Becoming Digital Nomads

BY Rachel Harvey

Becoming digital nomads at 36 years old takes a lot of work if you have a family, pets and a home in The States. But that isn’t to say it’s not worth it. It totally is!

I’m a UX/UI Designer and Zach, my husband, is a Web Developer. We have been working online for forever, it seems. We are very used to working with clients all around the Western Hemisphere, and we have learned the importance of short and sweet emailing, chatting, and video calling.

With this digital communication knowledge we have acquired, we asked ourselves, “Why not be a digital nomad in a different country where we can learn and experience new things?” We knew that this new level of learning would help us in our design and development. Understanding different people is at the core of what we do in our work, and what better way to understand more people than to experience a new culture and meet expats that come from around the world.

We chose Costa Rica to be Digital Nomads for many reasons, but here are our top:

1. The laid-back culture.

We live near the beach, so we enjoy beautiful scenery and a relaxed lifestyle.

2. Lots of different kinds of people to meet.

We are learning Spanish to be able to chat with the locals, and there are people that come from around the world to live in Costa Rica.

3. Great place to raise our 2 boys.

As a family, we all loooove nature, and our kids and pets need nature to grow and learn. Also, there are lots of international schools to choose from in Costa Rica.

4. Adventure!

Costa Rica is such an adventurous place, and I think our sense of adventure as a society in The States has gotten put on the back burner, so to speak. For my family, I want us to push the boundaries, overcome fear, and take risks!

5. Being a Digital Nomad in Costa Rica is easy in a lot of ways.

Costa Rica just came out with a visa that is specially designed for Digital Nomads. Here is a link to some details. If you don’t want to use the Digital Nomad Visa, you can just jump the border every 3 months or apply for residency.

There are lots of other reasons why we chose Costa Rica like healthcare, being in the blue zone, cost of living, etc. Research Costa Rica for yourself. It’s a great place to live and vacation!

Reach out to us with questions you have about our experiences so far. We would love to chat with you about them!

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