The Urbact Local Group studied the characteristics of the city of Heraklion through a constructive dialogue with all its members having an active role, making their suggestions and analyzing with arguments the reasons why Heraklion is not currently an attractive destination for digital nomads. At the same time, they came up with actions that need to be taken regarding infrastructure and the development of services that will improve the quality of life of both the local community and the employees who choose Heraklion as a digital destination for their work.
Heraklion’s climate, natural environment and gastronomic tradition are currently comparative advantages for digital nomads. But they are not enough. Improvements in communication networks, upgrading of transport infrastructure, finding available housing and creating dedicated workspaces will improve significantly the city’s image and capacity to attract digital nomads. All these can only be done through the active cooperation of public sector actors, local authorities, social structures, transport operators and the business community.
By having a detailed inventory of needs and problems, substantial solutions can be provided by Heraklion’s ULG in line with sustainable development strategy of the city, in order to make Heraklion more friendly for both the resident and the digital nomads.
