Annual Membership

First of all, thank you for having been a part of this community and for all the contributions you have made and are making every day. 

Please keep bringing your best self to the community every time you show up, whether on Chapter or off. Over the years, we’ve distilled our expectations down to a few important values and actions:

• Treat this like your home: Treat fellow members with the same dignity, respect, and kindness that you would treat your own family with. Make this community a little better because you’re here.
• Show up and get involved: A community only works if everyone contributes. Remember to ask yourself often: “How can I make this community even better?”
• Give a helping hand: We’ve all got each others’ backs here. Keep an eye out for moments where you can help someone who might need it.
• Bring your authentic self: Throw in your knowledge, talents, and passions. Lean into the uncomfortable until it feels good. We want to get to know you.
• But leave your ego at the door: We're all here to learn from one another. There's no space for arrogance or bigotry here. Come in with an open mind and genuine curiosity.

The annual membership is a recurring annual fee that gives you access to everything that WiFi Tribe is, does and will be!

If you would like to continue being an active member of the WiFi Tribe community, you will need to set up an annual membership. This membership will be valid for 12 months, starting when your current membership ends. 

To book Chapters and travel with WiFi Tribe, you will need to have an active membership.

Also, with the introduction of the annual membership, deposits will no longer expire, as long as you have an active membership (they just roll over into the next year of your membership). This means that you can get access to the lower Chapter prices with the 3 or 5 Chapter deposit bundles, without having to worry about not being able to use up all of your deposits within just a year. Before the annual membership was introduced, unused deposits would only be valid for 12 months.

Please note: If you decide not to renew your membership, any unused deposits will expire with it and will be forfeited even if you restart a new membership later.

Yes, all active WiFi Tribe members need to have an annual membership. If you joined the community before January 21st, 2021, your membership has automatically been extended for all of 2021.

The change to an annual membership was introduced on January 21st, 2021. Members who joined before that date have automatically had their membership extended for all of 2021.

The annual membership fee is $500 per year. For members who joined before January 21st, 2021 the membership fee is $400 (about $33 per month).

The quick answer is: access to our community. 

This includes the option to book Chapters, access to our curated global community of remote professionals on our Slack network, and many other ways to connect with the Tribe.

Being a WiFi Tribe member is not just about traveling or doing Chapters. We are people from all over the world who resonate with shared values and who have come together to build, and be a part of a very intentional community. Of course, being the curious, adventurous, globally-minded type that we are, we all share that passion for travel.

The membership opens up the community to each of us in a way that we can be a part of it wherever we are in the world, whether we are traveling or not.

For those of us who have a home base or a less nomadic lifestyle, we can still stay connected and involved as we: 

• Meet up with fellow Tribers who live nearby or are visiting our city
• Exchange knowledge, collaborate, and find support in different Slack channels for all sorts of professions and passions
• Join shorter, week-long trips (like the ski week in January) to reconnect with old friends and the community

For those of us who are living nomadically or traveling more often, the community also makes it possible to: 

• Land in a city and immediately connect with fellow Tribers living or traveling there, by using Slack to meet up with anyone
• Organise short side-trips or long stays in our favourite cities together with other Tribe members, even when not on a Chapter
• And of course, join some of the 40+ Chapters happening in 2022, including several new destinations we’ve never done before

We introduced the annual fee primarily to ensure we can sustain the value that this global community has already been providing to active members. What each of us values may be a little different for everyone, but here are a few examples:

• Access to a global community of remote professionals from around the world
• A careful selection process that brings together people with shared values
• An online platform (Slack) to share knowledge and meet fellow members when they are in town
• Little ‘pockets’ of our community in certain destinations even when not on Chapter (e.g. Medellin, Barcelona, Croatia, Playa del Carmen)
• Lots of travel buddies to share experiences and travel costs with
• Opportunities to build new friendships and business relationships
• Personal and professional growth by rubbing shoulders with, and learning from, fellow members who are experts in their fields

We’re excited about building out new benefits alongside our Chapters, such as global meetups, local hubs in our favourite cities, shorter adventures like the ski week (i.e. what normal people call a “vacation”), and lots of other ideas and new tools to bring the community closer together, whether on Chapter or off. 

If you have an idea for something that would make a huge difference to you and other members, please drop us an email or have a chat over coffee with a Chapter Host!

Members who joined before January 21, 2021 automatically had their membership fee waived for all of 2021. For those members, the fee is also reduced to $400 instead of the standard $500 membership fee.

If you have unused Chapter deposits by the end of 2021, you can carry those forward into the next year, as long as you keep an active membership. From now on, unused deposits will only expire if your membership expires. We hope that this gives everyone more flexibility and confidence to secure better prices with the 3 or 5 Chapter deposit bundles.

The membership is valid for a 12-month period. If you choose to pay in advance, your membership renewal will only start once your current membership has expired.

Yes. Previously, all members paid a “join fee” to help cover the costs of the admissions process. These join fees, however, are not enough to cover the ongoing costs of supporting the community year-after-year. We are asking all members for an annual membership fee to help ensure the long-term sustainability and development of the global community, beyond just the Chapters.

We hope that those of us who joined for the travel but decided to stay for the people will find ongoing value in being a part of this global community, whether they’re actively bouncing around the world or settled down for a while.

The annual membership is a step towards making our community self-sufficient, and hopefully, to also provide us with enough resources to make exciting improvements over time. We want to continue evolving the community in ways that make it more accessible to each of us wherever we may be in the world, and whether we’re on a Chapter or not.

We want WiFi Tribe to be a community that grows and evolves with each of us, as we move through different stages of our lives. While we recognize that some members may no longer wish to be actively involved, we’re excited about the engaged and close-knit community that will choose to remain.

And for those who aren’t looking to be active members right now, it certainly won’t be a goodbye. We would love to keep you updated via email on our biggest announcements so you never feel that you’re out of the loop, and we’ll share alumni opportunities every now and then.

In a nutshell, our Chapter Plans have turned into bundles of Chapter deposits. 

Similar to our former Chapter Plans, purchasing a bundle of Chapter deposits also lets you secure lower prices. You can prepay for a bundle of 3 or 5 deposits.

We also introduced a major new benefit along with this change: The more Chapters you join, the lower the prices are for each next Chapter.

This change makes everything (a little) simpler and makes it easier for members to join Chapters at their own pace, while still getting better prices.

See our blog post: Introducing New Chapter Savings & Prices for a more detailed explanation of how to get the most out of bundling several deposits.

If you’re familiar with the former Chapter Plans, don’t worry, deposit bundles work in the same way.

To book a Chapter and reserve your spot, you need to apply a deposit of $300. You can get bundles of either 3 or 5 Chapter deposits.

If you know that you want to do more than one Chapter, it might make sense for you to get a deposit bundle because you will unlock significantly lower Chapter prices right away.

Alternatively, you can purchase one deposit at a time and progressively unlock savings for your next Chapters.

See our blog post: Introducing New Chapter Savings & Prices for a more detailed explanation of how to get the most out of bundling several deposits.

No, members will no longer be able to get Chapter deposits (or travel with the Tribe) without having an active membership.

An active membership is required to attend any Chapter. If you book a Chapter that starts after your membership’s expiry date, you’ll need to renew your membership before it expires to be able to join the Chapter you have booked.

Please keep the Chapter cancellation policy in mind if you have a Chapter booked after your membership expires and you are unsure about renewing your membership. This is important so that you don’t lose your deposit or a part of the Chapter payment due to a late cancellation.

We’re excited to let you know that with the introduction of the membership, your Chapter deposits will no longer expire, as long as you have an active membership. This is a big step towards giving members more flexibility.

This means that, as long as you plan to be an active member, you can feel more confident about purchasing a bigger bundle of Chapter deposits (e.g. 3 or 5) to get the lower prices because you don’t have to worry about the deposits expiring after 12 months.

Before your current membership expires, you will receive an email with a payment link to renew your membership for the next year.

If you have credits with WiFi Tribe, they will be automatically applied to your membership invoice. If you know you have credits and don't see them reflected in that payment link, please reply directly to that email or reach out to hello@wifitribe.co.

If you renew your membership within 14 days of receiving the link, there will be a $50 credit added to your account that you can apply to any future payment with WiFi Tribe as a little 'thank you' for renewing early!

Unfortunately, not yet. We are currently working on making this process simpler for the future, but the automated payment option is not ready yet. When we introduce this, we will, of course, give you ample notice and several reminders of when to expect the automatic renewal, so that you always have the chance to cancel your membership.

Currently, we do not have an option for installments. However, if it would help you financially to be able to spread the payment, please get in touch with us.

The membership is valid for a 12-month period. If you choose to pay in advance, your membership renewal will only start once your current membership has expired.

Yes, any remaining credits will automatically be used towards the annual membership fee. Please note that this only applies for credits, not for Chapter deposits.

Remember, with an active membership, Chapter deposits do not expire.

Only members with an active annual membership can travel with WiFi Tribe.

You can cancel your membership at any time, though the annual membership fee will not be refunded, prorated or discounted. Upon cancelling, you will retain access to all membership benefits, including travel with WiFi Tribe and the Slack community until the expiry of your annual membership.

We will make sure to send reminder emails prior to your membership expiry date, to make it easier for you to keep track of your membership.

If you decide to cancel your annual membership you will continue to have access to all membership benefits, including travel with WiFi Tribe and the Slack community until the expiry of your annual membership.

On your membership’s expiry date:

1. Your Slack account with be deactivated

2. You’ll be unable to join Chapters occurring after the membership’s expiry date, even if you had made the booking at a time when you still had an active membership

3. Any unused deposits or credits on your account will expire (there is a 14-day grace period in case you just missed the deadline to renew)

Of course, we would love to stay in touch and keep you updated via email on our biggest announcements so you never feel that you’re out of the loop, and we’ll share alumni opportunities every now and then.

We will follow the same process as for someone who cancels their membership (see What happens if I cancel my annual membership?)

However, if you had unused deposits or credits, we give a 14-day grace period to renew your membership and keep your deposits and/or credits active. Please note that if you pass this grace period, those will no longer be available to you upon renewal.

If you are a freelancer or business owner, we recommend reaching out to your accountant or tax advisor to understand if this is possible for you. You may be able to deduct your membership cost from taxes in your country. This may also apply for Chapters, so it’s worth asking!

Please do reach out to your employer to ask if this is something they would consider covering for you. Many companies have budgets in place for professional growth, networking, and development of new skills, and several have started to offer remote work and travel benefits.

If you have a question and can’t find the answer here, please feel free to reach out to us via hello@wifitribe.co.