The app for digital nomads was born after Maria and Jean-Baptiste released that that is what they were – digital nomads. All that was missing was an app to bring their new friends together. By Eugene Costello…
The app for digital nomads, NomadWay, came after Maria and Jean-Baptiste realised that that is what they were – digital nomads. All that was missing was an app to bring their new friends together. Maria is from Valencia and Jean-Baptiste is French. They began their nomadic life together with a home base in Valencia, spending most of their time in co-working spaces. They soon realised that the profile of digital nomads was very specific. Namely, open-minded travellers, remote workers and often business-oriented individuals with some extremely interesting expertise. The idea was beginning to form. It began to take shape with the Facebook group DNA (Digital Nomads in Alicante)…
And when they arrived in Alicante in 2021, after the pandemic, they soon realised they couldn’t find this kind of community, says Maria. “So we created the Facebook group ‘Digital Nomads in Alicante’, which now has more than 2,300 members and has organised over 400 meet-ups to foster connections in real life,” she says with evident pride. They continued travelling to many countries and loved meeting like-minded people. However, the process of finding these people was “a bit chaotic”, she says. “We had to search for Facebook/Telegram/WhatsApp/Meetup groups in every city we visited.”
It was also tricky to message nomads directly in these groups. For one thing, a significant number of them had already moved on to another destination. While it’s possible to meet people this way, most of the groups have a business purpose. Such as bringing people to a bar or restaurant or using the group as a platform for paid ads, especially in Meet-ups, for instance. Something more global was missing, they felt. All that was missing was a way to connect with all these new friends they were meeting. To bond with them and plan activities together. And to help with networking by encouraging users to share their line of work, as well as preferred social activities.
“This is how NomadWay really started,” says Maria. NomadWay is a mobile app available on iOS and Android that allows nomads to find other nomads around them, discover their favourite activities or technical skills, to attend meet-ups, and to create their own meet-ups.
NomadWay, the app for digital nomads in Valencia
The app is free, says Maria, but specific features exist for co-working and co-living communities that want to go further. The app has recently launched, and more than 100 meet-ups have already been created in five different cities in Spain (including Valencia), resulting in numerous connections, friendships, relationships, and even new businesses started between users of the app. You can also use the app’s filters by age, location and activities to help you find or create your own tribe. Members can now create and upload their own events, so the world is your oyster. Since Maria and Jean-Baptiste are often in Valencia, they are more than happy to promote the app here and support meet-up organisers, says Maria.
So if you want to get serious with – and about – your nomadic life, download NomadWay today. It won’t cost you anything – and it might just change your life.
- NomadWay is available to download in the Apple Store and from Google Play