Nomad Summit returns & SafetyWing levelling up | Issue #0017

Nomad Summit is back!

It’s been a hot minute, but the annual gathering for nomads - new and veteran - is back next month. Plus, it’s returning to its spiritual home in Chiang Mai - and at the best time of the year to be in the city too!

Also this week:

🗺️ A 2025 list for nomads in it for travel experiences as much as the work
 🛬 Budget airlines are in the spotlight, but for how long?
 👨‍💼 Insurance, but much less boring and rather more flexible
 📲 A bumper Brain Food section with more recs than usual from nomads

Happy nomadding!

NEWS
The return of the OG annual nomad get-together

Whatever you have in the diary for January, consider pushing it down the river. Five years after the last gathering, the Nomad Summit is back; and in its spiritual home of Chiang Mai.

Kai and Christoph have taken on the mantle and will next month bring together digital nomads from all over the world. This will be the “non-conference conference” - lots of nomads, even more connections, but intimate enough to make them meaningful - that will propel a lot of businesses.

The summit is back! What brought about its return?
Christoph: A few reasons. Firstly, the opportunity landed at a great time as we have the team in place to do it right. Plus it was overdue a return. The gap it left hasn’t been filled. Chiang Mai is a big nomad hub still and the original home of Nomad Summit.
Kai: Running events is my business, but with Nomad Summit I get to organise one that I want to go to, with people I want to meet with - as do other nomads!

When was the last summit?
Christoph: January 2020. It’s been on a short hiatus since the pandemic.

Who is the summit for, in case we have new nomads who haven’t been before?
Kai: People who want to turn ideas into action. Digital nomad is a broad definition, so no particular work type, but those who are building something. They might be building their business or even their digital nomad lifestyle, but we’re bringing people together to create or join teams to make things happen for them.
Christoph: Our goal is to facilitate the freedom journey - building financial independence and a lifestyle of choice. The Nomad Summit is the centrepiece where we’re bringing all of the different stages of that process together in one place.

What is going on at the Nomad Summit this year?
Christoph: So there are two main days - 18th & 19th January - of talks from experts, a hackathon, and opportunities to connect to leaders. The Nomad Week follows immediately after, where workshops, locally-supported events, meetups, and masterminds are where attendees can dive deeper in a more intimate environment.

So, how can nomads get involved in the summit?
Kai: The main two days of events will provide the most value. Nomads will be part of something of great quality content and connections. They’ll connect with people across the spectrum of digital nomadism with a wealth of knowledge and experience.
Christoph: Around the summit days there will be local events in specialist areas such as wellness, creative meetups, web3, etc. at a wide range of venues familiar and new to nomads in Chiang Mai. There are still spots for those in town to hold their own event - be it a talk, workshop or meetup. (Here’s the link to submit yours!).

You mentioned different events across the year - what does the future hold?
Christoph: Number one is Chiang Mai will continue as the home of Nomad Summit - we’ll announce next year’s dates soon. We have more events in the diary next year in Estonia (remote employment focused) and Switzerland (remote entrepreneurship). Nomad Summit is back and will serve nomads even better than ever.

It’s long overdue a return, and great to see two passionate organizers bringing it back from its hiatus. This really is digital nomads building something for fellow digital nomads, to help them build THEIR thing.

The Summit runs 17-19 January, with the Nomad Week following on immediately between 20-26 January - the perfect time of year to be in Chiang Mai!

Nomad week events will be free for summit ticket holders and to get tickets, or find out, more visit the Nomad Summit website.

WHAT ELSE…

✍️ Are you really reading thought leadership? According to Originality AI, more than HALF the LinkedIn posts that come across your feed are likely not written by a human. Is it still the thought leader forum, or hopefuls shooting their shot?

✈️ Budget carriers double-down: Recent news stories from the US around hand luggage and some outrageous pricing policies have brought the shenanigans of budget airlines everywhere back into view. What does the future hold for them?

🎳 Science says be less scientific: The way to get better at your job is more wholesome than grinding, schmoozing or cheating, according to science. This 3-minute read will make you want to get out more.

📚 Or, get ahead by reading these: Bloomberg’s Best Books 2024 is full of top picks from business leaders. Read what the powerful read, and follow their lead right?

DESTINATIONS
Find these new spots in 2025 before everyone else

We promised 2024 lists this month as they continue to fill our inbox. And, despite coming from a travel behemoth, Unpack ‘25 actually has good reason behind most of their 2025 predictions.

These are more for those of you on the road for the travel experience as much as the work-life, but you might find somewhere not far off course if not.

There are new-to-us destinations that could easily be reached from the usual digital nomad spots. We particularly liked their phenomena-based picks for highlighting some experiences we would not have known about until it might be too late, including:

• Penguins at Phillip Island, Aus

• Dancing cranes in Hokkaido, Jap

• Bioluminescent plankton – Vero Beach, US

• High tides at the Bay of Fundy, Can

• International Dark Sky Park – Arches National Park, US

Shoutouts too for Girona, Brescia, Cozumel, and Reims in their Detour list. These are some not-too-far-off-track spots that could be great stop-offs for nomads (yes, Reims gets a mention from us for the Champagne!). As movie fans, we also appreciate the dedicated list for getting us on set!

Check out Expedia’s Unpack ‘25 list for the full breakdown.

SPREAD THE WORD

Have you been forwarded The Digital Nomad by a friend? If so, make sure you don’t miss out on future issues by signing up to get it every Tuesday.

Do you have friends who are digital nomads, or are planning on being? If you think they could use a quick weekly fix of what’s happening in their world, then share this link.

Or, simply share it on your socials with the links at the top of this newsletter.

NOMAD ESSENTIALS
Not all insurance companies think the same

So, SafetyWing called us. It turns out that they are quite the listeners when it comes to how digital nomads - and increasingly expats and travellers - use and view the brand, their service and their offer.

We’ve featured them a couple of times, but mostly to highlight the arm of the company that is driving the digital nomad movement, Plumia. They appear to be on the cusp of a visa for nomads. However, it can’t be ignored that they offer insurance for nomads too.

As of this week, they have made changes to their insurance packages on offer:

• The basic package has been rebranded as the Essential plan covering travel and medical emergencies.

• A more comprehensive plan - SafetyWing Complete - includes routine healthcare, mental health support, and maternity, anywhere in the world, including in your home country.

More significantly, these days they are their own carrier, relying less heavily on third-party partners than in the past. This has increased their response time multiple-fold for claims and payouts in many cases - max 10 working days for a claim, and the same again for payouts.

For peace of mind when travelling or living overseas insurance is a non-negotiable, so go and check out SafetyWing’s new plans.

POLL

BRAIN FOOD
In The Digital Nomad inbox this week

Book - Storytelling is all the buzz and for a good reason (watch out for a storytelling guru in a future interview btw!). Storyworthy: Engage, Teach, Persuade, and Change Your Life Through the Power of Storytelling - Matthew Dicks, is an excellent place to start to harness it.

App - Wherever you are in the world, there’s a sky of stars and planets above you. Download Skyview Lite on iOs or Android for a free look at what you’re looking at.

Music - Lo-fi playlists seem to go in and out of fashion, but plenty of people swear by them for focus. Stereofox created a list of the best on Spotify if you need something new to fuel your creativity or focus.

Podcast - If you have got this far then you might not need this anyway, but this is a fascinating insight into deciphering what is a distraction and an opportunity.

Movies - Cult followers will know, but this trailer is creating far more buzz than any new movies this month.

Drop us an email at [email protected] if you have any recommendations we should share!

CONNECT TO CHIANG MAI
Fill your social calendar in Chiang Mai

Steve’s Email: A weekly resource and email for events around the city.

Digital Nomad WhatsApp: A long-standing group that spawned a range of sub-groups for almost any niche and interest in the city.

For up-to-date events in the city, join the Activities/Events WhatsApp group.

ChiangMai Fit WhatsApp: If you want to do something active (trust us, being fit isn’t a prerequisite!) then find wholesome activities throughout the week here.

For Christmas events, these guys have been a very reliable source for many years.

Yellow Coworking Telegram. For more about what is happening at Yellow and to be part of their conversation, join in here.

COWORKING IN CHIANG MAI

If you are in the city, or heading over soon, then check out the current packages - from day passes to monthly or annual memberships - here.

Or, just get in touch with Mickey or the team at Yellow Coworking at [email protected].

MAKING YOUR DIGITAL NOMAD LIFE EASIER
Resources for digital nomads everywhere

What we’ve accumulated from previous issues - from fellow nomads, interviews with thought leaders, great deals from partners, and some local heroes in Chiang Mai too:

• SafetyWing, who also offers digital nomad insurance, started running community events in various locations around the world. A few participants in a Chiang Mai one even won a meal out at a top restaurant in the city!

• Genki also do worldwide digital nomad insurance.

• Remote Rebellion. Start or re-ignite your remote working journey with Michelle - a career coach specialising in remote roles and nailing them down.

• Connect with other digital nomads and build your network with Digital Nomad Adventures.

• Contact Liselle for a LinkedIn or resume revamp.

• If decision-making is not your forte, get in touch with Hannah Wang - a decision-making coach for entrepreneurs, business owners and big corporates.

• Stay safe online (and get TV from any country!) using NordVPN. They’ve got a festive deal on with up to 74% off and 3 free months.

• Simo - we featured these guys and their hotspots last week, but it turns out they’ve got an even BETTER deal on now. 35% off hotspots up until 23rd.

• Airalo - a marketplace for eSIM data packs for more than 200 countries. Get 15% off if you are new and use this link and the code NEWTOAIRALO15, or 10% off if you are an existing user using AIRALOESIM10.

If you’re in Chiang Mai, these are some of the nomad favorites:

• Healthy Junk is the go-to for healthy food when you are in Chiang Mai. Dine in, out, or get it delivered.

• Grab a locally-sourced coffee a few steps from Yellow at Toffee Roasters. Go say hi to Tem, the owner, who is also opening up a sandwich joint next door in the coming weeks.

• Get your meal prep from Chef Fuji. Healthy, macro-focused food, delivered across Chiang Mai.

QUIZ

It’s been a big week or so for AI - Apple’s partnership with OpenAI going live, Sora launching, and the release of the newest version of ChatGPT during “Shipmas”.

Can you spot AI creations against human ones in Hubspot’s challenge?

COMMUNITY
Get seen by digital nomads everywhere

We would love to hear from you if you have some valuable knowledge, products or services, information, or just a fun or crazy digital nomad story.

This is an opportunity to get some extra eyes on your thing, or if you just like to write or provide information to other nomads.

Drop us an email at [email protected] if you:

• have a product or service that could help other digital nomads

• operate a travel blog, channel or platform that we can spotlight

• took a photo we could feature along with your portfolio or IG

• …just have a great digital nomad story!

WHAT DID YOU MISS?

If you are new to The Digital Nomad, or just want to go back and read a previous issue, then you can find them all here.