Remote YearReviews of remoteyear.com

I really enjoyed my experience with Remote Year in Mexico City! The staff was very helpful whenever I needed anything. I initially paid an $800 deposit on a trip that I could not attend - they made it easy for me to apply this credit to a trip that I could take 8 months later. I would highly recommend to anyone who would like to experience what digital nomad life is like, and I plan to do another RY month in the future!

Clayton and Bernardo did a fabulous job creating a fun, welcoming and inclusive community, working round the clock to make sure we had everything we needed to live comfortably and immerse ourselves into the Lisbon culture. Communication was quick and responsive whether it involved an internet outing or informational tips on how to make the most of our time in Portugal. Obrigata to the RY leaders to make this introduction to a four month program a positive start!

So I never received a link for feedback for my recent side trip to Oaxaca, Mexico, so I guess I'll post my feedback on Trustpilot. A few things to note: 1. I went on the one-month trip to Mexico City in May 2021. 2. I then went on a "side trip" to Oaxaca, Mexico in October 2021 for Dia de los Muertos. My review is a little bit of both. First off, I definitely felt "renewed" after my one month in Mexico City. I genuinely felt that the month was well-spent and that I had the opportunity to live in another city abroad not feeling completely and utterly lost. I was grateful I had the opportunity to keep my job while experiencing this. I learned a lot from the experience in Mexico City and I will cherish that forever. I met a lot of genuinely great people as well. I was a little worried that everyone would just be "entrepreneurs" who work for themselves, but I found that people worked at all types of companies, such as Microsoft, Salesforce, etc. It was a nice networking opportunity. There were a few gripes I had with the program that continued to manifest even further during my trip to Oaxaca. Let's face it: this company seems to promote partying over actual cultural immersion. There were countless times in Mexico City that I felt that the experiences (that I paid extra for, by the way) were rushed because our management team wanted to head back to Mexico City to go out clubbing. Our management team also seemed to be more preoccupied building an Instagram following and taking photos that cut into a lot of our time during these cultural activities that again, I paid extra for. As a result, this type of behavior by our management team seemed to lead to a certain attitude/clique-ish behavior amongst the group. It is definitely natural that a group of a large size does tend to break off over time based on interests, but in this case, it truly felt like it was a result of the general atmosphere and expectation set by our local management team that did not help. I found that the group was a lot more invested in partying, so I eventually broke out from the RY group to make other local friends. I would have done this anyway, but it was sad to feel that I'm doing this INSTEAD of building further relationships with my RY group, rather than IN ADDITION TO. This behavior continued on in Oaxaca, which felt like a bit of a logistical mess and another extension of valuing partying over culture. I was also extremely grateful that my group in Oaxaca was not my one-month group, because it felt like after 24 hours of meeting everyone, cliques already formed and people were jumping at everyone else's throats. The company claims to "respect" DEI but yet when someone is of a different background (by the way, I'm not talking about myself) and may act differently than your typical Basic B doing a Remote Year program (sorry not sorry, I speak the truth), then that person is accused of "not reading the room" and being annoying. Nobody seemed to understand "cultural differences," which is ironic given that this is a group dedicated to experiencing the world and the different cultures that go along with it. It led me to continue to believe that yes, while Remote Year promotes the experience of "living" in another country, they do so in a vacuum/in a bubble and the people seem to be okay with it. I have not attended one of the Retreats yet, but this seems very clear in their marketing of such Retreats. I don't think it's worth anyone's time to do a one week program in another country when the program is basically doing yoga and meditation, which I can do in my own backyard at a couple thousand dollars cheaper. I also felt that Remote Year felt especially "culty" after my recent Oaxaca trip. Everyone was talking about themselves from the lens of the name of their program. And that's fine, but I felt that it further promoted cliquey behavior rather than try to build a new community. I understand again it's human nature to form cliques, but referring to yourself based on your program name and having that be a basis of your identification doesn't really help matters. It also felt that those who did a one-month program were "second-class citizens," which hell, maybe that's actually what RY thinks because they call those who do four-month and one-year programs "Citizens." Totally lame name, but people were calling themselves this like a weird source of pride. However, because I did a one month program, I am not a "Citizen." So yes, literally a "second class citizen," so to speak. Certainly the opposite of "inclusive" as I don't have the ability to devote four months to a trip, but it doesn't mean I'm less deserving. The company needs to do a better job at cultural immersion and diversifying their clientele. I only give three stars and not two because of the opportunity given in the first place.

Going on a year long adventure with Remote Year amongst the best choices I've made in life. Traveling the world is amazing of course, but I learned that what matter more than where you are going is who you are going with. The community RY fosters and nourishes is valuable beyond anything you can put a price tag on. And price tag alone, it was a great value too

I recently completed a 4-month trip around Latin America with Remote Year. It was an incredibly positive and transformative experience that left me with 20+ new family members, incredible memories, and a heap more self-confidence. By no means was the trip perfect -- there were hospital visits, sensitive personal situations, and COVID scares -- but I felt supported, heard, and protected by RY at every step. They really are an inclusive, people-first company trying to give their Remotes the best experience possible. The accommodations were fancier in some countries than others, but we were always located in the center of the best neighborhoods in each city. Whenever there was a wifi issue (and there were some), RY worked overtime to fix the issue as quickly as possible and to also offer immediate alternative options (like access to another workspace in the city). It's an excellent program that delivers on its promises and I would recommend traveling with them to anyone who is considering it. I've already become a repeat customer and would sign up for another trip in a heartbeat.

I signed up for the 4-month Latin America program, Ochoa, from June - September 2021 that took me out of the United States and went to Mexico City, Mexico > Antigua, Guatemala > Medellin, Colombia > Lima, Peru. This program did all the things for me…challenged me, had me doing a lot of self-evaluating, took me out of my comfort zone, had me amazed and speechless, got me laughing to where my cheeks hurt, provided some good cries, and opened my mind and heart to the world and other cultures. With everything, there are pros and cons, but the pros greatly outweighed the cons. Some of the cons would be the inconsistency of accommodations, difference in quality of co-working space and the true cost of signing up for the events/tracks that aren’t included that wasn’t communicated well in the beginning. With that being said, the accommodations provided, for the most part, all the things I needed. Having roommates was a new change of pace considering I haven’t had them in a very long time, but everything was just about a shifting of the mindset from what I’ve been used to having, to what I had in that moment. The co-working spaces worked well for me, especially being an Executive Assistant, and I utilized them about 95% of the time. Some had better and more conference/call booths than others along with some being private to the group vs others that were shared. For my job it worked out and helped me create a routine which was needed. As far as additional costs to sign up for events/excursions all of them were 100% worth it. It just would have been nice to have had the cost expectation set in the very beginning, especially for those like me who were wanting to budget and save money. The one thing that was constantly on point the entire time that I will rant and rave about was our Program Leader (Gert), the City Leaders (Omar, Josh, Sebastian and Francisco), and the RY Staff that popped in. Every single person brought a special element to my life and completely made my experience. I have learned so much from each one of them, felt safe and valued, knew I could go to them for anything and all of them will have such a special place in my heart. The RY Staff made my experience just as much as all the things I did over throughout the duration of my trip. I left the United States one person, and because of RY and my experience, went back a different, improved and better version of myself. To anyone considering RY and any of the programs they offer…DO IT! Go in to it with an open mind, immerse yourself in everything, and know it will be the best decision you have done for yourself.

This retreat went above and beyond my expectations. Everything from the location of the place, the accommodations, my room, the activities planned and the add on trips as well. It was a perfect balance for this libra. I would suggest mentioning the add-on trips to explore the actual city on retreats earlier so we can book accordingly. I think being in the middle of no where and truly disconnect and integrate into the retreat was amazing but ending with a trip to explore the actual city during a retreat really sealed the deal on the whole experienced. I am ready to book my second one.

I have already given my feedback while at the retreat. This is a great program, however the facility was lacking and that was very disappointing. Also I thought that there should be more local/culture as part of the program. I know that the program is a retreat, but you have to remember that this is a retreat in Portugal (another country for most of us) and if we just wanted Yoga and relaxing we could do that anywhere...so culture was expected.