Among the aims of the Digital Nomads Observatory is to study whether Greece is an attractive destination for digital nomads, taking into account certain parameters that digital nomads consider important for choosing a destination.

In this context, a relevant survey was carried out, the purpose of which is to study the role of coworking spaces in Greece in attracting digital nomads. Coworking spaces from all over Greece participated in the survey, regardless of the size of jobs. The duration of the study was between January and March 2022 and its results are published in this paper.

Download the Study

Some Conclusions

Coworking spaces, as shown by this research, seem to be the first places that a digital nomad visits at the destination. They are an opportunity and a means for the creation of a community of digital nomads in the area and at the same time an informal reception point – provision of information for familiarization with the destination.

Although the state policy for digital nomads and the “digital nomads visa” seems to be in the right direction, there are still several shortcomings in attracting a large volume of digital nomads to Greece.

As has been analyzed in other reports of the Observatory, apart from the sun and the sea (and the natural environment in general) a number of other factors are equally taken into account for the choice of a destination by digital nomads. Among them are the cost of living, connectivity, ease of transportation to and from the destination, the existence of suitable workplaces and of course the existence of a community of digital nomads in the area.

Therefore, among other measures to be taken, emphasis and support should be placed on spaces such as coworking spaces and related spaces in order to form a core for the creation and preservation of communities of digital nomads in destinations.

A year after the great publicity that the phenomenon of digital nomads in Greece received, the interest seems to remain, both in terms of national policy and in terms of destinations, especially with regard to the actions of attracting them as a new potential audience.

In the context of its operation, the Think Tank of the Digital Nomads Observatory submits its views on the actions taken on a national level for Greece, regarding the attraction of digital nomads, as well as the challenges that the country and its destinations have to address in terms of meeting the needs of digital nomads.

Among the questions raised are whether they believe remote working will increase in the next three years compared to the year 2021, the success of the state regulation on the digital nomad visa, and what they see as the prospects of digital nomadism as a stream of international mobility.

At the end of the report, conclusions and action points are presented,  regarding the actions that Greece as well as its destinations can take, regarding the attraction of digital nomads.

The Digital Nomads’ Report is available in English and Greek

Digital Nomads Observatory. (March 2022). DIgital Nomads’ Report: The evaluation of the situation in Greece regarding Digital Nomads [Available in Greek].

Download the Report

Who are the digital nomads? Age Statistics

• There is almost equal distribution between men and women, with 49.81% being women and 50.19% men.
• Most digital nomads are Caucasians (European descent) with 76%, while the next categories with a big difference are Latins (Spanish descent) with 10%, Asians with 8% and colored (African descent) with 6%.
• 51% nationalities of the total digital nomads worldwide, belong to 4 countries. More specifically, the 31% is from USA, 8% Portugal, 7% Germany and 5% Brazil. The remaining 49%, represents 35 other countries.
• The average age of digital nomads is 40 years. However, most digital nomads, 47%, are in their 30s Ages 29, 33 and 39 are the most common among digital nomads and uniformly make up 23% of their total.
• Although 61% of respondents said they started their journey as nomads in their 20s, 39% said they start at 30 or later
• The digital nomads whose answers were studied, traveled for an average of 6.1 years, while 85% traveled for more than 1 year.

While there is not so much difference between the sexes, it seems that Caucasian digital nomads from the US are significantly more than the other categories.

Assumptions based on the data

Moreover, despite the perception that digital nomads are mostly young, most tend to be more mature and choose this kind of lifestyle from time to time, at different phases of their lives. Evidence from this study showed that many digital nomads at their late thirties and beyond, who reached a level of success and experience in their careers, were allowed to choose a remote way of working and later to start a small business.

Younger age groups studied, commonly ages of 29 and 33, are individuals who left mid-career and and attempted a transition or a full career change. The oldest digital nomad in this study was 72 years old!

The conclusion of this research is that the journey as a nomad can be started or continued at any age.

According to the above data, it seems that the audience of digital nomads appears broader in terms of age, and not only related to the “carefree youngsters”, nor it always concerns a life decision, as has been reflected by many so far.

Finally, we cannot ignore the economic situation of the digital nomads, which seems to confirm the belief that digital nomadism is related to the global economic divide and  will concern people of the middle or upper economic class who will not be based solely on the ‘gig economy’ as they do now ^[2]see more on the issue of Ohnmacht , T., Maksim ,  H.,  Bergman,  M,(Eds). 2009.  Mobilities  and  Inequality. Ashgate.,  Thompson, B. 2018. Digital Nomads: Employment in the Online Gig … Continue reading.

Introduction

As part of the  study of the phenomenon of digital nomadism and so-called lifestyle mobilities, the Digital Nomads Observatory has come up with seven key parameters to be taken into account for assessing the suitability of a destination for attracting digital nomads, but also as a “compass” for adapting to future needs related to”  lifestyle mobilities”.

This model remains in development, but in this article some key points are made and the philosophy of the model is explained.

Methodology

So far there are not enough quantitative surveys that are clearly directed towards the criteria for selecting a destination from digital nomads. For the creation of the model, have been taken into consideration data from surveys carried out so far, data from bibliographical research, as well as qualitative research carried out by websites and groups aimed at digital nomads.

7 Layers

The model is divided into7 layers (“layers”) in order of hierarchy in which a destination needs to evaluate and then work. The layers are as follows: cost of living, community of digital nomads, workplaces, interconnectivity, environment, activities and an eighth related to security & freedom. Bearing in mind that there are different categories of digital nomads (segments), the below mentioned assumptions apply in general terms and the reader should take into account that there can be significant variations when we are interested in a very specific category of digital nomads.

Cost of Living

As the cost of living we  define the amount of money required to cover basic after-tax expenses in a particular place and over a specific period of time,  such as:

• Housing
• food,
• moving and interconnecting
• Heating
• Healthcare

The cost of living is often used to compare how expensive it is to live in one city compared to another. The ability to accumulated wealth and the quality of life (hours required to meet these needs, spending money on personal interests, etc.) depends on the amount of salary in relation to the cost of living in a particular city.

The greater the difference between salary and cost of living, the higher the quality of life is considered and therefore the better the living. For example, a high wage in a city with an extremely high cost of living (e.g. New York) may mean absolutely nothing. ^[1]Banton, C. 26/03/2021. Cost of Living Definition. Investopedia. https://www.investopedia.com/terms/c/cost-of-living.asp

For digital nomads, the cost of living plays a very important role in choosing a city especially for the following reasons: (a) they can make greater savings, therefore work for fewer years until retirement ^[2]see for example,  Running,  T. 20/02/2021.  The  ultimate  retirement  savings  guide  for  expats  &  nomads. NomadGate. … Continue reading, (b) to work fewer hours in order to be able either to make a more balanced life or to devote more time to other interests or occupations or even to their personal development (c) because it can offer them more security in case for a long time they are left without or with less income ^[3]Stickel,  M. 2020.  Challenges and Opportunities of Digital Nomadism and its Implications for Tomorrow’s Workforce, Master Thesis,  NOVA – School of Business and Economics. pg. 15, … Continue reading.

On the popular Nomadlist platform, cost of living is one of the most important variables for the popularity of a destination. At the same time, many of the up-and-coming digital nomad centers appear to be low-cost destinations ^[4]Become Nomad. Cost of living Arbitrage for Digital Nomads and Remote Workers. https://becomenomad. … Continue reading.

In shaping the cost of living, the parity between the currency in which the digital currency is paid and the currency in which it pays plays an important role. Having a large exchange rate difference is obviously in the interest of the digital nomad since it relates to  the reduced cost of living of the destination, but there are also negative elements such as the various deductions in the exchange difference ^[5]Bidloss,  J. How to get paid and manage taxes as a digital nomad.  Lonely Planet. https://www. lonelyplanet. com/articles/payment–and–taxes–as–a–digital–nomad. … Continue reading.

Community of Digital Nomads

Although digital nomads are called “nomads”, they actually move on their own. However, at the destination of arrival, they are in great need of meeting and socializing with others like them and creating “nomadic communities”.

The existence and meaning of the community is extremely important to digital nomads. Apart from the multiple benefits of socializing with a community (acquaintances, professional networking, exchanges of views, collaborations, etc.), the real need is another and much more important:

It is considered that the sense of teamwork   (“togetherness”) caused by the community is for digital nomads the compensation for the absence of other permanent ties in the way of life they have chosen (such as family ties, property, connection to the homeland) and which evolutionarily all people are programmed to seek. ^[6]Hannonen, O. 2020.  In search of a digital nomad: defining the phenomenon Information Technology & Tourism (2020) 22:335–353. There are various recordings about the loneliness felt by digital nomads which comes precisely from this way of life ^[7]DigitalNomads:  InSearch of Freedom, Community, and Meaning Work in the New Ecomony. Oxford University Press,  pg  143,  Prabawa I W., Pertiwi, P. 2020. The Digital Nomad Tourist Motivation in … Continue reading. Of this importance, the existence or ability to form a community of digital nomads in a destination is placed so high on the priorities of the model.

Work Space

Workplaces here are workplaces which are either related toco-working spaces whose importance has been summarisedabove, or ‘workspaces’in the broadest sense. That is, workplaces can be described as a room with a view, a public park, a seafront bench or a workbench in the forest.

As we have mentioned in a related article, digital nomads belong to the broader category of “lifestyle mobilities”, a way of life and mobility that is related to balancing work andentertainment. Digital nomads are characterized by a general adaptability which is either a cause or a result of their lifestyle. In the same context there is alsoa deliberate adaptability to their way/workspace (“flexibilitization  of  the  workspace”). Theoretically at least, digital nomads can work with the same efficiency either in an office or in a cafeteria or by necessity or because they wish to work in alternative working environments ^[8]Orel,  M. 2019.  Coworking environments and digital nomadism: Balancing work and leisure whilst on the move. World Leisure Journal. 61(3). DOI: 10.1080/16078055.2019.1639275.

Connectivity

The need for interconnection is not a result but a cause of the development of digital nomads, such as globalisation, the ease of movement of people and goods. Thus fast internet and wireless telecommunications are some of the reasons that contributed to the development of lifestyle-led mobilities and, by extension, digital nomadism, as a form of mobility as a way of life ^[9]Hannonen O (2020). In search of a digital nomad: defining the phenomenon Information Technology & Tourism (2020) 22:335–353.

Without communications technologies, therefore, we could not be talking today about the digital nomad movement because it simply would not exist. Thus interconnectivity, which is nothing more than the possibility of easy and fast communication (basically data transfer), is a component of the lifestyle of digital nomads.  ^[10]M. 2020.  Digital Nomadism: the nexus of remote working and travel mobility. Inf Technol Tourism  22, 329–334.

Therefore, among the criteria of a digital nomad to choose a destination or to use a location as a workspace, it is necessary to meet interconnectivity needs such as broadband  internet or satellite data  (4G, 5G)  ^[11]see  indicatively The Remote Nomad Blog.   How to Make Sure You Always Have ‘Good Internet’ as a Digital Nomad. as recovered on 12/04/2021. … Continue reading

In relation to what connection speed is necessary for a destination to cover in relation to digital nomads, the answer is “it depends”. Because not all users have the same needs. For example, the needs of a digital nomad working as a columnist are not the same as those needed by a graphic designer or video  editor   since the requirements in the latter case are much greater ^[12]see cowork. https://www.sc-coworking.com/definition-hotspot-digital-nomads.htm, as recovered on12/04/2021. Of course, this does not mean that better speeds and coverage are not an additional advantage.

Of course, it is considered by many that the spread of 5G networks will also result in a greater spread of digital  nomads  ^[13]Digital Nomads Lifestyle. 9/01/2020.  5G will create a world of Digital Nomads. https://www.digitalnomadslifestyle.com/5g-will-create-a-world-of-digital-nomads/).

Mobility & Transportation

Technology and, by extension, interconnectivity are interdependent to mobility, especially after the coronavirus era ^[14]Herman, I.,  Paris,  C.  M. 2020, etc.. After all, as another article of ours has mentioned, mobility as a concept is a component of the concept of digital   nomadism. At the same time, it is precisely because digital nomads usually do not have movable and immovable property that they are very likely not to have their own means of transport. Thus, and in line with the new trends for urban mobility, a large proportion of the public does not need a means of transport but from the possibility of travel as a service.

This can be translated to ease of mobility within the destination borders such as public transportations, car rental, bike or scooter rental, as long as the use of services called “mobility as a service” ^[15]for the term mobility as a service see Wikipedia.  Mobility as a service. https://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Mobility_as_a_service όπως ανακτήθηκε στις 12/04/2021, Deloitte.  2017. … Continue reading.

In addition to the above amenities of a destination, the distance or ease of travel to nearby major cities or ease of travel to and from the airport and vice versa the ease of travel to that destination ^[16]Prabawa I W., Pertiwi, P. 2020,  etc.is also important.

Although mobility has many manifestations and endings, the reason we are interested in the study of digital nomadism, is precisely because the ease of movement of people is one of the first factors that led to the subsequent creation of what is called “location Independence”.

Globalisation, the ease of movement of people and goods, the development of individualism and wireless telecommunications are some of the reasons that have contributed to modern mobility as a lifestyle and, by extension, to digital nomadism, as a form of mobility as a way of life ^[1] Hannonen O (2020).  In search of a digital nomad: defining the phenomenon Information Technology & Tourism (2020) 22:335–353.

Lifestyle Mobility

The term “lifestyle” refers to changes related to the meta-fordist or otherwise post-industrial society, where identity is less based on economic – social class but on the way the person consumes or spends in conjunction with his choices and can be defined as a way of life ^[2]Duncan  et  al. (2013) . Lifestyle  Mobilities. Ashgate. 5-12.

Mobility as a way of life refers precisely to the mobilities (i.e. all movements) related to the lifestyle as an identity and not to something else (such as migration, work,  etc.). That’s exactly what happens digital nomads. Their work is not the reason of their mobility.

In this context, several researchers^[3]O’Reilly K, Benson M (2009) Lifestyle migration: escaping to the good life? In: Benson M, O’Reilly K (eds) Lifestyle migrations: expectations, aspirations and experiences. Ashgate, Surrey, pp … Continue reading consider that “lifestyle mobility” is a combination of migration and tourism and, therefore, in order to examine the phenomenon, we need to include the interrelationships between the two types (or reasons) of movement. According to Cohen, lifestyle mobility is defined as “continuous movements of varying durations with many stations without any plans to return home” ^[4]Cohen  SA,  Duncan  T,  Thulemark  M. 2015. Lifestyle mobilities: the crossroads of travel, leisure and migration. Mobilities  Vol  10  Issue  1. 155–172.

Lifestyle Migration

However, “lifestyle mobility” should be separated from “lifestyle migration” (migration due to a lifestyle), primarily because the latter has a permanence character and not a temporary character as the former has. In the case of lifestyle migration, the person migrates not for work purposes but because he is looking for a way of a better and fulfilled way of life especially in relation to the one he leaves behind ^[5]Benson, M. and  O’Reilly, K. 2009. Migration and the search for a better way of life: a critical exploration of lifestyle migration. The Sociological Review,  Vol. 57  Issue  4, 608–625.

Digital Nomadism as a Lifestyle Mobility

As it has already been mentioned, in trying to frame the phenomenon of digital nomadism, we could classify it as a subcategory of  “lifestyle mobility” (“mobility as a way of life”) because, taking into account the motivations and behavior of nomads:

• They are not moved for job reasons.
• They are not moved for work-related needs (as is the case with the business traveler).
• It is not related to meeting living needs or for security reasons (such as refugees).
• It is inextricably related to the services, experiences and lifestyles provided at the destination.
• Digital nomads have designed their way of working so that it can be done location independently.

Many of the digital nomads are freelancers, independent contractors, and consultants who satisfy their wanderlust by traveling the world while working online. Some also get temporary day jobs in countries where they can legally work.

Your Stability

When you are first hired as a digital nomad freelancer, most clients will offer you a great deal unlike those who are employed by people they already have a close contact with in your own country.

When you will be working mainly online for a majority of your time, your vacation time is limited to a few weeks a year in most cases. You can retire whenever you wish, but only if you realize, and are committed to long hours of work. The problem comes with your net worth, as the cost of living in your new location can be considerably high than in your own house. This carefree lifestyle typically doesn’t come with a lot of stability, but it still is possible to save for retirement as a digital nomad. You must budget carefully and consolidate your finances, while making accommodations for a variable income.

Your Available Time

You may have many things to do every day, but you should also realize that you could use the free time for further distance learning. There are so many things you will want to learn in this field, which will make you more valuable to your clients and to your own freelancing. Give yourself a chance to increase your value to your client.

Your Living Conditions

Freelancers and consultants need to be paid for their time spent working on their business. While freelancing through telecommuting is the common solution, the reality is that you get paid for your time. This may sometimes require you to live on tour, in a cave, or in a tent in the woods. There is only so much off- lenance that you can squeeze while working in the same place.

Your Underlying Environmental Concerns

Corporate and employer incentive packages are often a combined magazine and countries of your foreign assignments are based on political tensions. These types of tensions could cause some issues for you. If your contractor and employer are adversarial in their relations and/or financially inferior, your chosen location may be a political hot-spot where something of great for a free spirit becomes a problem. Working in an engaging ambience may not even have the opportunity to make you happy.

Perhaps you still feel like you need to do your best and be your own boss. The important thing is to find the right solution that works.

In the nomadic.report survey, one of the questions concerns this very point. All respondents (41 in number) have stated that they are not digital nomads and are asked to explain why (note that one can choose more than one reason).

So according to the answer graph, the most popular answer (29%) is “I just recently learned about this way of life”. This is probably the most interesting of all the answers and not just because it has been chosen most of the time. The answer implies that one must have been informed about this way of life in order to choose it. In other words, information is a condition of choice.

This answer would fit the question of choosing a product that we did not know existed, but choosing a lifestyle does not fall in the category. Because, choosing a lifestyle cannot be -of course- the result of a selection from a list of predetermined options.

Therefore, according to the above, we are forced to look “behind the answer” either from the side of the questioner or from the side of the respondent. As for the questioner’s side we could assume that either it is a wrong wording (ie a better wording would be “it never crossed my mind to do it” or “I have not thought about it until now”), or that the questioner himself considers that in order to become a digital nomad, appropriate information is required.

In the second part, that of the respondent, some remarks can be made as well:

1. A) That indeed, the choice of a way of life is the result of many factors. One of them may be the influence of third parties or the dynamics that a way of life develops (eg bohemianism).
2. B) That the respondent, realizing what digital nomadism consists of, is faced with a series of questions that he must ask himself in order to find out if he could also become a digital nomad (which are essentially the other options given in question).
3. C) That the concept or way of life of digital nomadism is not so popular in a way that everyone who is asked this question is ready for the answer. In short, we believe that the value of this answer is precisely this: That a large portion had not thought of it as a possibility, in order to have an answer as to why it does not belong to the digital nomads.

Regarding the second most popular answer (20%) this is related to the (alleged) cost of living that the digital nomad has. It is known that a portion of digital nomads consider the cost of living as a very important criterion for choosing a destination. That’s why low-cost destinations like Bali are so popular. However, for someone who already lives in a large European capital and is renting a house, surely the cost of living cannot be higher than moving to another city like Bali or Mexico. However, the survey does not provide demographics for non-nomadic respondents to further evaluate the answer.

The next answer concerns the profession that the (non) digital nomad does. According to the prevailing definition of what the digital nomad is, manual professions are excluded. For non-manual professions we can say that today not all professions are at a level of digital maturity such that they can be done remotely. Digital maturity first concerns the technological transformation which has not yet taken place or is at a very early stage. This category includes, for example, the profession of lawyers, since “digital trials” have only recently begun to be applied, and in fact very experimentally. Another corresponding branch is the medical doctors, since technologically telemedicine is not at a level that can replace autopsy of the patient.

Furthermore, the factors seem to include the emotional – family and ties of the respondent. Digital nomads are less likely to emerge from societies / social groups with strong social ties. On the contrary, we realize that in areas where the social fabric is relaxed or even non-existent, the reservations and concerns related to the disruption of contacts with the group (friends, family, etc.) will be much less. Such cases we consider to be large urban environments.