Turisme de Barcelona and the Barcelona Provincial Council Launch the Barcelona Workation Programme to Boost the Temporary Digital Professionals

Turisme de Barcelona, with the support of the Barcelona Provincial Council, has launched a new programme in order to attract new public arisen as a result of the pandemic (it has been extended in many occidental world cities) and they travel and work on remote from any part of the world. The Covid has changed the way of working of professionals, teleworking or remote working, moving their office to a desired place. Barcelona is, in this sense, an ideal destination to receive this kind of temporary visitor with a wide range of services and products to cover the needs of the demand which is, in fact, a trend that will be increasing the following months and years according to different reports.

“Barcelona Workation” is the name under which Turisme de Barcelona will promote Barcelona and its surroundings as an ideal destination to work temporary remotely with the main purpose of attracting visitors working remotely and looking for new experiences outside its usual place of residence.

A line of promotion that aims to develop a full new strategic segment according to the new market trends (slow tourism, nomad workers, digital professionals) which will facilitate the seasonality, the hotel occupancy, the accommodation, the visitor’s economy who will be staying longer and contributing, in this sense, with the destination sustainability.

The target is more than the digital nomads and it also includes other professionals that want and can afford to have a work experience abroad. In the case of digital nomads, the person itself doesn’t want to change their job but they are guided by other motivations such as to disconnect from their environment, to change their routines, to have new experiences or even to get to know new cultures. Mostly they are from the millennial generation between 20 and 40 years old. In the other hand, digital professionals, working remotely, the target could also include families who want a new experience for them and their children in foreign countries, freelance etc. In both cases, they are professionals working remotely, professional liberal (entrepreneurs, executives…) with a particular lifestyle motivated by freedom and movement flexibility, but with specific technical needs such a high speed internet access and other essential needs such as accommodation, the infrastructures, the equipment and the possibility of establishing a social network in the destination (through the international professionals, meetings…)

The proposal made by Turisme de Barcelona and the Barcelona Provincial Council to attract this potential public, the nomad workers, is d on a double option:

1) Rural experience or next to the sea or

2) Urban experience. Destination Barcelona has been always a centre of attraction for artists, writers, entrepreneurs and visionaries. Versatile destination, with first level infrastructure and a mild climate so much better than the rest of Europe.

Offering culture, outdoor activities, business, gastronomy, social life, beach, mountain, excursions…

Under the slogan “Move your desk. Change your Life” and the hashtag #WorkfromBarcelona, Turisme de Barcelona will start a promotional campaign to make known the offer which includes 4 different products of the Destination Barcelona which can be extended with more Destination offer:

1) Accommodation. Hotel booking platform

2) Medical Insurance. A temporary medical insurance with free assistance in the hotels and primary health care in Quirón Hospitality

3) Barcelona Workation Card. A special card to access to 25 museums in Barcelona during 6 months.

4) Special agreements with Clubs and sports entities, co-working, transportation and mobility…

A growing market

Turisme de Barcelona began working with this new promotional line, from a specific internal report elaborated with the main purpose of obtaining information on this growing trend with a high potential market of people working remotely which are ready to make a temporary residence change where they can keep working.

This report concludes that the workation (a mix made from work and vacation) today is a reality: the 68% of people are working remotely due to the current situation. The 77% wants to change its residence temporary and the 84% considers feasible to make a temporary residence change.

The more important attributes to select a destination as a temporary residence are the connectivity, the medical insurance and the housing prices. Followed very closely by the cultural activities and the possibility of learning languages. A third group of priorities are the outdoor activities, the climate, the mobility and the contact with expats (international professional’s residents in Barcelona) and locals.

Working remotely

Remote workers are a new group that combines leisure/business and “travelling” is the main focus in this new concept. In fact, they are a 25% of the population of the Barcelona tourist markets, given that they are working remotely in a permanent or frequent way. However, recently, a 45% has been added. If we have in mind the digitalisation trend and the family counselling, it is considered that the teleworking will be increasing year by year. That would entail that more than the 30% of people would work from home, in the short term (Source: Kylili et al., 2020).

Having said that, in order to change a remote worker into a digital nomad and eager to travel while working, it is essential to have the appropriate circumstances, considering that the attitude it already exists and it is around the 80%. If we take separately the personal reasons and the age of children in its care, it is basic to assume (as a destination) the essential requisites to make this change real, having in mind the connectivity and the medical insurance as a decisive elements (Turisme de Barcelona, 2020).

In order to guarantee the competitiveness as a dreamed destination, it is necessary to work some aspects that make Barcelona unique. That means that it is extremely necessary to create an ideology that clearly shows the intrinsic qualities of the destination to convince the professional, under the same conditions, and choose the destination to experience this way of living during six months (as an average).

Finally, as Marian Muro said, Turisme de Barcelona Managing Director, “Destination Barcelona has the essential requisites to develop a tailor-made product for those who want to work remotely. Therefore, we are facing a new opportunity for Barcelona”. Almost a 70% of the population is working remotely and there is a very high wish of having the experience of a temporary change of residence, independent of the age and the personal situation. “There is a target, there is a product and we have a destination looking for this kind of tourist”, she confirmed.

According to Francesc Vila, from the Barcelona Provincial Council, the ‘Barcelona Workation’ programme will attract profesional to the city and its surroundings “to enjoy our culture and our lifestyle. Here, at the Barcelona Provincial Council, we are convinced that workers from the metropolitan area will also be interested: they want to enjoy from quite areas not far from nature but also with great connectivity”.

This action it goes along the same lines of the Barcelona Town Hall to gain talent having the International Welcome (www.barcelona.cat/internationalwelcome) programme at everyone’s disposal.

CAMPAIGN VIDEO

Urban video (1’): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g9YFtXa1h4A

Urban video (15”): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HfzOPinqDo8

Rural video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pwKDFdZanYE

Rural video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cZ-EYecNZ2s