14 reasons why Tarifa is an awesome workation town

NEW TARIFA INFO

1) The Tarifa Digital Nomad Guide – Everything you need to know about taking a workation in Tarifa (accommodation, WiFi cafes etc.). Check it out.
3) Tarifa Workation Camp – Coworking and Digital Nomad Community in Tarifa.

Over the past year I’ve been thinking a lot about spending more time in Europe. I got a bit tired of spending 10 hours on a plane to get home for each of my friends’ weddings. So I was looking for a great place in Europe, with warm weather, which I could use as a home-base when I’m not travelling.

So in June I flew down to Southern Spain to get a better feeling for one place I’d heard so many good things about: Tarifa.

I became convinced pretty quickly. Not only because it’s an awesome chilled out adventure town with a great climate, no package tourism, and pretty beaches, but also because it’s super easy to get here from anywhere in Europe. In my opinion it’s a perfect setting for your next workation, no matter if you come here for a few weeks or an entire season – I’m sure you’re going to like it.

To give you a better idea of why Tarifa should be on the workation list of every location independent entrepreneur I’ve compiled this list with the most important reasons that makes this place so special.

It’s only around 50 Euros to fly here (from anywhere in Europe)

Getting to Tarifa is very easy. All you need to get is a cheap airline ticket to Malaga, Seville, Gibraltar, or Jerez de la Frontera. With so many airports nearby it’s pretty easy to score a cheap ticket at any time of the year. However, flights with Ryan Air to Malaga would probably be the easiest option to get here.

Fantastic climate

Ever tried to run your office from the beaches of Bali? Then you’ll probably know that the heat can be quite difficult to cope with and it takes a while to get used to. Especially if you have no air-con nearby. Due to its location, right between the Atlantic and Mediterranean, there’s always a nice breeze in Tarifa which means it’s never too hot.

Kitesurfing all year round

I believe that kitesurfing is one of the best sports for entrepreneurs and Tarifa is the European windsports capital. It’s the perfect way to switch off from work and completely live in the moment. It’s also easy to get started because you can improve at your own speed. But there are many more reasons to learn and Tarifa is a great spot to get into it… It’s windy here almost all year round!

Cool vibes: International scene from around the world.

I really love the vibe here. Tarifa isn’t for package tourists like the nearby Costa del Sol. In fact tourists who come here are mainly Spanish from the surrounding cities who visit for the weekend. Add the international kitesurfing scene, backpackers, and artists from around the world and you have a great and super friendly feel.

Home of the world’s first co-working hostel

Finding good accommodation that allows you to work can be difficult. This is especially true if you’re on a budget and you have to stay in hostels. Well not in Tarifa where the world’s first co-working hostel ‘La Cocotera’ (correct me if I’m wrong) opened in May. Here you can work & stay in the same place. The girls who run it are lovely and I can highly recommend that you check the place out when you arrive here.

Entrepeneur and coworking / coworking events

Tarifa is a hotspot for entrepreneurial & co-working events. The Founders Kite Club will bring together a selected group of Online Entrepreneurs and Founders, Flaks is organizing a Co-living and Co-working event for Dutch freelancers, and Sunny Office will have another Coliving retreat nearby as well. All of these events will take place here in Tarifa in October

Everything you need in walking distance

Sure, big cities like Berlin have a lot more to offer than a small town like Tarifa. What’s annoying however is that it takes forever to get anywhere so you end up spending 90% of your time in one suburb.

In Tarifa everything is in walking distance. I got an apartment right at the beach, which allows maximum productivity, and it’s actually cheaper than anywhere I’ve stayed before.

To give you an idea about my walking distances: Town centre: 10 minutes ,Kitesurfing: 3 minutes, Tarifa’s surfspot: 5 minutes, Public indoor swimming pool: 2 minutes, basketball court: 1 minute, bars and pubs: 8 minutes, and Fast food restaurants on main street: 5 minutes.

Never been so close to anything else in my life.

No Spanish skills required

You might be a bit worried about your Spanish skills when coming here. Well don’t worry, you’ll be fine getting around with English in Tarifa. Most locals talk the language but if you still want to improve there are also some Spanish language schools in which you can enrol.

Super-cheap rental cars

If you come visit Tarifa I highly recommend bringing your own car. While you can easily walk anywhere in town it’s great to be able to get to different kite spots and make weekend trips.

The good thing about it Is that getting a rental car is extremely cheap. It’s no problem to pick up a car right at the airport (including full cover insurance) for less than €200 a month. No need to drive all the way down here. Simply check the comparison sites for Malaga and you’ll see what I mean.

Great base for weekends

Marbella, Malaga, Sevilla, Conil, Cadiz, and Granada are just a few of the places you could visit from Tarifa on weekend trips. Every city is unique in its own way, so make sure you stay for a while if you want to have some time for weekend getaways. There’s so much to see and explore in this area that you’ll have trouble getting bored.

Do what you love in your free time

Tarifa isn’t just about kitesurfing. It’s a great place to practice many other sports as well. Mountain biking, Diving, Free diving, and even surfing (only September – May) is possible.

In fact if you take off on the weekends you can visit the Sierra Nevada to go skiing from January until May.

If all of the above is a bit too adventurous for you, you can simply go for a run along the beach promenade after work ;-)

Great place to focus

If you spent time in places where others go on vacation you’ll know that the nightlife can be a problem. When you meet so many nice people who want to go out for drinks with you it can get really difficult to stay focused. The good thing about Tarifa is that, even though you can still party, there are fewer options in the low season as clubs only really fill up on the weekends. This will allow you to focus even more.

A tiny and beautiful old town

Tarifa’s centre is extremely pretty. You’ll discover loads of great tapas bars, artist’s studios, and neat restaurants while wandering through the small alleys of the old town. Everything you need is within a 5 minute walk.

African Adventures at your doorstep

Wait. That’s not all. I forgot to tell you one of the best things about staying in this corner of the world. Africa is just a short ferry ride away. You can simply take one of the three daily ferries to Morocco. Stay for a day or even longer if you want to explore the whole country (bring your passport if you want to go). Morocco is not expensive either. It could be a great additional workation option if you want to benefit from the low cost of living in one of the beach towns.

As you see, if you live in Europe there’s really no need to fly around the world to visit one of the digital nomad hot spots and go on your first workation.

Come to Tarifa, go kitesurfing in your free time, or simply explore this amazing corner of the world. It’s a fantastic workation town and only a short €50 flight away from anywhere in Europe.

Got questions? Leave a comment and I’ll help you out!

NEW TARIFA INFO

1) The Tarifa Digital Nomad Guide – Everything you need to know about taking a workation in Tarifa (accommodation, coworking, WiFi cafes etc.). Check it out.
3) Tarifa Workation Camp – Coworking and Digital Nomad Community in Tarifa.