[warrioraks]

This has been the year of COVID, an unprecedented event of sorts. Our lives have been disrupted in every way beyond imagination. In the past, only a handful of us would have spent so much time locked up at home. Unsurprisingly, I have started missing travel to a great extent. Reading a few recent posts and travelogues at Tbhp, it seems the same feeling is resonating across majority of the fellow members here.

One travel trend that has been all over the news lately is - WorkCation or Workation. The term does not have a Wikipedia page yet (or atleast I couldn’t find it) but this is how some websites describe it:

A trip where you travel to a new destination and work from there for at least part of your stay. It’s not quite a vacation, because you will still be working, but it does offer a change of scenery and the chance to relax away from home outside working hours.

https://www.realsimple.com/work-life...ing/workcation

Workcation is old news for, say, hip marketing specialists that have been doing it for years, but for most of us it is big news, like for the MSWord spellchecker.

https://www.actiplans.com/blog/workcation

In the past, I have tried to avoid mixing work and leisure. To my mind, A WorkCation cannot replace a Vacation. But I have started toying with the idea. Just for the experience, and because like others, I want to break the monotony. Typically, I would look at the following things for a good week of WorkCation:

• Uninterrupted WiFi
• Decent ergonomics for work
• Covid safety measures
• Shouldn't be noisy or too crowded
• Availability of cell network (exactly opposite of what I would want in a vacation )
• Hygienic food
• Power-backup
• Something scenic to savour on when not working

As I try to find a good WorkCation spot, it seems that genuinely helpful resources on the internet are scarce. That brings me to the point of this thread. Have you been on a WorkCation before? How was your experience and would you recommend it to fellow members?

[quickfox11]

Try using the keyword ‘Staycation’ to search. More likely to get a lot of options, even on websites like BookingDotCom.

[pedrolourenco]

Originally Posted by warrioraks

One travel trend that has been all over the news lately is - WorkCation or Workation.

Almost all the hotels in Goa are full with people doing exactly this.

[Eddy]

Not exactly a WorkCation, but my wife is using this opportunity to spend some more time with her parents. School and work are both online, so she can afford to be at their place during weekdays also, as opposed to only a weekend before.

And yes, we have started dreaming about going out for a StayCation / WorkCation to Goa or such.

Keyword = Dreaming, not planning.

Originally Posted by pedrolourenco

Almost all the hotels in Goa are full with people doing exactly this.

How stable is the power / wi-fi in Goa outside of a 5 star resort? Say in a Airbnb / home stay in South Goa that has no power backup.

[am1m]

Originally Posted by pedrolourenco

Almost all the hotels in Goa are full with people doing exactly this.

Absolutely! I'm in South Goa (from Bangalore) too and I think I've seen more KA-registered (-01/-03/-05) cars here than GA!

Originally Posted by warrioraks

As I try to find a good WorkCation spot, it seems that genuinely helpful resources on the internet are scarce. That brings me to the point of this thread.

Depending on your budget, there are a range of options. The fancy resorts offer packages (pretty overpriced IMHO), where everything is taken care of. If you are more budget-conscious you can find a small place and set it up. I'm seeing 'to-rent' signs all over the place. The Reliance hotspot has been showing speeds of 5-15Mbps and Airtel 20-35Mbps consistently. There is also a local service provider who provides wired connections. I'm guessing there are more options in North Goa.

One thing to note is people here are really casual about wearing masks and social distancing. The press is as usual making it about a 'outsiders vs locals' thing, but from what I've seen, the majority of BOTH tourists and local residents here are going about like covid is over. The only good thing is the place I'm at is still pretty empty and probably has fewer people in total than I see in my street in Bangalore on a daily basis, so it's pretty easy to keep to ourselves. There are signs that even more places are going to open up and I'm guessing there will be a mad rush around Christmas/New Year, so we're planning to head back home or elsewhere during that time. Your safety is entirely your responsibility as far as covid goes. It is pretty easy to get careless when you see everyone around you not really worrying. I've certainly seen far more mask usage in Bangalore.

A friend is working out of Manali currently and he mentions that the situation there is more or less the same with people from the cities coming there to work for a few months.

Originally Posted by Eddy

How stable is the power / wi-fi in Goa outside of a 5 star resort? Say in a Airbnb / home stay in South Goa that has no power backup.

Been here a week and the power goes a WHOLE lot less than it does in my home in Bangalore East! Perhaps a couple of times a day for 5-10 minutes max, is what I've observed so far.

Originally Posted by warrioraks

In the past, I have tried to avoid mixing work and leisure. To my mind, A WorkCation cannot replace a Vacation.

It won't. Coming from a big city and working out of a smaller town/village (where you don't have your own place or family setup) will have it's share of daily tasks that are not compatible to a vacation (unless you're shelling out big bucks and staying at a really fancy place). There will be adjustments and things will not always work out. Sometimes switching mentally to 'work' mode will be tough. Not all job roles/corporate work cultures will provide the flexibility. To me personally, the trade off is worth it, the air is perceptibly cleaner, my lifestyle is healthier and there are spectacular views a few hundred meters from the house. It's still early days yet of course, so need to see if this sustains in a few months.

Oh yeah, and those idyllic pics of a laptop on the beach, near a snow-capped mountain, by a gentle stream... yeah looks good and gets likes on Insta, but the reality is after the euphoria of the first few minutes, the sand flies/mosquitoes start to bite, the water and sand threaten to get in to the electricals, the strong sea breezes blow anything away, the charge runs out pretty quick in the blazing sun, which keeps shifting so you will need to too, and your colleagues can't hear you on calls over the sound of the waves!

[alpha1]

I am at loss to understand why would someone spend extra monies, travel to an idyllic location and keep himself busy with his urban/corporate work?
To enjoy the early mornings/late evenings?

[Eddy]

Originally Posted by alpha1

I am at loss to understand why would someone spend extra monies, travel to an idyllic location and keep himself busy with his urban/corporate work?
To enjoy the early mornings/late evenings?

Change of scenery and free mornings, evenings and weekends

[am1m]

Originally Posted by alpha1

I am at loss to understand why would someone spend extra monies, travel to an idyllic location and keep himself busy with his urban/corporate work?

For me, I like having a beach literally 200m from home. The morning run on an empty beach and the evening swim while I take a break between client calls are awesome (and better infinitely than what I can do back home in Bangalore). Already mentioned the air is perceptibly cleaner than Bangalore. Plus the weekends can be spent exploring different parts of the state, much more in depth, over multiple weekends, than you can do on holiday for a short time. If this work-away stint works out, and since it looks almost certain that my workplace will not be opening up physically till mid-next year, will probably try it from another state next year, and use the opportunity to explore that state as well.

Obviously it will vary from person to person.

[warrioraks]

Originally Posted by Eddy

And yes, we have started dreaming about going out for a StayCation / WorkCation to Goa or such.

Keyword = Dreaming, not planning.

I and wife are also in the dreaming boat. We keep on debating on whether we should do a long WorkCation or just take a few days off and go on a vacation.

Originally Posted by am1m

A friend is working out of Manali currently and he mentions that the situation there is more or less the same with people from the cities coming there to work for a few months.

Being in Delhi, I have been thinking of Himachal (don't want to take a flight to Goa). Would you be able to ask your friend for some recommendations on where to setup base in Manali?
NCR is like a giant gas chamber right now and that is one of the reasons to seriously consider a WorkCation. On the face of it, we will get a longer period of detox, and hopefully a break from current routine as well.

Originally Posted by am1m

To me personally, the trade off is worth it, the air is perceptibly cleaner, my lifestyle is healthier and there are spectacular views a few hundred meters from the house. It's still early days yet of course, so need to see if this sustains in a few months.

Summarized very well sir!

[rdst_1]

I live near Bir-Billing in Himachal and this place has it's share of home stays where one can easily enjoy a Workation. In fact not far away is WorkationX (Google please) but that might not be everyone's cup of tea. A local provider has laid fibre all over Bir so high speed internet is a reality. Many people have been using this place for their Workations for quite some time now especially people who stay at Bir Nest and other hostels. One can easily rent a whole apartment over here, although prices have increased compared to last year. Know a few people both from abroad and India who came and never left and continue to work from here.

[GTO]

Super thread! More than anything else, us Parekhs are really, really missing our road-trips. We live to drive on the highway.

We're planning an 8 - 10 day workcation at our holiday home later in November. With our kind of work, as long as you have your laptop, you can work anywhere! Let's see how it works out. If fine, then the next stop is going to be Mahabaleshwar (Airbnb rental), then a friend's house in Goa.

A friend of mine just went off into the mountains for a month or two. She teaches yoga, so can take care of her clients via Zoom. Check out the pics she shared. Seriously - wow!

[amitayu]

This is a good discussion thread and perhaps can be developed upon further.

Can we have potential workation staycation threads for regions? Like a thread for NCR, a thread around Bangalore, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Kolkata and so on?

It will be great to get references from fellow-BHP-ians on this matter.

For my part, I can suggest for NCR region: Fort Unchagaon
http://fortunchagaon.com/

It is barely a 2 hours drive from Delhi. Lovely property, serene place completely cut-off from the hustle bustle and crowd.

One issue with this place being a workation destination is that they do not have public wifi. However, mobile network connectivity is awesome and better than South Delhi at times!

A lapton with a decent dongle can more than suffice for most.

[Turbolove]

Nice topic.

Me and my friends did the whole workcation thing for 3 months from August to October in Himachal. When we booked the rates were still down as not many people were doing this. We were able to get an independent 3bhk house including a caretaker/cook/cleaner for 60k per month near Mashobra (about 45 min from shimla) in HP. We had good airtel and jio coverage so internet was no problem. The place was quite isolated so at times you could even go for a walk down the hill and barely see people.

Since then, a lot of people have started taking this option and now the same property costs around 1.5 lacs a month, although we had managed to bargain from 1 lac a month to 60k a month in August as there weren't many people going then and we were taking the place for 3 months.

[RoadAtlas]

Being from Kolkata, my wife and me have been looking for long term stay options in the serene hills (and forests) of North bengal and Sikkim for a few weeks. However no avenues materialized yet now.

1. Remote places having fabulous views of the peaks will have obvious problems of internet connectivity and electricity.

2. Decent hotels in Darjeeling and other hill towns were already costly for one or two day tours (~2K/day). They are not offering discounted rates for monthly rentals and spending that much amount just for accommodation is not possible for us.

3. Government properties are mostly blocked for hosting Officials and Medical professional for Covid (e.g.: GTA and Benfish).

We are still on the lookout for suitable options as an opportunity as good as this to become a digital nomad even for a few weeks may not present itself ever again.

[am1m]

Originally Posted by RoadAtlas

2. Decent hotels in Darjeeling and other hill towns were already costly for one or two day tours (~2K/day). They are not offering discounted rates for monthly rentals and spending that much amount just for accommodation is not possible for us.

This is probably the case everywhere. If you look only at the resorts/hotels and those that advertise online, chances are that they will be on the higher side. The best bet is to go there for a few days on holiday. Then walk around/drive around and ask the locals for long-stay/home stay options. Also, just outside or a little distance away from the main town will certainly offer better rates than the main tourist areas. If you are planning to take a car bike anyway, the distance won't matter. Will be a lot more work setting up the place for sure, but will be cheaper in the long run.

Airbnb is probably another option to search, haven't used it myself, but hear it works.