Our Freedom Years

Financial independence, early retirement & slow travel

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  • Destinations
    • Europe
      • Albania
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      • Czech Republic
      • Greece
      • Hungary
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      • Malta
      • Poland
      • Portugal
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    • Middle East
      • Turkey
    • North America
      • Canada
      • Mexico
    • South America
      • Colombia
      • Ecuador
      • Peru
    • Asia
      • Thailand
  • About Us
  • Welcome
  • Binge!
  • Popular
    • What’s New
    • Plan for Travel
    • Airbnb Living
    • Real Costs
    • Travel with Dogs
  • Destinations
    • Europe
      • Albania
      • Austria
      • Croatia
      • Czech Republic
      • Greece
      • Hungary
      • Italy
      • Malta
      • Poland
      • Portugal
      • Romania
      • Serbia
      • Slovakia
      • Spain
      • Ukraine
      • United Kingdom
    • Middle East
      • Turkey
    • North America
      • Canada
      • Mexico
    • South America
      • Colombia
      • Ecuador
      • Peru
    • Asia
      • Thailand
  • About Us
  • Canada

    How Much is the Cost Of Living In Toronto?

    July 2, 2020 /

    Upon arriving in Toronto, we had two weeks of quarantine and since then we’ve been sheltering in place. So how did that affect our cost of living this past month?

    read more
    Our Freedom Years 14 Comments

    You May Also Like

    The 5 Worst Airbnbs We’ve Ever Stayed in (and How to Avoid Them) 

    February 27, 2022

    Why We Can’t Wait To Get Back To Europe

    June 27, 2021
    Climbing a mountain in Albania

    It’s Official: We’ve Given Up On Travel — For Now

    February 4, 2024
  • Italy

    Nomad Life Turned Upside Down When COVID-19 Hit

    June 29, 2020 /

    We were in the midst of enjoying February in beautiful Florence when we first heard rumblings of a virus that was spreading quickly in northern Italy.

    read more
    Our Freedom Years 8 Comments

    You May Also Like

    The 5 Worst Airbnbs We’ve Ever Stayed in (and How to Avoid Them) 

    February 27, 2022

    Adventure of a Lifetime Quickly Goes Off the Rails

    July 7, 2024

    7 European Destinations that Won’t Break the Bank

    January 2, 2022
  • Save and Invest

    How To Track Spending and Budget

    June 25, 2020 /

    One of the secrets to building wealth is simply to know where your money is going. We track every dollar we spend and, in the year before we retired, we were able to save 70% of our after-tax income.

    read more
    Our Freedom Years 4 Comments

    You May Also Like

    How We Invest in the Stock Market for Financial Independence

    June 18, 2020
    How To Save More Than Half Of Your Income For Early Retirement

    How To Save More Than Half Of Your Income For Early Retirement

    April 30, 2020

    What Is Fixed Income Investing?

    July 16, 2020
  • Save and Invest

    How We Invest in the Stock Market for Financial Independence

    June 18, 2020 /

    We recently provided the briefest of overviews to our investment strategy as part of a look at our risk management approach. No surprise: our video garnered a lot of questions about our exact investment strategy.

    read more
    Our Freedom Years 5 Comments

    You May Also Like

    What Is Fixed Income Investing?

    July 16, 2020

    How To Track Spending and Budget

    June 25, 2020
    How To Become Financially Independent In Your 40s Or Earlier

    How To Become Financially Independent In Your 40s Or Earlier

    March 18, 2020
  • Real Costs

    How To Budget For Year Of Slow Travel

    June 11, 2020 /

    It's the number one question we receive from our audience: How much does our life of full-time travel cost?

    read more
    Our Freedom Years 3 Comments

    You May Also Like

    Why Mexico City Blew Our Minds (and Our Budget)

    August 15, 2022

    How Much for a Month in Albania’s Biggest City?

    October 31, 2021

    Novi Sad Offered the Authentic Serbia That We’ve Been Dreaming of

    September 26, 2021
  • Retire Early

    How to Introduce Your Partner To Financial Independence

    June 4, 2020 /

    It could be the best conversation that you ever have with your partner. Or it could be the conversation that launches a thousand fights.

    read more
    Our Freedom Years 1 Comment

    You May Also Like

    Biggest Financial Mistakes When Trying to Retire Early

    September 3, 2020

    Working Overseas Could be Your Ticket to Early Retirement

    August 29, 2021

    How Much Do I Need To Retire Early And Travel?

    March 6, 2020
  • Plan for Travel

    Our Bucket List for Slow Travel

    May 28, 2020 /

    With planes grounded worldwide and borders closed, what better time to share our bucket list for our future travels?

    read more
    Our Freedom Years 2 Comments

    You May Also Like

    What Not to Pack for a Year of Travel

    May 23, 2021

    Do You Have to be a Minimalist to Travel Full Time?

    February 14, 2021

    The Truth About Full-Time Travel (After Three Years on the Road)

    October 16, 2022
  • Retire Early

    Staying Motivated To Retire Early

    May 21, 2020 /

    It’s one thing to decide on the goal of becoming financially independent . It’s quite another to get through the long years of earning, saving and investing to achieve your goal.

    read more
    Our Freedom Years 0 Comments

    You May Also Like

    What We Got Right to Retire Early

    August 27, 2020
    How To Save More Than Half Of Your Income For Early Retirement

    How To Save More Than Half Of Your Income For Early Retirement

    April 30, 2020

    How We Can Afford to Travel Full Time (and It’s Not By Being Digital Nomads)

    July 11, 2021
  • How To Manage Risk In Early Retirement
    Real Life in Retirement,  Retire Early

    How To Manage Risk In Early Retirement

    May 14, 2020 /

    We've gone and done the one thing that every retiree fears. We retired just months before a significant market crash with a recession now looming on the horizon.

    read more
    Our Freedom Years 5 Comments

    You May Also Like

    Travel During COVID, Money, & Nomad Life Q&A

    March 21, 2021

    What’s It Like To Retire In My 30s?

    November 22, 2020

    Money, Travel, Relationship + More

    October 8, 2020
  • How Expensive Is Fethiye?
    Real Costs,  Turkey

    How Expensive Is Fethiye?

    May 9, 2020 /

    From Istanbul we headed further south to the Turquoise Coast for sunshine, hiking and taking tea with the locals along the Mediterranean coastline.

    read more
    Our Freedom Years 12 Comments

    You May Also Like

    How Much for a Month of Luxury on the Albanian Riviera?

    December 12, 2021

    How to Travel the World on Any Budget

    March 7, 2021

    How Full-time Travel Keeps Our Costs Low

    October 15, 2020
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ourfreedomyears

Stephanie & Gillian
🌎 Traveled the world with our dogs
❤️ Now making a home in Ontario
⬇️ Watch our latest video

We’re officially closing out our winter series fro We’re officially closing out our winter series from the Canary Islands with a final installment from Tenerife, the largest and most popular island.

We spent a month based in the very special neighbourhood of Punta Brava, enjoying what I can only describe as one of the best views that we’ve ever had in any Airbnb. Add to that historic towns, a few menu del dias, and some excellent coastal hiking, and it was a perfect ending to a winter of island hopping and slow exploration.  

Our latest video drops this Sunday and it’s got all the highlights from Tenerife. Let’s just say that the bar has officially been raised for future winter getaways.
Big views, quiet trails, and two very happy hiking Big views, quiet trails, and two very happy hiking dogs. 🐾

Our full-length La Gomera video is now live — tap the link in our bio to watch.
While we were hopping our way through the Canary I While we were hopping our way through the Canary Islands this winter, we couldn’t resist a side trip to La Gomera. This is one of the smallest islands of the archipelago and feels much like a hidden gem. There are just a handful of villages across the island; the volcanic mountains and misty forests are the real draw and the reason that hikers make the journey here. 

After five days of hiking, we’re officially adding La Gomera to our list of best winter hiking destinations. It offers an excellent trail system, decent lodgings, lots of sunshine, and enough challenging ascents to make it a proper workout. 

Of course, we had to capture our journey across La Gomera on video. If you’re ready for sweeping coastal views (plus the sight of two adorable dogs making their way along the trail), our La Gomera adventure goes live this Sunday.
After a month in Gran Canaria, a week hiking the w After a month in Gran Canaria, a week hiking the wild landscapes of La Gomera, and another sun-filled month in Tenerife, we’re soaking in our final days in the Canary Islands. 

In just a few days, we’ll be making the long journey back to snowy Ontario.  Which is why we’re savoring every last moment of the incredible ocean view from our Airbnb in Puerto de la Cruz, where we fall asleep to the sound of waves every night.

Curious about what the Canary Islands are like as a winter destination? Our latest YouTube video is live — just tap the link in our profile. And more island adventures are coming your way soon!
What makes a great winter base? For us: beautifu What makes a great winter base? 

For us: beautiful neighborhoods, easy hiking, warm days… and space to settle into a routine.

Did the Canary Islands just become our go-to winter destination?

Watch the full video — just click on the link in our profile.
For years, the Canary Islands sat on our “maybe so For years, the Canary Islands sat on our “maybe someday” list. They never quite beat out places like Mexico or Portugal when winter planning season rolled around. Now we’re wondering why we waited so long.

After a month in Gran Canaria, we’ve had some surprising takeaways about what really makes a place work as a winter base.

Our full YouTube video drops this Sunday. Stay tuned.
When we look back on 2025, it’s hard to believe ho When we look back on 2025, it’s hard to believe how much we packed into one year. 

🇲🇽 slow travel in Mexico

🥾 100+ miles on the Cotswold Way,

🐕 time inside a 400-dog shelter

🇬🇪 an unexpected detour through Georgia

…and a few big reflections on life after financial independence.

It was a year of travel, volunteering, and learning (again) that freedom looks different in every season.

We’ve wrapped it all up — plus a new podcast conversation with @OurFamilyInvests about what comes after the career ladder — in our January newsletter.

📬 Read the full story — just click on the link in our profile.
Living in Ontario’s snow belt means one thing: we Living in Ontario’s snow belt means one thing: we must escape winter. We’ve been hit with multiple snowstorms since the beginning of November and there are still months of snow and ice ahead of us. 

As much as we love seeing our little village blanketed in white, a few weeks of winter is enough to satisfy for the year. 

After a few misfires during our years of full-time travel (rainstorms in Florence, a chilly apartment in Malta, an unseasonable cold front in Izmir), we finally know exactly what we’re looking for in a winter base.

For the winter of 2026, our wishlist got very specific:

☀️ warm weather
🥗 great food
🏋🏽‍♀️ a decent gym
🐶 stylish Airbnbs that also happen to be pet-friendly
🌳 easy access to nature
✨ enough variety to keep us entertained for three full months

We compared many wildly different options—Taiwan, Argentina, and Cyprus to name just a few—and yes, there was a spreadsheet and a scoring system involved.

So where did we finally choose for winter 2026? We’re sharing the full story (and the big reveal) in this month’s newsletter.

👉 Read now by clicking on the link in our profile.
A final glimpse of our time in Georgia — medieval A final glimpse of our time in Georgia — medieval villages in Svaneti, misty mountain views, and a whirlwind wander through Kutaisi. 

Don’t miss the full adventure on YouTube, including our unforgettable stay at @baias_wine — complete with warm Georgian hospitality, a feast of traditional dishes, and more wine than we could drink in a month. 

Just click on the link in our profile to watch now.
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