Selina CoLive vs Colive Flex: What’s the Difference?

Colive vs Colive Flex- What’s the difference between these Elina Colive Packages? Why is Flex more expensive and when would someone pay more for it? 

Hi Travelers, Acacia for Adventure on the Side here. When I started my digital nomad adventure with Selina’s Colive packages, I couldn’t tell the practical differences between the Colive and Colvie Flex packages.

Since, I have reserved both Colive and Colive flex options and have been grateful to have both options to choose from. They have helped me save loads of money!

Let’s break down the differences between these Colive options and walk through examples of when to use one vs the other so you can take advantage of the time and money savings these programs offer.

What is the Same with Colive and Colive Flex 

Let’s start by looking at what is the same in both packages. By knowing what we can rely on with both packages, we can explore how the two compare.

Both the Selina Colive and Selina Colive Flex packages offer flat rate pricing for predictable coliving resources like a guest room, coworking amenities, and wellness activities. There is no difference in the amenities included in both of them.

You’ll have the same Colive experience during your stay no matter which Colive package you reserve with. 

Both packages also require a minimum 30 days commitment at the time of booking and both can be used at any Selina around the globe. 

The Selina CoLive packages are about more than room, work, and wellenss. They include things like predictability, flexibility, and the ability to explore the world. 

It is in these intangible areas areas that we see the differences between Colive and Colive Flex. 

Difference 1: Number of Minimum Consecutive Days

The first difference between the packages is how many of your package dates must be consecutive. 

Both packages require a minimum purchase of 30 days when you reserve and pay.

Colive residents must stay all 30 days consecutively at Selina locations. CoLive Flex holders, however only have a minimum of 3 consecutive nights.

After the three night minimum per location, a Colive Flex resident can pause their package and resume it again later. Colive Flex residents have up to 6 months to use their 30 days.

Colive residents; however, must use their entire package consecutively. They cannot pause the package or take any breaks. They must use all 30 days in 30 days of their first night.

Example Use for Consecutive Days

You want to explore the stunning hills and history of Medellin, Colombia and then visit Tayrona National Park near Santa Marta, Colombia.

Medellin, Colombia has a wonderful Selina location, one of my favorite, but Santa Marta does not have a Selina location nearby.

A Colive Flex resident could stay the minimum three nights at Selina Medellin and then pause their package while they visit Santa Marta staying at any lodging they want. 

A Colive resident on the regular package; however, would either need to stay at the Selina Medellin for 30 consecutive days, or explore other Selina locations first, like the Selina Cartagena in Colombia, to cover their consecutive 30 days before heading to Santa Marta. 

Colive Flex holders can pause their package after a minimum 3 night stay. Colive holders must use their 30 days consecutively. 

Selina CoLive and Colive Flex Guidelines on Consecutive Days

The rules for Colive Flex holders is that each Selina stay must be a minimum of 3 nights, and they have six months to use their entire package.

So as long as you stay a minimum 3 nights at any Selina location you use your package at, you can start and pause your CoLive Flex package as often as you want till either you exhaust all the days in your package or you hit the 6 months time limit.

After the 6 months runs out, a Colive Flex holder forfeits any remaining days. There are no refunds. 

Standards CoLive residents must use their minimum 30 days consecutively beginning on the first day of their reservation.

So this first difference between Colive and Colive Flex is the minimum consecutive days required for your stay and the ability to pause and restart your package. 

Difference 2: Number of Locations You can Visit

The second difference between the Colive and Colive Flex packages is how many locations you can stay at during your package. 

Standard Colive residents can stay at up to three Selina locations in their 30 day minimum stay; where Colive Flex residents can stay at up to ten Selina locations in their 30 days.

Depending on your plans and sense for adventure, this difference could be important. 

Example Use for Number of Locations

Let’s say you want to explore the Yucatán peninsula where there are five Selina locations: two in Cancun, one in Isla Mujeres, one in Playa del Carmen, and then the Tulum beach location. 

If you book the standard Colive package, that’s 30 consecutive days at up to three locations. You can visit any three of the locations during your 30 days. You can visit any 3 of the 5 Yucatan locations in your 30 days.

But if you wanted to change locations each weekend to see all the different beaches in one month- after all each of these Selina locations is only 15- 40 minutes away from each other- that’s four different locations in a 30 day period. 

Only the Colive Flex package permits more than 3 locations so you’d want to book the Colive Flex package to do your beach hopping trip.

Even if your 30 days are consecutive at the 5 Selina locations, you are visiting more than 3 in the 30 days window. Visiting more than 3 Selina locations in a 30 day window is a flexibility benefit reserved only for the CoLive Flex package.

Selina CoLive and Clolive Flex Guidelines on Number of Locations

The rules for location hopping are partially the same and partially different for Colive and Colive Flex packages. With both packages, you must stay a minimum 3 nights at any Selina location visited.

The difference is in how many locations you can visit.

With the standard Colive package, you can allocate as many of your package days you want at up to 3 locations.

Three nights is just the minimum; you can always stay longer at any location and your stays do not need to be the same amount of time. 

You could spend your first three nights in one location, then spend the next three nights in another location. Then the remainder of your Colive package must be spent at your third location.

You could also spend a week on one location, ten days at another, and the remains 13 days at the third location. You could also spend all 30 days at one location.

As long as your 30 days are consecutive and you stay at 1-3 Selina locations in that timeframe, Selina CoLive residents have all the flexibility built in.

Compare to a Colive Flex package where you can spend three nights at one location, three nights at another, and keep changing your location every three nights until all your Colive Flex days have been used. 

Like the CoLive package, three days is the minimum. You can stay at any location longer and the locations do not have to have the same amount of time allocated.

You can also start and stop your package since CoLive Flex days do not have to be consecutive.

Thats the second difference between these two Colive options. The number of locations you can visit during the term of your package is different.

Colive can visit up to 3 locations. Colive Flex can visit up to 10. 

Difference 3: Price

Colive Flex is a great option for digital nomads and remote workers looking to have flexibility of location and how often they stay at Selina locations.

This added flexibility; however, comes at a price. The price difference between a Colive and Colive Flex package varies by region, season, and room type.

Here are the Colive Flex rates for 2023:

When to get Colive vs Colive Flex

In addition to having flexibility, there are times when using Colive Flex can save you money. 

Colive Flex îs great if you don’t have a crystal ball into your future but want the price, value and reliability of a Colive package. 

This may come up when there is fluctuation in market prices, like maybe at a more expensive location, or you are booking last minute.

Example of When Colive Flex Saved Me Money:

I was in Sao Paulo Brazil at an Air Bnb for a quick trip, but I loved the city more than I expected and wanted to extend. The Selina in Vila Madalena seemed awesome. I had visited the Vila Madalena coworking space and wanted to spend more time there.

But there was also a chance I’d have to return to the U.S. for a work thing in the next 2-3 weeks. I didn’t know and needed to stay flexible by not booking more than a week at a time.

I was booking last minute, the costs of the daily or weekly Cowork pass at the Selina + the Air Bnb exceeded my budget, and I couldn’t commit to 30 days.

So I looked online at last minute booking rates of the Selina. Two weeks at the Selina was almost the same price as a month of CoLive because I was booking so late, and I’d have to buy a daily cowork pass on top of it.

Same with my Air BnB and I had grown restless in its economical space. There was no budget friendly way to do this.

This is when the CoLive Flex package saved me money.

With the Colive package I knew I’d have all my work resources included as well as wellness sessions and the Colive discount. I could reserve my first two weeks of the Colive Flex package now and then have the rest of my package for future use. 

I didn’t know when or where I’d use the rest of the CoLive Flex packages, but I’d have 6 months to figure it out.

At the price, it was a no brainier! Surely, Id stay at a Selina again in the next 6 months. Even if I didn’t I was still saving money compared to the market prices I was finding online because the Coworking pass would be included.

So even using part of a Colive Flex package I was able to save myself time and money, and get added benefits I wouldn’t have had as a regular Selina guest. 

Summary of CoLive vs Colive Flex Packages

What’s the difference between Colive and Colive Flex? Well, the flexibility!

Colive residents stay a minimum 30 consecutive nights at Selina properties and can spread their consecutive stay at up to 3 different locations. 

Colive Flex residents, get more flexibility in that they can start and pause their 30 day Colive package in any intervals during a six month period so long as they stay a minimum of three nights at each location. Colive Flex resident can also stay at up 10 locations during their package.

Depending on your travel plans, location, and predicability, the CoLive package is the best way to save money.

Colive residents have the added confidence that when they need more flexibility, the can still get all the amazing benefits of a CoLive package, including lower predictable prices, with the CoLive Flex option.

Do You Think It’s Worth It?

What to you think is the best use of the Colive vs Colive Flex options? When do you use Colive vs Colive Flex? Share your thoughts and questions in the comments below.

And don’t forget, Selina can change their Colive programs at any time. So be sure to confirm before booking.

This has been Acacia for Adventure on the Side- Can’t wait to see you around the world soon! Have a great day!