Freely

23/10/2024

If you love hiking, glacial lakes and exceptional hospitality, then put Northern Tajikistan on your radar, writes our friend Matt Cheok 🇹🇯 https://www.freely.me/au/travel-stories/hiking-in-northern-tajikistan

22/10/2024

We all know K-beauty – but have you heard of haenyo, the women who've dived for molluscs off Korea's Jeju Island for centuries? 🦪 The haenyo are just one of the reasons Freely writer Matt Cheok recommends a trip to South Korea: https://www.freely.me/au/travel-stories/seven-reasons-to-visit-korea-in-2025

18/10/2024

Wow 😍 SURFAID has officially wrapped up the Make A Wave Challenge 2024 and we are just blown away by the result: $661,593 raised!

That’s enough for SURFAID to bring their full health, water and nutrition program to over 13 remote communities in the places we love to surf.

Your donations to the challenge will help:
⁠
🏥 Fund healthcare training and support for women and their families
🚰 Establish clean water facilities ⁠
👶🏽 Combat malnutrition in children under five

Thank you SURFAID for⁠ the opportunity to be part of this amazing campaign – and thank you to the Z Zurich Foundation for amplifying our impact by matching the first $100 raised by Australian fundraisers and all the funds raised by Team Freely.

Until next year 🏄‍♀️

17/10/2024

This week Freely and Cover-More Travel Insurance spent a day helping out at the The Rev Bill Crews Foundation in Ashfield.

For over 30 years, Rev. Bill Crews and the team have been supporting people experiencing homelessness and vulnerability through food provision, social welfare and education, and have created a space in Ashfield where members of the community can lend a hand.

We had a great day assembling food packages and assisting in the all-welcome community BBQ by serving food, helping on the floor and having a chat and a laugh with the community members.

Thank you to the team at the The Rev Bill Crews Foundation for the opportunity – we’ll be back ❤️

30/09/2024

Today was the final day of 's Challenge – and with over $625,000 raised for SurfAid's healthcare and clean water programs in remote Indonesia and the Pacific, what a way to celebrate!

Yesterday, we met up with the SURFAID crew, Surfie Chicks Eastern Suburbs and the local surf community at the Wanda Surf Life Saving Club in Cronulla for a group surf and to celebrate the achievements of this year's Challenge 🏄‍♀️

Donate to Team Freely here 👉 https://makeawave.co/t/team-freely

27/09/2024

Same-sex marriage hasn't been legalised in Japan, yet Tokyo is home to the world's largest concentration of gay bars 🌈 Here's mini-tour of the gay district, Ni-chome, Shinjuku Ward.

Tokyo is home to the world's largest concentration of gay bars. This is where to find a few of them.

13/09/2024

We’re huge fans of the crew at We Are Explorers – so it was such a pleasure to celebrate their 10-year anniversary and the winners of their inaugural MOMENTS storytelling competition at Young Henrys brewery in Newtown last night.

At Freely, we love quality travel stories, so it was a no-brainer for us to jump onboard as a sponsor for the MOMENTS Travel Writing category – but we were still so blown away by the high calibre of stories that came through.

To every writer who submitted, we applaud you: we learnt, laughed and lived your adventures vicariously through your words.

An enormous congratulations to the winner of the Freely Travel Writing category: Patrick Boxall with his story, ‘Don’t tell me how to Camino’. An entertaining yet considered story that hooked us from start to finish. (Read here: https://bit.ly/3XGFjNL)

Another huge congratulations to the talented Freely Travel Writing runners-up and the rest of the MOMENTS winners in the categories:

Dometic Adventure Photo
Up - Easy Money Phone Photo
G Adventures Video
Nature Photo brought you by charity partner Bush Heritage Australia

Here’s to travel, adventure and the moments enjoyed along the way 🌏

10/09/2024

This week SURFAID's Challenge hit a huge milestone: $400,000! Enough to deliver SurfAid's clean water, healthcare and nutrition program to eight remote villages.

We're incredibly proud to have partnered with SURFAID this year by rewarding Australian fundraisers who reach $100 with a limited-edition rashie and a matched $100 donation by the Z Zurich Foundation.

Get involved today: https://makeawave.co/

02/09/2024

Yesterday marked the beginning of SURFAID's annual Challenge and our team were stoked to join the celebratory paddle-out at Bondi Beach.

We're really proud to be part of this campaign and, in a humble way, contribute to the positive impact that SURFAID co-creates with remote surf communities in Indonesia and the Pacific.

Team Freely is on a mission to SMASH our $20,000 fundraising target with help from the wonderful Z Zurich Foundation 👉 Donate to our team today 🏄‍♀️🏄‍♂️ https://makeawave.co/t/team-freely

29/08/2024

There are clues – can you guess where? 👀

14/08/2024

Picture this: You just arrived in the south of France, but the area is so jam-packed with beauty, you don't know where to start – until you read our 7-day itinerary by Freely writer Catherine Bouris 🥐

Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur in the south of France is so packed with beauty, it's hard to know where to start – until now. Subscribe for more travel stories.

13/08/2024

The Freely guide to summer in Slovenia is now live 👀 With its forests, vineyards and hip cities, Slovenia in the summer is like a dreamy oil painting 🏰🌈

Exploring here feels like stepping into a vibrant painting. Subscribe for more articles like this.

11/07/2024

This summer in Europe, we’re all about bathing in nature 😎👙 Here are six gorgeous spots to enjoy a dip on your next Euro-trip.

Forget pools: this summer in Europe, we’re bathing in nature. Here are some of our favourite wild places to swim in Europe. Subscribe for more articles like this.

03/07/2024

Freelies, join us and SURFAID for the Make A Wave Challenge this September! 🏄‍♀️👉 https://makeawave.co/

We’re so excited to have partnered with SurfAid for the Challenge 2024, which invites us to surf or get active every day in September to fundraise for SurfAid’s work with remote communities in Indonesia and the Pacific.

👏 And this year 👏 folks who raise $100 will receive an exclusive Make A Wave x Freely rashie – and your first $100 will be matched by the Z Zurich Foundation!

27/06/2024

Travelling to Europe soon? Our friend Matt Cheok says it’s time to put Montenegro on your radar – from the mountains of Durmitor National Park to the stunning Bay of Kotor. 📸 by Cheokolate - Travel Blog 👉 Get 10% off your Freely policy: https://www.freely.me/au

26/06/2024

Summer in Greece is honey-drizzled saganaki, dancing to the bouzouki and diving off wooden boats into turquoise water. This is the guide you need to enjoy it all without the crowds 🏛️

Greece in the summertime is a postcard for that sweet Mediterranean lifestyle – and this is the one guide you need to enjoy it all.

24/06/2024

This shot of the Rila Lakes in Bulgaria shows just why we’re so into the Balkans right now. You can get to the Rila National Park from the capital of Sofia in about two hours – and the hike to see all seven sparkling lakes can be polished off in a day 🥾

📸 Luka René Tomislav

19/06/2024

Fancy having red wine sprayed in your face at 7am? Then La Batalla de Vino in La Rioja, Spain, is the summer festival for you 🍷🇪🇸

Celebrated on the Feast of St. Peter at the end of June in Northern Spain, wine-lovers drench each other in red wine from water pistols atop a mountain, creating an unforgettable experience amidst the picturesque backdrop of the Spanish wine country.

📸 Alfonso Bermejo Garcia