I’m starting to settle on the fact that ‘slowmad’ might be the way for me.
Basically, stay in a city for at LEAST 3 months but possibly up to 6.
My thinking is that I land, then spend the first week focused on finding an apartment.
They I buy a TV, desk, office chair, and a bunch of smaller things like towels.
It would be WAY cheaper than a hotel and a much nicer experience.
Then when you leave, you just sell the stuff or hire someone to do it for you.
Curious if anyone takes this approach and if they have any suggestions.
Right now I’m in BKK … and thinking of going down this route.
I work remotely and I spend 2-3 months in one location and use it as a base for weekend trips (I work Mon-Fri). I had a mixed experience with AirBNB and hotels were too expensive for a long stay (although sometimes I negotiate price with smaller hotels run by locals).
I prefer coliving spaces, especially those targeting digital nomads. You mentioned BKK, if you plan to go to Chiang Mai, this one for example has some rooms equipped with standing desk, office chair and 4k display (and even basic tv): https://www.thesocialclub.asia/
I’ve stayed there in the low season and I got a pretty good discount for my 3 months stay (2 month tourist visa + 1 month extension, the downside - I had to pay upfront). Unfortunately, in the high season, they get fully booked and don’t give discounts for longer than 1 month stays.
I have 3-5 “home bases” in a year, at like 1-4 months each place. I just use airbnb, except in places I have local real estate contacts.
Either monthly airbnb or Facebook groups. I don’t rent unfurnished apartements, if you value your time its a huge unnecessarily hassle, I can’t imagine ever buying a tv while nomading.
Ill sometimes buy a used office chair and some cookware.
I will typically Airbnb for the first 2-4 weeks, and then use that time to talk with people and find something better/cheaper.
A lot of times you can even rent the same place directly from the owner outside Airbnb for cash for a lot less.
Did that for 3.5yrs…and it rocked :)
Got the best flats through local contacts/friends. At least on Canary Islands there was always some surfer dude who had a friend who had a friend who was looking for a tenant. Crazy cheap deals that way.
Best deal wast a 2 bedroom flat with a rooftop terrace right next to one of the best waves on Lanzarote, all utility and internet (fibre) bills included as well as a (small) car with insurance included…for EUR650/mo.
FB groups can work too depending on location. Don’t get scammed, take photos of passports ;)
thats a badass setup having a car and everything!!
I’ve been living like this for 5 years
Hmm, I’ve been slomading through LATAM for the last 3 years now and the cut off to be considered a slomad is definitely 1 MONTH in a city/country and possibly staying up to a year… After that you’re either an expat or an illegal immigrant. 😂
I, and all the other slomads I know from USA/CAN, typically book month-long Airbnbs, almost exclusively, because we travel light and don’t want to be burdened furnishing apartments and then going through the hassle of selling items when we decide to leave. Some of my European friends claim to find better deals on Bookings.com, but the value difference seems negligible at a glance.
If you’re going to go the route of furnishing each place, its probably best to lock in 6-month rental agreements to make the energy and money worth your time.
Depends, on where I’m going. I’ve spent a lot of time in Brazil outside of the typical destinations like Rio, SP, and Floripa.
Once you get outside of those places, the AirBNB deals are so much better that for me personally, it’s not really worth the hassle of trying to navigate the local rental market with even less DN community help/advice.
For instance I stayed 2 months in Aracaju, a smaller city in the Northeast of Brazil.
I got a deal on a modest, but well-located apartment for $650/month after Airbnb fees.
Of course I’m sure if I did a deep dive into the local market I could find similar price for probably like $450-500/month but the additional hassle and risk just isn’t worth it personally.
Gotta have that tv.
I do this and usually use airbnb for 30 days at minimum for the discount. I usually do at least one 6 month stint somewhere with a lease usually in an off season tourist area.
I also stay in small towns and country locations mostly as I don’t like cities as much.
The leases I found found on expat Facebook sites and also once from talking with a waiter.
I generally just use an Airbnb, always furnished. Usually I’ll only buy a monitor, when leaving I’ll just sell it or give it to a friend.
One time I had a really nice apartment in Buenos Aires but the work space wasn’t great so I convinced the owner to go 50/50 with me on a new desk and chair.
Smart way to do it, imo.
Next thing ya know, you’ll be an expat somewhere.
Good living.I’m currently Slowmading in LATAM. I’ve used 2 main platforms for furnished Mid-term rentals (I have tried Fb marketplace – these have worked the best for me and less of a hassle)
RemoteCasa.co , they do fully furnished rentals for 30days+ / nights stays, focussed on nomads that prefer to work from Home, usually in great neighbourhoods (I believe they focus on Colombia mainly for now) They give out decent discounts if you stay longer.
Another one is Vacation Renter (less quality, budget travel) https://www.vacationrenter.com/es-es/search/Manizales – hosts more rentals in the outskirts. This has been good for budget travel, it’s hooked up to Booking.com, so you should also be able to check out reviews/ ratings there.
From what I’ve heard, Marketplace does have a couple scams going around (at least in LATAM), so I’d suggest being extra careful. Also, furnishing the apartment has been a time waste of time for me, but totally worth it if you’ve got the time.
Sal
Yeah, I’ve used remotecasa in Colombia. They are good quality service apartments.
Worktravels is a small travel agency that arranges all the facilities around remote work for you. They arranged an apparent for me incl. ergonomic workspace for my six month Capetown adventure. Cheers.
Only really slowmad. Only rent furnished apartments. Easily done, plenty of fb groups on that area you’re in.