6 best cities for executive digital nomads: Miami, Lisbon, Dubai and Barcelona top Savills’ first ranking of locations ideal for long-term remote working
- What is an ‘executive digital nomad’? Forget backpackers with laptops – post-pandemic, corporate exces are buying up luxe holiday homes with WFH potential
- Savills’ inaugural Executive Nomad Index analysed 15 destinations on their appeal for long-term remote workers, based on connectivity, climate and quality of life
The gap year, a rite of passage for youth, is all grown up. Those roaming the world in search of freedom are older – and more affluent – than the 20-something graduates who once ruled this space. They’ve no need to hunt out those cafes with decent Wi-fi – more likely, they own their own villa. And they’re not just biding time before getting a real job, they already have established, accomplished careers.
According to Savills, these are the modern day “executive nomads”, yet another trend born of the pandemic.
“The modern executive nomad – a distant cousin of the freelance creative working from a cafe in Bali or Costa Rica – splits their time between an urban flat and a villa in the Algarve, where they attend Zoom calls from an airy home office and replace the evening commute with a jog on the beach,” explained Paul Tostevin, director of Savills World Research.
Untethered from the office now that hybrid working has become normalised, he added, this new breed of remote worker is seeking out accessible properties with all-year good weather, turning what were previously holiday home markets into year-round destinations.
“The home (or office) base remains important, however, hence a focus on connectivity – both physical via flight links, and digitally via fast broadband speeds,” Tostevin said.
To assist its search, Savills has shortlisted the locations proving most popular among this emerging demographic.
Its inaugural Executive Nomad Index, released in May, analysed 15 destinations based on their appeal and ease of access for long-term remote workers, ranking each for their connectivity, climate, prime residential rental market and quality of life.
Lisbon, Portugal
