About Us
“In 2016, we met while working at a Summer Camp in New York. Since then we have travelled across the globe together, avoiding a traditional career-oriented lifestyle. We want to help, and inspire, you to do the same.”
Who we are
Orla Cullen
28 year old from Belfast, Northern Ireland
Painting enthusiast
Obsessed with all things musicals and once broke my arm whilst at a roller-disco!
My childhood holidays were spent touring every corner of Ireland with weeks at the beach, freezing our toes in the Irish Sea. It wasn’t until an opportunity arose in my third year of university, to go on a 2 week, white-water kayaking trip in Slovenia, where my desire for adventure truly took a hold of me.
I soon realised that there was more than one, conventional way to be happy. In fact, there were many and travelling was a big one!
Ben Lloyd
28 year old from Lincolnshire, England
5’5” on a good day
Football (Soccer) and Rugby fanatic
I was very fortunate as a child, Lincolnshire doesn’t offer much in terms of diversity and culture, but thankfully my parents chose to save every penny so that my brothers and I could see the world.
We went on family holidays to see the Pyramids in Egypt, cruise down the river Kwai in Thailand, and see incredible wildlife on safari in Kenya.
This passion for travelling has remained with me throughout my adult life. I have been lucky to visit many amazing places, and now is the time to share some of the experience I have gained and help you along on your next journey.
Our Journey
We met in 2016 at Timber Lake West - the best summer camp to work at
We both had a passion for travelling and exploration. Ben had spent a year volunteering in New Zealand while Orla had just returned from a 2-week kayaking road-trip to Slovenia. It was time to have some adventures together.
Copenhagen, Havana and Rome enhanced the travel bug before we decided to save up to travel full-time. 6 months working in a mental health hospital back at home gave us the funds to venture to camp for one more summer.
A 6-week Backpacking adventure through South America was our reward for the demanding work, though unfortunately we were unable to avoid making backpacking mistakes in Bolivia - ending up in hospital wasn’t quite how we’d envisaged our trip going.
Having spent a wonderful 48-hours in Rio De Janeiro, we flew North, settling in Lake Louise for a Ski Season in Canada.
2021 was the year of unexpected travel for us - 2 weeks in Mexico City was followed by yet another brilliant summer in our second home at Timber Lake West. Discovering all the best things to see in Gozo (Malta) and embarking on a 1-week road-trip around Jordan were particularly memorable highlights - with mini breaks to Lisbon and a 4-day Istanbul trip rounding out the year.
Early in 2022, we embarked on one of our most memorable adventures to date - driving all the way from Belfast to Athens in our converted LDV Camper Van. 7000+ miles, 77 days and 18 countries later, we made it home again.
Later in the year, we ventured around South Korea for 1-month, before quick stops throughout South East Asia. 2023 brought us to Central America - with a G Adventures trip from Guatemala to Costa Rica in August that included a number of memorable Volcano hikes and adventures!
Travel has always been a passion of ours and so we thought we’d share some travel tips for couples that we’ve learned along the way so far.
Hopefully we can share some of those happy moments, along with a few less insta-worthy ones, to inspire you travel to new places and see the world together.
Practical Advice & Tips.
We’ve been there, done it and seen it. We are here to offer you anecdotal advice on how to thrive together on the road. From overcoming little squabbles and missed trains, to surviving stays in hostel dorms as a couple. Our advice will hopefully help you to get the most from your future travels.
Travel Guides.
Not set on where you’re going to travel to this year? In a post-pandemic world, we hope our mini travel guides can inspire you to travel to new destinations, or revisit old ones with a new purpose. From the South American Andes to the Canadian Rockies, from New York City to New Zealand. We have you covered.
Brief Selection of our Travel Highlights
Backpacking around South America
Ski season in Lake Louise, Alberta, Canada
Combined 15 years experience working at Timber Lake West Summer Camp
Kayaking trip in Slovenia
1-week road-trip around Jordan
Visiting the Korean DMZ during our East Asian Backpacking adventure
Volunteering in New Zealand and Zambia
Multiple budget weekend excursions around Europe (Copenhagen; Istanbul; Lisbon; Rome etc.)
Surviving hospitalisations in Bolivia and Thailand
Driving 7000+ miles from Belfast - Athens in our converted Camper Van
3-week Gadventures tour through Central America
