From city to desert, sun to snow, forest to beach, this city is colourful, curious, vibrant and dynamic. As the remote work trend has developed over recent years, Istanbul has established itself as a key location for nomads.

Actually, if we’re being honest, when was Istanbul ever not a prime location for all kinds of nomads?!

Being the main port city in Turkey, Istanbul has functioned as an important trade centre bridging Europe and Asia for centuries. When travelling to Istanbul the diversity of the historic influences are clear such as those from the Ancient China silk road.

Given the size and diversity in the city you can be sure to find many cafes serving Turkey’s famous coffee and delightful teas, although, unfortunately, not all of these have available power outlets or reliable Wifi.

Alternatively, there are coworking spaces all over the city but if you’re subscribing to one of these, best to double check on the location and it’s proximity to your accommodation first as it can take a significant amount of time to cross the city in peak times. Aside from this, public transport in the city is great. Everything from metro to ferries can be used for less than 50cents per journey and public transport is generally clean and safe. If your intention is to pack your laptop and explore beyond the city life then you’re in luck given that the whole country can be accessed using the same public transport network of trains, long distance buses and domestic flights.

Regarding the best locations in the cities, like many others, it all depends on the type of experience you want: from the Grand Bazar and Arabic culture trip in Eminönü, to the older town of Beyoğlu inhabited by more Europeans, or the energetic nightlife of Kadiköy. It’s important to choose the right area to live or stay as although the city is generally safe, some districts are much less attractive for foreign travellers and can be made up of majority locals or refugees.

Like a few of the other cities we’ve mentioned, Istanbul tends to be very affordable for foreigners and digital nomads, regardless of your budget, which is always a bonus!

While it’s hard to escape the cold when touring Europe, Istanbul provides a good 8 months of decent weather a year before the chances of snow start increasing in the depths of winter, but once again, it all depends on the type of experience you’re looking for – this is truly one of the most diverse places we’ve seen so far in all aspects…

The city hosts some incredible coworking spaces with prestige facilities including cinema rooms, gyms, 3D printers and recording studios! On the Cafe and restaurant side of things the selection is also vast with all tastes catered for, and for those who like to relax after a hard day’s work then you already know that the London nightlife offers classy, energetic and edgy all rolled into one. Additionally, there are some exceptional libraries such as the National Art Library with great areas dedicated to silent work for those who need to focus.

From the perspective of travelling and tourism, London requires very little commentary given that almost everyone will be familiar with the famous landmarks such as Buckingham Palace (not to mention all the other associations with the queen and royal family), The Big Ben (having recently been refurbished), musical performances and theatre, as well as the heaps of art, science and history museums.

Despite the enormity of the city, London is incredibly easy to traverse with plenty of options including the famous underground (metro), buses, taxi, bike or even scooters which can be easily rented with the click of an app from almost anywhere in the city.

Unfortunately, the city is not on the coast but believe it or not, it actually does have a sandy beach! (and no not one of those litter-ridden bays under some bridge along the river Thames) Ruislip Lido lake and beach is part of a 2.8 sq. km woodland nature reserve easily accessible via the underground Piccadilly Line, although, given the country’s wet reputation we wouldn’t hold out much hope other than during the peak of the summer months.

As for the bad news…London is famously expensive. Although, this is mostly for rent/accommodation and transport – everything else is quite reasonably priced so if you can stomach the monthly accommodation fees and you enjoy busy cities with constant action, this one is a digital nomad’s paradise.