Welcome to Las Palmas city in Gran Canaria; one of the world's top digital nomad and co-working destinations with a thriving startup scene and one of the lowest tax burdens in Europe (if you open a ZEC company).
There’s something about the climate and the Las Palmas lifestyle that makes it a great spot to live and work or to come to get a project off the ground. Maybe it's the fast internet, the coworking spaces, surf hostels, stacks of outdoor cafes with Wifi, European security and healthcare, funky Latino nightlife, great waves, best climate in the world, location right between Europe, Africa and the Americas, etc. Or maybe it's the huge tax incentives that entrepreneurs and investors get when they set up a business in Las Palmas.
Whatever it is, it's bringing in more and more coworkers, nomads and entrepreneurs every year. Las Palmas makes most of the Top Ten Nomad Locations lists and new hostels and working spaces open up every month. Even the New York Times has noticed from across the Pond.
So if you are ready to take your idea and make it into a business, or just work and surf somewhere warm this winter,get yourself to Las Palmas.
Resources
Here’s a really useful list of coworking spaces and digital nomad resources in Las Palmas city.
Head over to Gran Canaria Guru for information about living in Gran Canaria; all the gritty stuff like getting residencia, buying a car, paying your tax and renting a property.
Stay here
You can stay at a hotel, but that ignores the superb co-working options you have in the city.
CURRENTY CLOSED: Located in the Port District of Las Palmas close to two beaches and the surf breaks, The Surf Office offers a great mix of work facilities, accommodation and fun activities to keep you fresh and inspired.
If you can work from a laptop and want to be right by the beach, then the Ventana Azul surf hostel is the perfect spot. With a big roof terrace, lots of dorm accommodation and great links to the city's surf schools, this is a coworking option where work might just have to wait until after the next surf session. Other similar surf hostels by Las Canteras beach include the HiTide Hostel and the Big Fish Las Palmas Hostel.
Work here
All these co-working spaces offer internet and desk space in their rates. Prices for printing, use of meeting rooms and other facilities vary. New spaces pop up all the time and ll over th city so we don't try and cover them all. Here's a selection of the established co-working names in Las Palmas city to get you started.
Great co-working space with an inspiring mixture of local and foreign people that all chip in and help each other. A short walk from the beach, its open when you're awake, offers free coffee and printing and has great energy.
The island's original coworking space upped sticks from Salinetas on the east coast and moved into an old bank building in Las Palmas in 2014. It still has the recycled pallet design feature of it original incarnation, bu is a slick modern environment to work in.
Part co-working space, part design studio, La Fabrica 55 has designers, photographers, video editors and programmers who work independently and in collaboration. Great spot that also puts on concerts and events for beardy 'creatives'.
Art gallery come coworking space with a permanent community of coworkers and spaces for visitors, this great space is in La Isleta barrio just a few blocks back from the northern tip of Las Canteras beach.
A co-working space for the technically minded where everyone is an architect, engineer or technical analysts. People still make money from building real things. Who knew!
The new kid on the block and located in an old building right in the centre of the Triana commercial district of Las Palmas, The House is a non-profit coworking space with great facilities and great prices. It comes with free cloud storage, roof terrace with sofas, standing workspace, and full kitchen. Along with fast Wifi and a multi-lingual atmosphere, that’s all you need to work in Las Palmas.
ACEG
For a full list of the best co-working spaces all over the Canary Islands, head to the Canary Islands Co-working Spaces Association: The website is currently in Spanish, but it has a really useful list of links co-working spaces across the Canary Islands. It is also plñanning a passport that allows digital nomads to work anywhere in the Canary Islands.
Business Events
Digital nomads (sorry, location independent entrepreneurs) congregate in Las Palmas for the Nomad City networking event. In 20i6, it's on December 5-9.
Keep up with meet ups …
The Digital Nomads Facebook group keeps you up-to-date with all the latest meetups and co-working events in the city.
For a great overview of live events and language exchanges in Las Palmas, LPAInfo is the group to join.
Business Services
Las Palmas is a busy Spanish city and you can get almost anything done locally. However, if you need to work in English, then here's a curated group of local software and online professionals with international experience.
Las Palmas Management consultancy and legal services
Contact Montelongo Asesores for management consultancy, legal and tax advice in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria city. If you are considering a ZEC Investment in Gran Canaria, Montelongo Asesores are your one-stop solution to hassle-free setup.
Las Palmas app development
Go to Intrahouse, the city’s specialist Apple and Android app developers. Intrahouse also take your website and make it responsive, and use their Pocket Paper SaaS solution to jazz up your customers’ mobile experience.
Las Palmas web design and development
Secret Source make effective websites and apps fast by combining top programmers with great customer service. If you’ve ever had a long meeting with your programmer and left with nothing but a headache, you’ll understand why this is a good thing.
Las Palmas SEO & AdWords
Just go to Todd Michael Heater, Gran Canaria’s resident master of making Google do what you want it to do.
Las Palmas Product Design
Go to La Fabrica 555 and organise a collaboration that suits your needs.
Las Palmas Photography
For photos of Gran Canaria, and product photography, contact Photos Gran Canaria.
For video editing or shooting, and drone photography, talk to Bard at 45 Videos
Las Palmas property
Looking for a rental apartment, or want to buy a property in Las Palmas? Contact Laura at Las Palmas Property.