It's always a good time to travel
The beautiful landscapes of Ireland , dominated by the green of the fields, the brown of the cliffs and the intense blue of the Atlantic , witnessed the beginning of this adventure. It all started in the spectacular county kerry , where Peter Mangan she decided to rent his country house to visitors from other countries.
But it was his father , now retired, who was in charge of receiving the guests, while Peter was away working at a university in Dublin . when he arrived people your age to spend a few days in his house, the connection was such that Owen went out with them for the village pubs some night, they played golf together and he was in charge of being his tour guide, sharing his life and making them feel like authentic locals.
Dingle Peninsula, County Kerry, Ireland
host-guest relationships went on to become true friendships , so Peter decided to go one step further and offer adults from all over the world the opportunity to live this experience. Thus was born in 2017 ** The Freebird Club **, a social platform for travel and accommodation, exclusively for people over 50 years of age.
“The social engagement it gave her was like a new lease on life and she loved it. Additionally, guest reviews were exceptional, often citing this social aspect as the highlight of their trip,” he explains. Mangan to Traveler.es.
The partners of this community offer the rent your free rooms in order to generate extra income, meet new people and, at the same time, have the possibility of travel the world in an enriching way.
"Until now the feedback from members has been wonderful. Apart from the usual reviews about the experience during the stay, we have received many emails of people telling us how much they liked the idea and considering offering it to older people they know, especially those who are alone, ”he confesses.
A bike ride through Ljubljana?
IT'S NEVER LATE IF THE DESTINATION IS GOOD
** Australia ,** ** Bahamas , Dominican Republic , Canada , Brazil , Belgium , Colombia , Costa Rica , Czech Republic ** or Austrian are some of the wonderful destinations that members of freebird they can choose. They add up to a few 350 accommodations in 31 countries around the world , and the figure promises to continue growing. As much as the number of users has: 35,000 from 70 different countries.
“The most important task at the moment is grow the network of hosts so that there is a wide selection of locations, hosts and accommodations , adapting to the needs of our members. We would love for any reader over the age of 50, who is interested in hosting Freebird guests, to join us." Mangan comments.
The price varies depending on the place and the quality of the accommodation. You can find from **a beautiful apartment in Thailand** for less than €10 a night, to luxury villas in Spain or France for more than €100.
The essence of The Freebird Cub is people , for this reason we will find more rooms than houses or apartments. In addition, in the future, the idea is to carry out Group activities or gatherings of people with the same hobbies, such as movies or reading.
“The goal of the club is encourage social connections and engagement between people This is only possible when you have a host who is there during your stay. The Freebird Club targets people who want the personal touch of staying and meet the owner of the house ”, says Peter Mangan.
THE REQUIREMENTS
To travel or host on Freebird, all you have to do is pay the €25 for registration and be approved by the rest of the club members. Once this is done, the user must complete your profile in order to find affinities between guests and hosts . But, above all, the essential requirement is to be over 50 years old . Why? Its creator has given us the answer.
“ The original concept was for people over 60 , since they are closer to The retirement and are more likely to have the time and inclination to travel and meet people , as well as the need to supplement their pensions. However, the advice he received from marketing experts was that to attract people that age, say it's 50+. Hence the chosen strip ”, he explains.
“The goal of The Freebird Club is to allow active, healthy and 'connected' aging . It doesn't make sense to me that there are so many seniors struggling with loneliness and isolation. We want empowering seniors to connect, travel, have fun and enjoy the world around them ”, He tells us.
And for the peace of mind of those who want to be part of this travel experience, during the onboarding process, the creators of Freebird will contact the hosts and, through a series of questions (by Skype or by phone), they will make sure that their homes are suitable, as well as that they are aware of the commitment involved in joining this community.
“As an added feature of confidence and security we have designed a system that allows members to name a 'friend' who will have limited access to their Freebird account and activity . If the member books a stay or hosts a guest, their 'friend' will receive a notification and will be able to see the profile of the other party and the details of the reservation made”, explains the creator of Freebird.
“We believe that right now is the beginning of a movement, whereby we are creating a community that can mobilize and empower the elderly, especially those who have forgotten what it is to meet new people and travel. Every movement depends on the community, and that will be the key to the success of The Freebird Club ”, concludes Mangan.