Arrival

I arrived in Brisbane on Saturday evening and spent the night at the airport hotel. The next morning, I rented a car to drive to Byron Bay. Twenty years ago, I attended a language school very nearby — practically just around the corner by Australian standards. So the area is not completely unfamiliar to me.
A few stops along the way were, of course, a must: visiting my former school in Surfers Paradise and my old homestay in Burleigh Heads was a matter of course. Both houses are still standing — a touch of nostalgia came free of charge.

Byron Bay continues to successfully maintain its reputation as an alternative, laid‑back destination — so successfully, in fact, that finding accommodation has become a small challenge. Nevertheless, I found a creative solution: staying at the YHA hostel. With the subtle, age‑related difference compared to my first visit, I swapped the dormitory for a private room with ensuite bathroom. One could say I’m traveling as a premium backpacker these days.

As my workplace, I had already selected the “Corner Palm” coworking space — a small, cozy facility within walking distance, quietly located and very close to the beach.

Monday

It’s already Monday morning in Australia, while Switzerland is still in the depths of night. I’m ready for my first exploration — searching for the coworking space I reserved. The search turns out to be a small challenge: nothing is signposted. Only after wandering around a bit and asking a yoga class next door do I finally find the place.

I share my hot desk with two friendly neighbors and a surfboard on the wall. Everything is ready for today’s meeting marathon. First, I take care of a few pending tasks from Friday, then treat myself to a surf and beach break before being back in time at 6:00 p.m. local time.
And then the first action already happens: at 6:00 p.m. the coworking space closes. I can still access it via code — but about 30 seconds later, I trigger the fire alarm. Someone had reactivated it without the operator’s knowledge. Once the misunderstanding is resolved, the meeting marathon can finally begin — four meetings in total — though now I’m completely alone in the coworking space.

I move the final meeting at 12:30 a.m. local time to the more modest coworking space in the hostel. Despite “VIP internet,” things move a bit slowly there. With some improvisation, we still manage to get through the meeting. Afterwards, I’m simply glad to fall straight into bed.

Tuesday

The flow from the first day proved itself, so I decided to stick with it: a block of administrative work in the morning, followed by a break, and another block in the evening for exchange with the home base in Root.
Overall, everything works well — except that at one point I’m chased away from my workstation. Later that afternoon, I receive an email from the same person asking whether I accidentally packed their network adapter (I didn’t 😊).

I spend the evening once again on a call, once again alone in the coworking space — though today “only” until 9:00 p.m. local time. That leaves enough time for dinner.

Wednesday

The first day where everything runs smoothly — routine sets in. During the lunch break, I explore the surrounding area by car: Brunswick Heads, Ballina, Lennox Head. All very beautiful places, but I think I chose my home base just right.

What really surprises me: after three to four hours in the coworking space, I leave my workstation with a good feeling. The thought “you worked well today” follows me to surfing or dinner. And it’s true — I feel extremely focused and efficient, noticeably less distracted than in Switzerland.

Thursday

Today, a few words about this year’s “Rauszeit” concept. After my first workation in Thailand and Bali, I wanted to prove that even larger time differences can work without issues. At the same time, I had been very impressed by the contrast between coworking experiences in two different countries.
This time, I wanted to go one step further and also experience the differences between an industrialized country and a developing country.

As luck would have it, I still had a trip planned just before COVID sitting in a drawer. With a few small adjustments, extended stays, and clearly planned working hours, the foundation for this Rauszeit project was quickly set.

Friday

Unfortunately, Friday already means saying goodbye to Australia. I had just properly acclimatized. But next week continues with part two in the Philippines.

On Friday morning, I drive back to Brisbane, near the airport. I stay at a hotel for one day, from where I can complete my workload including calls without any issues. After that, I return the rental car, and over the weekend the transfer to Boracay in the Philippines is already on the agenda.

Monday

The start of the second part of my “Rauszeit,” on the island of Boracay — said to have the finest sand beach in the world. The transfer goes smoothly, and the sand really is incredibly fine — though everything is a bit too touristy for my taste.

The weather is unfortunately somewhat cloudy, which dampens the sunset at the beach a little, but is ideal for working. I’ve settled into a small, excellently run boutique hotel with an attached coworking space — my personal oasis of calm. Strong internet, a workplace in the middle of an exotic garden, and an excellent mango drink. With that, I’m ready for today’s meeting marathon, which runs without a hitch.

Tuesday

On Tuesday, Boracay shows its sunny side — so much so that the heat, along with suddenly starting construction work, drives me away from the beach fairly quickly.
I start with an initial admin session and spend the break afterward at the hotel pool. Later in the afternoon, more calls are scheduled, and for the evening I plan to try a “Swedish massage” in the village center.

Wednesday

A rhythm is slowly settling in here in the Philippines as well — though a slightly different one than in Australia. Breakfast, then early to the beach while it’s still not too hot. Then the first work session. During the peak heat, I spend time at the pool, followed by work again from around 2:00 or 3:00 p.m. until sunset.

As expected, working here is much more self‑focused. Interaction with other coworkers is missing, as I’m currently using the infrastructure alone. It’s more “working at the beach” than an active change of work environment — which is actually one of the core goals of Screenimage Rauszeit.

My conclusion for HQ: beautiful, but not entirely aligned with the concept — precisely why it’s an important learning.

Thursday

The entire week so far has been dominated by calls. Screenimage is currently running a larger internal project that requires a lot of Teams calls.
Positive: it works.
Negative: daily business gets left behind. At home, it would probably have been no different.
But today finally offers the opportunity to catch up on quite a bit.

Oh — and last night in the village did run a little late after all. All the more pleasant to start work today directly from the pool and with uncombed hair.

Friday and Wrap-Up

My time on the island is coming to an end. I work in the morning until the transfer to the airport starts at 12:00 p.m. The fact that I’m already traveling on Friday has a special reason: I found a small private airline that flies me exclusively in a mini turboprop to El Nido on Palawan — though they only operate three flights per week. This allows me to start my vacation in Palawan perfectly and avoid a full‑day detour. I’ll make up the missing working hours on Friday evening and over the weekend.

Assuming the plane gets me there safely… The explicit instruction to bring no excess luggage — since baggage is stored in the passenger cabin and must be balanced due to the short runway — does give one pause.

Conclusion

This Rauszeit once again showed how different workation experiences can be. Australia — after a short acclimatization period — anytime again. The Philippines also worked well, but as a workation location it’s (still) not quite on the level of Lisbon, Bali, or Chiang Mai.

It is precisely these differences that make the experience exciting and at the same time reinforce my continuing enthusiasm for our Screenimage Rauszeit concept — which, among other things, offers an ideal balance through time zone shifts and meaningfully combines work and vacation.

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