The tiny village of Arguisal, tucked into the Pyrenees mountains of Spain, was visited by actor Tom Cruise last month. The actor, best known for his adventure films, was a guest at the vacation home of Javier Olivan, Chief Operating Officer of Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram. This village has only 14 residents, although larger neighboring villages are in the area.
Olivan is from this area of Spain, known as Huesca or Aragon. Although he lives in Palo Alto, California, he built a home in his native Arguisal as a retreat where he is able to work remotely.
According to ‘El Periódico de Aragón’, Tom Cruise landed in Arguisal by helicopter, accompanied by one of his sisters and her husband. He did so directly at his host’s house, which has a private helipad.
There is always speculation when an international celebrity visits a somewhat remote area in a foreign country. Cruise has visited various locations in Spain this year, including the popular island of Mallorca, and spoken with Spanish directors. This was his first visit to this serene village.
Remote Spanish Villages Welcome Digital Nomads
Spain offers a special Digital Nomad Visa for people who want to enjoy remote work. A quiet mountain village may offer a welcome alternative to busy cities.
Arguisal is approximately 230 miles (370.15 km) northeast of Madrid. It is in the municipality of Sabinanigo and offers several small hotels for visitors. Other villages in the area include Biescas, Yesero, Hoz de Jaca, Yebra de Basa, and Castiello-de-Jaca with about 200 residents.
Sallent de Gallagois, a neighboring town with over 1,200 residents, offers more hotels and apartments for visitors who want a longer stay. This area is also close to the border with France. The nearest airport is the Tarbes-Lourdes-Pyrénées Airport in France.
It’s also no secret that more Spanish villages in different regions are seeing depopulation and to counter this problem they are betting on digital nomads.
Multiple regions across are running campaigns with massive budgets to directly target digital nomads to relocate and work from there. For example, Extremadura has allocated €2 Million to attract digital nomads and pays €15,000 to those willing to move and live in the region.
Featured image source: Amber Maas / SWNS