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There's places like Chiang Mai where that's the case more often than not. But the nice thing is that you can break out of that pretty easily as a Digital Nomad,

There's places like Chiang Mai where that's the case more often than not. But the nice thing is that you can break out of that pretty easily as a Digital Nomad, and plenty of places don't have that vibe yet. Even in Chiang Mai you just have to avoid some specific places full of wannabe millionaire dropshippers with an Ego the size of the Royal Palace, and you can enjoy your stay anyway.

tristor 5y ago
I agree that if you're solo you can definitely break away from these spaces. But I think it's hard to do that with group travel, because those spaces are attractive to a lot of people who are digital nomads for exactly the reasons I don't like those spaces. Somewhat ironically, if you spend most of your time nomading in more major cities, it makes it easier to escape the typical because the city is large enough you can just avoid it, but when what you coined as "bro-mads" invade smaller spaces it's much harder to escape, just by virtue of being a foreigner you will likely encounter them at some point. FWIW, I found that the digital nomads I got along the best with were continental European. I pretty much can't stand Americans, the British, and Australians when I'm traveling (even though I'm American myself). For some reason most Americans, British, and Australians go into every experience by comparing it to where they come from and judging it by that standard and expecting so much and in ways I find disrespectful. Also, it's shocking how loud and obnoxious and how obsessed with "partying" those demographics are. I'm not a teetotaler, but if all you do is spend every waking moment getting plastered in a night club, how does one location really differ from another? If you just want to spend your life being shithoused, you can do that at home without invading other spaces with your destructive energy. Part of my experiences might have been because digital nomads from those countries skew young (early 20s), most of the Europeans I met were older (30+). At any rate, I invested myself into the experience, and I loved solo travel but group experiences really soured me on the "digital nomad lifestyle" and the sort of people who see themselves that way. And for my own ego issue, I think partly I was annoyed by being judged on the basis of how others behave rather than how I behave. Nonetheless, I found the experience rewarding and met lots of amazing people I've kept in touch with and I hope left each place I visited enriched by my presence rather than diminished by it.

tristor 5y ago

I agree that if you're solo you can definitely break away from these spaces. But I think it's hard to do that with group travel, because those spaces are attractive to a lot of people who are digital nomads for exactly the reasons I don't like those spaces. Somewhat ironically, if you spend most of your time nomading in more major cities, it makes it easier to escape the typical because the city is large enough you can just avoid it, but when what you coined as "bro-mads" invade smaller spaces it's much harder to escape, just by virtue of being a foreigner you will likely encounter them at some point. FWIW, I found that the digital nomads I got along the best with were continental European. I pretty much can't stand Americans, the British, and Australians when I'm traveling (even though I'm American myself). For some reason most Americans, British, and Australians go into every experience by comparing it to where they come from and judging it by that standard and expecting so much and in ways I find disrespectful. Also, it's shocking how loud and obnoxious and how obsessed with "partying" those demographics are. I'm not a teetotaler, but if all you do is spend every waking moment getting plastered in a night club, how does one location really differ from another? If you just want to spend your life being shithoused, you can do that at home without invading other spaces with your destructive energy. Part of my experiences might have been because digital nomads from those countries skew young (early 20s), most of the Europeans I met were older (30+). At any rate, I invested myself into the experience, and I loved solo travel but group experiences really soured me on the "digital nomad lifestyle" and the sort of people who see themselves that way. And for my own ego issue, I think partly I was annoyed by being judged on the basis of how others behave rather than how I behave. Nonetheless, I found the experience rewarding and met lots of amazing people I've kept in touch with and I hope left each place I visited enriched by my presence rather than diminished by it.