk down memory lane and it inspires you to take action towards your dreams too!
To learn more about our community, check us out here.
