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My job allows me to work from my laptop. I was thinking of traveling this winter to a warm location and working from the beach for a few months.

What country has:

  1. Warm weather during North Americas winter.
  2. Reliable internet access.
  3. Cheap places to live by the beach.
  4. Decent food.
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    By 'reliable internet access' .. are you also hoping for a certain amount of bandwidth, or do you just need to be able to check e-mail, IM, etc?
    – Tim Post
    Jul 15, 2011 at 2:49
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    Additionally, perhaps you could narrow down the title to this? On the front page, it suggests something a bit more subjective than it really is.
    – Tim Post
    Jul 15, 2011 at 3:04
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    @Element Also a general location, Caribbean, Asia, Pacific, etc would be handy.
    – Beaker
    Jul 15, 2011 at 3:15
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    This is way too subjective. Any tropical or southern hemisphere country. Cheap is hugely subjective. For me that used to mean $5 per day but now it means $0 per day. "Decent food" is even more subjective. I think you want a travel discussion site like Lonely Planet Thorn Tree rather than a Travel Q & A site like this. Jul 15, 2011 at 11:52
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    Can I have your job? :D
    – Mark Mayo
    Jul 15, 2011 at 16:09

3 Answers 3

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This is a pretty broad question, but I will give you some answers of my experiences:

Kenting - Taiwan. Not exactly the cheapest (of SE Asia), but a nice place with good beaches. Internet access is abundant and it is warm in winter, while not hot. People are super nice. http://www.tealit.com/article_categories.php?section=travel&article=kenting

Pagandaran - Indonesia. Internet is good, but not the best. Power seemed pretty stable. It was super cheap and good food. Will be hot during an North hemisphere winter. It was once a major tourist spot (not so much anymore), so it is very foreigner friendly. There is a short, cheap flight from Jakarta to get there. http://www.lonelyplanet.com/indonesia/java/pangandaran

San Juan - Puerto Rico. I go back and forth a lot between San Juan and Nassau, but if you are American, San Juan is probably the better spot of the two. Personally, I prefer South East Asia, but a lot of people including my family prefers the Carib.

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You've got a relatively specific criteria in your question, so I'll do my best to answer it.

I would recommend the following destinations based on my personal experience:

  • Palawan, Philippines: Not only does it fit your criteria, it's also home to a couple of the UNESCO world heritage sites. The underground river in Puerto Princesa is really amazing to see. If you stay at one of the more prominently advertised resorts, you won't have a problem with power or Internet. The beaches are amazing, you can get literally any kind of food that you could imagine (and some that perhaps you can't imagine) without spending a fortune. This is probably my favorite destination in all of SE Asia, I try to get there twice every year.

  • Boracay, Philippines: This is one of the more popular tourist destinations, but still considered inexpensive by way of comparison with Metro Manila. There's plenty to explore there, plenty of major name hotels right on the beach to choose from and the same great mix of good food and interesting culture. Just watch out for the tourist traps, venture out a little away from the main locations to get the best deals and meals.

Regarding net access, most well rated hotels / resorts will provide it without much of a problem. However, don't expect blazing fast speeds even if it's advertised as 'broadband'. If you get better than 256k, you're fortunate. Keep in mind, these islands are very remote and some areas of both don't yet have electricity. If all you need to do is check e-mail, instant messenger, etc - it's fine. If you need to do a lot of video conferencing .. you might have a frustrating experience.

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I think this is subjective, but .... I'll give one suggestion. Argentina:

Ocean - with whales in Puerto Madryn, you can sit on the hostel balcony and watch them in the sea.

Warm - deserts in the west, warm weather in most of it, and rainforest in the north-east.

Wifi - almost everywhere - every hostel and most restaurants and cafes have it.

Great food - if you enjoy your steak and wine you'll be in heaven, with some of the best in the world. And the seafood is pretty fantastic.

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