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| ⭐️ Total score | 15 reviews |
| 👍 Quality of life score | |
| 👶 Family score | |
| 🎒 Community score | |
| 💵 Cost | |
| 📡 Internet | |
| 😝 Fun | |
| ⛅️ Temperature (now) | |
| 💦 Humidity (now) | |
| 💨 Air quality (now) | |
| 👌 Safety | |
| 🤮 Food safety* | |
| 👮♀️ Lack of crime* | |
| 🤝 Lack of racism* | |
| 🎓 Education level* | |
| ⚡️ Power grid | |
| 🌊 Vulnerability to climate change | |
| 💰 Income level* | |
| 🙊 English speaking* | |
| 🚶 Walkability | |
| ✌️ Peace (no pol. conflict) | |
| 🚦 Traffic safety* | |
| 😄 Happiness* | |
| 🍸 Nightlife | |
| 📶 Free WiFi in city | |
| 🖥 Places to work from | |
| ❄️ A/C or heating | |
| 😁 Friendly to foreigners | |
| 🗯 Freedom of speech* | |
| 👩 Female friendly | |
| 🌈 LGBTQ+ friendly | |
| 🎅 Startup Score |
| 🌍 Continent | Asia |
| 🚩 Country | Sri Lanka |
| ⏱ Average trip length | 25 days |
| 📡 Internet speed (avg) | 13 Mbps |
| ⛅️ Weather (now) |
🌧 29°C 83°F + 🥵 Sweaty (80%) = feels 34°C 93°F
|
| 💨 Air quality (now) | 👍 25 US AQI 🍃 OK |
| 🔌 Power | 230V 50Hz |
| 🚕 Best taxi app* |
|
| 🚑 Travel medical insurance |
Safetywing
|
| 💸 1,000 LKR in USD | USD 3.05 |
| 🏧 Suggested ATM take out: | LKR 100,000 = USD 305 |
| 💳 Cashless | 💵 No, cash only (esp. for foreigners) |
| ☕️ Best coffee place | Bites |
| 🚰 Tap water | 🚫 No, not drinkable |
| 👨👩👧👦 Population | 810,000 people |
| 👨👩👧👦 GDP per capita* | $3,910 / year |
| 👫 Gender ratio (nomads) |
👨 79% 👱♀️ 21% |
| ⛪️ Religious government | Non-religious |
| 🏠 Apartment listings | Airbnb |
| ✈️ Best int'l air carrier | Sri Lankan Airlines |
| 💵 Cost of living for nomad | $1,200 / month |
| 💵 Cost of living for expat | $919 / month |
| 💵 Cost of living for family | $1,740 / month |
| 💵 Cost of living for local | $497 / month |
| 🏨 Hotel (median price) | $758 / month |
| 🏡 Airbnb (median price) | $1,528 / month |
| 🏠 1br studio rent in center | $414 / month |
| 🏨 Hotel (median price) | $36 / night |
| 🏠 Airbnb (median price) | $50 / night |
| 🏢 Coworking hot desk | $72 / month |
| 🍛 Dinner | $2 |
| 🥤 Coca-Cola (0.3L) | $1 |
| 🍺 Beer in cafe (0.5L) | $3 |
| ☕️ Coffee in cafe | $0 |
✅ Affordable to live
✅ Pretty safe
✅ Fast internet
✅ Lots of fun stuff to do
✅ Warm now
✅ Warm all year round
✅ Good air quality on average
✅ Spacious and not crowded
✅ High quality of education
✅ Roads are pretty safe
✅ Democratic
✅ Not many people smoke tobacco
❌ Freedom of speech is weak
❌ Very sweaty and humid now
❌ Difficult to do business
❌ Hospitals are bad
❌ People don't speak English well
❌ Not safe for women
❌ Not family friendly
❌ Hostile towards LGBTQ+
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
| Feels |
82
28° warm |
82
28° warm |
82
28° warm |
86
30° warm |
88
31° hot |
88
31° hot |
88
31° hot |
86
30° warm |
88
31° hot |
86
30° warm |
84
29° warm |
82
28° warm |
| Real |
82
28°
very warm |
82
28°
very warm |
83
29°
very warm |
86
30°
very warm |
87
31°
hot |
88
31°
hot |
88
31°
hot |
86
30°
very warm |
87
31°
hot |
85
30°
very warm |
83
29°
very warm |
82
28°
very warm |
| Humidity |
nice 47% |
nice 43% |
nice 43% |
nice 42% |
nice 42% |
nice 38% |
nice 37% |
nice 39% |
nice 40% |
nice 42% |
nice 45% |
nice 43% |
| Most common | ☔️ Rain | ☔️ Rain | ☔️ Rain | ☔️ Rain | ☔️ Rain | ☀️ Clear | ☀️ Clear | ☔️ Rain | ☀️ Clear | ☔️ Rain | ☔️ Rain | ☔️ Rain |
| Rain |
rainy 144mm |
dry 40mm |
rainy 55mm |
dry 47mm |
rainy 59mm |
dry 22mm |
dry 33mm |
dry 40mm |
dry 48mm |
rainy 75mm |
rainy 137mm |
rainy 78mm |
| Cloud |
cloudy 53% |
pockets 36% |
pockets 44% |
pockets 39% |
cloudy 51% |
pockets 47% |
cloudy 55% |
cloudy 54% |
cloudy 50% |
cloudy 51% |
cloudy 54% |
pockets 39% |
| Sun |
avoid sun 7 UVI |
avoid sun 9 UVI |
avoid sun 9 UVI |
avoid sun 9 UVI |
avoid sun 7 UVI |
avoid sun 7 UVI |
avoid sun 6 UVI |
avoid sun 6 UVI |
avoid sun 7 UVI |
avoid sun 7 UVI |
avoid sun 6 UVI |
avoid sun 8 UVI |
| Remote workers | 0 people | 0 people | 0 people | 200 people | 200 people | 300 people | 400 people | 200 people | 300 people | 200 people | 0 people | 200 people |
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If you'd like to filter destinations based on their climate, try Nomad List's Climate Finder
Based on Arugam Bay's cost of living, here's selected remote jobs that would cover your costs:
Really quite hectic and not a very nice city. I wouldn't spend more than a day or two here, not much to see, and there aren't many places to work/eat/see. You're better off heading down to the beaches for some sunshine and beach as well as much faster WIFI.
⭐️ All 💵 Cost 📡 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌧 Feels 25° 77° 25° 77° AQI 25 ✈️12min $766 / mo 12 Mbps
Have been in Weligama since Feb 25th and now I'm still here with the COVID-19 curfew going on. Before the curfew starts I was eager to get out of here because 1) it's too hot mid-day 2) tuktuk drivers are waiting around every corner asking "tuktuk?" and always horn at you when you're walking by the street - super annoying and 3) it's difficult to find workable wifi 4) everything just seemed super slow and it was hard to be productive. But after the curfew starts I actually like it way better be
⭐️ All 💵 Cost 📡 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌧 Feels 32° 90° 28° 83° AQI 25 ✈️14min $1,104 / mo 39 Mbps
I didn't stay at Galle directly. I stayed in Weligama which is a beach city half an hour ride from Galle. The internet speed is quite decent (50mbps) but it's very unstable. I also experienced lot of electricity outages. Overall, in terms of work productivity, not the best. Food scene is quite good, but it gets boring after a week or so. Regarding the coffee scene, it's terrible. There is lots of fun things to do and places to see. People here are very friendly, but for me, the place is more
⭐️ All 💵 Cost 📡 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌧 Feels 31° 88° 28° 83° AQI 25 ✈️16min $1,347 / mo 53 Mbps
Sri Lanka is a beautiful country with great surf. But it is very expensive and the wifi is atrocious. It is not a digital nomad's destination. Was very surprised by the cost of food Western and Sri Lankan. There are MUCH cheaper & better options in Japan or Korea! Of course, they have just suffered from a financial melt down and so anything imported is very expensive. I am an Aussie and its is a very expensive place to live. The prices charged in Sri Lanka to eat out are equal (or more!) than t
⭐️ All 💵 Cost 📡 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌧 Feels 31° 88° 28° 82° AQI 25 ✈️17min $1,168 / mo 11 Mbps
⭐️ All 💵 Cost 📡 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌧 Feels 33° 91° 29° 83° AQI 51 😷 ✈️43min $965 / mo 15 Mbps
⭐️ All 💵 Cost 📡 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌧 Feels 34° 93° 29° 85° AQI 31 ✈️46min $967 / mo 13 Mbps
⭐️ All 💵 Cost 📡 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌧 Feels 34° 93° 29° 83° AQI 80 😷 ✈️48min $1,492 / mo 15 Mbps
⭐️ All 💵 Cost 📡 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌧 Feels 33° 91° 29° 83° AQI 80 😷 ✈️49min $960 / mo 14 Mbps
⭐️ All 💵 Cost 📡 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌧 Feels 32° 90° 28° 82° 🥵 AQI 82 😷 ✈️55min $986 / mo 19 Mbps
Stayed a whole month in Fort Kochi area, eventually going to Ernakulam (downtown area). It is unarguably very different than rest of India, much more cleaner and with friendlier people. Beaches aren`t nice for bathing but are a great choice to catch sunsets everyday. Cost of living is dirty cheap and public transport is good. They even have a subway crossing the city with reminds me the BTS in Bangkok. Actually, Kochi to me is like a small and boring version of Bangkok, which is good if you need
⭐️ All 💵 Cost 📡 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌧 Feels 33° 91° 29° 84° AQI 84 😷 ✈️56min $813 / mo 14 Mbps
⭐️ All 💵 Cost 📡 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌧 Feels 31° 88° 27° 81° 🥵 AQI 82 😷 ✈️57min $1,123 / mo 15 Mbps
⭐️ All 💵 Cost 📡 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌧 Feels 32° 90° 28° 82° AQI 115 😷 ✈️57min $1,120 / mo 14 Mbps
Sri Lanka is a beautiful country with great surf. But it is very expensive and the wifi is atrocious. It is not a digital nomad's destination. Was very surprised by the cost of food Western and Sri Lankan. There are MUCH cheaper & better options in Japan or Korea! Of course, they have just suffered from a financial melt down and so anything imported is very expensive. I am an Aussie and its is a very expensive place to live. The prices charged in Sri Lanka to eat out are equal (or more!) than t
⭐️ All 💵 Cost 📡 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌧 Feels 31° 88° 28° 82° AQI 25 ✈️17min $1,168 / mo 11 Mbps
Really quite hectic and not a very nice city. I wouldn't spend more than a day or two here, not much to see, and there aren't many places to work/eat/see. You're better off heading down to the beaches for some sunshine and beach as well as much faster WIFI.
⭐️ All 💵 Cost 📡 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌧 Feels 25° 77° 25° 77° AQI 25 ✈️12min $766 / mo 12 Mbps
Lived in Prague for 8 years. It's a beautiful international European city. Never learned Czech, but was fine. Almost all cafes and restaurants have English menus. Superb food delivery apps (Wolt is the best). All the food you can imagine. Vietnamese food is world-class because of the huge Vietnamese population. If you want hipster bars and cafes, there's plenty of that. If you want old-world-charm there's plenty of that. If you want posh luxury there's some of Europes best restaurants and cockta
⭐️ All 💵 Cost 📡 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌥 Feels -4° 25° -1° 30° AQI 89 😷 ✈️10h $3,147 / mo 56 Mbps
Mauritius is indeed a great place to live in as a Digital Nomad ! They have recently released the Premium Visa for digital nomads that allows to live on the island for at least 1 year (renewable). Best places to live in are the North (very well developed with all facilities and business centres) and the West of the island (more for those who prefer to surf the waves and hike the mountains in between 2 video calls !). The Mauritians are very welcoming and smiling people. I am not the first one
⭐️ All 💵 Cost 📡 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌧 Feels 30° 86° 27° 81° AQI 12 ✈️5h $1,990 / mo 44 Mbps
In terms of value for money for a city, I would say Kuala Lumpur is the best in all of Asia, high-quality apartments at a good price, high-quality restaurants, has a car scene if you are a car guy. I found it quite safe. For me, the weather was like 4 seasons in one day almost every day. Rains a lot, a lot of storms and also very hot and humid. Dating was ok not bad like Western countries but not the best. I found the city quite boring itself, not a lot to see inside of the city. If you are
⭐️ All 💵 Cost 📡 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌧 Feels 37° 99° 30° 86° 🥵 AQI 40 ✈️3h $1,281 / mo 80 Mbps
Super expensive city, with some nice tourist attractions. Wouldn't recommend staying here for a longer time as price levels are almost Parisienne. Also, you can easily see all the good spots within 3 days or so. Pros: - nice tourist attractions (quite a couple of them) - many food options - people are open & friendly Cons: - hella expensive - limited vegan food options - you should at least understand some Dutch or French to survive here
⭐️ All 💵 Cost 📡 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌧 Feels 5° 41° 8° 47° AQI 46 ✈️11h $3,825 / mo 36 Mbps
People aren't friendly at all, way too expensive and, overall, not a great place to live. Visiting is fine, but don't expect great things.
⭐️ All 💵 Cost 📡 😀 Fun 👮 Safety ✈️11h $3,409 / mo 30 Mbps
Really quite hectic and not a very nice city. I wouldn't spend more than a day or two here, not much to see, and there aren't many places to work/eat/see. You're better off heading down to the beaches for some sunshine and beach as well as much faster WIFI.
⭐️ All 💵 Cost 📡 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌧 Feels 25° 77° 25° 77° AQI 25 ✈️12min $766 / mo 🌇 Also went here6 people
Sri Lanka is a beautiful country with great surf. But it is very expensive and the wifi is atrocious. It is not a digital nomad's destination. Was very surprised by the cost of food Western and Sri Lankan. There are MUCH cheaper & better options in Japan or Korea! Of course, they have just suffered from a financial melt down and so anything imported is very expensive. I am an Aussie and its is a very expensive place to live. The prices charged in Sri Lanka to eat out are equal (or more!) than t
⭐️ All 💵 Cost 📡 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌧 Feels 31° 88° 28° 82° AQI 25 ✈️17min $1,168 / mo 🌇 Also went here6 people
I've been in Phuket for about a month now. Most of that time I've spent in Ka Ron and Kata beach area, but also have been to Chalong, Pa Tong, Rawai, and Kathu. Karon and Kata beaches are my favorite. Beaches are beautiful, especially Karon. Overall most everything is reasonably priced, but not the bargain I was told it is. I eventually found a hotel I like, where I pay 12-13 euro per night (below 500 baht atm) and that is by far the lowest I found for the quality I expect. Considering the loc
⭐️ All 💵 Cost 📡 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌥 Feels 34° 93° 29° 83° AQI 26 ✈️2h $1,844 / mo 🌇 Also went here6 people
Really enjoyed my time here. Stunningly beautiful island. Like the previous reviewer, I would also take my scooter and just bounce around the island, just to enjoy the landscape. Getting around by scooter is an absolute necessity on Ko Pha Ngan - it’s just not viable to walk or take taxis everywhere. I would really recommend having some practice on a scooter before arriving here. Some of the mountain grades are quite steep and you need to know proper braking to not have an accident IMO. Also,
⭐️ All 💵 Cost 📡 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌥 Feels 31° 88° 28° 82° AQI 51 😷 ✈️3h $1,988 / mo 🌇 Also went here5 people
Great for tourism, bad for living. The City has a fascinating contrast of old and new. You will never get bored, it’s easy to meet people and have fun. Infrastructure and food are great. Thai people are friendly and welcoming, even when it not always feels genuine. With that said, it’s not a good city for long term living. It’s too hot and humid. Felt air temperature is between 37°C-45°C almost year round during the day. It’s makes all outdoor activity unpleasant. Getting your daily d
⭐️ All 💵 Cost 📡 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌥 Feels 35° 95° 31° 88° 🥵 AQI 77 😷 ✈️3h $1,401 / mo 🌇 Also went here7 people
In terms of value for money for a city, I would say Kuala Lumpur is the best in all of Asia, high-quality apartments at a good price, high-quality restaurants, has a car scene if you are a car guy. I found it quite safe. For me, the weather was like 4 seasons in one day almost every day. Rains a lot, a lot of storms and also very hot and humid. Dating was ok not bad like Western countries but not the best. I found the city quite boring itself, not a lot to see inside of the city. If you are
⭐️ All 💵 Cost 📡 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌧 Feels 37° 99° 30° 86° 🥵 AQI 40 ✈️3h $1,281 / mo 🌇 Also went here8 people
So… amazing food. Great public transportation. Very clean. But very conformist. Self expression limited. The irony of seeing an exhibit on graffiti, yet no actual graffiti in the streets. And the causal racism especially if you’re brown. You could be British born but still expect to be sat far away from everyone else at cocktail bars, experience comments and have weird assumptions made.
⭐️ All 💵 Cost 📡 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌧 Feels 34° 93° 29° 85° 🥵 AQI 21 ✈️3h $4,025 / mo 🌇 Also went here6 people
Stayed here for a month. It reminds me of a less-developed Bangkok. Although there are a lot of high-rise buildings being built at the moment. Very cheap place compared to lots of places in Asia however it's one of the most expensive places in Vietnam. I wouldn't stay here long term, good for a month but was ready to move on. Pros: - Cheap city - Has lots of bars and restaurants - Has some good day trips and activities - Safe - Very cheap Ubers Cons: - Can be extremely hot during the day which
⭐️ All 💵 Cost 📡 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌥 Feels 33° 91° 29° 85° AQI 10 ✈️4h $1,061 / mo 🌇 Also went here6 people
Lived here for over a year, but I only recommend short visits. Contrary to what you hear, there is plenty of crime in parts of Dubai. Talking about that crime is considered taboo and, in many cases, is illegal. Sexual assault and gang violence against expats took place just outside my building, to people who lived in my building. I went to the police station a few times, but the issue was never handled and no arrests were ever made. I have videos of (unspecified) crimes taking place here, but
⭐️ All 💵 Cost 📡 😀 Fun 👮 Safety ☀️ Feels 25° 77° 25° 78° AQI 152 😷 ✈️5h $4,096 / mo 🌇 Also went here5 people
Was here in Mid-2023. Bali has completely changed from when I last visited in 2017. Full of arrogant influences and degenerate party people who are entitled and have no respect for the locals. Many Uber drivers told me they are starting to get annoyed because a lot of Westerners don’t respect anything…. Pollution and traffic are on the rise. It is turning into Kuta. Probably one of the least walkable places, forget walking on the sidewalk unless you want to get taken out. A lot of accidents
⭐️ All 💵 Cost 📡 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌥 Feels 31° 88° 28° 82° AQI 125 😷 ✈️5h $1,964 / mo 🌇 Also went here9 people
Can’t recommend Ubud. It’s just the same overdeveloped and overpriced mentally isolated tourist trap that is Canggu, just a bit worse. If you have never been anywhere else, it might be okay for 2 weeks, but to any seasoned traveller it’s a the type of place you dread.
⭐️ All 💵 Cost 📡 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌧 Feels 35° 95° 30° 86° 🥵 AQI 125 😷 ✈️5h $1,978 / mo 🌇 Also went here7 people
I absolutely love Istanbul! My biggest recommendation would be to stay in Cihangir or Nişantaşı and avoid the main centre. Cihangir has so many beautiful cafes to work from and there are a lot of people working remotely so it's a really nice vibe. I agree with the comments about taxis, we just caught ubers but mostly walked everywhere which I would recommend. If you stay in Cihangir you can easily walk to Taxim square and through Galata. The food scene here is great once you know where to go
⭐️ All 💵 Cost 📡 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌧 Feels 8° 46° 10° 50° AQI 9 ✈️9h $1,630 / mo 🌇 Also went here7 people
Once you figure out housing (not an easy thing but doable, especially once you stop looking in the touristic areas), Lisbon is a very charming, safe (even though I'll admit this is getting worse in certain areas), and fun city to live in. In most neighbourhoods you have the feeling of living in a small town instead of an urban area. There's aways something to do or see so it's hard to be bored living here. I still find Lisbon (and Portugal in general), to be one of the most attractive places in
⭐️ All 💵 Cost 📡 😀 Fun 👮 Safety ☀️ Feels 18° 64° 18° 64° AQI 17 ✈️13h $3,265 / mo 🌇 Also went here6 peopleNo members are here right now. If you are, add it as a trip and you'll show up here!
