Our Freedom Years

Financial independence, early retirement & slow travel

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    • Europe
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    • North America
      • Canada
      • Mexico
    • South America
      • Colombia
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    • 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
  • Mexico,  United Kingdom,  What's New

    It’s England’s Most Beautiful Hike – and We Got it on Video

    June 1, 2025 /

    We’re back from our 10-day springtime hike in England and here’s the good news: Contrary to expectations, it did not rain every single day of the hike.

    read more
    Our Freedom Years 0 Comments

    You May Also Like

    The Picture-Perfect Town of San Miguel de Allende Doesn’t Come Cheap

    July 17, 2022

    Why Mexico City Blew Our Minds (and Our Budget)

    August 15, 2022
    Funchal Madeira

    Lisbon in 2023 was Even More Crowded Than We Expected

    December 3, 2023
  • Asia,  Thailand

    The Perfect Itinerary for an Epic Adventure in Thailand

    April 7, 2025 /

    After visiting almost every country in Southeast Asia, we can easily say that Thailand was our favourite. We’d each been there over a dozen times and felt confident about coming up with the perfect itinerary.

    read more
    Our Freedom Years 4 Comments
  • Machu Picchu
    Peru,  Real Costs

    We had a Once-in-a-Lifetime Visit to Machu Picchu (Now We Know What it’s Really Like )

    May 5, 2024 /

    I’ve wanted to visit Machu Picchu for many years but I hadn’t anticipated what it’s like to visit a wildly popular world heritage site with tourism on the rise. Whoops.

    read more
    Our Freedom Years 4 Comments

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    Gillian cross-country skiing in the countryside

    We Planned Another Exciting Trip to Peru – and This Time We’re Actually Going

    March 3, 2024
    Stephanie with Jasper and Huxley

    After Four Years of Retirement, I Have a New Job – Sort of

    May 5, 2024
    Stephanie and Gillian at home

    Finally, the Big Reveal of our New Home

    April 7, 2024
  • Portugal

    5 Tips for Experiencing Beautiful Lisbon Without the Crowds

    February 25, 2024 /

    We came to Lisbon to see a destination famous for architecture, scenic lookouts and historic trams still running across town. What we weren’t expecting was the huge number of other tourists.

    read more
    Our Freedom Years 2 Comments

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    The Very Last Chapter in our Four-Year, Around-the-World Adventure 

    October 6, 2024
    Gillian cross-country skiing in the countryside

    We Planned Another Exciting Trip to Peru – and This Time We’re Actually Going

    March 3, 2024
    Alfama, Lisbon, Portugal

    5 Important Lessons that We’ve Learned About Full-Time Travel

    November 5, 2023
  • Plan for Travel

    5 Crucial Lessons About Full-Time Travel That You Need to Know

    November 5, 2023 /

    These are the topics that rarely get discussed in blogs or vlogs but are absolutely essential for a life on the road.

    read more
    Our Freedom Years 6 Comments

    You May Also Like

    Money, Travel, Relationship + More

    October 8, 2020
    Lessons From Long-Term Travel

    Lessons From Long-Term Travel

    April 2, 2020

    The Truth About Life On The Road

    June 20, 2021
  • Plan for Travel,  Travel Logistics

    All the Practical Details that You Need to Know About Full-Time Travel

    August 27, 2023 /

    All those pesky administrative details that life demands can take a lot of research to figure out. 

    read more
    Our Freedom Years 4 Comments

    You May Also Like

    5 Crucial Lessons About Full-Time Travel That You Need to Know

    November 5, 2023

    Our Bucket List for Slow Travel

    May 28, 2020
    Lessons From Long-Term Travel

    Lessons From Long-Term Travel

    April 2, 2020
  • Travel with Dogs

    The Ultimate Guide to Traveling with a Dog

    May 7, 2023 /

    Wherever we travel with our two toy poodles, other tourists come up to us in amazement and ask if it’s really difficult to travel with our dogs. 

    read more
    Our Freedom Years 8 Comments

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    We Thought We’d Have to Leave Our Dogs Behind

    May 30, 2021

    How to Take an International Flight with a Dog in Cabin

    February 27, 2020
    Long Term Travel with a Dog

    Long-Term Travel With A Dog

    April 9, 2020
  • Airbnb Living,  Real Costs

    What the Full-Time Airbnb Lifestyle Really Costs 

    February 26, 2023 /

    There’s no end of information available about how to save money while traveling. But none of the usual advice was quite right for us.

    read more
    Our Freedom Years 4 Comments

    You May Also Like

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

    February 27, 2022

    Living in Airbnbs Full Time isn’t Easy

    June 6, 2021

    How to Score the Airbnb of Your Dreams Every Time

    February 28, 2021
  • Plan for Travel

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

    October 16, 2022 /

    It’s hard to believe but we’ve been traveling full time for three whole years. That’s a lot of time to have passed since we quit our jobs and hit the road.

    read more
    Our Freedom Years 2 Comments

    You May Also Like

    All the Practical Details that You Need to Know About Full-Time Travel

    August 27, 2023
    Lessons From Long-Term Travel

    Lessons From Long-Term Travel

    April 2, 2020

    The Ultimate Packing Guide for a Trip Around the World

    July 25, 2021
  • Real Costs

    How Much it Really Costs to Travel Full Time

    May 9, 2022 /

    We haven’t been honest about how much travel costs. If you’re serious about travelling, there are a slew of other costs you need to know about.

    read more
    Our Freedom Years 4 Comments

    You May Also Like

    How Much Does It Cost To Stay In Krakow For Two Weeks

    How Much Does It Cost To Stay In Krakow For Two Weeks

    April 4, 2020

    Is Cuenca Really as Affordable as its Reputation?

    December 25, 2022

    How to Travel the World Without Blowing Your Budget

    January 17, 2021
 Older Posts

ourfreedomyears

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

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.
There were plenty of misadventures to go round, bu There were plenty of misadventures to go round, but we still managed to have an incredible time on our first trip to the country of Georgia. Watch the full-length video by clicking on the link in our profile.
It's part two of our trip to Georgia, and this is It's part two of our trip to Georgia, and this is where all our carefully-made plans started to fall apart. 

The misadventures began when our easy 45-minute flight to the mountains was replaced with a 10-hour odyssey by train and mini-van. However, despite all ups and downs of the trip, we still managed to enjoy the highlights of western Georgia, including the medieval villages of the Svaneti region and a ridiculously huge feast at a winery.  

You can catch the full adventure in a new video going live this Sunday. See you then!
The final round of shots from our time in Tbilisi. The final round of shots from our time in Tbilisi. We just couldn't get enough of all those atmospheric mansions and apartment buildings as we wandered the neighbourhoods. 

If you haven't seen our video yet, it's a whirlwind sampler of Tbilisi highlights from our first day on the ground. You can check it out by clicking on the link in our profile.
It's our first full day in Tbilisi, and we're brin It's our first full day in Tbilisi, and we're bringing you along for the ride. Check out the full video on YouTube -- just click on the link in our profile to watch now.
We're back from our trip to the country of Georgia We're back from our trip to the country of Georgia, and what an adventure it was. This trip was exciting and interesting but also demanding in all kinds of unexpected ways. 

We're excited to share the entire journey with you, starting with a new video this Sunday. We're bringing you along for our first day in Tbilisi, including powering through some of the major sights, tucking into classic Georgian dishes, and a look at a truly spectacular Airbnb. 

See you then!
The final batch of photos from our beautiful 10-da The final batch of photos from our beautiful 10-day hike along the Cotswolds Way. This is a hike we'd recommend for anyone who wants to start off with a hearty English breakfast and then spend the day passing through some truly lovely countryside. The adorable lambs and spring blossoms are just a bonus. 

#cotswoldway #cotswolds
We spent 10 glorious days hiking along the Cotswol We spent 10 glorious days hiking along the Cotswolds Way in England.  To watch the full video, click on the link in our profile. 

#cotswoldway  #cotswolds
We’re back from our 10-day springtime hike in Engl We’re back from our 10-day springtime hike in England, and here’s the good news: Contrary to expectations, it did not rain every single day of the hike. 

Here’s the even better news: the Cotswolds is an absolutely beautiful corner of England, filled with quaint villages, rolling hills, and frolicking lambs (honestly, they really do frolic). It truly is a storybook landscape.

And the best news of all: You can see it all for yourself in our latest YouTube video. That’s right, after a very lengthy hiatus from YouTube, we finally have a new video to share with you. 

We knew going into the Cotswold Way that it would be particularly scenic and made sure to bring along our video equipment. The end product is a fun round up of the highs and lows of the Cotswold Way (including the costs, of course). And it’s coming your way this Sunday.
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