Good locations worldwide for a coder gypsy wannabe

Question

Yes, this is not programming related but please bear with me =). I run a small niche SaaS business. Lately I've been thinking of traveling and experiencing life in other places. Would really appreciate suggestions for good places a developer could relocate to.

In particular I'm looking for a place that:

• Has good internet connection (cheap stable broadband, lots of places that provide free wifi, etc.)
• Low cost of living (rent and food fairly cheap).
• At least half of the population speak English.
• Has a local courier agent (DHL, Fedex, any...).
• The government allows for extended stay of foreigners.

I'm thinking of staying for about 6 months at each location and maybe doing it for 3 years. So looking for 5 to 6 locations in total. So if any of you think you're staying in a place that would be great for a visiting developer then please shout out. Include as detailed a description as possible. And include any cons about the place if there are.

The only place that pops to mind right now is Bali =). Isle of Skye also seems interesting but I think immigration is tight and cost of living would definitely be higher.

Thanks in advance for suggestions =)

Answer 1

I'm of the same mind myself, and my target is Antigua in Guatemala. I was there a few years back and internet was readily available. Some/most of the locals speak english as it's a real backpacker haunt. You can learn Spanish at US$100/week for 1 to 1 tuition, including accomodation. You can drive there from the states. Although I live in Australia, the idea of buying a car in Texas, loading up the family and heading south suits pretty well. There's an international airport an hour away. The climate is pretty good too.

BTW I ran into a old cattleman looking to retire in Monteverdi, Costa Rica, same goes as above but a little more expensive. His call was close to the equator and high up - he reckoned that was the perfect climate.

Answer 2

I'm answering my own question to give an idea of the kind of answer I'm looking for. Hopefully it'll also prove helpful to others looking to do the same thing.

My suggestion for a pretty good place to relocate is Penang, Malaysia. That's where I'm currently at =)

The cost of leaving here is affordable. About USD300 for a decent 1K sq. ft. apartment. Meals normally range from USD2 to USD15.

Broadband is a near monopoly but readily available and stable most of the time although a bit low on bandwidth. Most cafes (especially international ones like Starbucks) have free wifi at all outlets. So you can just bring your work out and sit for the whole day and swap places during lunch. All the usual services (courier, banking, etc.) you would get in a city are available as well.

The developer community (SCOPE, MIND) is somewhat lively. Georgetown, the capital of Penang state is a Unesco World Heritage Site. Penang itself is a tropical island so there are plenty of nice beaches around.

PROS:

• Affordable.
• Good infrastructure.
• Nice laid back environment (which I think is great for developers).
• Tourist/ex-pat friendly.
• Near to Thailand and Singapore. Can country jump when you get bored.
• Lots of outdoor activities.

CONS:

• Not much cultural activities if you're into that (some might flame me but I'm giving my honest opinion).
• Not pet friendly.
• Slow bureaucracy.
• Hot and humid weather gets to some people.

Don't have any representative pics on hand or I'd post them, too.

Answer 3

mauritius can change your life! It is the sweetest beautiful green island with %70 wireless connection coverage and with a national language of English.

Answer 4

Have you considered New Zealand (specifically, Auckland)?

I worked there for 18 months and really loved it - it's got everything on your PROs list (apart from being near Thailand and Singapore, although you can get to some really far-flung places like Samoa and Tonga pretty easily).

The only CON I can think of was the traffic (compounded by the lack of a decent public transport infrastructure). If you need to commute into the city from the suburbs I'd get a bike.

Depending on your nationality, you may have issues getting a work visa though :s

Answer 5

---

The Netherlands

Pros

• English speaking
• Excellent broadband
• Liberal attitude

Cons

• Not the cheapest living costs (not living in the Holland region reduces these a lot)
• Weather can be poor. (Very similar to the UK)

---

Jamaica

Pros

• Excellent weather
• Good broadband coverage
• English speaking

Cons

• Hurricanes
• High murder rate

---

Cyprus

Pros

• English speaking
• Great weather
• Cheap broadband
• Large community of British ex-pats

Cons

• Occasionally too hot
• Not all of the island is English speaking
• Greek/Turkish relations sometimes become tense

---

Australia

Pros

• Fantastic broadband coverage
• Great weather
• 100% english speaking
• Visit the great barrier reef

Cons

• Home to most venomous snakes in the world
• Spiders, scorpions etc

---

Barbados

Pros

• English is the official language
• A moderate tropical climate
• Often spared from tropical storms and hurricanes due to location

Cons

• Internet penetration is only 56%

---

Ireland

Pros

• Ireland has very cheap internet rates
• Gorgeous scenery
• 62.6% of Irish households have broadband

Cons

• Bad weather

---

Malta

Pros

• English as the main language
• Hot mediterranean climate (Rainy winters but hot, dry summers)
• Widespread broadband

Cons

• Cable Internet is run by a monopoly, Melita Plc (formerly OnVol)

Answer 6

I would suggest South Africa but we currently have rather crappy broadband penetration until the Seacom line goes live in May~June. Other than that Mauritius is a good bet.

Answer 7

I cannot recommend Vancouver highly enough.

Pros:

• English speaking obviously,
• Has a large and entrepreneurial tech industry
• Consistently ranked in the top 5 cities to live in in the world for a reason
• Canada has so far been the G20 country which has suffered least in the recession according to the economists
• Unbelievable natural surroundings with associated recreational opportunities
• Olympics in 2010!

Cons:

• Renting living or commercial space isn't that cheap (but then again relative to some places coughUK*cough* it actually still is!)
• A long flight away from a lot of things
• Broadband providers whilst roughly acceptable are pretty far from ideal
• Canucks' tickets are approximately $CAD INFINITE

Answer 8

Not Dublin, Ireland.

Weather is pretty rubbish, cost of living is high and broadband is expensive. Mind you there's plenty of good craic in the pub :)

Answer 9

Montreal. Ok, it's cold. But, there's plenty of work with a .net orientation, and they speak both English and French, so you can learn to parlay vouz with the best of them, if you like. Accommodations are quite reasonable too.

Answer 10

I have read an interesting blog article on a closely related subject: The joys and challenges of running a nomadic software company.

Answer 11

as you originally mentioned Bali is cheap, and it's wifi-ed all around. Weather is great too.

Answer 12

This answer comes from 6 years of traveling and working on the road. Here are some of the places I've set up shop over the years. It's not in any order:

Tonsai Beach, Thailand

Pro:

• Cheap living

• Great Weather

• Great Food

• World-class Rock Climbing

• Fun vagrant climber population

Con:

• Satellite internet

• Non 24/7 generator power

Noosa Heads, Australia

Pro:

• Amazing Surfing

• Backpacker town, thus an unlimited supply of drunken European girls

Con:

• Dialup

• Seriously, Dialup. Australia is 10 years behind on DSL

Chamonix, France

Pro:

• Alps

• Brie

• Cheap off-season Ski Chalet rentals ($1400/month, 5 bedrooms, sleeps 15, good WiFi, and a cook included!)

Con:

• A bit pricy unless you have funding or a lot of developers to chip in

Hoi An, Vietnam

Pro:

• Climate

• Relaxing vibe

• Amazing food!

• Cheap

• Good fast Internet, lots of options

Con:

• 20 minute scooter ride to the beach

• no surfing or climbing

Pamplona, Spain

Pro:

• Balconies overlooking Cobblestone streets. Full-on Hemingway vibe.

• 1st world == real DSL

• Cheap rent compared to the US

• The Running of the Bulls!

• Rock Climbing. 1500 routes up to 9a within an hour's drive, and a good gym.

Con:

• Nobody speaks English. Period.

• You can't actually get permission to live there if you're an American, so you'll be "undocumented"

• Hard to get set up with Apartment, DSL, etc.

Zanzibar, Tanzania

Pro:

• 4000 year old stone town. Your apartment will be pretty cool.

• Hot. Like Africa hot. Tarzan couldn't stand this kind of hot.

• Swahili Food is awesome. Check out the "Two Tables restaurant" if it's still there.

• Beach

Con:

• African Internet. Not sure about the DSL situation, and it's a long flight back if you can't make it work.

Bishop, California

Pro:

• Road Trippable

• Free camping in the wilderness

• Free WiFi in town. Wireless Broadband all the way out to the Buttermilks

• Climbing

Con:

• Eventually you'll want a shower.

Answer 13

If I was on your place I'll choose ASIA and the following countries

• Singapore
• Hong Kong
• South Korea
• Japan (last one to visit if you was successful)

Ok here's why

• Hard Working People and not lazy (also they are helpful)
• South Korea has the fatest internet connection ever on earth (read it on Gigaom)
• They have high and advanced technology
• They are cheap (but not very for the latest years)
• Very Very Clean and organized
• You are near China and Japan
• They have very beautiful landscapes
• I like it very much :)

Google for more VISA and cost information. Also don't take your desicion on only one suggestion so you won't regret it!

Answer 14

I can advise you Malaysia, good environment for IT work and cost of living is enough cheap.

PS: I am doing that here already ;)

Answer 15

Myself and my partner (both of us work in IT sector) moved over to Vancouver, Canada a year ago and are having a fantastic life out here. Coming from the UK, the cost of living is so much cheaper here, and the standard of living much higher. Also, if you have a "wanted skill of Canada" (programming is included) then it is very easy to get a working Visa. There are some good IT companies here, and lots of contract work (check out http://vancouver.en.craigslist.ca/ - a great place to find apartments/furniture too).

The weather can be rainy, but we had some amazing sun last summer, and some great snow over Christmas - so it is great for different seasons. Lots of outdoor activities to enjoy - mountain biking, hiking, snowboarding/ski-ing, surfing...so you can balance your worklife with some fun!

People are incredibly friendly and helpful here too.

Do it, come to Canada!

Answer 16

There are some relevant threads on this topic from the "Business of Software" forum:

http://discuss.joelonsoftware.com/default.asp?biz.5.428791.55

http://discuss.joelonsoftware.com/default.asp?biz.5.520014.54

http://discuss.joelonsoftware.com/default.asp?biz.5.631020.52