Travel hacking

Japan as a digital nomad destination? Anything is possible.

March 29, 2018 by David James Leave a Comment

I’ve been looking into staying in Japan for a while now. The thing that has always put me off with Japan as a digital nomad destination is the cost. But when I actually looked into the way to live in Japan as a digital nomad, it is actually feasible if you adopt a different strategy.

Admittedly, it isn’t going to be as cheap as going to Thailand, Cambodia or Indonesia. However, if you want to enjoy Japanese culture without breaking the bank, it can be done if you are prepared to be a bit creative and consider some slightly different lifestyle choices to make the stay more affordable.

I’ve shared as much information as I can based on the research that I’ve conducted. You can also use the table of contents to navigate to a specific topic in the post.

Accommodation.

The most expensive thing that sticks out with Japan is accommodation. Rental prices for places in Tokyo is expensive even to the locals. So many opt to live in suburbs that are outside of the city.

Depending on your budget, you can adopt a similar approach as well.

The best deals will be outside of Tokyo. But it is important to remember that many of the attractions that you want to see can be accessed by train from many of the satellite cities.

Another thing is if you want to go for the cultural experience, much of the authentic Japanese culture is more prominent in cities and towns such as Kyoto (which is the old Japanese capital city) and Nara. You could opt to stay in either of those locations or Osaka, which is the second largest city in Japan.

How much should you budget for accommodation?

If I travel solo and want to stay in hostels, I will aim for accommodation at $30AUD a night or less. But to be productive and to also enjoy some of the luxuries such as a private shower and a private room, $50-80 a night is more optimistic.

It depends how you want to travel. I’ve found a few different accommodation options available across Japan.

Renting an entire place.
Renting a room.
Renting a tent.
Renting a capsule.
Renting a bed in a hostel.

I’ve found that the cost can vary depending on the type of accommodation and the location in which you stay. I’ve seen some places for as low as $800AUD a month, whereas some other accommodation options can be over $4000 a month.

I found some of the best deals on Airbnb. These were good if you wanted to travel around Japan more slowly and even stay with locals. I’ve shared a link to my wishlist of the places that I found in different cities in Japan.

Alternatively, if you want to go more with the ‘hostel’ or ‘hotel’ experience, you can do a search on Agoda to find and compare deals. For hostels, you should be able to find deals from around $20/night for a bed. Whereas hotels may cost around $50+ per night.

Note – There are quite a few love hotels listed on the site. Whilst they look nice, they are for one primary purpose and tend to have a smoky smell. So when making your comparisons, make sure you read the reviews of the hotel before making a booking.

Which place would I choose?

I actually wanted to choose locations based around Kyoto or in the Japanese suburban towns or countryside. It also depends on the time of the year that you want to visit Japan. I would personally visit Nara and Kyoto any time of the year, but preferably around April to catch Sakura, which is the cherry blossom season. (Use this link to see the forecast times of the Cherry blossom season).

I would make trips from Kyoto to the other cities and locations in Japan. When I went to Japan previously, I travelled from Tokyo. Tokyo is a great city, but if you want to experience more than just the ‘city life’, it’s better to base yourself in another location where it is easy to commute to many of the authentic ‘Japanese’ landmarks and attractions. I would personally recommend being based around Kyoto, Nara, Osaka or Nagoya. That way, if you have intercity bus passes or the JR rail pass, you will be able to see more and save on your travelling time.

What would be included in the accommodation?

I always look for accommodation that includes utilities and internet connection. I also hope to have cooking facilities so I can prepare my own meals in the accommodation. If the host can provide a portable Wi-Fi hotspot, that is an additional bonus as I can go outside of the accommodation and work remotely from a location of my choosing.

How much should I budget for food?

If you eat at home, your grocery bill should come to $50-100AUD per week. There are different ways you can eat for cheap. If you head to the supermarket and purchase items in bulk, you should be able to eat inexpensively. You can then add a budget for eating out.

I’ve shared a useful video and some links that can help you with food budgeting and planning, whilst travelling in Japan.

How to be a frugal foodie in Japan.

30 Cheap but delicious restaurants in Japan.

Japan for cheapskates: Eat on the cheap.

What about entertainment?

In my case, there are many things in Japan that I would enjoy for free. I enjoy photography and videography, as well as walking around and admiring landmarks. If I wanted, I could hire a bicycle and explore the country more, which would be relatively inexpensive. However, it is always good to treat yourself from time to time.

Eating out

If I want to have an inexpensive meal, Sukiya and Yoshinoya were hard to beat. Although they are the fast food equivalents of Japanese food, the cost of a meal will often be around $8AUD or less. You can also find suggestions using the site Tabelog. If you are vegetarian, vegan or have certain food requirements, you can use Happy Cow to find other restaurant options along with their reviews.

Things to do

The Japan National Tourism Organisation has also provided a list of free activities tourists can enjoy whilst visiting Japan.

You can also use the following apps to find activities on in Japan.

Tokyo Insight – The mobile version of Japantoday.com, one of the leading English magazines
Odigo Japan – User-generated tips and verified locations with a customizable drag and drop trip planner.
Best Living Japan – Great local events, such as flea markets and antique weekends that make up a truly authentic cultural experience
Japan Travel Guide With Me – An offline travel guide (think e-travel book), which recommends places around the country in relation to your current location and includes articles on sights and attractions.
Triposo – Japan Mini Guides, available for Android and iPhones
Goodluck Trip Japan
As a final tip, all the districts in Tokyo have a local cultural map guide that is free and available at the Ward Office. These are usually in Japanese, but some have English, and have great walking courses and introductions of local historical sites that are non-commercial.

(Note – These suggestions were originally published by Athena Lam on Cup on the Road)

Some other sites that are helpful include:

Timeout – Tokyo

Japan visitor

Japan times

Getting around.

Train (Shinkansen/Bullet Train)

If you do a quick trip to Japan over 3 weeks, you can actually purchase the Japan Rail Pass. This gives you very good value for money in terms of the savings, but it forces you to travel quickly throughout the country by travelling on the Shinkansen (The Bullet Train).

If you plan to see alot of the country and you want to hop from place to place, then this will be an ideal option. But it will be a more expensive option.

Train (Inter-regional)

Alternatively, you can opt for slower trains and buses that will travel between cities. This will give you more freedom to stay in a location for a longer period of time until you are ready to move on.

Seat 61 has an extensive guide on how to buy and use train tickets in Japan.

Bus (Highway buses)

A much cheaper way to to travel throughout Japan is to catch the inter-city buses. If you plan to explore Japan over a period of 2-3 months, you can purchase intercity bus passes that allow you to catch the highway buses from city to city.

The prices of the tickets are much cheaper than the railway options. Depending on which company you choose to travel with, you can purchase a ticket that will provide you with day-long or overnight bus trips. Plus you can use the tickets for 3, 5 or 7 days throughout a 2-month stay in Japan.

There are more details in the links below, which explain the companies and the pricing.

Japan highway buses

Japan bus pass

Air travel

There are surprisingly good domestic air travel deals if you know where to find them. Although the budget for air travel may not accommodate the budget traveller, it will be good for those who want to see the country extensively over a short period of time.

The Shinkansen is a very good network. However, if you need to go from Tokyo to Hiroshima or Sapporo, the quickest option by far will be flying.

There are a few domestic air travel providers that offer special deals to foreigners that want to explore Japan. Some of the deals work out to be $100-200AUD one-way. It isn’t too far out of the budget if time is scarce.

Below is a link that provides more extensive details and deals on domestic air travel.

Domestic air travel options in Japan

Please note that a few of these providers require tourists to purchase their air tickets whilst outside of Japan. So you may need to plan your trip in advance.

Visas.

You will need to check the visa details for your country on the Japanese website. Japan has agreements with many countries allowing their citizens to stay in Japan on a tourist visa for up to 3 months. It is important that you read the specifics about the visa that you enter Japan on.

You can find more detailed information on the Japan National Tourism Organisation website.

Handy apps

If you want to make the Japanese experience more manageable, then you can download these apps to help you with your travels.

Translations – Google Translate

You can get the app to translate when you speak or even hold the camera to writing so you can understand things in your language.

Getting around – Google Maps and Maps.me

Very handy for getting around, especially when you need a GPS tracker to help you get around.

Currency conversion – XE.com or Google Currency Converter

Ideal to keep track of what you are spending in your local currency.

Helpful links

I’ve provided some links to some forum threads and blogs that also discuss the experience as a digital nomad in Japan.

Digital nomad in Japan – Reddit

The cup and the road – Digital nomad in Japan

Japan for digital nomads and bootstrappers

Nomad rides – Working & travelling in Japan

Have you travelled through Japan as a digital nomad? Share your experience in the comments below.

Thanks for reading.

*Disclaimer – There are some affiliate links within this post. However, my opinions and recommendations are my own.

Should you consider Sri Lanka as a digital nomad destination?

March 28, 2018 by David James Leave a Comment

I visited Sri Lanka a couple of years ago and thought it was one of the most amazing countries that I ever visited. There was something about the island culture, the food and the locals that really attracted me to the lifestyle there. I’ve personally been able to make local friends who reside in Sri Lanka and always tell me to come back. If only?

Rather than sit and think about it, I decided to look into a way of making it happen.

If you’ve wanted to visit Sri Lanka, but you’ve never been sure how to travel to and stay there, then this is the post for you.

Visa

There are a couple of tourist visa options for visiting Sri Lanka. The first is opting for an electronic visa, which will allow you to stay in Sri Lanka for up to 30 days. (However, check the details on the immigration website). The fee will cost $40USD.

If you want to stay in Sri Lanka for longer, you can actually apply for a 60-day extension that will allow you to stay in the country for up to 3 months. To do this, you will need to visit the Sri Lankan immigration office and apply for the visa in person. The fee to stay an extra two months will cost $30 USD. You can use the map below to find your way to the immigration centre.

Getting to Sri Lanka.

Sri Lanka is an island south of India’s Tamil Nadu. The best way to get there is by flying.

At the time, we were able to book an inexpensive ticket from Bangkok to Sri Lanka. Depending on the route that you want to take (i.e. direct or through India or Malaysia); as well as your budget, prices will vary. At the time, we opted for a direct ticket to Colombo.

When landing, you will actually be outside of the city in Negombo, which is slightly north of Colombo. From there, you can catch a bus into the city or opt to stay in Negombo and start your trip from there.

Accommodation

Accommodation prices in Sri Lanka can vary. I usually recommend to budget up to $2000 a month maximum, however that is to get accommodation that is more high-end.

A search for monthly rentals on Airbnb can help you find accommodation for as little as $400AUD a month, although the prices seem to average between $850-1200/month.

You can use the following sites to find long-term accommodation deals. While you are there, you can also ask locals to recommend places to stay as the prices tend to be cheaper for walk-ins compared to online bookings.

Budget accommodation in Sri Lanka Facebook Group

Airbnb homes in Sri Lanka

Getting around

Private chauffeur

At the time we were there, we only had a tight timeframe of two weeks to see the country. Plus, we’d gone to a friend’s wedding, so I decided to hire a car with a chauffeur to take us to destinations in Sri Lanka. There were a couple of reasons why I opted for a private driver.

The cost to hire the driver with the car was beneficial since we were in a rush and he knew the roads really well.
Driving in Sri Lanka requires different driving skills. I wasn’t confident enough to drive on the roads, which are more chaotic than driving on Western roads.
I was prepared to spend extra due to our time constraints.

Tuk Tuk

You will find Tuk Tuks everywhere in Sri Lanka. If you want to get around in Colombo, it is very easy to hail a Tuk Tuk, which can take you to your location quickly and easily. It is also relatively inexpensive. Just make sure to have them use their meter.

Scooter rental

If you are happy to navigate on the road at your own pace, then renting a local scooter is a good option. This is a particularly attractive option when you visit the quieter areas of Sri Lanka like Mirissa. Filling up the tank in a scooter can be quite inexpensive, thus making scooter travel an economic way to travel.

Taxi

If you need to get around, contact Kangaroo Cabs. They also have an app that you can download.

Buses

There are cheap bus travel options in Colombo. You can view the timetable here.

Train

Taking the train in Sri Lanka is a great way to see the country at a steady pace. You can actually go from city to city and just jump off at a station as and when you feel like it. The trains aren’t super fast, so you can actually take in the experience of the country at a nice pace. The one-way fare is relatively inexpensive. Expect to pay around $16AUD for a 1-way fare from Colombo to Kandy for a first class berth. You can use this service to find train options in Sri Lanka.

You can also read a more extensive travel guide on Seat 61.

Wi-Fi connectivity

This is probably the aspect that deters most digital nomads from visiting Sri Lanka. There is internet connection across the island, but the connectivity varies from place to place. Obviously, the best connections will be in the more developed areas of Sri Lanka, such as Colombo or Galle.

You can opt for a USB router and load it up with data. This will give you more freedom for accessing the internet whilst you are travelling. Alternatively, you can take advantage of the tourist pack, which provides up to 40GB for 1999Rs (approx. $17AUD).

Things to do in Sri Lanka.

If you want a new sense of adventure, you can’t really go past what Sri Lanka has to offer. Whether it is living the city life in Colombo or chilling out by the beach in Mirissa or heading to the tea farm area in Kandy, there will be something for you.

Photography & videography.

One thing that I can promise you about Sri Lanka is that you will get the opportunity to take several photogenic pictures during your travels. The nature and the vast and vivid colours will jump out in the shots that you will take. If you are active with your DSLR Camera or if you enjoy posting on Instagram, you will get several opportunities to take beautiful snaps during your travels.

Get some inspiration with the video below.

Enjoy being outdoors.

If you go to the right areas in Sri Lanka, you can get up close and personal with monkeys and even elephants. (Although you should exercise caution)

Food

There is an abundance of food that you must try while you stay in Sri Lanka. There are several delicacies that are infused with coconut, local spices and intrinsic aromas that you will only find on the island. Sweet, salty, mains, entrees, desserts, you name it.

The best bet is to follow the recommendations of others. You can’t really go wrong by following the recommendations from Yamu. Expect to pay 300 Rupees for an inexpensive meal and upwards.

Useful links

I’ve provided some other useful links that can help you with planning your stay in Sri Lanka.

2 months in Sri Lanka

The hidden tropical hub for digital nomads

Live life to the full as a digital nomad in Vietnam.

March 27, 2018 by David James Leave a Comment

Vietnam is an amazing country to explore. There are several digital nomads such as Jodi Ettenberg from Legal Nomads, who has expressed her admiration for life in Vietnam on her blog. Others have successfully based themselves in the country and enjoyed the experience. Vietnam is a convenient place to be based for several reasons. The weather, the food, the infrastructure and the proximity to travel.

You can fly into the north of the country and head towards the Chinese border. Or you can head west and enter Laos. Or even go South-west and enter the Kingdom of Cambodia. On top of that, there are flights to nearby countries including South Korea, Japan, Thailand, Malaysia and more.

If travelling through Asia appeals to you, then you do need to consider Vietnam as a base.

Visa.

If you want to travel in Vietnam, you will need to check the visa requirements for your country. Some countries do receive a Visa Exemption, however the stay is usually limited to 15, 21 or 30 days.

An electronic visa (also known as an e-visa) can be obtained online and presented at the immigration checkpoint when you reach Vietnam. This visa will allow you to stay in the country for up to 30 days.

A 3-month DL visa can be obtained, however you will need to fill out the form and apply at the nearest Vietnamese embassy. In some cases, the visa can be extended to 12 months.

How much is a Vietnamese tourist visa?

Expect to pay $25-50 USD, depending on the type (single or multiple entry) and length (30 days or 3 months) that you opt for.

Accommodation

Accommodation in Vietnam is much cheaper than when you compare prices to Western standards. It is possible to secure properties for less than $600USD a month.

I personally prefer to travel and see as much of a country as possible. So I would look at accommodation rates that’s less than $40 a day. However, if you are travelling and decide that you want to base yourself in one location for a few months, then you can cut down the living cost to less than $20 a day with long-term accommodation deals.

I’ve shared a couple of accomodation options in Hanoi (The capital city of Vietnam), Hoi An (which sits by the beach) and Ho Chi Min (which is the major city in the south of the country.

Accommodation in Hanoi

There are quite a few accommodation options in Hanoi. You can use the links below to find accommodation deals in the area.

Facebook group

Hanoi comrades

Hanoi massive housing

Hanoi massive housing 2

Website

Hanoi accommodation

You can see a video tour of one of the apartments you can rent below.

Accommodation in Hoi An

Handy Facebook groups to join.

This will make it easier for you to find and get recommendations for accommodation.

Hoi An Accommodation

Da Nang Hoi An Expats

Accommodation websites for Hoi An

Hoi An Lotus apartments

Nha Toi real estate

You can also see the video below to get an idea about the type of accommodation that you can expect to rent in Hoi An.

Ho Chi Minh

Accommodation rental websites

You can see an example of a 2 bedroom apartment hired by an expat in the video below.

Useful link

The Digital Nomad’s Guide to Finding Accommodation in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

If you want to be based close to the beach, then you need to consider basing yourself in the city of Hoi An.

Getting around

If you want to get around using public transportation, intercity buses, trains and planes, I’d recommend checking out the detailed travel guides on Seat 61.

Bus

There are local and intercity bus options that you can take to get from place to place in Vietnam. The prices are pretty inexpensive, although the comfort isn’t at the same level as western standards. Especially when it comes to the overnight buses. That being said, if you want to travel inexpensively, the bus network is your best bet.

Train

The train prices cost a bit more and there are different classes that you can opt for. If you can afford it, I’d recommend travelling long distances in first class as the extra comfort and leg room is definitely worth it. We travelled in second class, which was ok, but still not that comfortable.

Plane

You can actually find some great travel deals to internal destinations as well as external countries. VietJet and Air Asia offer some great low-cost flying options. You can use the website Kiwi, which includes price comparisons with these airline carriers.

Scooter

You will discover in Vietnam the abundance of scooters in the country. They are used to get everywhere and in the more dense cities, it can be tricky trying to navigate the streets on your scooter.

You can find inexpensive monthly rentals for less than $100 a month. Or you can opt to purchase a scooter for your stay in Vietnam.

Food

The food in Vietnam is inexpensive, yet delicious. There’s an abundance of freshness when you go for a meal. Whether it is getting a pho from a street vendor or munching on some nems (spring rolls), there will be something to suit your appetite.

It is possible to spend less than $2 on a meal. You will find that many people in Vietnam opt to eat out due to the low cost of street food. However, the price will be more if you decide to eat in a restaurant.

Your best bet is to see what local food is available in the area and then decide on the amount of times you would like to eat out vs eating at home.

Useful posts

If you would like to learn more about living as a digital nomad in Vietnam, you can check out the following posts.

Never Ending Voyage – Life as a digital Nomad in Hoi An

Useful links

The Hoch Coach – Digital nomad community in Saigon

Things to do in Hanoi

Also get your hands on the Vietnam Lonely Planet Guide so you can maximise the experience during your stay.

I hope that this has helped.

Disclaimer – This post does contain affiliate links, but the opinions are my own.

Should you be a digital nomad in Bali?

March 24, 2018 by David James Leave a Comment

In 2016, my wife and I decided to fly to Bali and stay for 2 months as digital nomads. The opportunity would allow us to explore the country, as well as live as locals and stay in a location long enough to embrace the culture and the lifestyle. It was an interesting experience. And what was more surprising was the cost to do it.

I’m an Australian citizen. And prices to travel from Australia to Bali vary depending on where you travel from. It can cost less than $100 if you travel from Darwin, however you can pay upwards of $400+ if you travel from other Australian airports. In our case, we travelled from Brisbane.

The cost of living was much cheaper than I expected if you travelled with the Australian dollar. If you travelled with currencies such as the British Pound or the American Dollar, your purchasing power in the country would be much stronger.

How did we plan our stay in Bali?

We’d arranged to stay in 2 places. The first was in Ubud in Bali. (I’ve previously written a post about living as a digital nomad in Ubud) The second place was in Denpasar, the capital city of Bali.

The two cities offered two different types of experiences.

Ubud

We actually stayed a 30-minute motorbike journey outside of Ubud. It was in Gianyar, which is quiet and we were surrounded by several rice fields. We were able to get studio accommodation, which cost approximately $900AUD/month at the time. This was inclusive of bills.

In Australia, unfurnished accommodation will cost at least $300 a week in Brisbane and more in the other major cities. When you factor in the other lifestyle costs, you will easily spend more than $2000 each month to cover the basic living costs in the country.

Below are pictures of the Villa that we stayed at and a map of the distance from central Ubud.

Here is a video of us during our stay.

The owner of the villa installed a pool and now serves breakfast as a part of the deal. I found one deal for two people staying in one villa costs $1104 AUD.

You can click here to calculate the rough cost of a booking.

Pros

Where we stayed was quiet and tranquil. At the time, it had a pond and an oasis garden. The villa now has a pool. It was also very safe. Food in the local area was very, very inexpensive. However, we did notice that it was difficult to get fresh fruits and vegetables, which did affect our energy levels.

Cons

Unfortunately, the internet connection at the property wasn’t that great. It was a common thing that we found in Bali. We actually had to travel to the gym, where we paid a monthly fee to access a quick and reliable internet connection.

This affected the productivity for working as a digital nomad. We did work around it, but in hindsight, it would have been better to find accommodation that was closer to the centre of town (such as closer to the Monkey Forest) and have an internet connection that was much more reliable.

A the time, I was doing more writing work; so I was fairly unaffected. However, if you require an internet connection to complete the work that you are doing, then the downtime will severely impact your productivity and you may need to consider being in a place where there is good internet accessibility or even considering a co-working space in Ubud.

Denpasar

Denpasar was an interesting place to be located. It is a major city with alot of traffic and alot of noise. It’s not until you are in the city that you will start to notice some of the things that may affect you as a digital nomad.

We stayed next to one of the main roads and as soon as it was early morning or late evening, the traffic would be atrocious. The pollution in the city and the lack of infrastructure was also frustrating. The hotel that we stayed at was very nice on the inside, but was undergoing construction work from 7am until 6pm, with constant banging throughout the day.

This type of thing could happen anywhere. But it’s less likely to happen in the built-up areas.

The internet connection was very poor as well. It was almost impossible to get a signal. In the end, we had to find a coworking space and we found two that were nearby. (We ended up settling for the Sara Residence, which was nice and quiet.) The only issue was the mosquitos in the evening and they had to fumigate the area. But if you stayed in their accommodation, you could easily go upstairs.

As for food, there was an open market 5 minutes away. We were eating vegetarian meals at the time and we could eat 2 full meals a day for less than $10AUD for 2 people. It was more than enough for us. The food at Sara was also affordable, but being a hotel they obviously charged a slight premium for their meals. But it was nice and a different experience as well. Additionally, the staff were all polite and it was a great experience being there. It definitely made our stay in Denpasar more enjoyable.

It was also interesting to see that they had accommodation options in other areas in Bali, such as Canggu.

Other options

Canggu

We actually visited Canggu and the thing that stood out to us was the balance between the countryside and the beach, whilst being fairly close to the city. Canggu is surrounded by several rice fields and there are many villas, cafes and restaurants that are catered for foreigners visiting the area.

The internet connection is more stable in the area. There are also coworking spaces nearby if people want to access the internet. (Although, you should expect to pay a premium fee for the service).

Some of the great things that were appealing about Canggu included:

Access to the beach

You can head down to the beach and surf (or learn to surf). There’s also a bar that sits on the beach and street food vendors.

Drive through the rice fields

There are endless rice fields. You can jump on a bicycle or a scooter and enjoy the surroundings of the rice fields.

There is an expat community in the area.

If you would like to meet other like-minded people, then you will find them in Canggu.

Easy access to the tourist destinations.

If you do want to visit the tourist areas such as Kuta or Seminyak, it isn’t too far away. You can head into the bar and club areas and dance the night away.

There’s a more thorough guide that you can read on Goats on the road.

Thinking about heading to Bali? Start planning.

I’d recommend that you purchase the Bali Lonely Planet guide so you can experience everything that Bali has to offer. Another site that you should bookmark is TripCanvas, with its guides and activity suggestions written by locals. Then budget for $2000-$3000 a month for your stay so you can experience Bali without missing out on anything.

Become a digital nomad in Australia – yes it is possible.

May 17, 2017 by David James 1 Comment

I’m originally from the land down under. Back in the early 2000s, I remember loads of people from Europe flocking over to Australia to enjoy their holidays and to even settle over here due to the abundant sunshine and the lower cost of living when compared to Europe. The sunshine is still here, but the cost of living has risen significantly.

Nonetheless, I have chosen to return home to the land of oz. And I still continue to work in a remote working lifestyle, which I would consider myself to still be a digital nomad.

In this post, I want to let you know that it is possible to be a digital nomad in this country. Although you shouldn’t expect to find the ridiculously cheap standard of living when you compare it to places like Thailand or Indonesia. But I can definitely say that the quality of life that you can get over here is almost second to none.

I will talk through some of my observations and you can decide for yourself whether or not you would like to consider being a digital nomad in Australia.

The cost of living.

Australia isn’t a cheap country, but you can live modestly if you look in the right areas. Some of the things that surprised me were the cost of accommodation if you look outside of major cities like Sydney.

Restaurants.

Going out to restaurants costs a lot more due to higher staff wages and regulations that restaurants have to abide by. For me personally, opting to give a teenager $15 an hour compared to paying for a cheap meal in Burma where kids as young as 6 years old are being exploited as staff sits well with me. That being said, there are places where you can find inexpensive meals. And if you aren’t a health nut, you can even pickup pizza’s from Dominoes for as little as $5.

Gym membership.

They have 24h gyms like Anytime fitness, whose memberships can be as little as $50 a month. When I was in Indonesia or Malaysia, I did pay almost twice as much; even though the gym there was classed as a “luxury gym”.

Accommodation.

Right now, I am based in Queensland, Australia and I can say that the rental market isn’t that much different when compared to other places in the world. It does cost more, but then we get much more space and the accommodation is quite modern. For example, it is possible to get a studio apartment for under $300 a week. But it is also possible to get a decent 1 or 2 bedroom place for $300-400 a week, depending on the location and the rental demand. You will also need to factor in another $100 a month in costs.

Groceries.

You need to keep an eye out for where to shop. The two big supermarkets are Woolworths and Coles. There is also Aldi and Spar. You will need to shop around to find the best deals. More often than not, you will be better off buying fruits and vegetables from the farmers or markets, as you will be able to purchase them in bulk.

It is possible to spend about $50 a week on groceries for one person, although for us as a couple, we tend to spend anything from $70-140 a week. You can buy bread for $0.85 and there are always food items on special. You just need to shop savvy.

Domestic travel.

If you want to stay in hotels or paid accommodation, it will cost you a fair bit in Australia. Weekend getaways can be quite pricey and it is often cheaper to fly abroad and have a luxury trip than to travel within the country.

That being said, you can opt to go camping or caravanning and save a bundle. Many travellers purchase a combvi van and travel up and down the Australian coast. You could easily travel around Australia for approximately $50 a day. You can park your vehicle at public caravan parks or even nest close to the beach and gaze upon the stars.

Australia is a place that you will enjoy if you like the outdoors.

As I mentioned before, it is a place that is abundant in sunshine and people love doing outdoor activities. You can easily keep yourself entertained with free or almost free activities such as:

trekking
sports
beach activities
cycling
parks

The cost of living really depends on the lifestyle that you want to have in Australia. You might not get the $500 a month villa that you would in Chiang Mai or Bali, but if you want to be immersed in the Australian lifestyle, it is possible on a $2000 per person per month budget. Sydney and Melbourne will be the most expensive cities to be based in, but it is possible to live in those places while paying around $2000-3000 a month.

Work from Regus’ virtual office for free.

There are several co-working spaces and coffee shops that you can work from. But I found that it is just as convenient to work from your local library or even the Regus office. They offer a blue membership which provides you with access to their lounge. This membership is free and allows you to work in a corporate setting.

I personally prefer to work in my own home office. So having a 1 or 2 bedroom apartment suits my needs much more.

Finding work and earning an income in Australia.

You can find online work on sites like Upwork or by researching some of the local job boards like Seek.com.au or Gumtree.com.au. Although, I’d recommend referring to my digital nomads job board list as your first port of call. You really need to generate an income of $2000 a month or more to live comfortably in Australia. Otherwise you will find the country too expensive to live and work in.

That being said, Australia is a fairly easy country to earn an income in. Worst case scenario, you can work part time at another company or business and then work 4-5 days a week on your own project.

Do you have any thoughts about being a digital nomad in Australia? Let me know in the comments below. Thanks for reading.