Europe’s first Nomad Village is an initiative led by Digital Nomads Madeira with the support of Madeira’s government, Gonçalo Hall and Flatio which was launched on February 1 in the village of Ponta do Sol, the southernmost village on the island, typically occupied by tourists.
The goal of the initiative is to attract digital nomads and remote workers who travel the world while they work and to help drive local economic activity. Flatio & NomadX are strategic partners of this initiative as the accommodation provider for nomads that will join the Nomad Village.
Flatio is offering its online rental technology to all Madeira’s landlords for free (no transaction fees) throughout 2021 to help them attract nomads and replace the missing income from tourism.
One of our landlords from Calheta (the village next to Ponta do Sol), Miguel Caldeiras, an experienced host and manager of the beautiful rural cottages, vineyard and property including a swimming pool, restaurant, onsite laundry services and cleaning at Quinta das Vinhas has his 15 cottages completely booked with digital nomads, an outcome he wasn’t expecting.
He’s been very excited to replace short term tourism revenue with mid term stays to start afloat and keep locals employed during this downturn in touristic travel. He’s excited to see how the Nomad Village initiative is helping local businesses and how it offers unforgettable life experiences for the digital nomad community in a unique rural setting.
In this interview, Miguel talks about how he thinks the Nomad village will help not only his business but the entire Island and how he sees the Nomad movement in the near future.
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Flatio: Can you please tell us more about Quinta das Vinhas
Miguel: This is a property that is in the same Family since 1685. Until the 19th Century it was essencial an agriculture business and the manor house existed mainly to host the landlord when he had to stay to supervise the production and the workers. From the second half of the 19th Century until the first half of the 20th century with the impulse of the industrial revolution streets and cars started to be a reality in Madeira and the family was coming to spend summer time and stay for a 3 month holiday in Calheta. This Family had the biggest factory in Madeira Island which produced Rum, sugar, and melaço from sugar cane. By the end of the 90’s there was an urge to rehabilitate the manor house and the family decided to start a Touristic project as a means to be able to keep and maintain their heritage. This is how Quinta das Vinhas was born! A 4 hectares vineyards property with 74 different kinds of grapes, two beautiful swimming pools, and 24 units including 15 Cottages facing the Atlantic Ocean.
Flatio: What does it mean to you to be a Host? How did it start?
Miguel: My education was the Swiss Hotel Management School in which the role of the manager as a host was very important. In fact I was managing Hotels of 4 and 5 stars in the last 30 years and therefore this is my profession. At the present it became a natural evolution to host Nomads as the demand was there and we had the need and the availability to welcome them.
Flatio: How has COVID affected your business and the whole tourism industry in Madeira?
Miguel: Well it had a huge impact. If you think that Tourism contributes with 30% of the local economy production and that we had to Stop completely our activity for the first time during our high season in 2020 ( March, April, May and June= Springtime) and that since that date we never recovered the tourism industry in Europe and around the world, we can understand how much this unexpected situation was damaging the economy and the employment in Madeira Islands.
Flatio: How do you think the Nomad Village initiative can help the locals and the Nomads?
Miguel: This project helped a lot to keep the activity and to save the jobs of our employers. At the same time created an unique opportunity to this growing niche market to enjoy great facilities on a beautiful Island for a reasonable price that they can afford.
Flatio: How was your experience with Flatio & NomadX and the current Nomads you are hosting?
Miguel: The experience is excellent as we created a sense of community among Nomads, transmitting them a homy environment and Family atmosphere, and we had the chance to meet fantastic people and great professionals in their areas of expertise.
Flatio: How do you see the Nomad, Remote Work movement? Is it here to stay? What can those workers expect from staying in Quinta das Vinhas?
Miguel: I believe this Nomad Workers movement came to stay and it will be in harmony with the normal tourist flow. Nomad workers will feel at home here with us and have the feeling that we care and that we do everything in our power to make them comfortable and give all the support they need.
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Flatio’s actively adding more inventory on Madeira. So, if you’re a landlord in Madeira Island and wish to join Flatio to offer your properties for free during 2021, get started now by clicking here.
If you are a nomad interested in renting an accommodation on Madeira we are offering a discount for all the nomads during 2021, go to Flatio.com choose your favorite property and use the code DIGITALNOMADSMADEIRA at checkout to enjoy a 25% discount on our service fee.
We’d love to have your opinion on this and to hear from you regarding how the change in demand has affected you. Please share your story with us here
