Workation or digital nomad?

Do you dream of exploring new countries without having to quit your job? Make the world your office. Treat yourself to a change of scenery with a “workation”. Or travel the world as a “digital nomad”. In this article, we will compare these two exciting concepts and help you decide which model fits your lifestyle.

The word “workation” is a portmanteau “work” and “vacation”. It means that you work from another country for a period of several weeks. This is not a business trip as such, however. rather, you are traveling for purely personal reasons.

Digital nomads are location-independent and travel permanently – often without a fixed address. But this is only possible with a job that is permanently independent of location. Many digital nomads are therefore self-employed or work remotely in a company.

In this section, you will gain a good overview of the main differences between a workation and life as a digital nomad.

You can see that these two forms of work and life are already very different. You can go on a workation relatively easily and return to your old life a few weeks later. As a digital nomad, you are making a decision to change your lifestyle by completely leaving your old life behind. So, ultimately you have to decide if you merely want to change things up in the short term or realign yourself long term.

Have you decided on a workation and want to get started right away with the planning? Then we have some tips for what you need to think about first.

• Clarify requirements: First clarify with your employer whether a workation is possible. In terms of taxes, you normally do not have to make any special arrangements as long as you do not work from abroad for more than 183 days a year.
• Select country: Now decide on the country that you would like to spend some time in. But also look out for good internet quality and the time zone, especially if you will have to attend business meetings during your workation.
• Find accommodation: The most important thing is to choose your accommodation well. This should provide you with a suitable workplace and a stable internet connection. You will find co-living and co-working spaces in many cities and popular workation destinations. Co-living spaces allow you to live together with other people who are also doing a workation. This way, you can also immediately form friendships, motivate each other and plan joint activities.
• Create a work and leisure plan: You should roughly plan out in advance how you want or need to arrange your working hours. If you set aside half of the day like this, it will also be easier for others to plan their work around you. Plus, this allows you to better organise time to discover the country and culture.

Do you want to completely overhaul your lifestyle and become a digital nomad? This step requires a lot of preparation and is not quite as easy to implement as a workation.

First of all, it is particularly important that you have the following qualities. These will make your life as a digital nomad easier.

• Able to organise yourself well: You will be fully responsible for organising your trip and your everyday work. You will also have to deal with visa and tax regulations again and again.
• High degree of self-discipline: You need a high degree of self-discipline and personal responsibility so that you, as a digital nomad, do not lose your bearings and implement your plans the way you intended. When you arrive in another country, at first you will most likely want to do something other than sit at your desk and work. But it is essential that you complete your work so that you can finance your life as a digital nomad.
• Strong social skills: Since you will always be on the move, you will find yourself having to make new contacts again and again. This lack of social stability can become difficult in the long run. It is a great advantage if you are the type to make friends quickly and easily.

To be able to live as a digital nomad, you need a job that you can do from anywhere. This does not necessarily mean that you have to be self-employed or freelance. It is also possible if you have a permanent position in a company – as long as your employer agrees to you working remotely from other countries. In any case, clarify the tax situation at an early stage: you are obliged to pay taxes, but the country in which you will be taxed depends on the actual length of time that you stay in the respective country.

Since it is possible to be a digital nomad both as a freelancer and as a permanent employee and the industries in which you could work are very different, a digital nomad’s income or salary can vary greatly. What can be worthwhile, however, is if you are employed in a country with a high level of wages or receive freelance assignments from there and travel through countries with a low cost of living.

However, keep in mind that reliable health insurance is a significant cost factor. Many international health insurance policies provide cover only for a limited term and are usually only valid for 6 to 12 months. This means that you should check at an early stage whether a tariff for long-term travellers or an international provider would be more suitable.

The topic of taxes is also complex: you are required to pay taxes in the country in which you spend most time – this does not necessarily have to be Germany. You should therefore decide if you want to keep your domicile in Germany. Staying registered in Germany can bring many advantages: when you return, you will still be entitled to all social benefits. To remain registered, a postal address with family or friends is often sufficient. If you do not want to give up your apartment right away, you can sublet it, as long your landlord has given you the green light. However, many digital nomads deregister their residence in Germany for tax reasons and register in another country instead. You will need a visa to this end if you are moving outside the EU, but not if you are staying within the EU.

Conclusion: Take a close look at taxes and insurance, because the regulations differ considerably depending on the destination country. Regardless of where you are, you will have to pay taxes and will need health insurance. Ideally, you will seek advice on these points from specialised consultants.

Start your journey within Europe or in an established “nomad hub”. As an EU citizen, you will not have to register right away if you live and work within the European Union. Usually, this is first required after three months and by then you can already be on your way to explore the next European country. Barcelona and Lisbon are particularly popular destinations.

Or you can start your adventure in places like Thailand, Bali or Mexico City. These are also particularly popular with digital nomads, so you will find good conditions for your new life as a digital nomad here. Co-working and co-living opportunities are available in these places, and you will even come across networking events where digital nomads can meet up.