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Expatriate Consultancy Cultural Shock

What to Consider When Moving Out

Starting Your Own Business Cover
This is a chapter from the book Starting Your Own Business Far From Home: What (Not) to Do When Opening a Company in Another State, Country, or Galaxy

You just received an excellent job offer abroad, or maybe you decide to open a company abroad and have the full plan read. Either way, you concluded that you checked what to consider when moving out. You think that the chosen destination offers a good professional perspective.  Now it is time to pack your things and decide the date of the flight, right?

Not yet.

If you are planning to the new place, there are other things to consider. We will call this group the non-professional elements. The reason to consider them is that it is hard to have a successful career or enterprise if you are feeling miserable, living in a place you dislike, or in an environment that goes against your values.

In my first book, Moving Out, Working Abroad and Keeping Your Sanity, I dedicated one entire chapter to exemplify why understanding your own life project is important to succeed as an expatriate. This applies if you are a big-corporation employee, a foreign student, a person moving with your spouse, or an entrepreneur.

Environmental Dissonance

A phenomenon frequently affecting expatriates is what I call environmental dissonance. It happens when your values conflict with the place surrounding you. In my before-mentioned book (Moving Out) I recounted the story of Breno, a colleague I met while living in the Middle East. Even having a good job and working in his field of specialization, he left months after arriving because the environmental dissonance became overwhelming to him.

Just imagine how more complicated is to suffer this dissonance while you hire and motivate a team, establish goals, write a business plan, pitch for seed capital, and so on. For this reason, becomes essential to assert that your target country, if also attractive to your business and career, also matches your life project and goals.

Just be aware that I am in no point advocating you should “follow your heart” or “listen to your feelings”. In fact, to follow your passion is poor advice. What I propose, instead, is to rationalize what your new country offers and how it matches your personal needs.  For this, I recommend analyzing the following non-professional elements.

Cultural Distance

Probably the greatest modern researcher in comparative cultural aspects was Geert Hofstede. Starting in the 80s with his book Culture’s Consequences, he developed an extensive bibliography in the area, culminating with the institute that carries his name.

Present in 60 countries, the Hosfted Insights institute developed a model breaking down the cultural distance into 6 major areas. Below, each one of them, with the definitions from the Hofstede-Insights researchers:

·         Power Distance – This dimension […] expresses the attitude of the culture towards inequalities amongst us. Power Distance is the extent to which the less powerful members of institutions and organizations within a country expect and accept that power distribution is unequal.

·         Individualism – The fundamental issue addressed by this dimension is the degree of interdependence a society maintains among its members. It is whether people’s self-image translates to terms of “I”, or “We”. In Individualist societies people look after themselves and their direct family only. In Collectivist societies, people belong to ‘in groups’ that take care of them in exchange for loyalty.

·         Masculinity—A high score (Masculine) on this dimension shows competition, achievement, and success will drive the society, with success being defined by the winner / best in field—a value system that starts in school and continues throughout organizational life. A low score (Feminine) on the dimension means that the dominant values in society are caring for others and quality of life. A Feminine society is one where quality of life is the sign of success, and standing out from the crowd is not admirable. The fundamental issue here is what motivates people, wanting to be the best (Masculine) or liking what you do (Feminine).

·         Uncertainty Avoidance – It is how a society deals with the fact that we can never know the future: should we try to control the future or just let it happen? This ambiguity brings with it anxiety and different cultures have learned to deal with this anxiety in different ways. The score on Uncertainty Avoidance reflects the extent to which the members of a culture feel threatened by ambiguous or unknown situations and create institutions to avoid risk .

·         Long Term Orientation – This dimension describes how every society has to maintain some links with its own past while dealing with the challenges of the present and future. Societies prioritize these two existential goals differently. Normative societies. which score low on this dimension, for example, prefer to maintain time-honored traditions and norms while viewing societal change with suspicion. Societies scoring high here, on the other side, take a more pragmatic approach: they encourage efforts in modern education as a way to prepare for the future.

·         Indulgence – The Hofstede-Insights define this dimension as the extent to which people try to control their desires and impulses, based on the way they were raised. Relatively weak control is called “Indulgence” and relatively firm control is analogous to “Restraint”. Cultures therefore are grouped as Indulgent or Restrained.

When I had my first contact with the research of Dr. Hofstede, my immediate action was to check how the countries I lived before (Brazil, Chile, Qatar, and Poland) scored in each ranking. The comparative results from each one – got from a tool available on his institute website – reflected with Swiss-precision the reality I witnessed living in each of them.

For example, according to the results, the Power Distance in Qatar is very high. This matches my observations of a place where the people take as natural the near immutable social differences. Similarly, the higher levels of indulgence and femininity (as per Hofstede’s definition of femininity) in Chile are noticeable in their capital. At the end, the results from Poland fused two of my biggest impressions from living in this country: it is a non-indulgent society, with a considerable level of risk-aversion.

The two characteristics mentioned above – frugality and risk-aversion – of the Polish people contrasted with my cultural baggage.

As a Brazilian, I grow up seeing people spend a fair share of their income in branded shoes, new cars (paid in installments distributed across years), and eating out. Even though nowadays Poland has a similar income to my native São Paulo, someone will rarely buy a new car, and a 10-year-old vehicle is still OK. Personal anecdote: my wife considers it absurd that someone would spend over 5 times his salary in a new automobile. In contrast, in Brazil it is not rare to see people buying cars with the price tag of their annual salary.

The Latin America vs Europe example

This difference, summarized in the Indulgence factor of Dr. Hofstede research, probably affects not only me but thousands of other expatriates that move between Latin America and Europe. Sean Lana, an expatriate living in Germany, lists how other factors of Hofstede research (Individualism) impact his daily life.

Germany is not a country you want to be if your only major goal in life is to own a Bugatti, Ferrari, Tesla and shows off! Collectivism means the country is trying to redistribute wealth equally, at least in order to mitigate poverty and support low-income earners. Expect high taxes and you will enjoy a high quality of life with infrastructures. So if you are very individualistic, consider the next flight to another country. German organisation system is based on the ideology of Max Weber (bureaucracy), Americans practice Scientific management (Taylorism). If you are not used to obeying rigorous rules, regulations, huge laws, paper works, transparency, slow process, appointments, etc then you shouldn’t stay in Germany.

Cultural differences withing a country

It is essential to remind that cultural discrepancies – of the types studied by Dr. Hofstede and perceived in the two examples above – can exist even inside the same country.

Henry Eshleman, a Park Ranger at Fairbanks North Star Borough in Alaska, USA, explained how he felt closer to foreign students than locals while in Indiana, Midwest of the same country.

In Indiana, being from Alaska made me an exotic curiosity. People would ask me questions I never got in Europe, Canada, or Mexico- “What are you doing here?” “Is it cold there?” “What it’s like when it’s light all the time?” And so forth. As a student, I rapidly realized I had more in common with the foreign exchange students, or with my buddy Angel, from Puerto Rico, than I did with the “regular” kids.

My biggest culture shock was essentially domestic in nature, the result of coming from a state which isn’t directly connected to the rest right into the Midwest Heartland.

Even in a country with the size of a single American state, cultural differences are noticeable. In Poland, the northern region of Gdansk has considerable differences to the Subcarpathian cities in the south. Differences shaped during centuries of partitions between Russia, Austria and Germany. Nowadays, the differences reflect electoral results, practices and consumer behaviors.

Besides cultural characteristics, there are other non-business aspects to consider when doing a professional shift:

·         Future family prospects: It is easy to make a decision when it concerns only you. The same is not true when it involves wife and kids. Even if you are single, it is important to reflect on what you want for the next years. If you are planning to build a family, consider this beforehand. This was my case when I decided to move out of Qatar (my previous country). My first thought was to move to Panamá with my then-fiancée, but we had plans to marry and maybe have kids in the next few years. For this reason, we live in Poland, closer to her family.

·         The Time zone. I already mentioned how different time zones can create business problems. This also applies to your private life. A person in South Africa, even though is distant from his relatives in Europe, is still inside a similar time zone, but not someone living in the Middle East and with a family in South-America. This was my case years ago. The 5 to 6 hours’ difference restricted the chances I had to keep contact. During my mornings, they were sleeping. During their evenings, I was sleeping.

·         How friendly the country is to your lifestyle. For example, if you enjoy practicing outdoor sports, places like Dubai or Doha may not be a good idea, since it is excruciatingly hot for more than half of the year.

To go deeper into this subject, my first book, Moving Out, Working Abroad and Keeping Your Sanity, has plenty of considerations to reflect on the personal side of expatriation. Still, if there is one positive advice in business and personal life, it is to immerse yourself in the local culture from the beginning. Talk to the grocery store cashier is a good start.

Conclusion of what to consider when moving out:

·         Cultural discrepancies: How you will adapt to different degrees of Individualism, Power Distance, Risk-Aversion, indulgence and so on?

·         Future personal prospects: Are you planning to marry, build a family, or remain single? How the local offer of schools, nurseries, etc., fit your plans?

·         The time zone difference: Is the time difference considerable? How will that affect your relationships back home?

·         How friendly the country is to your lifestyle: Of your routine and favorite activities, what you can keep or adapt to your new destination?


Levi Borba is the CEO of expatriateconsultancy.com and a best-selling author. You can check his books here and  his articles here. The inspiration for this article comes from the book Starting Your Own Business Far From Home: What (Not) to Do When Opening a Company in Another State, Country, or Galaxy

Expatriate Consultancy Digital Nomads

Moving Abroad Checklist Part 2 – Researching Your New…

Moving Out, Working Abroad and Keeping Your Sanity Cover
This is a chapter from the book Moving Out, Working Abroad and Keeping Your Sanity

This is the second part of the Moving Abroad Checklist (the first you can find here). To give the perfect context to the importance of researching about where you live, I will start with a personal anecdote.

During the time I lived and worked in Doha, most of the company staff were foreigners. It was just a reflection of the country’s demographic, largely made of immigrants.  Curiously, however, there were almost no other Brazilians like me, except the boss of the boss of my boss. There were rumors about people from Brazil not resisting much time there because of the vast distance to their country, plus the enormous cultural differences. To my surprise, just a few months after they hire me, they also hired a fellow Brazilian called Breno.

Breno had a respectable curriculum. Graduated is the USA, in one of the top universities in his area, worked for the pride-company of the Brazilian aerospace industry and despite being young (he was just slightly older than I was), had a list of achievements uncommon for his age. He also looked slightly like a frat-boy coming out from a B-class American comedy. Breno was a very easy-going person, making funny jokes about all things.

​            In one of his first days, I was at my desk calibrating some technical parameters, and Breno comes to me and ask:

Hey Levi! What’s up? What about we go for some drinks?

​            Qatar was not an easy country to go for drinks. It was illegal to sell alcohol in all stores except one, which was state-owned and demanded a special license to buy their 300% overpriced booze. They also sold alcoholic drinks at bars and restaurants of luxury hotels. There, a round of cocktails could cost as much as a weekend on a Greek beach, hotel included.

​            Despite being busy, the question of Breno surprised me, since at the beginning you don’t have so much money to spare, at least until receive your first salary. Did he know the alcohol was so expensive there? Maybe he found someone with a license to buy alcoholic drinks and was giving a house party? The guy was so easygoing, it would not be a surprise.

​            No. It was nothing like that. He had another idea in mind, which I discovered when I asked where he wanted to go.

​            “Maybe we can go to the party district! Where is it? You know, this street full of bars and clubs that every big city in the world has!”

That is it. He just asked me about a Bangkok style party district in an Islamic society where a woman could face problems if their skirts were above their knees.  A place where was often cheaper to buy an airline ticket to another country if you wanted to party.

​            This guy had no idea where he was.

Do not rely solely on Media

​            The story of Breno may sound odd, but it is not uncommon. There are plenty of people that don’t make a proper field research before moving. Or when they make, they use only media sources, with information written by journalists. Some of those journalists act almost as public relations from governments, publishing information that is unrealistic or exaggeratedly welcoming.

​            Maybe Breno imagined Doha as a middle-eastern Barcelona because he saw so many media vehicles praising Qatar for having less strict Islamic rules when compared to Saudi Arabia. Yes, it is less strict, but what the media omitted is that Saudi is the strictest Islamic country in the world. To be less, in this case, is natural. When Qatar earned the right to host the football World Cup, there was plenty of government money going around. Maybe that is why journalists felt compelled to do unrealistic and overoptimistic comparisons, like between Doha and Dubai.

​            I cannot stress enough how important is to do proper research before moving out, and I am sure most expats do it. However, unfortunately, they just do not do it right. Go to the easiest source of information (newspapers, internet portals or YouTube videos) is not a good idea. Editors, presenters and reporters are not there to help someone to live abroad but to earn a living, so they may just create content to draw attention. Sensationalist talks.

​            This is something that I saw in Poland. More often than never I witnessed in expat forums questions about how safe is for a dark-skinned person to walk in the polish streets. The answer, from my side, is elementary: as safe as you can imagine. The number of racist assaults in Poland is negligible and even being an olive-skinned guy and knowing plenty of Afro-Brazilians, I still didn’t hear about this kind of problem. So, why people fear those hordes of racist poles which, in over three years here, I did not saw? Because they write about it in the media, they show it on the TV, and it may be one of the first things you see when you type Poland at Google. However, all this repetition does not make it true.

​            The difference between what the press portrays and street reality can be abysmal. So if I am telling here that the main media vehicles are not the best source to research your new country, where should you seek information? Can you guess?

The Locals

​            Ask the real people. The ones who went through the same experiences and endured it for years. Thanks to the same web I criticized above, you also can reach them easily.

​            Social media today is full of groups. They often have names as “Foreigners in [name of the place]”. I don’t recommend these groups as the sole source of information because many of their members are expats still in their honeymoon phase, before the cultural shock, or just tourists. But while they cannot provide you with the most reliable information, it is still better than the traditional media.

The real deal is to look for groups of locals. One simple way I found is to find language learning groups in the country where I am moving too. Not only you will be able to communicate with locals from your new country and learn their idiom, but they will be excited if you offer to teach them your language. It can be fun too!

​Another possibility is to look for common interests. Even before moving to Europe, I was already in local groups about entrepreneurship, football and philosophy, three subjects interesting to me. While discussing things I enjoyed, I learned about local views on those subjects and other common topics. If you are already in the country but feeling you don’t know enough about it – since most of your contacts are foreigners – enrolling in a course or volunteering can be useful and pleasant.

A third way is to find people from your new country that now are living where you live. You can do that on social media. For example, if you are a Canadian moving to Argentina, you can just look on Facebook for the group “Argentinians in Canada” (or, most likely, Argentinos en Canadá). The members know how is to be a foreigner and will be glad to help with your doubts about their country.

​After I told you where to look for information, comes the next question: Which information should you seek? For these answers, check this article about cultural shock.

Questions to ask yourself:       

To make your life easier, I prepared the template below. Seek the information about your new country in the ways I suggested previously *communities in social media and groups related to your interests) and complete it. At the end of the exercise, should be a plethora of information useful in your journey.

1st source of cultural shock: The Rules

How do people deal with regulations? Are they rigid and play strictly by the book or there is space to some negotiation? Are systems and procedures respected daily or used as guidelines, with frequent adaptations to daily circumstances? Are plans rigorously respected, or they are adjusted according to additional requests?

Your previous country:

Your new country:

​2nd source of cultural shock: The Time

Do people arrive on time on every occasion, even informal ones? Is there some tolerance for delays? What happens when someone arrives 10 minutes late for a social gathering? How do we inform at work or university that something blocked the road, making it impossible to arrive on time? Is it normal to do over-hours or to extend a meeting beyond the scheduled time?

Your previous country:

Your new country:

3rd source of cultural shock: The Humor

Which level of formality is expected in a conversation at work or public office? Is it ok to do jokes as an icebreaker? Do people laugh at small incidents or remain serious? Is a smile always considered a sign of joy or may be taken as disdain? Are puns and tricks common, or people tend to always behave seriously?

Your previous country:

Your new country:

4th source of cultural shock: The Communication

When it is time to take a decision, how is the communication process: direct and to the point, with no digressions, or it goes around many hypotheses and with space to different discussions? When people need to criticize a co-worker, do they use subtle language and avoid direct conflict, or they just say what they want to say without space for doubt? When people ask for a favor or a task, do they suggest indirectly using expressions like “maybe” or “would be nice if someone did that” or they straightforward tell you what they want?  When someone needs to deny an invitation or a request, do they simply say “I can’t do it, sorry” or they use excuses?

Your previous country:

Your new country:

If you have any other important expatriate questions to suggest, send them in the comments, and see you in the next part of our series Moving Abroad Checklist.


Levi Borba is the CEO of expatriateconsultancy.com and a best-selling author. You can check his books here and some of his articles here. This article was inspired by the content of his book, Moving Out, Working Abroad and Keeping Your Sanity: 11 secrets to make your expat life better than you imagine.

Book cover
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Expatriate Consultancy Digital Nomads

Moving Abroad Checklist Part 1 – How to Make…

Moving Out, Working Abroad and Keeping Your Sanity Cover
This is a chapter from the book Moving Out, Working Abroad and Keeping Your Sanity

This is the first of a series of posts regarding the Moving Abroad Checklist that business travelers, expatriates, or exchange students should do to make their life far from home much easier. We will start with a very neglected subject.

The time to repair the roof is when the sun is shining.

John F. Kennedy, former U.S. President.

It is not common to board a plane and start a new life focusing on what to do if unexpected and unpleasant situations happen. Sometimes you prepare yourself for the difficulties you judge possible, like homesickness (if you are worried about it, check this article), not passing the probation time of your new employer, or not being approved at university. As much as my experience shows me, expatriates are often well prepared for the problems arising at the beginning of their life abroad.

However, time passes and you get more settled, more comfortable with your surrounding, and take things for granted. Therefore, this rule is more useful to anyone already living far from home for some time.

The type of surprises that can storm your life vary between countries.

  • If you are living in the Middle East, you may get locked in civil unrest or geopolitical disputes.
  • In South America, a hyperinflation cycle can destroy the power of purchase and make your salary worth much less than what you had before moving out.
  • In the USA, if an accident not covered by your insurance happens, you might have a medical bill draining all your savings.
  • In the seismic region knows as the Pacific Ring, lives can change completely in case of earthquakes or tsunamis (like the one of 2004 in Indonesia or 2011 in Japan).

Even when there is no geopolitical crisis or natural cataclysms around, there are still the typical corporate problems. These, in some locations, can assume a different dimension. In places like the United Arab Emirates or Qatar, if you lose your job, you may have only one month to leave the country. In Singapore, it can be even worse, with a deadline of only two weeks to get out.

When I lived in Doha, Qatar, it was common to see used luxury cars on sale with huge discounts every time an oil company laid off personnel. This happened because their former staff had little time to pack the luggage and leave. Therefore, to sell their vehicles, even at a smaller price, was already a victory. That was the reason so many people there preferred to rent a car instead of buying one.

Moving Abroad Checklist: How to Make a Plan B.

When we start a new life abroad, sometimes we ignore the chances it might not go as expected. We want to keep our morale, confidence and spirit that this is going to be an exceptional year. This feeling increases when we didn’t witness any major problem recently, and our perception that nothing bad is going to happen inflates. It is the survivorship bias the Nobel Prize winner Daniel Kahneman explained so well in his book Thinking Fast and Slow.

Don’t get me wrong here. It is essential to have a positive mindset, hope and work for the best outcome otherwise, you would never board the plane to move abroad. However, it is equally crucial to analyze the risks (even the rare ones) and find out viable alternatives.

Bottom line: The chances of happening an unlikely surprise increase across the years, and eventually the implausible event will knock at your door. So have a Plan B! And maybe even a C.

The best way to start a Plan B is to know as much as you can about your risks. This is possible only by talking to the people that experienced failure. I recognize it is difficult to make others disclose their misfortunes, but it is worth to try. The next step is to compile all the possible situations representing a hazard and work in their contingency. For this, you can also use the experience of other foreigners by asking them in social media, expat meetings and blogs.

Questions to ask

  • What type of failures can happen?
  • What they did to protect themselves?
  • How they reacted when the event arose?
  • How did they prepare for similar events in the future?

For natural cataclysms there are well-known standard procedures. In Japan, for example, there are earthquake emergency packs with water, canned food, blankets, etc. In Indonesia, after the tsunami, they build shelters in exposed beaches and hotels to speed evacuation.

While I would not recommend cooling down and take a breath if a hurricane or tsunami is approaching, with a crisis of sociopolitical nature it may be better to sit back to think and not rush in making decisions.

A good example is the tumultuous relation between North and South Korea, which often scares foreigners, but nothing serious happened in the last decades. A similar situation happened in Armenia in 2018, when major protests erupted in their capital, Yerevan. The city stopped and was relatively chaotic for a few days. I was there spending holidays, and even before I came back, everything already went back to normal. Of course, civil unrest may turn into a long crisis, and sometimes even wars. But surely most of them don’t go that far and should not be a reason for panic.

Putting aside natural and sociopolitical reasons, another risk is more individual-related. In countries where there is a short time-frame to leave in case of losing a job (or student status), it is important to ask to include in the main contracts (like rent agreement) a termination clause, which would make you exempt of any fines to the landlord in the case your job ended against your will. In most places nowadays there is also a variety of job loss insurances covering those situations.

Another personal anecdote

As personal advice, one thing that always worked very well for me is to live light, in the sense of not accumulate long contracts, obligations, or assets. While for a big family this may be a challenge, for singles or young couples it is a great alternative.

During my time in Chile, I never bought a car and the contract with my company assured me that if they dismissed me, they would cover any fine of my rent agreement. It was not the case in Qatar, but since I was sharing my flat there, after resigning from my job, I just needed to find someone to substitute me. I also didn’t need to sell any car because my flatmate Matteo had a nice deal with me, where I paid for part of his fuel, so he took me to and from work. Another very helpful strategy was to always rent furnished apartments, so I didn’t need to buy and sell furniture or worse, move it from one country to another.

It was good that I was living light since my last move was not smooth. I needed to use my Plan B, for a reason that is quite common and is still not in this article. Therefore, I ask again for your patience for a small personal story and promise it can be useful for you.

After achieving my desired promotion in Qatar, and saved some money to open a business in the future, I planned to live in an environment closer to what I wanted for the long-term, out of the big-corporation world. I looked for a job and one startup in Barcelona took my attention. We exchanged some emails, made an interview via Skype, and they asked me to visit their Spanish headquarters. There I talked to the CEO and solved some of those modern challenges startups apply to their selections. Few days and a call later, I got the job.

Simultaneously, I also had a job offer from a huge e-commerce corporation in Poland. Even though Poland was a pleasant country to live (and my girlfriend was Polish), I didn’t want to move from one big corp to another, so I refused their job and accepted the Spanish offer. A few days later, I gave my one-month notice period in Doha.

Only two weeks before I finally leave for Spain, they called me and told me they didn’t have the resources needed to apply for my visa. They told me I should do it myself, by my own resources and taking the risk of losing anything invested if the government rejected my working Visa.

I knew that changing my life and depending on the bureaucratic skills of a small startup (where the CEO interviewed me with a greasy NASA t-shirt) was risky. So even before I had their job offer, I was also working on my Plan B: to have my own business.

To be specific, I started working on a backup plan one year before, doing market research to decide which cities were the most attractive in Poland and contacting business owners wanting to sell their enterprises. Some of them showed interest in a deal. Therefore, when the NASA-Shirt CEO of the Spanish startup called me and gave me the bad news of their lack of structure, I jumped into the plan B. Immediately I made an offer to purchase a Polish business from a couple that wanted to live in a calmer place with their newborn baby.

However, a few months later this plan also broke down. After I move to Poland and just before I transfer them the money, they gave up selling it. So, I went for plan C: Open my company from zero.

Conclusion (and happy ending?)

​After all those years, the company is still working, so even a plan C can be fruitful if you prepare it properly. On a side note, the move to Poland instead of Spain gave me other surprises, but this time they were very positive.

Maybe the advice of this article does not look plain as the others I wrote before, like the solution for the ANS syndrome. But at the end of the day, the most important to remember is simple: do not think improbable and unpleasant situations will never happen to you. Be prepared. After all, this may become even a greater opportunity, as I will explain in a future article of our Moving Abroad Checklist series.


Levi Borba is the CEO of expatriateconsultancy.com and a best-selling author. You can check his books here and some of his articles here. This article was inspired by the content of his book, Moving Out, Working Abroad and Keeping Your Sanity: 11 secrets to make your expat life better than you imagine.

Book cover
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The best city for Digital Nomads and (some) expats Digital Nomads

The best city for Digital Nomads and (some) expats!…

For already a while, southeast Asian hotspots like Chiang Mai (Thailand) or Bali (Indonesia) top list after list of the finest cities for remote workers. In a year with enormous economical and social changes, a new serious competitor rises. Going forward to my conclusion: right now, this is the best city for Digital Nomads and (some) expats! Forget Chiang Mai!.

Bridge Hercilio Luz, Florianópolis, Brazil. One of the best cities in the planet for Digital Nomads
It is not San Francisco, but that bridge and the exciting technology sector may remind the Californian city.

But… Why some? Because this applies only if your income is not in the local currency.

How the Brazilian Ibiza, a favourite place of national celebrities, turned (very) affordable.

Florianópolis is a city with almost 500k inhabitants in the state of Santa Catarina. This state in the southern region of Brazil was called, for few occasions, the Brazilian Ibiza, for being the darling of South American upper-class youth.

Reasons like delightful beaches, pleasant climate and 3 of the best clubs in the planet (including the 1st place in the annual DJ Mag club ranking, Green Valley) contributed for the just comparison between Santa Catarina and the Mediterranean islands.

But how comparisons with an overpriced European island are useful for digital nomads looking for low living costs?

It is because Florianópolis is not overpriced anymore. At least if you earn in dollars!

There are two reasons for this city turning  inexpensive in the last years.  The chart below explains the first one better than I could:

Comparison between the Brazilian Real and American Dollar in the last 10 years
How many Brazilian reais 1 dollar could buy. Chart of the last 10 years. Source: www.xe.com

Let’s imagine a good-located, beachfront 1-room apartment. In 2012, it had a monthly rent of 1400 reais. This is equivalent to 700 dollars. Due to its attractiveness, since 2012 real estate in Florianópolis inflated near 53%, so this apartment would cost now 2140 reais.

But since the real lost a ton of value in the last decade, this price is equivalent to only 430 dollars nowadays. For a beachfront apartment.

Not believing me? Just take a look at the properties available in Florianópolis at Airbnb and you may find even cheaper deals.

Canasvieiras beach, Florianópolis. Beach front view.
This is the view I had last year, when I was there (Canasvieiras beach). The price paid for that was incredibly good!

With the strong devaluation of the Brazilian currency in the last 10 years, the once pricey Ilha da Magia (Magic Island in Portuguese, one of the many nicknames for this place) have prices similar to cheap backpacking destinations in Asia.

The second reason that made the capital of Santa Catarina more affordable are the years of economic turmoil in the region. By region, I mean not only Brazil but also the neighbouring Argentina. In fact, not long ago, Argentinians drove to there in such considerable numbers that some places like Canasvieiras beach had restaurants with menus in Spanish instead of the Portuguese (many of them still have, although you can ask for one written in Portuguese or English).

The last time I stayed in that beach, the Uber driver told me:

Oh, you are going to the Argentinian enclave!

Today the numbers of tourists from Argentina and other neighbouring countries (Uruguay and Paraguay) are still significant, but not close to what they were in past decades.

So, are you telling me Brazil is a great place for Digital Nomads?

Definitely I am not telling you that.

Being a continental country, Brazil have immense contrasts, with the same order of magnitude someone can see in Europe between Portugal and Ukraine, for example.

Brazil has many problems. The most famous of them is violence. And in this point, the state of Santa Catarina is like an oasis. 

While in 2019 Brazil had a homicide rate of 19.7 per 100 thousand people (a considerable reduction from the 32.4 of 2017), Santa Catarina have a rate of 2.8 per 100 thousand. This is a similar level to European countries like Hungary.

Other common problem of Brazil is the small share of English-Speaking population. This is a fair complaint. According to the British council only 5% of the Brazilians speak English.  However, due to its touristic-driven economy, high-standards of life and level of education, in Florianópolis you will not find much problem to live without speaking Portuguese.

If you took our quiz of The best country to visit after the lockdown? and your result was Brazil, this is the kind of place you are meant to be.

Right, so going back to costs: The rent is cheap (in dollars) in Florianópolis, but what about the rest?

The comparison I made at the beginning of this post was not an accident. According to Expatistan (a great source for global prices), Chiang Mai and Florianópolis have virtually equal costs.

Living costs comparison between Chiang Mai, Thailand, and Florianópolis, Brazil, making it the best city for Digital Nomads and (some) expats
Price comparison between Chiang Mai, in Thailand, and Florianópolis, Santa Catarina, Brazil. Source: Expatistan.

In the comparison jumps to the eyes how cheap are the food costs in Florianópolis. In fact, even though Brazilians complain that everything is expensive there, when they travel out, they realize how in fact grocery articles are more expensive worldwide. After all, you can buy a liter of milk in Brazil for less than 70 cents of a dollar.

The entertainment prices in Florianópolis may look expensive in the comparison above, but as you may remember from the beginning of this article, in the summer it turns into a party-island for jet-setters. However, cheaper alternatives exist in plentiful numbers.

A Caipirinha at the beach (exception for the overpriced Jurere beach) will cost around 10 reais, or 2 dollars. This is almost half of the price of other Brazilian touristic cities like Rio. Depending on the type of nomad you are, this will be more important than the lower milk prices.

Safe, inexpensive apartments and cheap drinks! I am almost convinced, but what can I do there in my free time?

1st – Beach hopping

Some people say Florianópolis have 42 beaches. Others put this number near 100. What you can be sure is that there are options for every taste. In the eastern side, surfers have an ideal playground at Mole and Joaquina beaches. In the North are popular beaches like Canasvieiras. Just at the side of Canasvieiras is Jurerê Internacional, with its beach huts called “paradores”, bars and nightclubs. Upper-class youth have sunset beach parties in clubs like P12 and Posh. In the south, fishing villages offer peace and typical cuisine, as well as empty spots like the beaches of Pântano do Sul and Ribeirão da Ilha.

In the summer, the tanned and good-shaped youth of the region flocks to its sunny beaches. Daily physical practice is almost a rule. Besides beach football and volleyball, there are two other sports whose practice have privileged conditions on the magical island. They are Surf and Sand board.

One of the great beachs of the best city for Digital Nomads and (some) expats
Picture I took last time I was in Floripa. Even with my very limited photographic skills, still looks wonderful.

2nd – Party

This city once won the title of ‘Party Destination of the Year’ by The New York Times. In a 100 km radius you have three of the best clubs in the planet. Many other party places of the region could easily be in the same ranking.

3rd – Learn to Surf (or Sand board)

Florianópolis, or to be more specific, Joaquina Beach, have a unique characteristic: only few meters separate you from “surfing” sand dunes and sea waves. With instructors available, it is a perfect opportunity to learn both sports in a privileged scenario.

What about the local communities of digital nomads and expatriates in Florianopolis?

Maybe this is the single point where my comparison between Floripa and Chiang Mai favours the Thai city.  The nomad community and the expat numbers are much greater in Chiang Mai, however they are quickly developing in the capital of Santa Catarina state.

One common type you will find there is the tourist-turned-a-resident. Being such an attractive place with remarkable quality of life and good-quality real estate, is not uncommon to find foreigners that bought apartments or villas to spend long periods on this magical island.

Conclusion – the best city for Digital Nomads and (some) expats is Floripa.

The city is booming with entrepreneurship, especially in technology. The IT gross product is nowadays bigger than tourism itself! The devaluated local currency, networking opportunities and good infrastructure make it a very promising destination for remote workers with dollarized income.

There is a crescent number of coworking spaces and cafés friendly to remote workers. You can check a map of them on the island here. In Facebook or Meetup it is possible to find a broad range of networking events and social occasions for expatriates and nomads. Examples are groups like Digital Nomads Floripa on Meetup or the Gringoes in Floripa on Facebook.

Before finishing this article, an important advice: even though the expatriate and digital nomad community in Florianópolis are growing, it would be a wasted opportunity to restrict your social meetups only with fellow foreigners.

Meet the locals too! Brazilian people are very social, and the catarinenses are no different, even though other Brazilians make jokes with the smugness about their land.

Since their island is one of the most beautiful places in the country, who can blame them? ☺


Author: Levi Borba, founder of Colligere Expat Consultancy, former RM specialist for the world´s greatest airline. Co-founder of Nearby Airport Hostel Warsaw and author of the books Budget Travelers, Digital Nomads & Expats: The Ultimate Guide: 50 Tips, Tricks, Hacks and Ways to Free Stuff & Cheaper Flights in a Practical Guide to Travel Plans and  Moving Out, Living Abroad and Keeping Your Sanity.

Expatriate Consultancy Current Affairs

Travel restrictions update

What countries already lifted the travel bans?

After our previous article, about the new normal of international traveling, there was still a doubt (which appeared among some followers of my facebook page) about travel restrictions update:

            Allright, travel corridors (or bubbles) are being established across the planet, but what about the other countries? When my next destionation will open borders?

             So we decided to compile a list of the main destinations and their status regarding international travel restrictions update. If there is a place that you would like to know, just write it at the comment section and we at Colligere Expat Consultancy will seek information about it.

Last Update: 03/06/2020

Cyprus will soon reopen borders with Greece and Israel.
Cyprus is one of the countries at the most advanced stages of reopening borders.

Travel restrictions updates by country:

  • Argentina: Argentina’s borders are closed to foreign nationals and non-residents entering the country. Ski resorts like Las Lenas already announced that may not open for the winter season.
  • Australia: All foreign travellers are banned.
  • Austria: Anyone entering Austria from Germany, Hungary, Italy, Liechtenstein, Slovenia or Switzerland, or has in the last 14 days been in an area with travel warnings from the Austrian Foreign Ministry must present a medical certificate no older than 4 days.
  • Belarus: Arrivals from countries affected by coronavirus must self-isolate for 14 days, regardless of symptoms.
  • Belgium: You will only be able to enter Belgium if you live there or if you work there. The government has announced plans to gradually reduce restrictions and reopen borders.
  • Brazil: The Brazilian Government have banned entry for all foreign passengers.
  • Bulgaria: The Bulgarian Government has announced severe restrictions on international travel, forbidding various nationalities.
  • Canada: Canada has closed its borders to most foreign visitors.The border between the US and Canada is also closed except for essential journeys.
  • Colombia: Borders closed, including with Ecuador, and airports closed to international traffic.
  • Croatia: Croatia has reopened border crossings on major routes for limited people, including foreign nationals who have real estate in the country, who own a boat in the country, have close family in Croatia or invited for business purposes.
  • Czech Republic: EU citizens making business trips of three days or less can enter the Czech Republic. They need to have evidence that they have tested negatively for Covid-19. In the last week of May they entered the final phase of easing restrictions and now pubs, restaurants, hotels and museums are reopening their doors.
  • Cyprus:  While travel restrictions are still enforced for foreign tourists, the government is advancing on plans of easing them, together with Greece and Israel. Cyprus is so keen to get its tourism industry back on track that they are offering to cover the costs of any travelers who test positive for Covid-19 while on vacation in the island. Flights from Greece, Malta, Bulgaria, Norway, Austria, Finland, Slovenia, Hungary, Israel, Denmark, Germany, Slovakia and Lithuania will return first, with Switzerland, Poland, Romania, Croatia, Estonia and the Czech Republic also to be back in June. UK is absent of the list.
  • Denmark: Travel restrictions still applied, but advanced plans to reopen the border with Germany.
  • Georgia: Domestic tourism will re-open on 15 June. From 1 July Georgia’s land and air borders should re-open in line with the principle of safe corridors. There will be a gradual resumption of flights and international tourism.
  • Germany: The Austria/Germany land border is reopening — travel between Austria and Germany will come back from June 15 — and restrictions around the country are being relaxed. Bars are still closed but hotels are permitted to open again since May 29.
  • Greece: Together with Cyprus, Greece is gradually beginning to ease its lockdown restrictions and is hoping to be open to tourists by 15 July. Citizens are now able to take ferry’s to Greece’s Aegean islands as the country started its summer holiday season three weeks earlier than expected.
  • Egypt: All international flights are suspended.
  • Estonia: Only citizens of Estonia, holders of an Estonian Residency Permit or foreign citizens whose family member lives in Estonia are permitted to enter Estonia. Plans to reopen borders with other Baltic countries.
  • Iceland: The Icelandic Government intends to ease restrictions on international arrivals by 15 June at the latest. Details have not yet been finalised, but it is expected that arrivals will have the choice between a test on arrival or two weeks self-isolation.
  • India: All scheduled international and domestic commercial passenger services will remain suspended until at least 31st May. India has also now made the decision to close the Taj Mahal. All foreign nationals are barred from entering and transiting through Indonesia.
  • Indonesia: Tourism officials have been calling for a“travel bubble” to be implemented between Bali and Australia.
  • Ireland: Flights and ferry services continue to operate between Ireland and Great Britain but at a reduced service. New visitors will have to self-quarantine for 14 days.
  • Italy: Italy has announced it will reopen for travel on 1 June. St. Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican reopened on May 18 after closing for over two months
  • Israel: Foreign nationals are not permitted to enter unless they are citizens or residents of Israel.
  • Japan: Foreign visitors who have visited affected countries are not allowed to enter Japan. State of emergency is lifted from 25 of May onwards.
  • Finland: Will reopen its borders for foreign workers from the Schengen zone from May 14. Was closed since March 19, due to the Coronavirus developments. From June 1, cafés, restaurants and bars will resume their normal work, but with certain limitations that are still being worked out.
  • France: The French Minister of Interior has agreed with his German counterpart Interior Minister Horst Seehofer to reopen the common borders by June 15. It was announced on May 29 that the country’s most visited museum, the Louvre, will reopen July 6.
  • Hungary: Hungary and Slovenia have agreed on a road map towards a gradual reopening of their border by June 1. Hungary started lifting coronavirus restrictions in Budapest from Monday. Residents returning to shops or travelling on public transport will have to wear face masks.
  • Lithuania: While travel restrictions still on place, there are plans to Lithuania reopen its borders with other Baltic countries in the coming months. Starting from May 15 2020, nationals of Estonia and Latvia will also be allowed to enter the country
  • Mexico: On 20th April, the Mexican government confirmed that the land border between the US and Mexico will remain closed to all non-essential traffic for a further 30 days. On May, border restrictions got extended due to the increasing number of Covid19 cases. Marisol Vanegas, the state’s tourism secretary, said that We want to revive tourism and expect to start opening sights and hotels sometime between June 10 and 15 but don’t know which ones yet.
  • Netherlands: Netherland’s government has decided to prolong the entry ban for non-EU citizens, the United Kingdom and the Schengen Area until June 15 due to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) developments, the Ministry of Justice and Security announced.
  • Norway: Norwegian authorities have decided to prolong internal border controls for another 90 days, from May 16. This is part of the country’s efforts to stop the further spread of the Coronavirus outbreak (COVID-19), according to the Ministry of Justice.
  • Poland: Poland’s borders remain closed for now, but authorities have announced plans to start to re-open to tourists, with new policy measures for visitors and organisations within the tourism sector ahead of expected border openings.
  • Portugal: There are strict measures in place and there are significant restrictions on movement within the country. The land borders between Portugal and Spain will remain closed until 15 June due to the covid-19 pandemic, according to a resolution by the Councils of Ministers.
  • Russia: On the 16th March, Russia announced that it will restrict entry into the whole country for almost all foreign citizens from 18 March until further notice.
  • South Korea: All foreign national travellers are being tested for COVID-19 on arrival in South Korea. Testing may take up to 24 hours and you may be held in a separate facility during this time. If you test positive for the virus you will be transferred to the appropriate healthcare facility.
  • Spain: Closed borders to all except citizens and those with a Spanish residency. Spain has announced it hopes to reopen to tourism in June.Restaurants and bars in Spain’s biggest cities, including Barcelona and capital Madrid, reopened on 25 of May. From July 1, the they will allow EU travelers to enter without having to quarantine for 14 days.
  • Slovakia: Travel restrictions still in place, but talks with Austria and Czech Republic to reopen land borders by June.
  • Slovenia: Airports in Slovenia have now re-opened for passenger transportation. According to the newly adopted changes,  borders will be crossable at several checkpoints on-road connections with Austria, Italy and Hungary.. 
    Thailand:  Barred all foreign nationals and international passenger flights to Thailand are suspended. Thailand’s borders are expected to remain closed to foreigners until at least the end of June. The ban on International Commercial Flights – excluding repatriation flights — was extended until June 30, but some resorts and hotels have already been given the go ahead to reopen — Hua Hin, located about 200 kilometers (124 miles) of Bangkok, is one of them
  • Turkey: Passengers who are not Turkish nationals or residents of Turkey are not permitted to enter Turkey. Istanbul’s Grand Bazaar, one of the world’s largest markets, is open again, for the first time in two months, since June 1.
  • USA: General travel ban, although some states like Texas eased its own restrictions. As of Monday 16 March, European travellers are denied entry into the USA. Travel ban to and from South-American countries like Brazil are a possibility in the coming weeks.
Slovakia is reopening its borders with Czech Republic and Austria
One of the first countries to declare lockdown, Slovakia is also one of the first to start reopening borders. Picture of Bratislava.

If you found any mistake or would like to add any country at this list, please write it at the comments. We will be grateful!

Author: Levi Borba, founder of Colligere Expat Consultancy, former RM specialist for the world´s greatest airline. Co-founder of Nearby Airport Hostel Warsaw and author of the book Moving Out, Living Abroad and Keeping Your Sanity.

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Australia and New Zealand corridor Quiz

The best country to visit after the lockdown?

If you read our previous article, at this point probably you are more optimistic about the reopening of the international travel flows (unless you live in one of the countries that we mentioned as the losing side in our article). So we can wonder: What is the best country to visit after the lockdown?

Which place will make every dollar (or euro, or peso, or…) worthy during my next holidays?

Staying at home and thinking about traveling.
Some of us already spent quite a time at home.

To help you, our head-consultant (and multi continental traveler) Levi Borba designed a simple test. After 7 questions it will reveal a great option for you to plan your next holidays!


If you are wondering about the gradual reopening of travel possibilities, we give some insights about it in this video:

Author: Levi Borba, founder of Colligere Expat Consultancy, former RM specialist for the world´s greatest airline. Co-founder of Nearby Airport Hostel Warsaw and author of the book Moving Out, Living Abroad and Keeping Your Sanity.

Book cover
Receive for FREE! Digital Book - 20 Essential Hacks for Saving Money While TravellingLearn the one single trick to pay almost 60% less in your airline tickets!

Subscribe to our blog and receive for FREE in your e-mail the digital book that will teach you the way to cheaper flight tickets and even an upgrade to Business Class! Written by an author that worked during years in some of the best airlines of the planet.

John
Smith
johnsmith@example.com

Australia and New Zealand corridor Current Affairs

When travel restrictions will be lifted.

The New Normal: Connectivity Bubbles

Connectivity Bubbles for When travel restrictions will be lifted.

An increasing number of countries see a light in the end of this dark tunnel of the last months. With the gradual control (at least partially) of the Covid19 pandemic by few nations, governments start to announce measures for when travel restrictions will be lifted.

This article is the refined version of a Linkedin post I wrote that made repercussion there. The post itself came after conversations with other entrepreneurs, colleagues from my former career at the headquarters of the world’s greatest airline, as well as acquaintances in the political/public life.

We came to an interesting scenario for the next 2 years about the international travel market.

International movement will come back.

However, not in the same way as before, but in the form of connectivity bubbles.

Countries in more advanced stages of controlling the epidemic (like Poland, where I live) will reopen gradually to others that achieved the same conditions.

What is “control” of the pandemic?

By controlling the pandemic we understand not only a reduced number of victims, but also a reduced reproductive rate. This rate is also known as R0, if no measures are taken, or Re in a controlled scenario. In epidemiology, R0 is understood as the expected number of new cases directly generated by one contaminated person. Therefore, if in each infectious individual  transmit the disease to other 2, the R0 in this place is 2. This reproductive rate will vary across regions depending on factors like demographic concentration, social distancing or isolation of suspected patients.

There are plenty of material about epidemiology. If you are interested, it is worth to check them for a deeper knowledge since this is not my area, which is International Travel. Now, back to our previously mentioned concept of connectivity bubbles between countries that achieved a desirable level of virus control.

Where are the possible bubbles?

                Some of those bubbles, where we expect that people movement will gradually resume by mid 2020 are:

  • Australia <-> New Zealand. The Australian prime-minister Scott Morrison in April gave signals during a press conference of a possible reconnection with New Zealand. His counter-part in New Zealand, Jacinta Arden, made similar statements. Thoughts go as far as including some pacific nations in this bubble, since few were not much affected by Covid19.
Australia and New Zealand corridor
Both the prime-minister of Australia and New Zealand already outlined the possibility of a travel-corridor between them.
  • V4 (Czech Republic <-> Hungary <-> Poland <-> Slovakia). The group of Visegrad, also known as V4, had a remarkably quick response to the pandemic in its initial phase. Poland and Slovakia closed their borders before having a single fatal victim. Nowadays, all of them are among the least affected countries in Europe. Some members are discussing to reopen their land borders to each other already by July.
Poland, Czech, Slovakia and Hungary compared to Sweden regarding Coronavirus
Comparison between V4 countries (Poland, Czech, Slovakia and Hungary) and Sweden regarding Coronavirus victims. Souce: Ourworldindata.com
  • Greece <-> Cyprus <-> Israel.  Greece is among the countries that most successfully reduced the speed of the Coronavirus epidemic in Europe. Unfortunately, they are also among the most affected economically, given the fact tourism is responsible to near 25% of their total GDP.  Similar situation happens in Cyprus. To relief this burden, both nations plus Israel are negotiating a travel-corridor. This would ease the crisis in the tourism sector by allowing movement between those countries.

The losing side

On the other hand, countries like Mexico and Brazil will be for a long time barred from most of the international travel market, due to numbers still quickly rising. In fact, harsher restrictions are implemented in the US-Mexican border. Meanwhile the government of Florida Ron DeSantis recently submitted plans to the American president restrict travel from Brazil.

Personal digression: this would mean thousands of expatriates, like me, restricted from visiting our families at least until 2021.

In Europe, the always-trendy Balearic islands are considering imposing a travel ban for UK visitors for the whole summer. As the tourist minister Iago Negueruela explained to local media:

There are countries like the United Kingdom that have taken too long to adopt containment measures and that also puts us in a different situation with respect to them.

Balearic Islands to ban UK travelers
The balearic islands may impose a summer-long ban for UK travelers.
Photo: Cala Macarella, Minorca.

From a macro point of view, this should be (relatively) good news for the tourism industry in some places. Examples like Colombia, which will partially absorb the demand previously belonging to Mexico and Brazil, or Greece, able to boast the badge of a safe destination for the whole planet.

Thoughts?


Author: Levi Borba, founder of Colligere Expat Consultancy, former RM specialist of the world´s greatest airline,  co-founder of Nearby Airport Hostel Warsaw. Author of the books Moving Out, Living Abroad and Keeping Your Sanity and Budget Travelers, Digital Nomads & Expats: The Ultimate Guide

Book cover
Receive for FREE! Digital Book - 20 Essential Hacks for Saving Money While TravellingLearn the one single trick to pay almost 60% less in your airline tickets!

Subscribe to our blog and receive for FREE in your e-mail the digital book that will teach you the way to cheaper flight tickets and even an upgrade to Business Class! Written by an author that worked during years in some of the best airlines of the planet.

John
Smith
johnsmith@example.com

Which country suits me? Cultural Shock

Quiz – Which country better suits your goals?

We made a quick (but well-based by the experience of our battle-tested consultants) a quiz to help you discover which country better suits your goals, both professionally and personally. Based on specific questions and a method approach, you are about to identify the part of the world where your dreams are closer to be achieved. If you want to know more about Expat life, check our FAQ.

Book cover
Receive for FREE! Digital Book - 20 Essential Hacks for Saving Money While TravellingLearn the one single trick to pay almost 60% less in your airline tickets!

Subscribe to our blog and receive for FREE in your e-mail the digital book that will teach you the way to cheaper flight tickets and even an upgrade to Business Class! Written by an author that worked during years in some of the best airlines of the planet.

John
Smith
johnsmith@example.com

Illustrative image of a traveler Travelling

Save money researching low-cost flights in the RIGHT WAY!

The way you search can SIGNIFICANTLY change the price you see for exactly the same flights. If you want to know how to fly cheaper with low-cost airlines, keep reading.

There is one thing that is a common knowledge for any traveller: Google Flights and other aggregators (like Skyscanner, Kayak, etc) saves us a lot of time. Those websites compare the prices of dozens, sometimes hundreds of airlines in a matter of seconds.

However people would be surprised with what they don´t do (at least not very efficiently) and the opportunities to save considerable money they waste. Especially when flying with low-cost airlines.

A good part of the low-cost carriers, (like RyanAir, Wizzair, EasyJet, etc) operates in a system called “point-to-point” network, differently than legacy carriers (those that are not low cost) like Lufthansa, Emirates, British Airways and many others that operate in a Hub and spoke network. That means that low-cost comapnies in general sell a ticket to fly from a city to another without any stop in between, while legacy (or national) carriers have stops called hubs (like Lufthansa have in Frankfurt or Emirates in Dubai).

How that can help you save money and why is this related to Google Flights and other aggregators?

The answer is in how you look for a ticket price in the internet. Most people will simply search for the price of the tickets from the place where they are departing to where they are arriving.

Therefore, if you are planning to travel from Warsaw to New York, you can enter in Kayak or Google Flights and look for flights departing from WAW airport to JFK (for example).  It will show to you a lot of options, and currently a round trip between those two cities would cost around 430 euros the cheapest option, with one or two stops in the way.

However, right now, it is possible to go from Warsaw to JFK for 285 euros. But Google Flights and most agreggators will not show me that.

Why?

The answer is simple: Those websites don’t work very well with low-cost airlines.

In the case mentioned above, the cheapest way would be to fly to Norway with two of the low-cost carriers that do the route from Warsaw to Oslo. From them take another low-cost flight to New York.

Google will not show you that because those airlines work in a point to point system, as I mentioned above, remember? They are not optimized to sell flights with a stop in the way. But if yourself create this stop by purchasing two separate tickets, you can find much better prices.

The best way to find those low-cost opportunities is to look for flights separately. When I want to travel from Poland to Brazil to visit my family, I don’t look for flights departing only from Warsaw, but also from Barcelona, Milan, London, Frankfurt, etc. So if there is a very inexpensive flight departing from one of those airports, I can also look for a low-cost flight from Warsaw to those cities and from there to Brazil.  In this way, you will perform a low-cost hack to fly cheaper with low-cost airlines that even Google couldn’t find!

Just be aware that flying with low-cost carriers brings its own challenges, like the need to pay even for a cup of tea or coffee. But for those cost-savvy, it is a treasure.

Author: Levi Borba, founder of Colligere Expat Consultancy, former RM specialist for the world´s greatest airline,  co-founder of Nearby Airport Hostel Warsaw and author of the book Moving Out, Living Abroad and Keeping Your Sanity.

Book cover
Receive for FREE! Digital Book - 20 Essential Hacks for Saving Money While TravellingLearn the one single trick to pay almost 60% less in your airline tickets!

Subscribe to our blog and receive for FREE in your e-mail the digital book that will teach you the way to cheaper flight tickets and even an upgrade to Business Class! Written by an author that worked during years in some of the best airlines of the planet.

John
Smith
johnsmith@example.com

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